Grace For The Journey

  You may be wondering, “What is enough?”   What is the “it” of “It is enough?”  We find the answer in the Bible, where in Matthew 10:24-25 our Lord Jesus is recorded as saying, “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master.  It is enough for a disciple that he be like his teacher, and a servant like his master . . .”

Jesus tells us that “it is enough” for students to be like their teachers and servants like their masters.  So . . .

The question for you today must be,

“Is this true for you?  

Is it enough for you

To be like your Teacher

And Master, Jesus Christ?”

 Surely you would not want to be exalted above your Lord; neither should you desire to receive a crown of glory on this side of the grave when our Lord received a crown of thorns.

Throughout His three-plus years of ministry, our Lord was mocked, ridiculed, persecuted, , denied, condemned, betrayed, abandoned, beaten, scourged, and nailed to a cross.  He came into this world among the beasts of burden, having been born in a manger because there was no room for Him in the inn.  He departed this world hanging on a cruel cross between two condemned criminals.  Along the way, the Creator of the universe and the Savior of the world had no place to call “home,” as He said in Matthew 8:20, “Foxes have their holes, and the birds of the air have their nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head” (Matthew 8:20).

So, if the student is not above the teacher nor the servant above his master, what are we to expect on our way to glory?

If we are indeed His student and servant,

We should expect to experience much

Of the same unpleasantness

That Jesus received.

Despite what some badly

Misguided “prosperity teachers”

Would have us believe,

Christianity is not about

Living a life of health,

Wealth, and comfort;

Far from it!

The apostle Paul expected to get much of the same as His Savior did, and that is what Paul received at the hands of those who despised his Master.  He briefly recounted his trials to the Christians at Corinth (2 Corinthians 11:22-28): multiple beatings and floggings, stoned nearly to death, shipwrecked three times, naked, cold, and hungry, in danger from the Roman authorities and from his own countrymen.  And yet . . .

Even in his final charge

To his beloved companion

And co-laborer Timothy,

Paul provided the necessary

Encouragement to remind Timothy

– And you and me –

That it is indeed “enough”

To be like Jesus.

The Bible says in 2 Timothy 3:12, “Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.”  For many today, one of the hardest verses to live by is Philippians 1;29 which says, “For to you it has been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake.”  Today we are seeing the world reacting more adamantly against Christian truths and principles in every area of life.  Because of this we may be called to suffer on behalf of Christ.  Let’s look at three truths on this:

1) We may suffer through our connection with Christ.  It has been that way throughout the years of Christianity.  Today we may be met with ridicule or opposition at work, at school, on social media, and at social gatherings as we seek to live for and serve Christ faithfully.

2) We may suffer for the cause of Christ.  We may serve Him by our suffering.  Faithful endurance is itself a grand witness to Christ.  The martyr preaches Christ as truly as the missionary.  Even the patient endurance of pain because it is Christ’s will that we should bear it does honor to Christ.  Many a sufferer, who thinks his life a useless burden to others, teaches such high lessons by the spirit of faith and love with which he endures, that he serves Christ more effectually in his infirmity than others by the most vigorous activity.

3) It is a real blessing to be permitted to suffer on behalf of Christ.

1. a) It is proof of fidelity. Rather than causing us to fear the adversaries of the Gospel, as we respond in a God-honoring way we have our faith confirmed in their trials.

   b) It is a means of serving Christ. It is an honor and a joy to serve Christ in any way, and most of all where the service is most effective.

   c) It is a proof of  The best soldiers are selected for the hardest service.  The persecuted and martyrs are the flower of the Christian army.  It will lead to the greatest reward,

   d) The peace and joy of heaven will be intensified by contrast with the pain and the battles we fight in life.  As someone has said, “Only the toiler can know the true sweetness of rest, and only the sufferer the deep blessedness of heaven.”

This is to be the desire

And reality of every Christian

. . . To live a godly life in Christ Jesus

The more you become like your Master, the more you will face opposition and persecution.

And in that persecution,

Regardless of what form

It may take,

It will be enough

To know that you

Are like your Lord.

The world will welcome you as long as you speak and live according to its values and ways.  But when you choose to live according to the Word and seek to obey and honor Jesus with your life, the world will do everything in its power to ridicule you and shout you down.

Knowing that this was the life of our Lord, which ended on a hill outside the city nailed to a cross, let us be strengthened and encouraged by the truth that “It is enough” to be like Him in every way.  And that, my Christian friend, includes His suffering.

This is God’s Word For Today … This Is Grace For The Journey

Rest and Rejoice in this eternal truth!

Pastor Terry

Ephesians 4:7 – “But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it.”

Hebrews 4:16 – “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”