Vision, pt 3: Struggling Together toward Eternity

She wrote it during Covid, experiencing the pain and loneliness that so many people experienced during that time. For her and many others, Christmas presents a season of hope, togetherness. There is something that draws so many people to this holiday. They do not realize that it is the hope that is only found in Jesus.

This song presents the heart of so many people who are suffering. They want relief. They want a break. They want peace.

Unfortunately, in this world, there is no peace. There is no perfection. We could keep looking forward to the next break, but that won’t give us anything. Thankfully, those breaks do come, but we cannot live for them, because they are so fleeting.

Instead, we need to grab ahold of an anchor to carry us through this life into the world that has peace, that has no suffering. We hold on in this life, until finally, we get to the next.

Instead of “Christmas come early,” our cry is “even so, Come quickly, Lord Jesus.”

We are finishing up a three-part sermon on the vision of our church. Previously, our tagline was Calvary Bible Church: teaching to live the word of God.

We are praying about changing it to Calvary Bible Church: discipling, strengthening, encouraging.

We are drawing these themes from the themes that Paul left with the persecuted churches of Lystra, Iconium, and Pisidian Antioch in Acts 14:21-22

Acts 14:21–22 NIV

They preached the gospel in that city and won a large number of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch, strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” they said.

The previous sermons touched on strengthening and discipling. Today, we will discuss encouraging. Struggling together towards the kingdom of God.

Will you pray with me?

Pray

As I said, we have already discussed point 1, Strengthening Souls, and Point 2, Encouraging Truth

Now, point 3, struggling together toward the kingdom of God.

3. Struggling Together toward the Kingdom of God

As we have with each of the other points, let us define what we are meaning.

A. Definition

This whole sermon is wrapped around the concept of encouragement. Now, I talked about encouragement last week. And I said that our definition was more urge or exhort, and I told about taking a sledge hammer to a tire.

The great thing about language is that one word can have a range of meaning. I could say that I am using a tool to fix my engine. Or I could say that guy is a tool. I wouldn’t recommend saying that. But, there is a range of meaning to a word as people take it and use it in different contexts.

So, today, I need to define encouragement. The dictionary is a great place to start:

“The actions of giving someone support, confidence, or hope.”

Paul gives the persecuted churches encouragement, “support, confidence, and hope” when he says:

Acts 14:22 NIV

strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” they said.

Kinda odd to say as encouragement: “You know, hard times are coming. People are going to die. You are going to suffer. So much pain all around you. Have a great day!”

And that’s what Paul is saying as an encouragement to those churches. But, he is saying it because Jesus gives us hope through all of the pain and the chaos, as we struggle together toward eternity.

Encouragement

B. Struggling

Paul tells the persecuted churches of Lystra, Iconium, and Pisidian Antioch that they are going to struggle.

Acts 14:22 NIV

strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” they said.

We must go through many hardships. What are those hardships? What are we struggling through? He is talking about persecutions, but we can expand that to a whole lot more stuff.

a. Temptations

We will go through hardships because of our sin. We bring this on ourself. But, we each have sin that we struggle with, or should be struggling with.

The author of Hebrews writes:

Hebrews 12:1 NIV

Hebrews 12:4 NIV

In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.

There is hardship as we see our depravity and it grieves us and we struggle. Somedays that struggle is harder than others. And we just want to give in. Our desires wage war against us. And that war sometimes seems stacked. But as the James writes:

James 1:12 NIV

Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.

We struggle against our sin.

b. Oppressions

We also go through hardship because of our enemy.

We know what Peter writes:

1 Peter 5:8–9 NIV

Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

John records a crazy story about Satan battling against a woman, who could be Israel, could be the church. We don’t really know. We just know that the offspring are those who follow Jesus. And John says:

Revelation 12:17 NIV

Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to wage war against the rest of her offspring—those who keep God’s commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus.

We are in a spiritual warfare every single day. Some days we may not realize it. Other days, we do realize it. We are oppressed through that warfare. And there is a struggle. That struggle could be in circumstances that are happening, emotions that we are feeling, thoughts that we are having, things people around us are saying.

Jesus finally had to say:

Luke 4:12 NIV

Jesus answered, “It is said: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

Later, he spoke to Peter when Peter tried to convince him that he wouldn’t die in Jerusalem:

Matthew 16:23 NIV

Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.”

We go through hardships because of our enemy.

c. Persecutions

Finally, what Paul was really talking with the persecuted churches about was persecutions. We will all go through hardships because of other people. Thankfully, in America, these haven’t been too hard. But, our day is coming. And we need to be ready for it.

Jesus said:

John 16:33 NIV

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

Paul wrote to the Thessalonians:

1 Thessalonians 3:2–3 NIV

We sent Timothy, who is our brother and co-worker in God’s service in spreading the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you in your faith, so that no one would be unsettled by these trials. For you know quite well that we are destined for them.

If we are followers of Christ, we will face hardships. We all face hardships because of our sin and the oppression of the devil. But, the hardship that Jesus and Paul are talking about is based upon our faith. Where we are living Christianly, striving to be godly, and because of our godliness and our witness for Christ, we face opposition, persecution, because people do not like the stand that we are taking for truth and morality. Now, we have to be careful that the persecutions that we are facing is because of our faith and not because of the sinful way we are flaunting our faith.

We go through hardships because of persecutions.

That is the fact. That is the truth. But, the encouragement is that we don’t go through them alone.

B. Together

We struggle together.

Paul wrote:

Acts 14:22 NIV

strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” they said.

a. Our Design

He said: We must go through many hardships. That’s plural. As in multiple people. Together, going through hardships.

God did not design us to live independently.

We could go back to Adam and Eve in the beginning of time and God places Adam in the Garden of Eden and he says:

Genesis 2:18 NIV

The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.”

Yes, this verse is talking about marriage, but it is also explaining a principle about humanity. It is not good for us to be alone.

I think about what happened in the nursing homes during Covid. All those residents who were isolated in their rooms, not able to see friends or family. Nursing homes saw a spike in deaths during that time, and it wasn’t because of sickness.

God did not design us to be alone. He designed us to live in community.

He speaks of the church as a body, how we all need each other.

1 Corinthians 12:18–21 NIV

But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!”

Paul explains some more about that concept, and then he ends up wiht

1 Corinthians 12:26 NIV

If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.

We suffer together. That’s one of the reasons coming together as a church body is so important. So that we can live in community.

Hebrews 10:24–25 NIV

And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

And many times, the encouragement is not discipleship but what Paul writes in

Romans 12:15 NIV

Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.

b. For Uplifting

We suffer together for uplifting.

Paul was in prison when he wrote the letter to the Philippians. He was facing possible death, definite loneliness. This is persecution, oppression, possibly struggling with his own flesh and sinfulness through this time.

While he is in prison, the Philippian church sends a care package to him, brought by Epaphroditus, one of the elders of that church.

He writes to the Philippians, telling them that they shouldn’t have gone to the bother of all of these gifts and this travel. Then, he says:

Philippians 4:14 NIV

Yet it was good of you to share in my troubles.

There is encouragement, there is uplifting, when we struggle together.

Let’s paint some pictures of this. Say, we are struggling with temptation. God did not call us to be alone but to be in community. So, we invest in community and tell people: I am struggling with gossiping. I am struggling with eating too much and Christmas is coming. You know, whenever I get stressed, I really want to look at porn. We open up to friends, so that we are not struggling alone. They join us in the struggle, and we are uplifted.

Say, we are struggling with a spiritual battle. God did not call us to be alone, but to be in community. So, we open up and share what we are feeling and experiencing. How God is calling us to take certain steps but everything seems to be getting in the way. Or we are struggling with emotions that we cannot understand, or you name it, and our brothers and sisters gather around us, to struggle with us, praying with us, and we are uplifted.

Say, we are struggling with persecution. God did not call us to be alone, but to be in community. So we open up and share what is happening in school and at work, or possibly even in our home. And this can be the hard one, because when the church joins in, they will begin to be persecuted too. But God called us to be in community. So, we join, standing shoulder to should, and struggle together. And we are uplifted, even as we are torn down.

Every couple of years, I watch the mini-series “Band of Brothers.” It follows a group of soldiers through WW2 on the European front. They cross the Atlantic with excitement and then they face the war. They fight, they bleed, they die, together. They struggle in the fox holes, wondering who is going to be shot next, wondering about their homes, wondering about food and clothing. They struggle together. And, they are able to keep struggling because of the person next to them.

There comes a point when they almost forget why they are fighting. They don’t care about what the generals say. They don’t care about the overall plan. They just know that they are next to people who care about them, who are struggling with them, and who continually talk to them about life at home, what it will be like after the war.

The show shows them living what Paul writes in 2 Cor 1 4

2 Corinthians 1:3–4 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.

We struggle together.

C. Toward Eternity

We struggle together toward eternity.

When we are able to suffer in a group, instead of alone, being uplifted, we are pointed away from what is happening now and reminded of what will be.

Paul writes

Acts 14:22 NIV

strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” they said.

Suffering in a group reminds us of two things:

a. Christ

Suffering reminds us of Christ.

Peter writes to the churches around the Roman empire:

1 Peter 4:12–13 NIV

Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.

When we go through suffering, we get walk in the footsteps of Jesus. He went through temptation. He went through oppression. He went through persecution.

Hebrews 12:1–3 NIV

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

Suffering, especially as we suffer together, reminds of Christ. We walk in his footsteps and we realize that this path we are on is so temporary.

b. Temporal

Suffering reminds us of the temporal.

I find it interesting that all those who life is going so swell have a hard time picturing eternity. This life is so nice that they do not want to go to the next. And when someone dies, they think it is such a tragedy. And yes, it is. Death is the enemy. Death is unnatural. But, the life to come. Oh, my goodness.

Those who go through hardship, pain, misery. Those who struggle with temptation, oppression, and persecution. They see passingness of this life. They don’t want to hold onto it. They are ready to give it up. Even so come quickly Lord Jesus.

Paul wrote in prison

Philippians 1:21 NIV

For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.

Suffering, especially as we suffer together, reminds us that this world is not our home.

Paul writes to the Corinthians:

2 Corinthians 4:7–10 NIV

But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.

He calls our bodies “jars of clay.” Something that is easily broken. Easily thrown away. This is the disposable plastic bottles of today. Our lives are temporary. There is something that we are pushing toward.

Suffering, especially, as we suffer together, reminds us of the temporality of this life.

c. Eternity

Suffering reminds us of eternity. The time when all suffering will be wiped away.

In that day, we will see God’s grace and God’s judgment. And it will be oh, so good.

John sees the future, and he sees

Revelation 7:9 NIV

After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands.

They praise God and all the angels and spiritual beings worship God.

Revelation 7:13–14 NIV

Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes—who are they, and where did they come from?” I answered, “Sir, you know.” And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

Yes, this is focused on all those who died during the tribulation, as the world turned against followers of Jesus. But the principle is still there. God rewards those who are faithful to him. As we struggle together, entering eternity through the pains of this life, shoulder to shoulder with our brothers and sisters, God greets us, gives us new clothes and says “well done, good and faithful servant.”

God’s grace.

But, we will also see God’s judgment.

Paul writes to the Thessalonians

2 Thessalonians 1:5–7 NIV

All this is evidence that God’s judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels.

He is the ultimate avenger. That’s why we shouldn’t take revenge. God is going to bring justice to the beings who oppress us and to those who persecute us. He will do it, in the fulness of time.

So, when we struggle, and we don’t know how to keep going. Those we are in community with come alongside and lift us up, pointing to the end of the war, the life that will come, the grace and justice that is awaiting, and with that vision, we struggle some more. Because the end is not yet, but one day will be.