Suffering

 

9 August 2020

Dear Phyllis,

A couple weeks ago when I wrote to you about Job and Peter, there was a funny Ron Blough story that I wanted to share but space did not permit.

In 1966 Ron and Marlene came back to Japan after a one year furlough to find the Church of the Open Door had virtually collapsed. The next day the land lord told him the land had been sold. That was the guidance he needed. “I'm going to Hokkaido.” Ron checked shipping cost and was told it would cost him $1000 to ship his things to Sapparo. Ron found a used truck for $1000 and went 50-50 with Ed Scalf to haul his belongings up to Sapporo himself. He would use the truck, and when he was done the truck was Ed's. Three months, three blown engines and 17 flat tires later Ron got as far as Sendai when the engine gave up the ghost for the third time. Ron got out, called a tow truck to haul him into town. While he was waiting another tire blew for the 18^th time. He thought, while he was waiting for the tow truck, he might as well change the tire. As he was getting out his tools a little bird flew over and dumped slam on his head. When Ron told me that story I roared. He looked at me grimly and said, “Brother, it wasn't funny. That was something that came from heaven. There are 120,000,000 people in Japan and that little bird had to pick me to dump on.”. Ron said, it was just like the angel Gabriel was talking to the Father in heaven and asked him, “What do you think of Ron Blough?” And the Father said, “Let Me show you”. Then He sent an little bird to dump on Ron's head.

In Job's case, when the second disaster fell on him the servant told him, “Fire of God is fallen from heaven and burned up all your sheep” (Job 1: 16). Sometimes that is the way it looks. The fire came from heaven and the little bird's dropping came from heaven. But with Job, the six trials that came on him was the greatest blessing of his life. That horrible time saved him from self-righteousness and made him a genuinely transformed man. And in Peter's case when the devil sifted him like wheat, the only thing he lost was his self confidence and arrogance, that made him a truly humble servant to be the great apostle.

It is academic; we can argue whether God sends trials or allows bad things to happen to us from the devil, but the fact remains we all are going to have to walk through thorns to get to heaven. Samuel Rutherford was defrocked from his pulpit in Anwoth and sent to Aberdeen in exile and eight years of silence. At first Rutherford chaffed badly and said, “The Lord has cast me as a dry tree over the wall and will use me no more”. Like Job, he had some hard things to say about Jesus. But later we wrote, “My enemies have sent me here as my prison but they didn't realize this is my palace. I was a child before, but the Lord has brought me here to show Me the beauty of Jesus.” He never stopped chaffing over his “silent Sabboths”, but his letters are filled with praise and thanks giving for what Jesus had done for him in Aberdeen. Rutherford never stopped grieving over his silence, but little did he realize that for the next 400 years hundreds of thousands of Christians would be enormously blessed by his letters. The Letters of Samuel Rutherford are absolutely unique in all of Christian literature. He later went on to be a famous professor in a seminary and had an extensive ministry. Some of his letters are during the post-Aberdeen experience, but they don't have the same flavor. Hands down, his greatest ministry was during his eight years of silence.

Afflictions are basic to the Christian life. Paul warned the Thessalonians, “That no man should be moved by these afflictions; know that we ARE APPOINTED thereunto. We told you before that we should suffer tribulation” (1 Thes. 3:3,4). Peter wrote to the believers of his day that when we “endure grief, suffering wrongfully,

to take it patiently; for even hereunto WE ARE CALLED, because, Christ suffered for us, leaving us an example example, that we should follow His steps” (1 Pet. 2:19-21).

Do you want to follow the steps of Jesus and be like Jesus? Try poverty, persecution, and a violent death. Jesus was homeless. He said, “Foxes have holes and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has not the where to lay His head” (Lk, 9:58). Jesus was broke. He didn't have the money to pay His tax. He had to tell Peter to go catch a fish and take a coin out to pay their taxes (Mt. 17:27). He probably only had one garment. He was persecuted and run out of one town after another. And in the end He suffered a horrible violent death. Maybe Peter didn't rally mean we should be like Jesus and follow in His steps. That was just for Jesus. But all but one disciple were martyred, and millions upon millions upon millions of Christians have followed Jesus with serious poverty and violent deaths. Perhaps it might be corectly said that a CROSSLESS CHRISTIAN LIFE IS A CHRISTLESS CHRISTIAN LIFE.

I don't know what these prosperity gospel preachers are talking about. They tell us it is the will of God that we all drive Mercedes and live a illness free life for 91 years and then peacefully go to heaven to receive our great reward. Maybe they are right. Most of them live in million dollar homes and fly around in private jets. It sure is a good way to raise money. It is a strange day we have come to in Christianity. I wonder what Peter or Paul would think if they were with us today. My sisters gardener got saved in a Billy Graham Crusade in Los Angeles many years ago. When I met him I said, “I heard you got saved last year.” He didn't know what saved meant. I went on, “I heard you went forward and accepted Christ. Has your life been much different since then?” He lit up and said, “Oh yes. Since then my business has boomed and I have made a lot of money. My daughter won a beauty contest and is going to be a fashion model.” “What church do you go to?” “Saint Mary's” Poor turkey. When He meets Jesus in judgment I believe he should plead “False advertisement”.

One of the few Christian groups that I believe have it right is the Jesus Family in China when their invitation was SACRIFICE, ABANDONMENT, POVERTY, SUFFERING, DEATH. That sound pretty much like what Jesus was offering and talking about.

Suffering is not a bad thing. Paul said, “I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproches, in persecutions, in distress for Christs sake, for when I am weak then am I strong” (2 Cor. 12:10). James said, “My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into divers temptations”. Then he lists the positive results that come out of having a bad time. Fire is not a bad thing. All it did was burn the ropes off the three Hebrew heroes (Dan. 3:25). All fire does to gold is take the impurities out. It takes a lot of hammering to shape a block to fit it in the temple. It takes a lot of filing to sharpen our swords. Suffering is as much apart of the Gospel as salvation itself. It might be said that without suffering we wouldn't be perfected to be altered for heaven. Looking back over my life I can pretty put down a zero for a final score. But I thank God for that zero. I dread to think what would have happened to me if the Lord had given me half a dozen of the successful ministries I asked Him for. Of course I wanted to do it all for the glory of God, but I am afraid I would have been badly sun burned basking in the glory of such successful works. Now at the end of the road I can honestly say that I see things in Jesus that I never saw before. Like Rutherford in Aberdeen, these years of silence have probably been the best years of my life. Jesus has never been more real. Oh, He is wonderful!

Some of Ron Blough's 3 burned up engines and 18 flat tires might have been self-inflicted. I don't know about the bird dropping. It may not have come from heaven, but the Lord has a purpose in all He send us and we can thank Him again for Rom. 8:28.

Thank God, bill