I heard a pastor once say, “We owe it to people to prepare them for adversity.”
How true is that in our Christian community! While I do believe that “God is good, all the time…all the time, God is good,” I think our definition and gut reaction to that word “good” needs to be evaluated. What do we really mean when we say, “God is good?”
I think that often, if we aren’t careful, the American church can give out the impression to the lost that with salvation will come the end of all struggles and doubt. We often neglect the whole sanctification part of salvation. That is why that quote really struck me.
It is not enough for us to just talk about who we are in Christ (how we are victors, children of the King, etc.). We must also talk about the trials that surely await every believer, no matter how much faith they have. Salvation does not equal comfort or safety. I believe that Christ openly declared that in the world, we will have trouble. It is our job to prepare people for that trouble so they can weather the storm instead of drowning in it!
Yes, God is good all the time. However, His goodness does not mean we avoid trials and temptations, it simply means He is enough during those rough times.
That is one major reason why Peter wrote the book of 1 Peter. He wanted to help the early church understand that trials and tribulations were going to come. He wanted the church to know that God cares a lot more about our holiness than our comfort.
As we walk through this great book together this fall, remember what Peter writes to us in 1 Peter 3:17: “For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God’s will, than for doing evil.” In other words, there will be adversity in this life! Let’s live for God in such a way that we know that the adversity that we face is because we are doing good!
Church, we need to be prepared for adversity…and we need to continue to live boldly for God and pursue holiness over comfort!
In Him,
Pastor Zach