Paul's sentence of death

In 2 Corinthians 1:8-11, Paul wrote challenging and comforting words. “For we do not want you to be unaware, brethren, of our affliction which came to us in Asia, that we were burdened excessively, beyond our strength, so that we despaired even of life; indeed, we had the sentence of death within ourselves so that we not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead; who delivered us from so great a peril of death, and will deliver us, He on whom we have set our hope. And He will yet deliver us, you also joining in helping us through your prayers, so that thanks may be given by many persons on our behalf for the favor bestowed on us through the prayers of many.”

Suffering can hit us in a variety of ways. Suffering has a way of reminding where our ultimate strength resides: In God! Suffering may even take away the pillars of our so-called strength like money, health, and even relationships. Storms and challenges will often reveal how strong our faith is and where areas of growth may be needed. Let’s notice how Paul responded to his suffering.

For Paul, he trusted in the one who raises the dead. A few weeks ago, millions of people spent some amount of time considering the resurrection of Jesus. But thinking about the resurrection should not be confined to a holiday. Rather, we should have a lot of frequent traveler miles to the empty of tomb of Jesus. We should be quite familiar with the details of His resurrection and the significance of it. It was after all what the apostles proclaimed constantly as we have seen in our daily Bible reading in the book of Acts.

Understanding what God has already done raising Christ from the dead, helps us to face the uncertainties life will bring. Remembering the resurrection and all that it means, will help us to set our minds and hope on God more. Suffering, if not careful can cause a person to criticize God, doubt God, drift away from God, and eventually fall away from God. This is even more reason to remember the hope of our salvation that’s found in Christ because of the resurrection, 1 Thessalonians 5:8.

Paul shared his sufferings with brethren. Notice what the brethren had been doing for Paul. They were praying. It’s easy to rely upon ourselves and think we don’t want to be a burden to others; therefore we will not share our sufferings with them. But that mentality often becomes a trap for some Christians. There are missed opportunities of simply talking. More importantly, there are missed opportunities for prayer from the saints. The saints had helped Paul through their prayers. Hearing this kind of language should help us to stay focused on making time to engage in passionate prayers for one another. Praying for one another matters. Are you experiencing suffering at this moment? Suffering can happen for a variety of reasons. Remember to trust in the God who delivers! Remember to trust in the God who raises the dead! Remember to trust in the God who hears the prayers of the righteous!