When difficulties come, we may put up a good front for a short time, but eventually we succomb to our human nature and cry, complain, rant, vent... or just simply quit! I know, some of it is good therapy, as least that is our excuse, but most of it is not. Most of the time it is an expression of self-pity, self-indulgence, and sometimes we hurt others with the things we do or say.
There are real tragedies that confront us that are too difficult for us to get our minds around. The recent shooting in a theater in Colorado would be a perfect example. Of course there are other shootings, terrorism, wars, etc... things that can almost become commonplace to us— that is until they strike close to home. Of course other things do strike us closer to home: the death of a loved one, sickness, abuse, divorce, and broken relationships, to name a few.
All of these things lead us to ask the ultimate question: Can anything good come out of this?
It is in these times, when it is so personal, that we feel like the lemons we were handed are rotten! What can we do? In those times optimism just seems like a cliche.
What Did Jesus Do?
When you study the life of Jesus, you will see that He faced some of the same kinds of battles that we face.- One of His best friends became ill and died.
- Although He only did good everywhere He went, He was constantly misunderstood.
- He went to His hometown to minister, and they tried to force Him off the edge of a cliff.
- One of His own disciples betrayed Him.
He had no dignity or beauty to make us take notice of him. There was nothing attractive about him, nothing that would draw us to him. (Isaiah 53:2 Good News Translation)The Gospel of John describes His birth like this:
He came to the world that was his own, but his own people did not accept him. (John 1:1 New Century Version)But perhaps no other scripture captures the essence of this topic more than this one:
Philip went to look for Nathanael and told him, “We have found the very person Moses and the prophets wrote about! His name is Jesus, the son of Joseph from Nazareth.”
“Nazareth!” exclaimed Nathanael. “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” (John 1:45-46 New Century Version)
Can anything good come out of __________? Put in the blank any situation you have faced, or are facing, that brings you to the brink of despair. Future disciple Nathanael had his doubts about Jesus simply because of the town that Jesus came from. The answer for Nathanael's question was, "Yes!" as he overcame his own inclinations and inner-misgivings and went on to become one of the twelve disciples.
Learning Like Jesus
If Jesus faced off against so much opposition and prejudices, surely we must be able to as well.Think of all the hostility he endured from sinful people; then you won’t become weary and give up. (Heb 12:3 New Living Translation)
It is incumbent upon all of us, as followers of Jesus, to be like Him. That seems easy when we see the miraculous and wonderful things He did— and in our minds, He did it effortlessly. Yet, we tend to forget the price that was made in order for those wonderful things to manifest.
The Bible tells us that Jesus learned obedience by the things He suffered (Heb 5:8), and also, that if He suffered, we would suffer. Not a very happy proposition, but looking at Jesus, there just may be a truth about our lives that we don't want to face.
It seems incredible to me that Jesus had to learn obedience. But the truth is, His humanity required it. He came to earth to live as a man, and as a man, needed to subdue His own human nature that the nature of God could manifest and help Him accomplish His destiny. I'm not trying to take away anything from His divinity, but sometimes I think that we see His divinity so much that we lose focus on the reality of His humanity.
This High Priest of ours [Jesus] understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. (Heb. 4:15 New Living Translation)His humanity teaches us how to live out a godly life in our own human skin. Now if he had to learn obedience through suffering in order to demonstrate the divine nature, how much more do we need to learn the lessons of obedience in every thing that we struggle with in order for his Kingdom and will to be done on earth as it is in heaven?
Turning Things Around!
There has to be a turn around. We can no longer afford to look at the things that are wrong in our lives— the things that challenge the very nature of what we understand about faith, the things that cause us distress and make us want to give up— and give in to our human nature. We must allow God to be God, in us and through us, so that there can be a heavenly order brought to the things of humanity.So how do we turn it around. How do we do like Nathanael and go from, "Can anything good come out of this?" to getting past our inward doubts and embrace the good that God wants to give.
This process is called redemption, and it was also the ministry and example of Jesus. Out of every situation He faced in the list above (and more) He redeemed them so that the best could come out of them.
- His friend gets sick and dies? Jesus raises Him from the dead.
- His hometown tries to force Him off of a cliff? He walked through the midst of them without harm to continue His ministry.
- One of His own disciples betrays Him? He goes to the cross and redeems mankind!
- The prophets said there was nothing to attract us to Him? He declares to those around Him, "If I be lifted up I will draw all men to me."
- His own did not receive Him? He pursues them, "The Son of Man has come to seek and save those who were lost."
Joseph also redeemed his situation, He was betrayed by his brothers, sold into slavery, put into prison, forgotten in prison— and yet became Pharaoh's right hand man. How? He simply redeemed the situation he faced to get the good out of them every time.
- Sold into slavery? He became the cheif administrator in Potifer's house.
- Sent to prison for false accusations? He interprets the dreams of fellow prisoners.
- Forgotten in prison? He goes on to rule in Egypt and spare the lives of millions!
You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people. (Gen. 50:20 New Living Translation)
Joseph was a type (or foreshadow) of Jesus, and another example of what it means to redeem difficult situations in order to get the best out of them. Jesus came to redeem all man kind, but He also calls us to become redeemers of the difficulties that we all will inevitably face. He redeems us.; we redeem the worse that we face.
When God gave the law, he gave instructions on how to redeem certain things that were outside the normal rituals of the law. The people would bring a sacrifice as a redemption offering, and redeem those things back to God. We know that Jesus is the great redemption offering, but in a sense, we bring sacrifice (worship) to God in order to redeem the things that operate outside the norm in our lives. As we do, God takes what was meant for evil, and brings something good out of it.
We Are Called To Make A Difference!
We face a great many things in life. Things that are within our ability to deal with, and things that are not. In everything, just like Jesus, we should look to see, and redeem, the good out of each situation. As children of the King, and citizens of the Kingdom of God, we are called and commissioned to make a difference on this earth while we are here. Not just the preachers and leaders, but we are all called to make a difference.How can we become the redeemers that are needed in our lives, our families, and our communities? How do we redeem things that are out of our control and seem lost?
WORSHIP
We redeem things when we worship God no matter what is going on. We bring sacrifices of praise to God as an offering for redemption. Right in the midst of what is wrong, we bring God our very best sacrifice.WORDS
We say the words that God would have us say in the situation. Not just what others want to hear, and not what we would like to say— God's Words. They may be Words from the Scriptures, or Words impressed upon us in our hearts, but as we release His Words we truly become salt and light to the earth.CREATIVE SOLUTIONS
I know many situations that concern us seem way too big for us to be able to influence in any way. But the truth is, God is looking for someone who is going to make a difference. It may be as simple as praying when the Lord is asking you to, but it could also mean going somewhere and serving others in some capacity. It could be as simple as a phone call or letter to a civic leader, or it could be a visit to a congressman's office. It may be buying or not buying certain products or favorite foods, but it might also involve a commitment of your time and money. It may be that God wants to give you a creative idea that will bring change, influence people, and set a new course.When we learn to be redeemers of the situations we face, we invoke God's involvement. It is His Kingdom, and when we engage the process of His Kingdom as it comes into a situation, He gets involved and does what we cannot do ourselves. As we learn to obey and practice obedience, He will entrust us with more assignments and greater influence to bring change to our world. When we learn to redeem the things that are not right, we truly become Jesus' representatives on this earth— we truly demonstrate His Kingdom.
We may not always be able to get our mind around every situation we face, but we can, as God's Ambassadors, look for and find the good that He wants to do in every situation. As we learn to do this our responses will change. Instead of crying, we will intercede. Instead of complaining, we will be creative. Instead of ranting, we will be redeeming. Instead of venting, we will be victorious!
I believe the Apostle Paul had this in mind when he wrote these words:
Let your conversation be gracious and attractive so that you will have the right response for everyone. (Col 4:6 New Living Translation)
And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them. (Rom. 8:28 New Living Translation)
We can live out His purpose in the face of difficult circumstances, and when we do we will know that everything is working for our good. Be empowered. Redeem every difficulty with the power of Christ in you.
Now... how about some lemonade!
