Ps. 55                                  Bridge                                        1/23/22

How to Endure Hardships

Intro.  Christians are not promised an easy life.  Quite the contrary, Jesus as well as his apostles warned us that following Christ would bring hardships and struggles.  There will be persecution, opposition and temptation.  Yet, we are told that with all of this we are more than conquerors!

 David knew something about overcoming hardships.  He had to endure tough times and fight many battles against enemies without and enemies within.  Everyone who has gone through a hard time has felt like David expressed here, “Oh that I had wings like a dove! for then would I fly away, and be at rest”. 

 But, there are graces that we will never acquire until and unless we go through a valley.  Strength is found through exercise.  Wisdom is gained by experience.  Patience is learned through suffering.  Sometimes the best place for us is that very place we would never have chosen and would have avoided if possible.  Yet, this is often the very place God leads his children for them to grow.

 David was:

 1.  Despised by his foes  vs. 3

2.  Discouraged by his fears  vs. 4

3.  Disappointed by his friends  vs. 12-14

 How do you handle struggles?

 I.  Expect Them – Let’s not be naïve!  We are in a warfare with the Prince of Darkness!  God told us there would be days like this.

 John 16:33  “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”

 ***  God did not call us to a barbecue; he called us to a battle! If you are a follower of Christ, then you have an enemy who wishes to defeat you. 

 II.  Examine Them – Try to discover the elements of the struggle.  Know the issues involved.  James 1:2-5  (2)  My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;  (3)  Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.  (4)  But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.  (5)  If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

 ***  Every critic is not an enemy.  (There is a difference between a critic and a counselor.)   Spurgeon said that he learned far more from his critics than his supporters.  Even when harshly criticized, it is a good practice to ask yourself what element is true within the criticism from which you may learn.  Then again some people are just cranks and should not be taken seriously.

 III.  Endure Them – Sometimes the best you can do is to just hang in there and refuse to quit.  It isn’t even always about winning.  Sometimes the greatest victory is to win by simply refusing to quit.

II Tim. 2:1-4  Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.  (2)  And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.  (3)  Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.  (4)  No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.

 3 things happen when we run away from our struggles:

 a.  We imagine the wrong place.  It doesn’t exist!  When we pack our bags to run from our problems, our problems are in the other room packing to go with us!  There is no greener grass on the other side of the fence.  The place of God’s leading is the place of God’s presence, power, and provision.

b.  We engage the wrong process.  Our faulty human reasoning may lead us to think that running away from problems will rid us of problems, but what really happens is we fail to gain the wisdom and grace enduring them would have brought.  The process for building muscles is not an easy chair.  We cannot learn what we must learn by caving into the temptation to quit when things get tough or get boring.

c.  We assume the wrong position.  When we turn our backs to a problem, we are vulnerable to attack by the enemy.  Let me explain:

 God provides protection for us as we bravely face the enemy.  He has given us armor for our front, but there is no armor for our backs!

 When we worship, we turn our backs to the enemy and our face to God.  When we engage in battle, we turn our face toward the enemy and God watches our backs!  He takes care of what you can’t see!  We cannot run away from the enemy without forfeiting the power and protection of our loving God! 

 Gal 6:9  “And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.”

 IV.  Embrace Them – This point is pertaining to those hardships we may endure because we follow Jesus and His teachings.  Now this point may seem the strangest of all!  How can we willingly embrace something that is so difficult to bear?  How can we react with grace under persecution?  The answer lies in the words of our Savior: 

 Mat 5:10-12  Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  (11)  Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.  (12)  Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

 1Pet. 4:12-14  Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you:  (13)  But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.  (14)  If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified.

 Rejoice when tribulation comes.  Rejoice when men speak evil of you.  Be exceeding glad.  Peter and John rejoiced to be counted worthy to suffer for Jesus.  Paul and Silas rejoiced and sang praises to God in prison.  Paul said that the sufferings were not even worthy to be compared to the joy which would come.

 There is a certain thrill to be had in battle!  There is a certain kind of holy rush that comes from standing against the enemy and seeing the hand of God at work!

 Conclusion and Application:

 To the seeker   I would be dishonest to fail to preach the fact that while Jesus promised us eternal life, he also warned us that following Him would bring persecution and troubles.  He told us that we should be willing to take up our cross and follow Him!  Accepting Christ will place you on the other side of a great war.  Satan will become your enemy and will try to defeat you.

 You are already on the losing side and have hardships.  Accepting Christ does not guarantee a life free of hardships, but it does give life purpose.  We know that if we patiently endure, that we will be rewarded for our faithfulness.  We know that even in great loss and even under great strain, we have a Great Friend and Deliverer who can empathize with our pain and carry us through it!

 2Co 4:16-17  “For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.  (17)  For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;”