When Saints Suffer - Rev. Teja Smith

 

When Saints Suffer

Exodus 2:23-25

Triumph Baptist Church

1648 W. Hunting Park Ave.

Philadelphia, PA 19140

March 18, 2021

Rev. Teja Smith

“²³ Now it happened in the process of time that the king of Egypt died. Then the children of Israel groaned because of the bondage, and they cried out; and their cry came up to God because of the bondage. ²⁴ So God heard their groaning, and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. ²⁵ And God looked upon the children of Israel, and God acknowledged them.” Exodus 2:23-25, (NKJV)

In our text, we see that the Israelites are enslaved, miserable, and suffering. Immediately, I believe that, on some level, we all can relate. Haven’t you ever wondered, “Lord, why so much pain?” I mean, He is God, right? And, we are His beloved children, yes? Why allow us to suffer when He can swoop in and fix it? He can heal my body. He can heal my finances. He can heal my marriage and my relationships with my children. He can do it with one word! He can transform me into His image with a nod of His divine head. Why, then, do I have to suffer? Not only are the Israelites suffering, but they have been for years. Well, the truth is, suffering has a purpose.

God uses suffering as an incubator for growth. In Exodus 1, we see that the more the Egyptians oppressed and afflicted the Israelites, the more they multiplied and grew. So it is with the believer. No one likes suffering, but it grows us spiritually at a rate and to a depth that nothing else can. God declares in His Word that He has refined us in the furnace of suffering. And, in another place in Scripture, we learn that even sadness has a refining influence on us. (Exodus 1:9-12, Isaiah 48:10, Ecclesiastes 7:3)

God uses suffering as an agent to teach us about ourselves. The Bible teaches us that the human heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. We even have a propensity to lie to ourselves, and sometimes God has to allow us to suffer so that it can bring the “real” person out. The truth is, we only think we know what we would do or say in a given situation, but we learn a whole lot about ourselves when we are actually faced with testing and trials (Jeremiah 17:9-10, Psalm 119:29). 

God uses suffering as an agent to teach us about our God. When Paul expressed his deep desire to know God, he admitted that he wanted to know Him both in the power of His resurrection and in the fellowship of His suffering so that he could be continually transformed into the likeness of Christ. Jesus was a Man of sorrows. The Bible says that He was acquainted with deep grief. If you and I truly desire to know God, then we must know what it is to suffer. (Phil. 3:10-11, Romans 8:17-18)

But, I didn’t title this sermon “Why Saints Suffer” although I pray that this provides some insight that will help you, as it has helped me over the years. I titled it “When Saints Suffer” because what I really want to closely examine from our text is what God does when we are suffering. It is right there, clearly written in the Scripture. Our text teaches us that God heard, God remembered, God looked, and God acknowledged. Let’s delve a little more deeply into these four things that we may be encouraged.

God heard them. I want to know and be encouraged, child of God, that God hears you. God is listening. Have you ever had a conversation with someone who is distracted? They pretend that they are listening, and they may even be looking at you. But, when you ask a question that requires an answer, they sheepishly admit that they haven’t heard a word you said. It has happened to me, and perhaps to you too, but it will never happen with God. God not only hears you when you pray, but He hears your pain. Our text says that He heard their groaning. Think about that. Groaning is a sign of pain, but it often is barely audible. The text also says that they cried out, but it doesn’t say definitively that they cried out to God. But it does say definitively that their cry came up to God. I want to encourage you, child of God, in this season of suffering. Continue to cry out to God because He’s listening. God hears. (Psalm 17:6, Psalm 86:1, 6-7, Isaiah 30:19b, Malachi 3:16, Psalm 66:18-20) 

God Remembered them. This is not because He had forgotten. By definition, to remember is to recall to the mind by an act or effort of memory; think of again. To retain in the memory; to keep in mind; remain aware of; to have (something) come into the mind again. To me, the beauty of these two words, “God remembered,” is that it helps me to understand that I’m on the mind of God. He remembers me. He thinks about me. While my circumstances or situation may make me feel “forgotten,” the Bible assures me that God remembers me. And, He remembers you too! (Genesis 8:1, Psalm 103:14)

God Looked upon them. Do you ever think about the fact that God is looking? God sees everything. Just let that sink in for a moment. Nothing, absolutely nothing escapes His notice. He saw what they did. He saw how hard you tried. He saw you when you didn’t return evil for evil. He saw the hot, silent tears roll down your cheeks. He is looking at you. So, we know He heard them (with His ears) and remembered them (with His mind), and now He is looking at them (with His eyes). Yes, I know that God is a Spirit (John 4:24); I’m simply giving Him human traits to help us understand that all of His divine faculties are engaged during your season of suffering. I want to encourage you to put your fickle feelings on mute when you start to feel forgotten, unseen, and unheard. Nothing could be further from the truth. (Genesis 16:13, 2 Chronicles 16:9, Psalm 11:4)

God acknowledged them. This could be literally translated as “acknowledged His obligation to help them.” This may very well be my favorite point. God is a promise-keeper and has obligated Himself to His Word. He will always do what He says He’s going to do. Do you realize that you have promises hanging over your head that God is obligated to make good on? The promise is that those who sow in tears will reap in joy. The promise is that those who cry now will laugh later. The promise is that though weeping may last all night, that joy will come in the morning. Joy has to come. God has promised it, and He has magnified His word above His very name! God’s word simply cannot come back void. It must accomplish what He desires and achieve the purpose for which He sent it out. And this, child of God, has nothing to do with you or I, because even when we are not faithful, God is still faithful because He cannot deny who He is! (Psalm 126:5, Luke 6;21, Psalm 30:5, Psalm 138:2, Psalm 55:8-11, 2 Timothy 2:13)

So, I pray that you are encouraged to today, knowing that when you suffer, God still hears, remembers, looks upon, and acknowledges you and all that you are going through. I promise you that trouble won’t last always and after you have suffered a while, God will perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you!

“But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.” 1 Peter 5:10, (NKJV)