Jesus Only: Part OneSample

Week 4, Day 3 - Tuesday  

Suffering for Love

In the movie Timeline, Gerard Butler (as Andre Marek) is a hands-on archaeology professor who travels to the site of a castle in France. He and his students uncover the tomb of Lady Claire, famous for turning the tide in a 14th-century battle. An image of her and her husband shows that he is missing an ear... [spoiler alert] Unexpectedly, Andre travels back in time to the area and falls in love with her. In the battle, he suffers an injury that takes off his ear and suddenly realizes that he is that man. The look on his face is one of pain and surprise and rejoicing. This scene and so many others make it one of my favorite movies.

True love is willing to suffer. All our hero stories and movies are filled with it. Suffering is awful unless it’s done for love. Sacrificial love started with God, and He made us in such a way that life feels flat without it, both receiving it and joining Him in giving it away.

Paul was willing. He experienced the living Jesus, and it turned his life around. He began declaring that Jesus is the resurrected Lord and King of all and starting communities of people who believed with him – very unpopular with the Romans, so they threw him in prison. He goes from the one causing the suffering to the one enduring it. And how does he respond to persecution? Rejoicing!

Paul is not suffering because of his own failures or to impress anyone, but out of love and devotion to Jesus. We don’t know what his initial reaction was or how he got to the place of rejoicing, but, at some point, he came to the conclusion that it was not defeat, but honor. His identity is not based on doing things successfully for God (climbing the "Gospel Ladder" pictured below), but on following and serving the person he knows and loves, Jesus Christ. He knew that God ordained a certain amount of suffering for Jesus and that His Body has their share of persecution coming as well. He is thrilled to be doing his part to suffer for the Church just like Jesus did.

Reflection Questions

When is a time when I suffered willingly for someone else? Why was this person significant to me?

How did the suffering change me?

What draws me toward a willingness to suffer for Jesus? 

What holds me back from it?