exploding some common misconceptions ... Sometimes a physical illness will cause a mental dis turbance, with the accompanying unrest, in spite of obedi ence to God. Or, sometimes a Satanic attack will result in a temporary loss of peace of mind until the Christian musters his forces and takes a stand against Satan. Timothy 3:12, says that all who will (literally, “ who want to” ) live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecu tion. And persecution frequently results in physical and mental suffering. Paul also exhorts the Thessalonians not to be moved (literally, deceived) in their afflictions, and points out that “ we are appointed” unto this, that is, unto these afflictions (I Thessalonians 3:3).
Let me prove my point by a reference to the life of the Lord Jesus Christ. Certainly no one can accuse Christ of living in sin or of failing to obey rules that bring good spiritual health. Yet in Mark 14:34 Christ said, “ My soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death.” How could anything disturb Him that much? Matthew 26:38 confirms this by saying, “My soul is exceeding sorrowful.” Furthermore, Mark 14:33 uses two other verbs to describe His reaction. “ Sore amazed” literally means “ terrifyingly amazed,” and “ very heavy” means literally “ distressed.” Something here caused Christ to have the opposite of peace and joy. Instead He had turmoil and sorrow of soul. The explanation is that He was contemplating the horror of His coming death on the cross which would occur in a few hours. He had previously experienced a dread of this event and a struggle concerning it, saying, “ Now is my soul troubled” (John 12:27). He naturally shrank from such an experience; yet, because He wanted to please God the Father, He subordinated His own will to the will of the Father. He said to the Father, “ Not what I want but what you want!” (Mark 14:36, Williams’ Translation). This proves that at this time Christ had a problem which produced a struggle and an unrest in His soul. But the solution was available: He gave up His will and obeyed His Father’s will, and then the struggle and un rest ceased. What we can definitely say for the Christian is that, for every kind of problem or trouble that may arise in this life, God has provided grace to either remove the problem completely, or to make the burden bearable if it is not His will to remove it. The answer is both y e s and n o . Yes, in a sense we will experience less trouble if we live a godly, obedient life. God’s full blessing will be upon our life. Such Scriptures as I Peter 3:10-11 definitely teach that our life will be much better if we are obedient. On the other hand we may still experience suffering, even though we are obedient. In the same chapter, next verse, Peter points out the possibility of experiencing suf fering even though one is an obedient Christian (1 Peter 3:14); then he goes on to explain this fact by pointing out that sometimes suffering is not chastisement for disobedi ence, but is simply the will of God, perhaps as an exercise of faith or for some other g o o d reason (I Peter 3:17). While it is true that the practice of evil brings tribula tion and anguish to one’s soul (Romans 2:9; I Timothy 6:10), yet it is also true that tribulation may come for other reasons to those who do not practice evil. Paul, in II 111. But If we live a godly, obedient life doesn't God promise us that we will experience less trouble?
Why would God deliberately bring tribulation, per haps in the form of a physical or mental illness, into our lives when we are living godly, obedient lives? We can summarize several good purposes: 1. To achieve purification of our Christian life (II Corinthians 7:9, 11). 2. To produce patience (literally, “ endurance” ) (Rom ans 5:3; James 1:3). 3. To produce humility (II Corinthians 12:7-10). 4. To produce dependence upon God (II Corinthians 1:8, 9). Obviously there are many good reasons why God would bring suffering into the life of an obedient Christian. Some of God’s saintliest saints have had the most troubles. But their troubles have drawn them close to God. A problem that does not produce a disquieting or un settling effect upon the soul is probably not a real prob lem. In Mark 14:34 Christ said, “My s o u l is exceeding sorrowful.” In II Corinthians 12:7, Paul said that he was buffeted by a messenger of Satan, the same word used of the buffeting of Christ by the soldiers when they mocked Him and beat Him with their fists (Matthew 26:67). A ship that is being buffeted in a storm is being tossed around, beaten by the waves, bruised by the force of the water. Likewise, a Christian will sometimes experience problems that greatly disturb the soul. But he can hope for and find an answer to his prob lems, and can derive great comfort from such Scriptures as I Peter 5:10, where God promises to repair the damage after the storm is past. The word “make you perfect” in this verse means to “ repair.” IV. When a Christian has mental trouble, is God, by direct intervention, the only One who can help him, or can legitimate help be obtained from psychiatrists or doctors in a way that is not unchristian? The answer is that there are certain cases where the Christian mental patient can be helped greatly by the aid of a doctor or psychiatrist who understands his particular problem and who knows what he needs. Let me give an illustration. Sometimes in women the major cause of a tendency to depression is simply the menopause, or change of life. This period of transition for the woman may be characterized by symptoms of depres sion, fatigue, and nervousness. She may cry easily, and every little problem may seem like a mountain. It is unrealistic to expect God usually to remove these
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THE KING'S BUSINESS
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