Would you be willing to think about suffering this morning? Your suffering?

David Guzik: Though Jesus was God and is God, yet He learned obedience. God, enthroned in heaven’s glory, can only experience obedience by casting off the glory of the throne and humbling Himself as Jesus did. Surely, there is no need for “obedience” in Heaven because there is no “disobedience.” As God, Christ had access to divine omniscience and omnipotence. However, according to Scripture, He chose to experience human weaknesses such as hunger and fatigue. He also chose to experience learning and growth. In Luke, Jesus is said to have "learned" through His struggles. In the context of the original writing, the concept of "learning" is intimately tied to the idea of "experiencing." The focus is not so much on Jesus becoming aware of what suffering is, but Jesus actually putting into practice what He was called to do. He suffered.

None of the glory we so desire is birthed without suffering:

Not freedom from sin

Not strength for the journey

Not peace that passes understanding

Not the joy of the Lord

Oswald Chambers: To choose to suffer means that there is something wrong; to choose God's will even if it means suffering is a very different thing. No healthy saint ever chooses suffering; he chooses God's will, as Jesus did, whether it means suffering or not. Be merciful to God's reputation. It is easy to blacken God's character because God never answers back, He never vindicates Himself. Take for instance God's so-called 'waste' of saints, according to the judgment of the world. God plants His saints in some of the most useless places. We say, 'God intends me to be here because I am so useful.' Jesus never estimated His life along the line of the greatest use. God puts His saints where they will glorify Him most, and we are no judges at all of where that is.

About Suffering: One question never to ask and two questions always to ask:

Never ask: Why?

Always ask:

1. What does obedience look like today?

2. Who needs me today?