What Are We To Do When We Suffer For A Cause?
Good Morning Friends,
There is a desire in physics for a unified theory and there has been a problem connecting how things work on the small particle level with how things work on the very scale like large like planets and black holes. And I think it is of interest to humans because we are midway between the two. But also, we have the same problem in discovering a continuous unity in our faith as Jesus prayed we might have in John 17. And then, a little over a century ago Emmy Noether came up with a simple theorem that has been shaping modern physics but has yet to shape our faith. She linked symmetry and conservation of energy and conservation of momentum and other laws of conservation in an elegant theorem that basically states that every continuous symmetry in nature has a corresponding conservation law and vice versa. The challenge is matching the symmetry with the law. Now the laws of conservation law refer to a physical quantity the remains fixed and does not fluctuate over time. Think for example of energy. But also, God’s love. And symmetry, in this context, refers to a process that can be done to an object or system that leaves it fundamentally unchanged. Rotate a square 90 degrees and you still have a square. Rotate it 45 degrees and you have a diamond. Have a circle though and you have a continuous symmetry. And that is the focus. And here we find that there is a sustained symmetry of Christ’s love in our lives that demonstrates the conservation law it is matched with. Now there is a strange symmetry to the Beatitudes that is not quite continuous but relevant for us when things are rotated around as they are in our world today. Perhaps the most difficult beatitude is believing the blessing in being persecuted for Christ’s sake. We do so want to avoid pain and to counterbalance the injustice of it, I think God just opens the flood gates of love and calls us into a safe place.
Still today’s scripture touches on living an abundant life. And so today, even though we may not get complete closure on this, even though we may have to face some cognitive dissonance and even pain, we still are going to work on thinking this through. So, What Are We To Do When We Suffer For A Cause?
Scripture: “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
Matthew 5:10 (NRSV)
But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed them, “Men of Judea and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to what I say. Therefore let the entire house of Israel know with certainty that God has made him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified.” Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and to the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?” Peter said to them, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you, for your children, and for all who are far away, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to him.” And he testified with many other arguments and exhorted them, saying, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” So those who welcomed his message were baptized, and that day about three thousand persons were added.
Acts 2:14a, 36-41 (NRSV)
If you endure when you are beaten for doing wrong, what credit is that? But if you endure when you do right and suffer for it, you have God’s approval. For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you should follow in his steps. “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.” When he was abused, he did not return abuse; when he suffered, he did not threaten; but he entrusted himself to the one who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that, free from sins, we might live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. For you were going astray like sheep, but now you have returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls.
1 Peter 2:20b-25 (NRSV)
“Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit. The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.” Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them. So again Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.
John 10:1-10 (NRSV)
Message: Our world is filled with unhappy and dissatisfied people seeking answers to the eternal question of how to live a complete life. Many are spending a lot of energy on avoiding suffering when in fact the real issue is having a cause so that when the suffering comes it can be turned into a blessing. Most think that if it were easy it would not be worth doing and in some ways, they are right. Daily we are guided by the world in what seems right, but in the end, produces death. We may well ask if the abundant life really exists. The Kingdom of continuous continuity. We hear message after message that we need to purchase the next thing to be happy, knowing even before we do that the joy of it will be short lived. It is here that we might just discover that there are some things we cannot buy…some things we cannot even steal. It is here when we discover that we are at the mercy of laws over which we have no control that we begin to see the gate though which we must follow Christ. The Kingdom can be ours if we listen to our heart, and believe with our mind that we are being called to possess the abundant life and all its wonderful qualities of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control, compassion, purity, humility, modesty, faith, character, wisdom, enthusiasm, dignity, optimism, confidence, honesty, and foremost a relationship with God. Here we discover that the abundant life is full of all the things money cannot buy. This is no illusion….no delusion. It is a separation to God and from evil….it is freedom found only in Christ and is found nowhere else. Friends, sometimes the abundant life is easy and sometimes it is hard so we will grow. If you are in Christ this life is waiting for you now. God will not require more of you than you can take. Ask and it will be given to you in ways that are better than you can envision. Know the real sign of spiritual maturity is looking to God not for comfort and convenience but for purpose and perspective. Here embrace the law of love and match it to the experiences of your life. Here we are to find symmetry with scripture and relationships that glorify God.
Pray we are inspired by those who have gone before. Pray we are prepared for the struggles that will come. Pray we fix our attention on the King…Jesus. Pray we keep on running the race that has been set before us. Pray we realize that if our cause is Christ, we can manage the suffering. Pray therefore, with praise and purpose that we pattern ourselves after Christ. Pray we share our love with others. Pray we accept the gift of the abundant life and share in the enjoyment with others. Pray we take the next step with Jesus. Pray we realize that the abundant life is not a life of comfort and ease in a worldly view but a journey of refinement that brings us to recognize that our joy is not dependent on outside circumstances. Pray we recognize, confess, develop and use our God given physical, mental, and spiritual abilities to the glory of God and for the benefit of mankind. Pray we have a purpose, perspective and persistence that makes life abundant. Pray we be unified in our faith in the hope of a Kingdom where our relationship with God is manifested in a continuous symmetry matched with the law of love.
Blessings,
John Lawson
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