Why Do We Suffer as Christ Followers?
This morning in our Sunday School class we watched another episode from Ray VanderLaan’s excellent series, “In the Footsteps of the Rabbi.”
http://www.followtherabbi.com/Brix?pageID=20615 The setting was Cappadocia, in modern day Turkey. I visited Cappadocia in 1984, so this was a particularly powerful segment.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cappadocia Ray used a verse from Paul’s letter to the Colossians to discuss the question of why we suffer as Christ’s body. Colossians 1:24
“I am glad when I suffer for you in my body, for I am participating in the sufferings of Christ that continue for his body, the church.” See it at YouVersion.com:
http://bible.us/Col1.24.NLT Colossians 1:24
“I want you to know how glad I am that it’s me sitting here in this jail and not you. There’s a lot of suffering to be entered into in this world-the kind of suffering Christ takes on. I welcome the chance to take my share in the church’s part of that suffering.” See it at YouVersion.com:
http://bible.us/Col1.24.MSG While each of us may not be suffering today for the cause of Christ, we ARE suffering as a Body. We need to not only remember and not forget the suffering of our Christian brothers and sisters in the past, but also pray for those today who suffer. This series today reminds me of the project, 3 Minutes About Jesus:
http://3minutesaboutjesus.org It is so important to listen to the testimonies of others and share our own about God’s acts in our lives. Past generations of Christians suffered so they could pass on the faith to us. We need to take up that torch and work intensely to pass on our faith. We must tell our stories. We must listen to the stories of others. We should not “dabble in discipleship,” as Ray exhorted us in this video today. We need to be full time face-to-face and digital witnesses for Christ. Sent from my iPad
http://www.followtherabbi.com/Brix?pageID=20615 The setting was Cappadocia, in modern day Turkey. I visited Cappadocia in 1984, so this was a particularly powerful segment.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cappadocia Ray used a verse from Paul’s letter to the Colossians to discuss the question of why we suffer as Christ’s body. Colossians 1:24
“I am glad when I suffer for you in my body, for I am participating in the sufferings of Christ that continue for his body, the church.” See it at YouVersion.com:
http://bible.us/Col1.24.NLT Colossians 1:24
“I want you to know how glad I am that it’s me sitting here in this jail and not you. There’s a lot of suffering to be entered into in this world-the kind of suffering Christ takes on. I welcome the chance to take my share in the church’s part of that suffering.” See it at YouVersion.com:
http://bible.us/Col1.24.MSG While each of us may not be suffering today for the cause of Christ, we ARE suffering as a Body. We need to not only remember and not forget the suffering of our Christian brothers and sisters in the past, but also pray for those today who suffer. This series today reminds me of the project, 3 Minutes About Jesus:
http://3minutesaboutjesus.org It is so important to listen to the testimonies of others and share our own about God’s acts in our lives. Past generations of Christians suffered so they could pass on the faith to us. We need to take up that torch and work intensely to pass on our faith. We must tell our stories. We must listen to the stories of others. We should not “dabble in discipleship,” as Ray exhorted us in this video today. We need to be full time face-to-face and digital witnesses for Christ. Sent from my iPad