{"id":5179,"date":"2024-04-14T18:52:36","date_gmt":"2024-04-14T23:52:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/detroitmarthoma.org\/main\/?p=5179"},"modified":"2024-04-14T18:52:36","modified_gmt":"2024-04-14T23:52:36","slug":"willing-suffering","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/detroitmarthoma.org\/main\/2024\/04\/14\/willing-suffering\/","title":{"rendered":"Willing Suffering"},"content":{"rendered":"
Isaiah 53<\/strong><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
v10a \u201cYet it was the Lord\u2019s will to crush him and cause him to suffer,\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

What does it mean to be in\u00a0the will of God?<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0Is His will always\u00a0benevolent and a blessing?<\/strong>
\nAs children of God, we want to believe that we are living within His will. \u00a0But we never think that the bad things that happen to us\u2026 the failed marriage, the broken arm, the destroyed relationship, the terminal illness, the earthquake\u2026 are part of God\u2019s plan.<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n
In Isaiah 53, Isaiah describes this person, commonly believed to be the Messiah, in very stark terms. \u00a0He \u201chad no beauty or majesty\u201d (v.2) and \u201cwas despised and rejected by mankind\u201d (v. 3), \u201c(taking) up our pain and (bearing) our suffering\u201d (v. 4). \u00a0But the people saw these negatives and \u201cconsidered Him punished by God, stricken by Him, and afflicted\u201d (v. 4).<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
We do the same thing. \u00a0We equate ugliness, rejection and suffering with being outside the will of God. \u00a0But this passage clearly states that \u201cit was the Lord\u2019s will to crush Him and cause Him to suffer\u201d (v. 10a). \u00a0Isaiah makes it crystal clear that the \u201csuffering\u201d of this servant is within the will of God. \u00a0It is not a punishment but part of God\u2019s plan.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
This understanding can change our perspective. \u00a0We consider Mary, the mother of Jesus, to be blessed but the woman who bled for 12 years is to be pitied. \u00a0Aren\u2019t they both within God\u2019s will? \u00a0What about King Solomon, whose riches and wisdom are unparalleled, versus Jesus who died on the cross? \u00a0Where is God\u2019s will clear? \u00a0Each lash and punch and insult to Jesus was precisely constrained within God\u2019s will.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Does knowing that our pain is the Lord\u2019s will change our perspective on our current circumstances? \u00a0Can we rest in the assurance that this season of suffering may be difficult, but it is under God\u2019s will? \u00a0Can that knowledge ease some of our anxiety and worry? Does the understanding that the will of God can involve suffering alter how we perceive others who are similarly afflicted? \u00a0Can we turn from viewing them as outside of God\u2019s will and punished by Him to being part of God\u2019s greater story?\n<\/div>\n
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Prayer<\/strong>
\nFather, open our eyes to the realities of living within Your will\u2026 realities that will include sadness and joy, sickness and health, suffering and happiness. \u00a0May we be like Your Son Jesus Christ and bear all these things precisely because they are within Your will. \u00a0May our hearts also be pierced with the pain suffered by Your servants and show them Your compassion and love. \u00a0Amen.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Thought for the Day<\/strong>
\nWilling suffering perfects willing sacrifice.<\/p>\n

Merry Thomas, Horeb Mar Thoma Church, Los Angeles, CA<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Isaiah 53 v10a \u201cYet it was the Lord\u2019s will to crush him and cause him to suffer,\u201d What does it mean to be in\u00a0the will of God?\u00a0\u00a0Is His will always\u00a0benevolent…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5180,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[42],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5179","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-reflections"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/detroitmarthoma.org\/main\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/what-if-best.png?fit=299%2C168&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"post_mailing_queue_ids":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/detroitmarthoma.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5179","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/detroitmarthoma.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/detroitmarthoma.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/detroitmarthoma.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/detroitmarthoma.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5179"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/detroitmarthoma.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5179\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5181,"href":"https:\/\/detroitmarthoma.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5179\/revisions\/5181"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/detroitmarthoma.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5180"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/detroitmarthoma.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5179"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/detroitmarthoma.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5179"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/detroitmarthoma.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5179"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}