The Blessings of Sufferings (Part 1)

Family policy matters in engaging and informative weekly radio show and podcast produced by the North Carolina family policy Council hi this is John Ralston presidency family were grateful to have you with us for this week's program is our prayer that you will be informed, encouraged and inspired by what you hear on family policy matters. Today we bring you part one of the keynote address delivered by former Atlanta Fire Chief Kelvin Cochran NC families. Major speakers dinner in Winston-Salem, North Carolina on November 7, 2019 now serving as proxy for this report.

Louisiana in early 2000. I was going through a series of personal and professional challenges and I sought God for answers, and it was at that time that God led me to do a word study on the word sufferings in the early 2000's sufferings brothers and sisters. Sometimes they come sequentially and you don't have to be old to go through sufferings even youth and children experience sufferings sometimes sufferings come sequentially you have a type of a suffering you have a period of deliverance and peace and hello in the hall here comes another type of suffering, but sometimes sufferings come simultaneously, whereby we are going through to three at the same time. That's what I was experiencing in the early 2000 when God led me to study sufferings in the Bible and what I search the Scriptures about suffering. This is what I learned when we see words in the old and New Testament like afflictions, trials, tribulation test, trouble, persecution, chastisement, temptations and infirmities of sufferings they all follow the primary heading off sufferings, so I wanted to look at men and women in the Bible who had experience sufferings in the Old Testament and in the New Testament. Well, two categories emerged. There are self-inflicted sufferings and there are God allowed suffering and are pretty much self-explanatory. The self-inflicted sufferings the trials and tribulations afflictions to have trouble persecuted just start with them taking the pharmacy that we bring in our sales because of our bad choices, but sometimes we go to a place in Strauss tribulation test trouble persecution just type them taking affirmative it has nothing to do with what we've done, but God in his sovereignty as chose to allow us to go through those things. So is throughout our lives that we experience one type of suffering or another and it is because of sufferings. This is my personal testimony that I have spiritually matured and developed as a disciple of Christ sufferings in my life have matured me as a disciple of Jesus Christ. And if I can be transparent just for a moment of the two categories of self-inflicted and God allow suffering. Most of the sufferings that I've experienced in my life far in the self inflicted suffering category.

Is there anybody in the room besides me with that testimony. I think that's most of it were truth about it. That's what we would say sufferings over the years listen have a way of stripping off and pruning off promiscuous ways, bad habits and bad relationships that will keep us from achieving our destiny and I've had my share of self-inflicted sufferings, but experience it firsthand that blessed promise that where sin abounds. Grace does much more abound. Here's one going with that. When I was terminated in 2015 because of my track record with self-inflicted sufferings. The first thing that came to my mind was God is punishing me again God is punishing me again or this cause crossed my mind. I did something years ago that God chastised me for he thought about it recently so I got to give them some more. You know, we think like that, we think like that God click it and said listen, this is not self-inflicted suffering. This has nothing to do with you. This is God allow sufferings. Here's the shouting part when you're a child of God.

It doesn't matter whether your sufferings are self-inflicted.

Sufferings are God allow sufferings all of our sufferings.

All of our sufferings are under the sovereign supervision of God and he's going to eventually work them together for our good, for his glory and I get a man to that. So God said to me yet. This is God allowed not self-inflicted and you're in pretty good company.

Kelvin you in pretty good company. So he reminded me of people's lives that I looked at back then, Job is a good example of how God works in the life of a son of God that experiences God allow suffering. Esther is a good example of how God works in a daughter of God whose experience in God allow suffering and God showed me that I have a history in my word on how I deal with the lives of our sons and daughters in God allow sufferings I am God. I don't change at all.

The God I was with Shadrach me shack Abednego and Daniel as government employees on the same God and what I did in their life. I'm going to do it in your life as well.

So God revealed to me that there's five things that his sons and daughters need to know when their day comes, not if your date is gonna come, when your day is going to come hear those five things.talk media teach to you or share with you number one God always prepares his sons and daughters for sufferings the always prepares us for sufferings. Whenever we experience suffering we should come to this conclusion.

God in his own sovereignty felt that I was prepared to go through what I'm going through. He always prepares us. Number two is the toughest of the five lessons.

There are worldly consequences for standing on biblical truth and stand for Christ. There are worldly consequences for standing on biblical truth and standing for Christ going to give you a few examples for our brothers and sisters in foreign countries. About five years ago.

21 Christian men in Egypt were captured by ISIS.

Isis told these 21 Christian brothers all going to die. The only way you get to live is to reject your faith in Jesus Christ. All 21 refused to reject their faith in Jesus Christ, and their heads were cut off in that same era in Afghanistan and villages were Christian families were known to live the tele-bandwidth search the neighborhood to find Christian families.

They mark their doors with the symbol. Sooner or later someone will come back to the house they pulled the family in a room and speak directly to the guys they would speak directly to the dad and tell them your children are going to die only way your children get to live is for you to reject your faith in Jesus Christ. There's not a single case on record. One of those windows Christian dads in Afghanistan rejected Jesus Christ guess what happened there.

Precious children were killed on the spot little lot while after that in northern Kenya on a college campus were Christian and Muslim students were known to 10 a radical group of Islamist on the college campus separated the moose and students from the Christian students told the Christian students all going to die only way you get to live is to reject Jesus Christ. 125 college kids refused to reject their faith in Jesus Christ and they were gunned down on the spot because there are worldly consequences for standing on biblical truth and standing for Christ in the United States of America. We are not close to facing those kinds of consequences unless as the body of Christ in the United States of America. We continue to trend of staying divided passive and silent.

If we continue the trend of staying divided passive and silent. Our grandchildren, or great-grandchildren. Could one day live in America where they had the courage to live out their faith. They can lose their precious life.

If we don't do something in our generation and then it is not the sad part. I believe that we are not facing those kinds of consequences. Because God by his grace knows were not prepared for those kinds of tests.

Why would you say that brother Kevin because we reject Jesus Christ for far less.

We have elected officials who want saying I'm a Christian. But when they get in the office they get addicted to the popularity to all the things surrounding it and it comes to legislation that stands on biblical values and biblical truth. They don't stand because not that they want don't want to lose their head of their kids. They don't want to lose an election. We have pastors pastors in the United States of America who will not preach biblical truth because they're afraid that there some influential members in their congregation that could cause them to lose their church, not their head or their kids, their church, we have college kids in the United States of America who want stand on biblical truth in social relationships because they are afraid.

Not that the going to be killed, but they're gonna lose a boyfriend or girlfriend. RB unfriended if they stand for Jesus Christ. God knows were not prepare for the tests that in those examples that I just gave ask God to God. I don't know if I could've done that yet.

I lost my job, but I still have my head. I still have my children. I don't know if I could have done what they did. How were they able to do that and it was so simple I had been hearing it all my life, God spoke to me and said you know the answer.

He said they really believe they really believe that to live is Christ and to die is gain.

They really believe that, and what that means brothers and sisters they really believe that no matter how big the American dream is for you. There is nothing grander than sleeping in the bosom of Jesus, and if they get to go early.

All the better. That's why they are able to do what they're able to do told you the toughest of the five is number two. There are worldly consequences for standing on biblical truth and standing for Christ gets better it gets better with number three, number three, there are kingdom consequences for standing on biblical truth and standing for Christ and the kingdom consequences are always, always, always greater than the worldly consequences. They always are. Jesus said it this way.

Whatever you lose standing for me. I will restore it 100. So in this life with persecution after you die you going to get to go to heaven.

Jesus was not exaggerating. Jesus was not using hyperbole.

Jesus met that if you lose the house standing for me.

I'll give you a better house, 100 times better than the house that you lost. If you lose a boyfriend or girlfriend standing for me. I give you a boyfriend or girlfriend better than the boyfriend or girlfriend that you lost some guys will Christian guys and some girls will Christian girls are hanging onto the bogeyman when God has in mind for them. Superman because they're just hanging onto someone who doesn't believe in the book the values that we embrace lesson God used many in his word to show that whenever you lose something standing on him, he will restore 100 fold number four sufferings are always for the greater glory of God. Sufferings always for the greater glory of God I got to give you a quick example. Remember Nebuchadnezzar when he put Shadrach me shack and Abednego in the fiery furnace. He was so incensed about their confidence and faith in God, he says, make sure these three boys that heated up seven times hotter, so he anxiously looked in the furnace to see them burn alive and then he had to clear his eyes he say wait a minute, we put three in their C4 in the fall. If one looks like the son of God. Listen, what am I trying to say when we have the courage and faith to stand enemies get to see a side of God that they would have never seen if we had not stood and then it is the better part we get to see a side of God that we would have never seen if we had not stood setback me shack and Abednego got to see the son of God before Mary had him in the manger. Isn't that amazing. Listen, I was raised in church since I was a little boy I heard all this stuff about how God comes through for his people when they're in trouble, but even I have seen a side of God that I've never seen before that I would have never seen had I not stood think it's second Chronicles 16 and nine says this guy searches over the whole earth looking for a heart that is fully his so that he may strongly show his support on their behalf been listening to family policy matters. This is been part one of the two-part keynote address given by former Atlanta Fire Chief Kelvin Cochran it into family's annual Winston-Salem dinner on November 7, 2019. Be sure to tune in next week support to to listen online and learn more about into family's work to inform, encourage and inspire families across North Carolina go to our website into family.org that's in see family.org. Thanks for listening and may God bless you and your family