Don't Be Afraid of a Little Suffering
God's love demands a choice, and sometimes that choice involves suffering, but it's always followed by joy and final victory.
David Wilkerson emphasizes that suffering is an integral part of the Christian experience, mirroring Christ's own journey through pain before resurrection. He challenges the desire for painless deliverance, reminding us that true victory often comes through enduring trials and facing our sins. Wilkerson encourages believers to embrace their suffering as a means to deepen their faith and reliance on God, asserting that joy follows after a period of hardship. He highlights that God's love allows for free choice and testing, and that suffering can lead to spiritual growth and transformation. Ultimately, he reassures that suffering is temporary and leads to eternal glory.
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Christ's resurrection was preceded by a short period of suffering. We do die! We do suffer! There is pain and sorrow.
We do not want to suffer or be hurt. We want painless deliverance, supernatural intervention. "Do it, God," we pray, "because I am weak and always will be. Do it all while I go my way, waiting for a supernatural deliverance."
We may blame our troubles on demons. We seek out a man of God and hope he can cast out the demon so that we can go on our way with no pain or suffering. All done! Breeze right through to a peaceful life of victory. We want someone to lay hands on us and drive away all the dryness. But victory is not always without suffering and pain. Look at your sin. Face it. Suffer it through, just as Jesus did. Enter into his suffering. Suffering endures for a night, but joy always follows in the morning.
God's love demands a choice. If God supernaturally lifted us out of every battle without pain or suffering, it would abort all trials and all temptation; there would be no free choice and no testing as by fire. It would be God superimposing his will on mankind. He chooses to meet us in our dryness and show us how it can become the way into a new life of faith.
It is often the will of God that we suffer dryness and even pain. "Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator" (1 Peter 4:19).
Thank God, suffering is always the short period before final victory! "But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you" (1 Peter 5:10).
Sermon Outline
- The Reality of Suffering
- The Purpose of Suffering
- God's Love Demands a Choice
- The Will of God
- The Promise of Victory
- Suffering is a short period before final victory
- God will make us perfect, stablish, strengthen, and settle us
Key Quotes
“Suffering endures for a night, but joy always follows in the morning.” — David Wilkerson
“Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator” — David Wilkerson
“But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you” — David Wilkerson
Application Points
- We must face and suffer through our sin in order to enter into Jesus' suffering and experience true victory.
- God chooses to meet us in our dryness and suffering, and He promises to make us perfect, stablish, strengthen, and settle us in the end.
- We must commit our souls to God in well doing, even in the midst of suffering, and trust in His faithful love and care.