Suffering (7) and Redemption

Another important aspect of Christ's suffering is its redemptive effect. Our suffering as Christians helps sanctify us, because God is leading us towards a Christ-like life through our suffering. Peter makes this clear in 1 Peter 4:1,

Arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because he who has suffered in his body is done with sin.

God is a holy God, and we are to be holy like him. God makes us holy through suffering.

And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast(1 Pet 5:10).

God is used their troubles to make them pure like refined gold, which has been tested by the refiners fire (1 Pet 1:7).

In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honour when Jesus Christ is revealed (1 Pet 1:6,7).

God allows sufferings to test and refine our faith, so that our lives may bring praise and glory to him. Suffering breaks the bonds that hold men in the futility of sin and all its consequences.

Tags: Suffering, Redemption,