Monday, July 20th "suffering and complaining"

The psalms today deal with God's people suffering at the hands of the wicked. The tone goes from "God why are you putting me through a situation I am helpless to contend with" to "enemies, look out because God's love overcomes all your evil deeds." I think the reading out of 1 Samuel combines these two statements well, "May the Lord judge between me and you, may the Lord avenge me against you, but my hand shall not be against you." This seems to be Paul's take on suffering. He was persecuted against by the Jews after trying to share Jesus. He and Barnabas got up after they had been thrown out of the city and shook the dust off their feet. Then they moved on. The Lord is the Judge and all will be put to rights in the end. Our job is not to judge, but to live out the kingdom of God by living out the gospel. Jesus' parable bear an action point in the midst of all this. The parable of the sower compares the different soils that the seed of the kingdom of God falls on. There is only one soil in which the kingdom will flourish, the good soil. The good soil doesn't complain to God about how he hasn't given it what it was "entitled" to. The good soil doesn't shy away from suffering and rejection, but gets up, shakes the dirt off its feet, and moves on to further the kingdom of God. The good soil doesn't let the comforts or cares of this world corrupt it and deplete it of its nutrients.

The focus today seems to be this: what soil are you? Will you fade away in the midst of trials and testing? Will you endure suffering for the gospel? Jesus promised that it will come, just as it came to him. But the harvest is worth it. At least, that is what David and Paul are convinced of.

Lord, help me to endure hard times and pressure from enemies today. I do not want to fall away on account of the gospel. I want the harvest.