Suffering that Leads to Maturity

Show me a mature Christian, and I will show you someone who has suffered. Mind you, it’s not the suffering itself that produces maturity, but the faith response to it. Not everyone needs the same kind of suffering, to the same degree, or for the same duration. Like a finely made suit, God tailors His suffering to the needs of each person. Jonah suffered for three days and it was sufficient to produce the humility needed for obedience (Jonah 1:17), which resulted in the salvation of many (Jonah 3:1-10). Nebuchadnezzar suffered for seven years before his pride was broken (Dan 4:1-33), and afterwards, he “blessed the Most High and praised and honored Him who lives forever” (Dan 4:34), saying, “He is able to humble those who walk in pride” (Dan 4:37). Humility and faith are always the proper response to His suffering.

Suffering is valuable when it burns away the dross of weak character and refines the golden qualities God wants to see in us. God said to His people, “Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have refined you in the furnace of affliction” (Isa 48:10). God’s affliction is not for destruction, but for transformation. And He refines us so that when He looks into the smelter’s pot He sees His own reflection, for then we will bear those qualities that mirror His character; qualities which bring Him glory and honor. However, God’s furnace of refinement never brings us to a place of total purity, but only begins a process that is perfected when He brings us home to heaven; for then, and only then, will we be free from all the impurities of sin.[1]

From the human side we bristle at the notion of suffering, but from the divine side, such refinement is necessary. God loves us enough to help make us better, and this guarantees that we will suffer, “For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines, and He scourges every son whom He receives” (Heb 12:6). As growing Christians, we realize that “All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness” (Heb 12:11). The refining itself is hard (“sorrowful”), but after the training process is complete, we are more mature. According to Warren Wiersbe:

"Chastening is the evidence of the Father’s love. Satan wants us to believe that the difficulties of life are proof that God does not love us, but just the opposite is true. Sometimes God’s chastening is seen in His rebukes from the Word or from circumstances. At other times He shows His love by punishing us with some physical suffering. Whatever the experience, we can be sure that His chastening hand is controlled by His loving heart. The Father does not want us to be pampered babies; He wants us to become mature adult sons and daughters who can be trusted with the responsibilities of life."[2]

We don’t like trials or suffering, and we often ask God to remove them, much like Paul asked God to remove his “thorn in the flesh” (2 Cor 12:7). However, we find that most of the time God chooses not to remove our difficulty, like He did not remove Paul’s (2 Cor 12:8-9), and we must learn that what He does not remove, He intends for us to deal with, and this by faith (2 Cor 12:10; cf. 2 Cor 5:7; Heb 10:38; 11:6).

From a biblical perspective, God uses trials as a means to shape us into the people He wants us to be because He loves us and desires what is best for us. He wants us to mature, and life’s difficulties are part of the process. We must walk by faith and choose to “count it all joy” (Jam 1:2) because we know that the testing of our faith will lead to spiritual maturity if we yield to the Lord (Jam 1:3-4). Paul echoed this attitude when he wrote, “we exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope” (Rom 5:3-5).

Lastly, we cannot prevent the difficulties of life that come our way, but we can respond to them in faith, trusting God and His Word to guide and strengthen us. We know that “God causes all things to work together for good to those who love Him, to those who are called according to His purpose” (Rom 8:28). Whatever happens to us, we must fight the urge to complain, for if we start that, it becomes increasingly difficult to turn back. Complaining is not a problem solving device, and Scripture tells us to “Do all things without complaining or arguing” (Phil 2:14; cf., 1 Pet 4:9). As difficult as it may be, we must chose a faith response to “Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; and in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Th 5:16-18). When emotions rise, faith must rise even higher, for it is only through faith in God and His Word that growth occurs.

Dr. Steven R. Cook

[1] Jesus, though sinless (1 Pet 2:22; 1 John 3:5), experienced the sufferings of humanity during “the days of His flesh” (Heb 5:7a). As God (John 1:1, 14; Col 2:9), there was nothing for Jesus to learn, but in His humanity, He grew in wisdom (Luke 2:40), “learned obedience from the things which He suffered” (Heb 5:8), and became “obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Phil 2:8). Jesus learned through suffering, not because He was sinful like us (He’s not), but because He lived in a sinful world that is currently governed by Satan, where doing God’s will meant swimming against the current and facing pressures and hardships that cannot be avoided by anyone. As God’s Suffering Servant (Isa 53:1-12), Jesus also suffered when He bore our sins on the cross and paid the penalty that belonged to us (Mark 10:45; Rom 5:8; 1 Pet 3:18).

[2] Warren W. Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1996), 324.