God Hates Cruelty

 Why does God allow such terrible suffering in this world? People blame God. Why does God allow cruel slavery? 

The Egyptian pyramids were built by slaves. In the so-called golden age of Ancient Greece, the citizens exercised democratic rights, but their wives lived at home under strict control. The beautiful buildings were built by slaves. The city government operated brothels. The prostitutes were slaves, and the money paid for their services was not given to the women.

Human trafficking and forced prostitution is still a huge international industry today.

Did God do this? Why blame God for the evil that men choose to practise? 

It is true that God permitted slavery in the bible, but the slavery that God authorised was very different from the brutal practices in Egypt, Greece and Rome and in the illegal brothels today.

The apostle Paul told Christian slaves to obey their masters. What was the alternative? A slave owner was legally entitled to kill a disobedient slave on the spot.

At the same time, Paul instructed Christian slave owners to treat their slaves kindly. This was a radical idea at the time.
But how did this world become so cruel in the first place? 

God created the first man and woman and gave them the authority to manage this world. They were supposed to be God’s junior partners in governing the natural world. 

Adam and Eve were created in the image of God. Since God has free will, Adam and Even must also have free will. Otherwise they could not be like God.

Some people doubt if this bible story is literally true, but even if you are not sure, it is obvious that we humans have turned away from God from the very beginning. God gave us humans the authority to manage the earth and without God we have messed it up very badly.

Jesus taught that we must love each other like brothers and sisters, to love our neighbour as ourselves.

So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets. Mt 7:12 NIV

If everyone followed this teaching of Jesus, there would be no slavery, no prostitution, no domestic violence, no child abuse, no robbery or violence.

All these terrible things are what people choose to do, so why blame God?

Does God like slavery? 

Who led the political campaign against slavery in the British Empire. William Wilberforce, a committed Christian.

Who led the political battle to abolish cruel child labour in British factories? The Anthony Ashley Cooper, the Earl of Shaftsbury, another dedicated Christian.

God Feels your Suffering

 Life can be a hard test.

God did not create us for rejection and disappointment, but for love and fulfilment. Nevertheless, we are rejected and disappointed so often.

Do you know what? God also suffers because we so often reject and disappoint him. Nevertheless, he also loves you and me.

But maybe we doubt whether God really has such feelings. God wanted to show us how He really is, how He loves us and how He suffers for us.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. Jn 3:16 NIV

Jesus was with Father God eternally before creation.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
He was with God in the beginning.
Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. Jn 1:1–3 NIV

Jesus is also God Himself and remains God forever but also man, for He came to us on earth to share in our humanity.

He came to us humans, but we all rejected and deeply hurt him.

He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognise him.
He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Jn 1:10–11 NIV

Jesus was born without an earthly father because God was his Father, but his contemporaries saw him as an illegitimate child. Can you understand how the people in his village would have tormented him?

When Jesus started healing the sick and offering his love to the outcasts of society, he was accused by the religious leaders of being possessed by the devil. Jesus delivered suffering Jews from demons, but the Pharisees said that Jesus was casting out demons by the power of the devil.

Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand.
If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? Mt 12:25–26 NIV

Do you feel misunderstood and alone? Jesus understands. He has been there too.

Jesus suffered a lot, not because He lived wrongly, but because He was good. The enemies of God hate God and everything that is good. Jesus understands your broken heart and He is on your side.

The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
The righteous person may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all; Ps 34:18–19 NIV

Jesus does not promise His followers a life without problems, but He will help you in all your troubles.

God has not Forgotten You

 Are you at the end of yourself? Has God forgotten you?

In the Old Testament, the Jews were desperate. They had gone wrong. They still believed in God to some extent, but they had not taken God seriously.

God had commanded:

“You shall have no other gods before me. Ex 20:3 NIV

God had strictly forbidden the worship of idols.

But those who trust in idols, who say to images, ‘You are our gods,’ will be turned back in utter shame. Is 42:17 NIV

Apostate kings in Jerusalem had worshipped idols since Solomon's time, and the people copied the sins of their neighbours.

Many believed in the god Baal and the goddess Asherah, Baal's supposed wife. This religion was all about sex and fertility. The priestesses of Asherah were prostitutes. The men worshipped the goddess by visiting these prostitutes.

This also happened in God's temple. This was supposed to make the land fertile so that they would have a good harvest.

It's a bit different here today. Sex is worshipped, but not fertility.
Exactly the opposite. We want to have very few children, and there are no longer enough young people in Western Europe.

The Jews in the Old Testament cruelly slaughtered their children in order to gain the favour of the pagan god Moloch.

Abortion is sometimes needed to save the life of the mother but millions of unborn babies are killed for all kinds of reasons.

God's prophets had warned again and again, but most people did not want to take the warnings seriously.

The people had surrendered to the rule of the cruel false gods. Finally, they had to reap what they had sown.

At that time the officers of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon advanced on Jerusalem and laid siege to it … 2 Kings 24:10 NIV

Nebuchadnezzar's army conquered God's people and Jerusalem was occupied.

The Jews were deported en masse to Babylon, where many were enslaved.

But what does this ancient history have to do with us? Does slavery exist today?

You can find drug dealers everywhere. If you have an addiction, you are enslaved. Many young women end up in prostitution to buy drugs.

There are boys on the street who spend the night with gays to avoid freezing on the street.

When people are exposed to such terrible alternatives, we can speak of slavery without exaggeration.

How can God allow such suffering? God has given us free will as human beings. We can suffer because of our own flawed choices, or often because of the evil choices of others.

One of the young Jews who was taken away by Nebuchadnezzar was Daniel. He was very intelligent and of noble birth. Even as a teenager, he was enslaved and castrated.

But God loved Daniel and all the deported Jews. In the prophetic book of Isaiah, we see God's heart for the suffering Jews.

But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me, the Lord has forgotten me.”
“Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! Is 49:14–15 NIV

Daniel was determined to remain faithful to God in his miserable circumstances.

God sees your heart and His heart beats for you, as it did for Daniel. Daniel became the administrator of the government under Nebuchadnezzar and one of the greatest prophets in the Old Testament.

Are you in a mess where you can't see a way out?

God has not forgotten you. He loves his suffering daughters and sons, just as he loved Daniel.

God's love never gives up.

God will not Fail You

 Those who are faithful can always expect God's help. God never abandons his faithful children. How can you be more faithful than God?

David was God's faithful servant, but he was persecuted by King Saul. His life was in danger and he had to find refuge in a cave. In his distress, he prayed fervently.

Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy! I look to you for protection. I will hide beneath the shadow of your wings until the danger passes by.
I cry out to God Most High, to God who will fulfil his purpose for me. Ps 57:1–2 NLT

When we are in deep trouble, whether we are to blame or innocent like David, we must seek the Lord with all our heart.

He will never let you down.

If you fail but still choose to stand by Jesus, you can expect God's grace and mercy.
God saved David again and again.
God trained David through many hard trials so that he became the greatest of all kings.

Do you want to fulfil your calling from God? Then you can expect hard trials.
God always has a plan to lead you out of every trouble.

Often you don't know how to pray.
Jesus has given you his Holy Spirit to help you in your weakness.

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.

And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God. Rom 8:26–27 NIV

Paul was also often in impossible situations, but God saved him again and again and healed him of terrible wounds, otherwise he would not have been able to continue.

Five times I received from the Jews thirty-nine lashes.
Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, a night and a day I have spent in the deep. 2 Cor 11:24–25 NASB95

Paul had to suffer so much. Nevertheless, he wrote:

What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? Rom 8:31 NIV

God's almighty weapons in your hands.
Proclaim God's word.
Intercession. The marvellous gift of grace to pray in languages we have never learned.

God Heals and Transforms Trauma

 The way of love can be hard. You have sincerely tried to be a faithful Christian, but you have been overwhelmed with all kinds of obstacles for years.

Joan Hunter is the daughter of Charles and Frances Hunter, who were pioneers in the healing ministry. She too was faithful and gifted to proclaim healing and salvation.

She married a man who was supposed to be a faithful Christian, but it turned out that he was homosexual and committed adultery with men.

Her heart was broken. She had children she had to raise alone. What happened to her ministry? Through her own experience, she became deeply familiar with trauma. Her tragedy became a treasure of healing for many traumatised women and men.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, 

who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. 2 Cor 1:3–4 NASB95

If you are deeply traumatised in your soul, you must understand that it is not just your thoughts and feelings that are hurt. Your whole being is damaged: your brain, your heart, your health.

Forgiveness is a necessary aspect of the healing process, but many counsellors go wrong when they give good advice. ‘Just Forgive.’

Forgiveness is not easy and it is not painless. Forgiveness is also only part of the healing process.

Abuse and trauma can ruin your whole being. There are people who must be rebuilt all over again.

‘Just forgive’ as formulaic advice is a poisoned chalice.

Traumatised people need healing, as do patients who are dying with cancer.

He heals the brokenhearted And binds up their wounds. Ps 147:3 NASB95

Are you perishing? Your pain can become medicine for other suffering people.

I ask you, therefore, not to be discouraged because of my sufferings for you, which are your glory. Eph 3:13 NIV

Paul had to suffer a lot as a missionary. He wrote his letters to the Ephesians and Colossians in prison. As a suffering prisoner, Paul received and passed on marvellous revelations.

His suffering became a marvellous blessing for the Ephesians.

He heals the brokenhearted And binds up their wounds. Ps 147:3 NASB95

Are you crushed? Your pain can become medicine for other suffering people.

Blessing in Suffering

 For Jesus, the cross was the most terrifying nightmare. On the evening of His arrest, after the Last Supper, He was overcome with horror.

“Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” Mk 14:36 NIV

An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him.
And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. Lk 22:43–44 NIV

The cross was an unbearable agony, but it was the way Jesus had to go to redeem us.

The agony of the cross was God's plan before the foundation of the world so that God's eternal Son would take the punishment for our sins. He loves you.

Thank you Jesus.

But Jesus was not the only one who had to suffer in order to pass on God's grace. The devil does not want to allow God's grace to be passed on without cruel resistance.

Paul was terribly persecuted.

Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one.

Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, 2 Cor 11:24–25 NIV

Even today, tens of thousands of Christians are murdered every year and even more are tortured in prisons.

Are you under threat now? The cross was the unthinkable torture for Jesus, but it was the way to God's heaven, not only for Himself, but for countless people, including you and me.

About six years ago, I was diagnosed with cancer. I had prayed beforehand that no cancer would show up in the biopsy, but God allowed the cancer so that I would have a testimony.

Recently I had another biopsy. The very tiny tumours were still there but had not grown or progressed in 6 years. I never needed treatment and the specialist said I would probably never need it. God moves in mysterious ways.

It has been a tough trial, but my testimony not only grew my faith, but it was a strong encouragement to my family and friends.

We don't get far without hard trials. How would David have become a great king and prophet without Goliath?

For Daniel, the lion's den was not a stumbling block, but a stepping stone through which he was vindicated. The lion's den was not his defeat, but his victory.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer is a role model for the German nation and for Christians all over the world. He was murdered by the Nazis shortly before the end of the war. Without Adolf Hitler, his influence would never have been so great.

I love testimonies of miraculous healings and near-death experiences, but most of these people had to first experience illness or death in order to be able to testify of Jesus and his glory.

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. Rom 8:28 NIV

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort,  who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 

For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. 2 Cor 1:3–5 NIV

I have never enjoyed the loving presence of God more than in hard times.

God Wants to Comfort You

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Mt 5:4 NRSV

Who can expect comfort from God?

According to some commentaries, this only applies to people who are sorry for their sins and want to repent, or to Christians who mourn in a close relationship with Jesus because of the sins in the world.

It is undoubtedly true that God forgives and comforts us when we hate our sins and want to repent.

It is also true that Jesus weeps over the sins of the world. When we weep in close communion with him, we experience the comfort of his tender love.

But can we only expect God's comfort when we mourn over sin?

When your child or sister dies, are you happy? No. You are devastated. This has nothing to do with sin, but God is love. He loves you deeply and wants to comfort you.

If your beloved dog dies, do you think your grief is not important to God?

I appreciate good Bible commentaries. I've been an avid student of the Bible for years.

But beware of pious sermons that focus on sin with a narrow religious view.

This religious mindset all too often leads to a critical attitude when dealing with neighbours and colleagues.

With a narrow focus on virtue and sin, one can become unconsciously judgemental, like the Pharisees in the Bible.

This way of thinking also often leads to unloving religiosity in congregations and painful guilt complexes in Christians who want to be holy.

Meanwhile, when the crowd gathered by the thousands, so that they trampled on one another, he began to speak first to his disciples, “Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees, that is, their hypocrisy. Lk 12:1 NRSV

He heals the brokenhearted, and binds up their wounds. Ps 147:3 NRSV

Whatever your reason for suffering, Jesus wants to comfort you. If you choose to believe in His love and trust Him, you will experience His comforting love.

Am I saying that your sin is not an issue for Jesus?

God forbid! Jesus died to take the punishment for our sin. Jesus feels your pain; He loves you unconditionally just as you are, but He not only wants to forgive your sins completely, He also wants to remove them.

He wants to help you live a whole new life and enjoy His loving friendship.

Blessings Break Curses

 Corrie ten Boom was a Dutch woman who loved Jesus. During the Nazi occupation of Holland, her family provided a refuge for Jews.

Her family was betrayed and she and her sister were deported by the Nazis. She was in Ravensbrück concentration camp in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. A very hard fate.

She began to encourage the other prisoners with her biblical faith. She held fast to St Paul's admonition to be thankful for everything.

In everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 1 Th 5:18 NASB95

What, really? For the disgusting food? For the cold?

She began to speak aloud an unthinkable thanksgiving. ‘Thank you for the bedbugs.’

But after saying this nonsensical prayer, she had a revelation.

Because of the bedbugs, they were not bothered by the cruel guards in their unsavoury dormitory. The guards wanted to avoid these disgusting vermin at all costs.

She also had to pass another tough test.

She had to overcome her hatred. Jesus taught that we must love and bless our enemies.
Her beloved sister became seriously ill and died in the concentration camp.

Then Corrie was allowed to leave the concentration camp. That was a miracle. Someone in an office in Germany had made a mistake, and she was released from the concentration camp early because of it. That was a miracle from God.

But she had suffered terribly and lost her family.

After the war, Corrie became a travelling preacher.
God also sent her to minister in Germany, which was also a hard test for her.

After a sermon in Germany, a guard from the concentration camp approached her and asked for forgiveness.

Corrie was frozen with shock. Traumatised.

But she forced herself to shake hands.

Bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. Lk 6:28 NIV

Corrie was a victim of the Nazis, but she refused to take upon herself the identity of a victim.

Are you perhaps a target for cruel attacks in your family or at work?

God forbid, but it may also be happening in your church. In the Bible, the Pharisees were not nice people, but not all Pharisees are Jews. Unfortunately, there are also Christian Pharisees.

You can get used to expecting bullying. You can be despised and then start to disrespect yourself.

That's a false identity. You are not that person, no matter how many times you have failed.
God is your creator and he made you good.

It could be that your family were Nazi criminals, or persecuted Jews. I met a wonderful preacher who had been a gangster and a pimp. I know a lovely Christian woman who was a prostitute.

No matter where you come from, God has made you good. God has a good plan for your life, and He wants to fulfil His plan.

But you must recognise yourself as God's good creation.

Bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. Lk 6:28 NIV

You know, those who are used to being despised and cursed often learn to despise and curse themselves.

You must learn to bless your tormentors, but also to bless yourself.
Start saying blessings over yourself.

“The LORD bless you and keep you;
the LORD make his face shine on you and be gracious to you;
the LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace.” Num 6:24–26 NIV

The Wrong Cross

 In a dream, I saw a Christian hanging on a cross.

I don't remember any other details except that the Christian had experienced disappointing results in his efforts to serve God.

What was the reason for this lack of success? The words in my dream were as clear as the sun in the sky.
‘The wrong cross!’

The Christian was nailed to a cross, but it was not ordained by God. What could that mean?

I didn't see anything more concrete in the dream, and God didn't speak directly to me about it, but as I thought about the message, many real-life stories came to mind.

Both the Lord Jesus and the Apostle Paul taught that celibacy is a calling and a gift from God that is only given to some people. Paul was celibate, but most of the apostles, including Peter, were married.

Yet there are some churches that require all ordained ministers to be celibate. We regularly read about sex scandals in the media. Obviously, celibacy is ‘the wrong cross’ for many people.

There are also churches where you are supposed to get married. You are even told who to marry and who not to marry.

Many Christian women see their husbands criminally assaulting their own children or abusing them with porn or incest. When such women protest, they are often not believed by church leaders or are told it is their own fault for not being a sexually satisfying wife.

They are often told that it is a sin to leave their husband. ‘God hates divorce’ for whatever reason. If these women submit to this torture, they are on the ‘wrong cross’.

There are women who are taught that contraception is a sin and that they must give birth to as many children as possible.

They are on ‘The Wrong Cross’.

There are women who are taught that they must always obey their husbands unconditionally. They are not free to serve God as disciples who receive their calling and guidance directly from God.

They are on the ‘wrong cross’.

There are women who are taught that they are not allowed to preach or teach. Many are called and gifted by God to do what their pastors or husbands forbid.

Many of these women are on the ‘Wrong Cross’.

Many Christians are taught that submission to the leaders of their church is their first duty. Leaving their church or joining another church is sin. They must sacrifice their dreams for their own lives and ministry in order to serve the vision of the head pastor.

This can lead to a life of passive religiosity. They are not allowed to think for themselves or express opinions other than those of their leaders.

These people are at the ‘wrong cross’.

I know a pastor whose people call him ‘Papa’.

Some say you should never hold your pastor accountable because a pastor is like Moses who was accountable to no one but God.

What did Jesus say?

“But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have one Teacher, and you are all brothers.
And do not call anyone on earth ‘father,’ for you have one Father, and he is in heaven. Mt 23:8–9 NIV

There are Christians who are taught that God uses sickness to purify us through suffering. Many people suffer from sickness because they believe they are glorifying God.

They are on the ‘wrong cross’.

There is only one cross that deals with sickness, the cross of Jesus Christ.

That evening they brought to him many who were possessed with demons; and he cast out the spirits with a word, and cured all who were sick.

This was to fulfil what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah, “He took our infirmities and bore our diseases.” Mt 8:16–17 NRSV

When I read the Gospels, I see that Jesus is the healer, not the tormentor.
There are Christians who have been abused or mistreated for years. They develop a victim mentality, paralysed by false humility, bitterness or self-hatred. Jesus lived, died and rose again to set you free.

Please don't stay on the ‘wrong cross’.

Jesus, our Compassionate Friend

 I know some Christian women who regularly visit brothels, not to preach, but to offer friendship and help to the prostitutes. They have rescued some from human trafficking and others have come to faith in Jesus.

Some Christians disapprove of visiting sinful places, but Jesus himself mixed with the outcasts of society

For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon’;

the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.” Mt 11:18–19 NRSV

Some Christians look at the lives of unbelievers, and focus on their sins. Jesus wanted to save sinners from their sins, but he did not just look upon them as sinners, but as people who were struggling with the challenges and disappointments of life.

Jesus really was a friend to sinners. What does true friendship mean? A true friend empathises and tries to understand how you feel.

When Jesus saw severely sick people, he was moved with compassion and healed them.

But he did not only feel compassion for physical suffering, but also the mental and emotional suffering of people living in darkness.

Life is full of struggles and disappointments, for Christians as well as unbelievers. If you put your trust in Jesus, you have eternal life, but that does not make you immune to grief and heartache.

Jesus himself knew what sorrow and grief meant.

He was despised and rejected by others; a man of suffering and acquainted with infirmity; and as one from whom others hide their faces he was despised, and we held him of no account.

Surely he has borne our infirmities and carried our diseases; yet we accounted him stricken, struck down by God, and afflicted. Is 53:3–4 NRSV

This translation correctly shows how Jesus, as our healer, bore our physical pains and sicknesses on the cross.

Some other translations emphasise the mental grief and sorrow, that Jesus endured, and how he identified himself with our emotional struggles.

Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted. Is 53:4 NKJV

God looks at your sins, and he wants to forgive you, but he does not just look upon you as a judge, but as one who loves you and identifies with your emotional struggles.

After Jesus returned to heaven, he sent the Holy Spirit to be our comforter. The Holy Spirit in NT Greek is the PARAKLETOS. One who is called alongside.

God is closer than breathing. He feels your heartaches, and he wants to touch you with his compassionate love.

Comfort in Loneliness

What comforts you in your loneliness?

• Do you have a friend you can call?

• Do you have a book that touches your heart? Do you have a favourite song that cheers you up?

• Do you know a Christmas carol that you can sing with a little joy?

• Do you have a happy memory that makes you smile?
  

 Are you overwhelmed by fear and bitterness? Please don't give up!

Maybe you have a neighbour who is also lonely. Can you give some food or groceries to a neighbour who has nothing?

Jesus was also lonely on this earth. He found comfort in the Psalms.

Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me, for in you my soul takes refuge; in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge, till the storms of destruction pass by.

I cry out to God Most High, to God who fulfils his purpose for me.

He will send from heaven and save me; he will put to shame him who tramples on me. Selah God will send out his steadfast love and his faithfulness! Psalm 57:1–3 ESV

Jesus was fully satisfied in the love of the Father in heaven before creation, but he came to us here to comfort you. 

Here on earth he knew what loneliness was. He exposed himself to loneliness to comfort you in your loneliness.

When Jesus was hanging on the cross, he prayed in despair.

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? ... Psalm 22:2

But in the end he prayed to the Father:

And when Jesus had cried out with a loud voice, He said, “Father, ‘into Your hands I commit My spirit.’ ” Having said this, He breathed His last. Luke 23:46 NKJV

This is good prayer if you are dying, but you can also pray it if you feel like dying. God raised Jesus from the dead. He wants to raise you up from your depression.

You can surrender your spirit into God's loving hands now. He loves you.

When God lifts you out of the pit of despair, you will know how to comfort others.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort,

who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. 2 Corinthians 1:3–4 ESV
 

Suffering Healed .. Not so easy.

The way of love can be hard. You have sincerely tried to be a faithful Christian, but you have been overwhelmed with all kinds of roadblocks for years.

Joan Hunter is the daughter of Charles and Frances Hunter, who were pioneers in the healing ministry. She was also faithful and gifted in ministering healing and salvation.

She married a man who was supposed to be a faithful Christian, but it turned out he was gay, and committed adultery with men.

Her heart was broken. She had children to bring up alone.

What happened to her ministry? Through her own experience she became intimately acquainted with trauma. Her tragedy became a treasure of healing for many traumatised women and men.

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort,

who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. 2 Corinthians 1:3–4 NIV84

Those who are deeply traumatised in their souls need to understand that it is not only their thoughts and feelings that are hurt. Your whole being is damaged: your brain, your heart, your health.

Forgiveness is a necessary aspect of the healing process, but many counsellors go wrong when they give simplistic advice...

 "Just forgive." Forgive, yes. Just forgive? Really?

Forgiveness is not easy and it is not simple. Forgiveness is also only part of the healing process.

Abuse and trauma can ruin your whole being. There are people who need to be rebuilt from the ground up.

"Just forgive" as formulaic advice is a poisoned chalice.

Traumatised people need healing, as much as patients who are dying with cancer.

He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. Psalm 147:3 ESV

Are you broken? Your pain can become medicine for others who are suffering. 

When people recover from a serious illness, they can donate their blood, which is used to infuse antibodies into others to protect them from the virus.

So I ask you not to lose heart over what I am suffering for you, which is your glory. Eph 3:13 ESV

Paul had to suffer a lot as a missionary. He wrote his letters to the Ephesians and Colossians in prison. As a suffering prisoner, Paul received and shared glorious revelations.

His suffering became a glorious blessing for the Ephesians.

He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. Psalm 147:3 ESV

Are you broken? Your pain can become medicine for other suffering people.

God is Faithful

If you are faithful, you can always expect God's help. God never abandons his faithful children. How can you be more faithful than God?

David was God's faithful servant, but he was persecuted by King Saul. His life was in danger, and he had to find refuge in a cave. In his distress he prayed fervently.

Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me! For my soul trusts in You; And in the shadow of Your wings I will make my refuge, Until these calamities have passed by. 

I will cry out to God Most High, To God who performs all things for me. Ps 57:1-3

When you are in deep distress, whether through your own fault or quite innocent like David, you need to get really serious with God.

He will never fail you.

If you fail but you are still committed to Jesus, can expect God's grace and mercy.

• God saved David again and again.

• God trained David through many hard trials, so that he became the greatest of all kings.

  Do you want to fulfil your calling from God? Then you can expect hard trials. 

  God always has a plan to get you out of any trouble.
  
  Often you do not know how to pray.
  Jesus has given you his Holy Spirit to help you in your weakness.
  
  Likewise, the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
  
  Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God. Romans 8:26–27 NKJV
  
  Paul too was often in impossible situations, but God saved him again and again and healed him from terrible wounds, otherwise he could not have continued.
  
  Five different times the Jewish leaders gave me thirty-nine lashes.
  
  Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked. Once I spent a whole night and a day adrift at sea. 2 Corinthians 11:24–25 NLT
  
  Paul suffered so much. Nevertheless, he wrote:
  
  What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? Romans 8:31 NKJV
  
  God's invincible weapons in your hands.
  

  • Speak God's word.

  • Prayer in the Spirit. The miraculous gift of God to pray in languages you have never learned.

  
  
  

God's Healing for Damaged People

In Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, ATHELAS is a powerful healing herb. The true King is also a true healer, and he applies the herb ATHELAS to terrible wounds.
 
This is a Christian parable.

ATHELAS is the New Testament Greek word meaning TRUTH.
In the New Testament the true King is Jesus but his true identity is veiled, as Jesus lives an ordinary life amongst ordinary people, just like Aragorn in The Lord of the Rings.

In The Lord of the Rings, two heroic characters are stabbed with blades empowered by demonic witchcraft, that is Frodo and Eowyn. Aragorn, the King in exile, puts ATHELAS herb in hot steaming water and applies the medicine to the deadly wounds.

When people are traumatised by dark and terrible experiences, only truth can heal them.
 
Many Christians have some understanding of this but lack the deep wisdom and love to apply truth in a healing way.

In the Lord of the Rings, it is the King himself who applies the healing herb with gentleness and healing skill.

It is not enough to present traumatised people with the truth about the King. We must bring them gently into the presence of the King Himself.

Some badly damaged people can only tolerate medicine in very small doses. Sometimes we must administer very small doses of truth with a lot of love and patience.

In the New Testament, Jesus did not declare the full truth of who he is to the crowds when they came for healing. He healed the sick and he spoke in parables.

Timing is also vitally important. Even with his chosen twelve apostles, Jesus did not begin by telling them he was the eternal God come down from heaven. He waited for the Father to reveal it to them.

When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?"

So they said, "Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."

He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"

Simon Peter answered and said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."

Jesus answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.  Mt 16:13-17 NKJ

A young woman goes to church looking for God. She was abused as a child and became a prostitute. She is traumatised and sees herself as a victim.

The pastor confronts the issue of her sin but shows little empathy for her as a suffering victim.

Timing!

We must know when and how to minister truth to damaged people.

To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven: Eccl 3:1 NKJ

Brothers and sisters, if a person is caught doing something wrong, you who are spiritual should restore someone like this with a spirit of gentleness. Watch out for yourselves so you won't be tempted too. Gal 6:1 CEB

Remember, truth must always come with love and mercy. Truth without love often makes wounds worse, not better.
 
Ultimately God will judge the world with truth and condemn everyone who rejected Jesus, but remember, you and I are not judges. Only God is the judge.

But what about strong preaching? Don’t we also need that?
Strong preaching is like surgery. Some people need life saving operations.

But even with surgery, we try to minimise the pain with anaesthetics, gentle after care and pain relief.
There are some preachers and some Christians who approach every situation like a surgeon.

Supposing a family doctor routinely and repeatedly sends all his patients to hospital for major operations. He will kill people and lose his license to practise medicine.

If you are an evangelist, you are gifted and called to confront sin, but don’t do this to the same people over and over again. Jesus was called the friend of sinners.

Truth without grace often does more harm than good.

Saved though Bearinng Children??

But women will be saved through childbearing--if they continue in faith, love and holiness with propriety. 1 Timothy 2:15 (NIV)

Does this mean that women can only be saved if they bear children?

God forbid! Then all virgins would be damned!

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-- 

not by works, so that no one can boast. Ephesians 2:8-9 (NIV)

Or should we believe, as some people apparently think, that women have no ministry other bringing up children?

That is easy to prove wrong.

There was also a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage,

and then was a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshipped night and day, fasting and praying. Luke 2:36-37 (NIV)

So what has salvation to do with having babies?

Nevertheless, she will be saved in childbearing if they continue in faith, love, and holiness, with self-control. 1 Timothy 2:15 (NKJV)

In our time in western countries, childbirth is not as dangerous as in poor countries or in former times. In bible days, many women died giving birth.

In the original Greek text we see the word SOZO.

In the New Testament this word refers to salvation from God's judgement, but also being saved from death or being delivered from sickness.

And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins." Matthew 1:21 (NKJV)

The disciples went and woke him, saying, "Lord, save us! We're going to drown!" Matthew 8:25 (NIV)

Jesus turned and saw her. "Take heart, daughter," he said, "your faith has healed you." And the woman was healed from that moment. Matthew 9:22 (NIV)

Paul wants to encourage women to expect deliverance from trauma and death in childbirth.

God Loves Rejected People

The Father gave His only son Jesus for all mankind. In return, the Father wants to give all mankind to Jesus. 

 

Why do not all come to Jesus? 

 

All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out. John 6:37 (NKJV)  

 

Does God only draw some to Himself and to His Son?

• No, no, no.

Jesus said:

And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” John 12:32 (ESV) 

 

Jesus was lifted up from the earth on the cross, when He willingly died to pay the penalty for our sin, to receive the punishment for our rejection of our loving God because we chose to live as though He did not love and care for us.

 

Jesus died but He did not stay dead.

• After three days in the grave, He was bodily raised up from the grave by the Holy Spirit.

• He spent 40 days encouraging and teaching His followers before He was raised up from the earth again. 

While he blessed them, he parted from them and was carried up into heaven. Luke 24:51 (ESV) 

 

The heart of the Father is to save every one of His lost children. 

• Without Jesus in your life, you are separated from God by your own choice because you have chosen not to live in the Father love of God. 

• You have lost your right to be called a son or daughter of God.

• God is the source and giver of all life and goodness. 

• If you die without Jesus, you will still exist and you will experience the darkness and emptiness of death for ever.

If you are not enjoying the love and forgiveness of God but you are reading these words, God is speaking to you calling you to come to Jesus.

• God sent His son into the world to restore everyone to Himself but He was rejected and put to death.

• It is the same today. 

• He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. 

But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, John 1:10,12 (ESV) 

 

Why did God do this? Because God is Love. 

 

He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. 1 John 4:8 (NKJV) 

 

God’s plan is that you would find His love in a church but sadly this sometimes does not happen. 

 

• If you have not found the love of Jesus in a church, don’t give up on God. 

• If churches have rejected you, Jesus has not stopped loving you.

 

All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out. John 6:37 (NKJV)  

 

If you come to Jesus by watching Christian TV or reading the Bible alone, God is loving you and not casting you out. If you are an isolated believer in Jesus, God wants something better for you.

 

And the LORD God said, "It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him." Genesis 2:18 (NKJV) 

 

If you are a man or woman who is following Jesus alone, God is proud of you for not giving up on His Son but He wants you to have human companionship. 

 

Ask Him to lead you into Christian friendship. 

• This is more important than marriage. Marriage can be a blessing or a curse.
• This is more important than going to church or joining an organisation.
• Churches can be loving or they can destroy love.

But one great truth remains. 

Jesus is with you if you love Him and He is very powerfully present when two or three believers come together because they love Him.

• I pray that you will know the love of Jesus.

• I pray that you will find a loving church.

• I pray that you will enjoy loving family life.

• But even if you do not find a loving church or family, I pray that you will discover the blessing of believing friendship.

For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them." Matthew 18:20 (NKJV)