2) help others do the works of faith
Kawaihae Harbor-photo credit Clever Smyth 2012 |
While we might suffer in our
spirit or soul, bodily suffering is difficult. Thus, we are asked to “arm”
ourselves with the same mind that Jesus had when he physically suffered. This
mind (ĕnnŏia, en’-noy-ah, thinking that
expresses purpose, intent, and moral understanding) is what helped Jesus endure his sufferings.
Therefore, the changed mind is crucial for Christians who suffer greatly in
their physical body:
·
“Therefore, since
Christ suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same mind,
for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, that he no longer
should live the rest of his time in the flesh for the lusts of men, but for the
will of God” (1 Peter 4:1, 2).
·
Therefore, since
Christ pathō experienced painful
sensations for us in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same ĕnnŏia thinking that expresses purpose, intent, and moral understanding, for
he who has pathō experienced painful
sensations in the flesh has ceased from sin, that he no longer should live
the rest of his time in the flesh for the lusts of men, but for the will of
God.
Physical suffering connects
us to God and indicates we have stopped sinning! Thus, we live according to
God’s will and not to our lusts. The exception is the innocents who are pure yet
still suffer. Without sin, they beam forth God’s will through their peaceful,
trusting behavior while we who remain in our lusts are puzzled, wracked with
helplessness, and burdened with guilt.
This Christmas and New Year,
may all Christians who suffer—in spirit, soul, or body—by association with the
Trinity, receive the reality of Christ’s abounding consolation as our own, “For
as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also abounds
through Christ” (2 Cor. 1: 5).
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Scripture quotations from New King James Version (NKJV); Greek
definitions from Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible and Vine’s Expository
Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words.