In this session John Piper reminded the young people that in this life all of us will experience suffering. He further explained that God has a purpose for our pains in life and that as Christian Hedonist we can view sufferings from a vertical and horizontal dimension. The vertical dimension of suffering shows that God as our treasure as we go through the sufferings in life. It reflects our love for Him above all the things that this world has to offer. We experience joy in the midst of pain because our joy is in the Lord Himself and not from the world. As john Piper said it best, God is most Glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him most especially when we maintain joy in Him in suffering.
The horizontal dimension of suffering refers to how we relate to other people as we go through suffering. This shows our love for other people for love really shines as beautiful when you press on loving others even when it is really hard and really costly. In other words we are willing to go through pains and suffering as we serve and meet the needs of others. Only in such situation can love be really be seen and felt by other people.
John Piper also shared the principles on how joy sustains us in the midst of suffering as found in the book of Hebrews. He cited 4 bible passages from Hebrews and they are Hebrews 10: 32-34, where it can be seen that as Christians we have a better possession, his name is Jesus; Hebrews 11:24-26, that we are to consider Christ reproach as riches meaning we are to value obedience to Christ rather than enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin.; Hebrews 12: 1-2, that Christ faced sufferings (lashes) for the Joy set before Him.; Hebrews 13: 12-13, that on earth we have no lasting city, meaning things of this world are only temporal.
Personal Principles and Applications (some are based from the book self-confrontation)
- As Christians we do not just have happiness, we have joy. Happiness is an instinctive response to the outside world. If our situations are good and well, we consequently feel at peace and comfortable. But when the situations gets worse, then the person starts to be troubled. Joy on the other hand, is not based on the external but internal. It is the feeling of peace and tranquility in the midst of crisis. Even though the situation goes wrong still we are at peace because our peace and joy are not external based, they are based in our faith in Christ. Joy as we can see in Galatians 5 as the fruit of the Holy Spirit meaning only God can produce joy in a Christian’s heart.
- Our joy and peace during trials are not based on people, circumstances and things we have, but they are based on our continued intimate relationship with God.
Psalm 119:165 “Great peace have those who love your law; nothing can make them stumble.”
Isaiah 26: 3 “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in You.”
- Continue to obey God and fulfill your responsibilities in life regardless of your feeling. (Matthew 7: 24-26 ; 2cor4 :7-8, imagine if the Apostle Paul if he wallowed up in his suffering and failed to fulfill the Great Commission?)
4. Surrender your will to the Lord and learn from your mistakes. (Read Romans 8:28-29)
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