A Reason for Every "Ouch!"

Hanukkah suggests a God's truth is going to make you immune from problems and pain, but I am to suggest to you that God's truth can prevent the bullets of doubt as to the purpose and the reason there's any doubt in your mind can delivery anything good behind this at all.

You would say God's truth.

Those votes of the it's hard to imagine now the devastating pain we experience in this world is only temporary. The apostle Paul said light and momentary troubles are achieving us for an eternal glory that far outweighs them all today on connect with skip-Skip encourages you with the message of the purpose and power of self right now want to tell you about a resource that will spur you want in your own faith journey as you explore the inspiring stories of women in the Bible who comes to mind when you think of great godly women probably Jesus's mother Mary, maybe Ruth, the unlikely ancestor of Christ. What about his New York Times best-selling author Eric the taxes clearly God created us male and female in his image. It's leaning into who we are as women for women that is going to show God's greatness. Discover how the lives of some of the greatest women in history can show you the path to true greatness in your own life as a woman made in God's image, that's what you'll find in this month's inspiring resource by Eric metathesis everyone a seven women. I think I see a different side of femininity seven women is our thank you for your gift of $35 or more today to help connect more people to God's word and right now will also send you a special bonus resource pastor Skip next message CD collection on women from Scripture connectwithskip.com/offer to get online securely or call 800-922-1888 joint Skip Heitzig for today's teacher move in first Peter chapter 3 how is a common expression of pain. Whatever you say that word you're announcing to the world or to your world, the people around you that you are experiencing some sort suffering so when you stub your toe. Ouch. When you hit your thumb with a hammer. Ouch.

When you poke yourself in the eye. Ouch when you get up in the middle of the night and you walk into a wall or door instead of the bathroom. Ouch when you wake up from surgery.

Ouch. You may say other things besides that, that's a typical expression of pain. It announces that we are sufferers because pain is a messenger of the demands. All of our attention right when you're suffering you think about little else except the pain you have and how to get rid of it and then some pain isn't just episodic.

It's chronic is not just an event for an episode that comes and goes. Some people to live with chronic pain is even an association called the American Association of chronic pain and they tell us that every single year pain pain in our country costs us $600 billion. That averages out to $2000 per American person $2000 that includes the cost of healthcare due to pain and lost productivity like hours or days that a person would miss work. And then there are people who feel pain more intensely than others and studies have been done brain studies show that there is a correlation between the thickness of the brain's cortex and the ability to feel pain stimuli. Basically if if the cortex of the brain is thinner rather than thicker that that person is going to feel pain more readily more easily now I have a hunch that everything I just said you don't care about if you're suffering especially if you are person who is experiencing pain or suffering, you could care less about explanations or reasons for suffering what you are more concerned about our resources while you're suffering and that's where Peter comes in.

Peter is addressing a group of people largely there suffering because of what they're experiencing their undergoing persecution.

Some are undergoing even physical pain, torture, and he gives them truth and he gives them an example that is unlike any other example of that is Jesus Christ and the verses were going to read if you saw the paper.

My wife gave me this article this last week. Last Monday, a man in Dayton Ohio was shot in the chest twice know he survived. His name is Ricky Wagner's, a bus driver and he got out of his bus was working on something mechanical had his jacket on and a few young men ages 15 to 18 about three of them came up and Bessette basically one of the messages Ricky heard was one of the kids said to the other.

You have to kill him if you want to join our game. Insert two shots were fired, and then the kids ran Ricky Wagner's survived because he had underneath his coat Bible. He had put it under his code when he was inside the bus.

He walked outside the bus working on something as Bible was still underneath his coat and so the Bible stop the bullets. God's word. Stop the bullets just can't help but think an iPad probably could've done that as much is a real book had to get that in monocular suggests a God's truth is going to make you immune from problems and pain, but I am to suggest to you that God's truth can prevent the bullets of doubt as to the purpose and the reason if there's any doubt in your mind can can there be anything good. Behind this at all. Peter would say God's truth can stop those bullets of doubt and he answers here now to consider Jesus Christ who suffered immensely for us to prove to us here is somebody who suffered and looked quite good came out of it so we begin in verse 18 first Peter chapter 3 verse 18 for Christ also suffered once for sins, but just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit, by whom he also went and preached to the spirits in prison who formerly were disobedient, when once the divine, long-suffering, waited in the days of Noah while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight souls were saved through water. There is also an anti-type, which now saves us baptism, not the removal of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven, and it is at the right hand of God, angels and authorities and powers having been made subject to him, to say that when I first read this passage.

There's a few passages in the Bible and put it this way I don't get really excited about teaching our number one of their very difficult passages to understand and this ranks up there pretty high and number two in the promise suffering and and and both of those properties are incorporated right here in this text. So what I'm to do in in unraveling these verses for you is touch on for different things that marked the path of Jesus in his suffering. First was his crucifixion. Second, his resurrection through his proclamation and forth his exultation was for stages are mentioned here Jesus crucifixion shows purpose. His resurrection shows permanence. His proclamation shows planning and his exultation shows power. Let's quickly look at those and make application. First of all, his crucifixion verse 18 Christ also suffered see in verse 17 he says it is better if in the will of God to suffer for doing good and then he points to Jesus.

For Christ also suffered he suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that is, he was just we are unjust. He took our place, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit not if ever there was anyone who suffered unfairly for doing nothing wrong but doing everything right. It was Jesus Christ.

He suffered and he died and he didn't just die.

He died an excruciatingly painful death.

In fact, I don't. If you know this or not but the word excruciating literally means from the cross. It's a word that depicted the worst form of ancient torture and death out of the cross excruciating pain. The Romans did not invent crucifixion. The Persians did around 300 BC, but the Romans they perfected it was designed to inflict maximum physical torture on the victim before they died. A person who was crucified usually lasted several days, not hours, days, that's why the soldiers would often break the legs of the victim so they couldn't pull opera push up on the nails and take anymore brass they would just die sooner rather than later. Jesus suffered that kind of death, but his suffering began before the cross didn't and Peter was there when it happened in the Garden of Gethsemane Jesus sweat great drops of blood. Medical experts say that there are tiny capillaries that can burst up inside the sweat glands in the forehead called. He met a DeRosa's the rare condition, but in extreme emotional conditions. A person can actually sweat blood mixed with his sweat Jesus in the garden was then arrested and brought before trial. Not one trial, not to trial but six trials, all of them illegal gun.

Usually most of them in the middle of the night.

It was wrongly accused. Then Pilate hadn't beaten with the flagellum beaten his back like raw hamburger and then taken to the place called dog if it were he was crucified for the sins of the world so Peter writing to us. Suffering group of people saying Jesus as your Savior also suffered and died in the flesh, meaning he physically died. He was actually crucified as much as we might suffer. Here's a perspective check. We will never suffer like this.

Most of us will never experience anything like what Jesus experienced.

Yeah, life can get bad. Yes, there can be pain. Yes, there can be chronic pain. Yes, I can be extreme episodes of pain but nobody will suffer like this writer of Hebrews puts it this way in your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood, you haven't given your life like Jesus did.

And why did you what good is in his suffering will the verse tells us, and look at it that he might bring us to God is the whole reason that's the good behind the bad that's the benefit behind the pain, suffering, that he might bring us to God. When Jesus died. What in the temple was ripped into Tommy the veil was torn in two from top to bottom. The veil the People separated.

That said, don't go any further. This God is holy.

You are unholy you cannot approach and now God is saying, you can approach now the way is open, I'm gonna bring you to God the father by what I did on the cross and the veil was torn to prove here's the point. The very worst thing that did happen became the very best thing that could happen miss it at you again the very worst thing that did happen became the very best thing that could happen was the very worst thing that that happened killing God the death of God is that for a rap sheet on the world we killed God was a calamity is a very worst thing that happened, but actually it became the very best thing that could happen. It brought us to God, the death of Jesus Christ became the basis by which God can forgive sinful men and women and they can be made right with God. World's greatest calamity, our greatest bounty to reach you a little piece from a philosopher from Yale University. Peter craved brilliant insight into this.

He says opposer the devil as to be hard for some of you to do that for some others of you might not be so hard. But suppose you're the devil you're the enemy of God. You want to kill him, but you cannot, however, he has this ridiculous weakness of creating and loving human beings you can get at.

Now you've got hostages so you simply come down into the world corrupt humankind and drag some of them to hell when God sent prophets to enlighten them. You kill the prophets, then God does the most foolish thing of all. He sends his own son and he plays by the rules of the world you say to yourself I can't believe he's that stupid love is addled his brains all I have to do is inspire some of my agents, Herod, Pilate, Caiaphas, the Roman soldiers getting crucified and that is what you do.

So there he hangs on the cross, forsaken by man and seemingly forsaken by God bleeding and crying, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me. What do you feel now is the devil you feel triumph and vindication. But of course you couldn't be more wrong. This is his supreme triumph and your supreme defeat. He struck his heel into your mouth and you bet it, and that blood destroyed you so here's Peter's point suffering in the hands of a loving God can bring forth great benefit in the best example is look at Jesus crucifixion, his crucifixion shows purpose as a second phase to that journey of pain for Christ. Yes he died on the cross. Yes he experience crucifixion but that led to something great resurrection. So let's look at verse 21 words as being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the spirit. I just want to give you little footnote hold onto it in your head, get back to that little explanatory made alive in the spirit. I do not believe that refers to his resurrection, even though it looks like the goat on verse 21. There is also an anti-type, which now saves us baptism, not the removal of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God. True, here is the resurrection of Jesus Christ. So Peter mentions his death, his crucifixion, and that his resurrection Jesus crucifixion led to Jesus resurrection which makes him alive permanently will never die again. The Bible says he always lives to make intercession for us. When Jesus was hanging on the cross. One of the last words he said were these it is finished. What was finished. Well, a lot of things refinish our redemption was finished to name one, but something else was finished on. If you ever thought about this. His suffering, his pain was just about over all of that horrible pain he was feeling in his body that excruciating suffering was over. He had been at the hands of man for six hours.

They did to him whatever they wanted to do that arrested him.

The yelled at him. They cursed at him. They beat him and they killed him.

He was forsaken by his disciples, he felt Elyse momentarily forsaken by the father.

All of that is about over. He will die, but he will be raised in the resurrection changes the playing field assures a permanence of life suffering led to death, but death led to resurrection, and resurrection ensures not only for Jesus, for all of us. The Bible says that will live forever permanence Paul puts it like this.

Romans eight verse 18 I consider that the sufferings of this present age aren't even worthy to be compared to the glory that will be revealed in us to know what you're going through in your life but if you're a believer take solace in this. This is the closest you'll ever get to help this is that this is bad is against was pretty bad. Okay, try to remember because you won't last. Have at last very long.

It's momentary and compared to what's coming.

You can even compare. Now let me flip the coin if you're not a believer.

This is the closest you'll ever get to heaven as bad as it is now. It'll get a lot worse believer.

It's all uphill from here. If you know Jesus Christ there's a permanence.

In fact, you know heaven is so great. It is so unlike our earthly experience that when the Bible wants to describe it. It often has to do so in negatives to say wanted to what heaven is like.

It's not like here. As you know, here you you can relate to hear their you can't so listen to this.

Revelation 21 is what you can expect in your resurrected body and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There shall be no more death, nor sorrow nor crying. There shall be no more pain for the former things have passed away. Just think about that.

Gotta wipe away every tear from their eyes will be no more crying Kleenex in heaven, and of adults. I need wipe my nose not there. This life is scarred by periods of tears.

Can you think back and remember a few days in your life filled with tears, one that really stands out to me the first one that is most memorable in my earlier years was my first day of kindergarten. I'm embarrassed to tell you this, but I was the biggest crybaby in school I wanted my mommy so badly.

I cried all day long goofy whatever other days besides kindergarten were more profound than that.

The day my brother died was a day filled with tears for me.

My father's funeral was a day of tears sitting at my mother's deathbed watching her take her last breath was a day of tears. Those are tears of loss we all experience them before this life is over, but there are more tears than that there are tears of loneliness, misfortune, poverty, sympathy, persecution, and have are tears of regret ever cry few of those regret like the teacher drops over floating together down the river of life, and one said to the other.

Who are you and the teardrops that I'm a teardrop from a woman who loved the man and lost him, and then quickly said and who are you to the other teardrop and the other teardrop said I would teardrop from the woman who got him anyway you spend it. There's there's tears of regret in life.

No more tears. John also says there will be no more death will never go to the cemetery, ever again. You'll never attend a funeral and if there's no more death W no more conditions that bring death, no more disease, no more hospitals, number doctors, no more Dennis than me, doctors and dentist will be in heaven. I want to infer that at all and being very careful not to say that but you never have to see want to get treated. John even says there will be no more sorrow you have or just have a bad day sorrowful day versus like like pigpen. The cloud follows you all day long. So when you see each other and you part company you usually say to them. Have a good day. It's a nice wish. Have a good day. You'll never say that in heaven you never need to the stupidest thing you could say in heaven is have a good day.

Every day is a good day there will be no more sorrow then it says there will be no more pain, no more pain or chronic pain, no more episode of pain just gone. Think of how much aspirin we consume no more pain you will have. You will have a perfect basket with a message from the series.

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