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1 Thessalonians 3:4
4 For [gar] verily, [kai] when [hote] we were [en] with [pros] you, [humas] we told [prolego] you [humin] before [prolego] that [hoti] we should [mello] suffer tribulation; [thlibo] even [kai] as [kathos] it came to pass, [ginomai] and [kai] ye know. [eido] KJV-Interlinear
4 For indeed when we were with you, we kept telling you in advance that we were going to suffer affliction; and so it came to pass, as you know.
NASB
When Paul was with the Thessalonians, he no doubt touched on many subjects during his teaching. Persecution was one of them, as he states here.
It should be no surprise that there will be trials and persecutions in everyones life, on this earth. To expect otherwise, would be unreasonable.
This is the devils world, and as such, things will never go perfectly well all of the time.
And though we all hope and pray that the tough times will somehow pass us by, maybe if we close our eyes then suffering will not notice us, but such luck doesn’t happen that way.
And when you think about it, if everything was rosy all of the time, then we might just ignore God and His grace, and certainly we would have no experiences that help us learn of Gods love, of His grace, of his strength and care for us.
Often times, it is the suffering and aggravations of life that help us learn. Suffering is probably one of the best instructors for life. And certainly, suffering to the maximums, is the best way, and perhaps the only way, for growing our faith in Gods care.
When you ignore God, as an unbeliever, the tough times are there in order to get your attention directed toward God and salvation. When you ignore God as a believer, then the tough times are there in order to get your attention directed toward doctrine and your spiritual life.
Unbelief means the Lake of Fire and salvation is your ticket to a life that is infinitely better than the Lake of Fire.
Spiritual immaturity means lack of blessings, and spiritual growth to maturity is your ticket to blessings that are infinitely better than no blessings.
Once you are saved, your life is just beginning. You have a long way to go in your spiritual life, and learning in a classroom environment is much easier than learning doctrine when your life is falling apart.
Have you ever known of someone who rejected their education when they were young, and getting the education was right there for the taking? And then when they got older, had kids, and bills and such, then getting that education was more difficult if not impossible. So they are struck with a lesser paying life, when they might have been prepared for a better paying life. Then throw a tough economic environment in to their life and things just get harder.
So it is with your spiritual life. Learn when it is easy to learn, because the though times will come sooner or later.
God tests the soul and often times that test comes through life’s experiences. Daniel and his friends were thrown into the lion’s den or into the fire. That was an execution attempt on their life. Tests can’t get much tougher than that. Or can they.
How about losing your family, or your job, or your business, or your home? And you still have to continue in life, with no precise opponent to hide from, but surrounded by the economy, or society in general, and the unknown for your future.
God does not lean down as he did with the prophets and tell you what to do. You have only Bible doctrine which you have learned, your patience, and your reasoning thoughts. So you think and think and think, and you make decisions, and some are good ones and some are not. But one decision or thought follows another and sooner or later, God leads you to where you need to be, or God leads circumstances to your needs.
Everyone is different. No two of us are alike. But God has solutions for your life, no matter what your situation.
You just have to keep your wits, keep your doctrine, and wait. That is really the toughest part of the spiritual life.
That does not mean doing nothing. Common sense and responsibility are a big part of your spiritual life.
If you are hurt, you go to the doctor. If you are in need of some type of help, you seek out an expert. If you need work, you go looking for a job.
Sitting back and doing nothing, and praying for God to do something for you is usually the wrong thing (the doing nothing part). God has most likely already done what you need, you just have to get off your backside and go find it.
But remember, this life is not going to be a perfect life. Don’t expect perfection. Things are going to go wrong and you are going to get your nose bent out of shape from time to time.
And when persecution comes your way, then thank God for it, knowing that He will never abandon you nor forsake you, and your life will be all the better for it. Just don’t you abandon God and therefore fail in your greatest opportunity (testing). The blessings of passing spiritual tests are well worth the small sacrifices that tests bring.
The sum total of your life is not wrapped up in this world anyway. You started the race when you were saved, don’t quit it. Because when your life finally ends (and it will one day), you will be extremely glad that you stuck it out, realizing that the tests of this life really amount to little more than nothing, when compared to eternity.
