Monday Morning Devotions

I Jn. 4:9- "In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him." (NKJV)

The world tells asks us that if a loving God exists, then why does He allow pain and suffering to plague His world? One of the ways the Church responds is to remind the world that God sent His Son into the world to suffer and die for our sins. God showed His love toward us by sacrificing for us the One whom He loved the most, His Son Jesus. Not only did Jesus die for our sins, but He rose again, and because of His resurrection, we may have eternal life.

But let us look closer at the latter part of this verse. "...God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him." Scripture is telling us that eternal life with Jesus in Heaven is not the only kind of life we can be grateful to God for. Jesus died and rose again so He and the Father can send the Holy Spirit to dwell in every believer; Jesus dwells in us through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. By cooperating with the work of the Spirit in our lives, we allow Jesus to live out the Christian life through us. The Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, gives us the power to live the Christian life. It is in this way that we live through Him.

What does this have to do with human suffering? No one, believers or non believers, are exempt from suffering in this life. But if Christ lives in us, we can suffer as Jesus did. Jesus suffered, but He did not suffer in despair. He suffered, but as he obeyed God, He received the comfort He needed from the Father that there would be a consolation given Him. "For the comfort set before Him, He endured death, even death on a cross." The presence of Jesus in us as we suffer transforms our worldly suffering.