to go back tonight to 2 Corinthians
chapter 4 and verse 17. As God the Holy Ghost will enable
me, I want to try one more time to address this subject, our
light affliction. 2 Corinthians chapter 4 verse
17. Our light affliction, which is
but for a moment worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal
weight of glory. I'm preaching to you from this
text again tonight because it is presently relative to us all. We have some very dear friends
in this assembly and friends in other places around the world
who are going through great trouble. Some you are aware of, some you're
not aware of. The Colemans, of course, you're
very much aware of. It's been two years since David
has had any health or strength at all. And Brother Skip Gladfelter
has had constant trouble since he had his heart valve replacement
several months ago. Joe Crabtree is dying with cancer. Brother Mahan, 92 years old,
took that fall, is broken hip, don't know what the prospect
is. I'm talking about men and women who are loved of God and
who love God. They're chosen, redeemed, regenerated. They are born again by His grace,
washed in the blood of Christ, sanctified by His Spirit. But
their lives are full of pain and hurt. There are some of them,
if not all, at various times terribly confused. If you've
been there, you know exactly what I'm saying, whether you
acknowledge it to anyone else or not. If you haven't been there,
pay attention, you're going to find out. When you go through
a great affliction, great heartache, great trouble, as a believer,
you're often perplexed in your mind and confused about much. I have a very dear friend we
just spent some time with in Wolverhampton, whose wife died
just about a year ago. And he spoke about the loneliness. The loneliness. I recall going
to see Brother Hubert Montgomery, Ruth's grandfather, just a few
months after his first wife Louise had been taken to glory. That's
been now, what, 36 years ago, somewhere in there. And I stopped
by to visit with him a little bit. And Brother Hubert was far
more tender-hearted than most people realized, I think. A very
matter-of-fact spoken fella. But I got up and started to leave,
and he looked at me, tears running down his cheeks. He said, Brother
Faulkner, he always called me Faulkner. I don't know why, but
he always did. He said, Brother Faulkner, this
is the hardest thing I've ever had to go through in my life.
And I said, what, Brother Hubert? He said, being alone. Loneliness can be so thick you
could cut it with a knife. I know parents and grandparents
whose children seem to make it their life's determination to
cut their heart out with a dull knife and pour salt in every
time they get a chance. Husbands and wives who are abandoned
by a husband or wife Families abandoned by mothers, abandoned
by their fathers, heartlessly so. I have pastor friends who
are presently maligned and abused by the very people they serve.
And have some dying friends. They know it. And dying can be
very painful, even for a child of God. It can be painful both
physically and emotionally. Even more painful is watching
one you love die. That's always painful. That's
always painful. More so than words can express.
Even when the one who's dying is in the Savior's arms as he
dies, watching one die that you love is painful. The hymn writer
said, swift to its close ebbs out life's little day. Earth's
joys grow dim, its glories slip away. Change and decay in all
around me I see. O thou who changest not, abide
with me. In the midst of heartache and
trouble, that's what I need, and that's what you need. O thou
who changest not, abide with me. I don't need perfect health. I need God's perfect peace. I
don't need prosperity and wealth. I need the riches of His grace.
I don't need a life of ease. I need the comfort of Christ's
presence. But still, having said all that,
when you come to this text of Scripture and read verse 17 in
2 Corinthians 4, with a broken heart, when you don't know what
to do, where to go when you're just at your wit's end, and you
read those words, our light of fiction, you might be tempted
to slam your Bible shut in anger and throw it in the floor. And I wouldn't excuse that, but
I understand it. I wouldn't excuse it, but I understand
it. Sometimes believing men and women
become angry with God and his providence. We shouldn't, but
we do. That's just fact. Well, before
you get too angry with God and his providence, before you just
throw the book in the floor and ignore it, I suggest that you
try to remember five things about our afflictions. I want to speak
as simply and as forcibly as I can tonight. Remember this,
whatever your affliction is, whatever my affliction is, whatever
it is, it is a light thing compared to what we deserve. Turn back
to Psalm 103, Psalm 103. Our afflictions are very light
when compared with what we deserve. If we could ever bear in mind
honestly what we deserve, it would put an end to much of our
murmuring. If we can bear in mind, honestly,
what we deserve, it would keep us from most of our complaining. We complain and murmur about
nothing in reality. We complain and murmur about
things that just don't matter. If they were totally gone before
the day's over, it wouldn't make one speck of difference. And
we murmur and complain about nothing. But our afflictions,
even when they are heavy, even when our troubles are real, even
when our hearts are breaking, our afflictions are light when
compared with what we deserve. I've had some friends over the
years, you ask them how they're doing, and for some reason people
just can't, they just can't speak without trying to put on an air
of humility and religion, well, better than I deserve. And I
don't say this, but I think I might next time. You dead sure are. Better than I deserve. Yep, much
better. Look here in Psalm 103 verse
eight. The Lord is merciful and gracious,
slow to anger and plenteous in mercy. He will not always chide,
neither will he keep his anger forever. Now watch this. Oh God,
thank you. He hath not dealt with us after
our sins, nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as the
heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward
them that fear him. As far as the east is from the
west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us. Like
as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that
fear him. For he knoweth our frame, he
remembereth that we are dust. He knoweth our frame. He remembereth
that we are dust. The fact is we could have been
cast off in reprobation just like he saw, just like Judas,
just like many others. God could have left you alone.
You tried to get him to, didn't you? He could have left you alone. We could be in heathen darkness,
And I wrote that down this afternoon and looked at it a good while.
I thought to myself, free will isn't much to cling to when your
world's falling apart. Christ is, free grace is. God could have left us in the
heathen darkness we were in. We could be in hell. Paul put
it this way, God hath not appointed us to wrath. but to obtain salvation
by Jesus Christ. By Jesus Christ who died for
us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with
him. Wherefore, comfort yourselves together, and edify one another,
even as also you do. Here's the second thing. Our afflictions are certainly
light when compared with what so many others suffer and have
suffered. There's a saying that you're
all familiar with. You may not know the source of
it. It comes from the days of the persecution of our Baptist
forefathers in the Piedmont, in those horrible days of persecution,
when they fled for their lives and hiding in the Alps. Once
a man complained that he had no shoes, till he met a man who
had no feet, because he had been frostbitten, his feet were cut
off as a result of it. and we often have read or heard
that statement. I once complained that I had
no shoes till I met a man who had no feet. Men and women all
over the world suffer the same thing we do. I don't know exactly
why the Apostle Paul used the word affliction in the singular
in this text of Scripture. But one certain thing is that
our affliction is the common affliction of men. We are in
the process of dying. And the process of dying is pain
and sorrow and sickness and disease and crumbling bodies and age,
old age, weary old age, and dying. Why should you and I be any different
from anyone else? Most people in this world suffer
a great deal more than I do and a great deal more than you do.
Why should we complain? The fact is God's people in this
world, since the fall of our father Adam, God's people in
this world have always had a bitter cup of adversity and affliction
to endure. Always. Beginning with Job, that
man's life, the whole book of Job, till you get right up to
the end, is taken up with his affliction. I mean affliction. I mean gut-riching affliction.
I mean the kind of affliction you can't imagine. A man in one
day lose his children, and his health, and his name, and his
reputation, and his influence, and his wealth, and then his
wife, the one person in the world with whom a man hopes ever to
be in agreement. She said, why don't you cuss
God and die? One day. One day. And then his friends. Friends can be a great help,
can't they? When you're going through tough
times. Especially friends who have advice
who've never been where you are. And friends who've decided they
know the reason and they've got the answers. Their pain, they
just add to the affliction. David was a man after God's own
heart. And David's life, in so many
ways, remarkable. When you get to the end of the
day, he says, although my house be not so with God, looking back
over his family. I don't know that this is so,
but it appears to me, from all that I can glean about David
and his family, the only people in his household, and he had
a huge family, a huge family, the only people in his household
who believed God were Bathsheba, Abigail, and Solomon. Do you
know of anyone else? The only ones in his household.
Although my house be not so with God, yet he made with me an everlasting
covenant, ordering all things insure. This is all my salvation
and all my desire, though he make it not to go. The apostles
were all men who suffered horribly in their generation while they
walked on this earth and suffered death. You're all familiar with
the ages of the martyrs who were persecuted, burned at the stake,
imprisoned, and banished because of their faith in Christ Jesus.
John Bunyan spent 12 years in bed for jail. I've been there
and seen what that jail looked like. It wasn't like the jail
down here on the bypass. It was a wooden box suspended
from a bridge about four feet high. over a river, you can imagine
the moisture, the horrible, horrible moisture for 12 years. He was in prison there for just
one thing. He refused to agree not to preach
the gospel within 12 miles of Bedford. That's all he had to
do, all he had to do. Okay, I believe the Lord's in
this, I'll go 13 miles out and preach. That's all he had to
do, all he had to do. Charles Spurgeon, known as the
Prince of Preachers, lived for 58 years. For 30 of those years,
he was sick almost constantly, almost constantly in pain with
gout for 30 years. He was out of his pulpit for
months at a time, for months at a time. Simply could not take
his responsibilities, and he felt it keenly. Must I be carried
to the skies on flowery beds of ease while others fought to
win the prize and sailed through bloody seas? No, no, no. The fact is I have observed in
my life as a believer that the most thoughtful, the
most gracious, the most caring, the most tender people I have
ever known. I mean the very most. Are those
whose lives have been torn most with adversity and affliction.
I've told you many times about one of my professors. I didn't
have many I had any respect for. This man I did, his name was
Bob Cox. Before I knew him, I understand
he was a man of about six feet tall. Strong, healthy man. When he was in his mid-20s, he
was stricken with arthritis, and shortly, shortly, he was
shorter than Shelby, about five feet tall, twisted. His body
just could hardly move. He'd move like this. He never
took a step that he didn't wince with pain. I mean, his step right
here, you could see him wince with pain. I never heard the
man hint at a complaint. Never saw him when he wasn't
pleasant, rejoicing in God's goodness, and anxious to convey
something of God's goodness and grace to someone else. Here's
the third thing. Our afflictions are light. Oh, how light when we consider
what our Savior has suffered for us. Turn to Hebrews chapter
12, Hebrews 12. Verse 3, consider him that endured
such contradiction of sinners against himself. Lest you be
wearied and faint in your minds. Lest you get pressed down too
much. Lest you let these things get in your way. Consider Christ
and remember, verse four, ye have not yet resisted unto blood
striving against sin. He did. Think of him often. in Gethsemane's garden. Think
of him often. Anticipating being made sin for
you. Anticipating suffering the hell
of God's wrath in your stead. As his heart breaks within him,
and it breaks out in a sweat of blood as he cries to his father
three times. Oh, my father, if it be possible,
let this cup pass from me. Nevertheless, not as I will,
thy will be done. And then he rose up and said
to his disciples, let's be going. My hour has come. And he braces
himself and sets himself steadfastly to go on to the cursed tree in
our stead. And he's arrested in the garden.
He's taken to Gabbatha, the judgment hall. And there he's mocked and derided,
stripped, beaten. His beard plucked out, his hair
pulled off from his head. Men making a hellish song of mockery
to him. sentenced to be crucified in
our stead. And they take him out to Calvary,
to Golgotha's dark hill, nail him to a piece of wood, pick it up and drop it in a socket
prepared for it. And his body winces with pain. He's forsaken by all. Men pass by and beat on him,
laugh at him, spit in his face. And at last he cries, my God,
my God, why hast thou forsaken me? And the God of heaven, our Holy
Father, because of his love for us and his justice, because of
his grace and his truth, because of his mercy and his unbending
holiness, drew forth the sword of his justice and slaughtered
his son in the violence of holy anger and wrath, justly so, when
He who knew no sin was made sin for us. Our affliction is light
when compared with what He paid to redeem us. When I know the
agony of body and soul, the torments of heart, the bloody sweat which
my Savior endured for me, How can I complain about my featherweight,
insignificant, meaningless, light affliction? See from his head,
his hands, his feet. Sorrow and love flow mingled
down. Did air such love and sorrow meet? Are thorns composed so
rich a crown? were the whole realm of nature
mine, that were a present far too small. Love so amazing, so
divine, demands my soul, my life, my all. I ought to be able. Gary, you ought to be able. You
ladies, you ought to be able. By the grace of God to endure
our light affliction with patience for the honor of our God, our
Redeemer, who suffered so much for us. Here's the fourth thing. Next
time you think about complaining too much, and please don't misunderstand
me, I wouldn't say anything. I don't even think anything that
is intended to hurt or shame you. I'm ashamed of myself, but
I want to help you in difficulty. I want to help you when darkness
comes. I want to help you when nothing
can help you but God. Here's the fourth thing. When
trouble comes, and you're tempted to murmur, and you're tempted
to complain. Our afflictions are light. Oh,
how light, when compared with the countless, countless, countless
blessings God has heaped upon us in Christ our Lord. Oh, what
blessings. Count your many blessings. Name
them one by one. and it will surprise you what
the Lord has done. Of Him are you in Christ Jesus, who of God has made unto us wisdom
and righteousness and sanctification and redemption. Blessed be the
God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with
all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ Jesus, according
as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world,
in love having predestinated us unto the adoption of children
by Jesus Christ to himself. And on top of all that, having
made us accepted in the Beloved, everlastingly so. All the blessings
of God, eternal covenant blessings, are ours in Christ. All the blessings
of God's providence His daily wise and good providence are
ours in Christ. All the blessings of God's saving
operations of grace are ours in Christ. We are ourselves,
each of us, chosen, redeemed, born of God, given faith in Christ,
preserved by the grace of God, forgiven of all sin, and God
Graciously, graciously gives us something else. Trouble and trial and suffering
for his sake. Unto you it is given, Paul says
in Philippians 129, on the behalf of Christ, not only to believe
on him, but also to suffer for his sake. To suffer because of
your faith in him? Yes. To suffer because of your
confession of him? Yes. To suffer because you're
identified with him? Yes. To suffer doing his will,
doing his bidding, for his glory, for the accomplishment of his
purpose, to you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only
to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake. One more
thing. Our afflictions are light when
compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. Turn
back to our text, 2 Corinthians 4. This is exactly what Paul
had in mind when he called our afflictions in this world, our
light affliction. Oh, how light my afflictions
are. when compared to the glory that
I shall enjoy when the Lord calls me whole. In fact, the Spirit
of God here tells us that our afflictions are themselves instruments
by which our God is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal
weight of glory. Look at this, for our light affliction,
which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and
eternal weight of glory. While we look not at things which
are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things
which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not
seen are eternal. What a contrast Paul gives. Our
light afflictions. Our afflictions we will soon
exchange for glory. Our light affliction works for
us a weight of glory. Our momentary affliction will
give way to eternal glory. Our light affliction which is
but for a moment. John Trapp, quoting one of the
Puritans, made this statement. I thought it was outstanding.
He said, morning lasteth but to morning. Morning. M-O-U-R-N-I-N-G. Lasteth but till morning. M-O-R-I-N-G. It's just for a
moment. And these light afflictions work
for us. God performs all things for us,
even our afflictions. They work for us, not against
us. They are wrought of God. And
by them God is working us for glory. He tells us in chapter
5 that he has wrought us for this very same thing, eternal
glory. And they work for us a far more
exceeding and eternal weight of glory. What does that mean? Exactly what you would think
it would mean if you just read the text and waited and watched
to see what God says in his word. Heavenly glory will be far more
glorious because of our light affliction here than it could
otherwise be. Heavenly glory will be far more
glorious because of our light afflictions here than it could
otherwise be. Therefore, the Apostle Peter
says, the trial of your faith, not your faith, the trial of
your faith, is more precious than gold that perishes. Through many dangers, toils,
and snares, I have already come. Tis grace has brought me safe
thus far, and grace will lead me home. The Lord has promised
good to me, His word my hope secures. He will my shield and
portion be as long as life endures. And when this heart and flesh
shall fail, and mortal life shall cease, I shall possess within
the veil a life of joy and peace. When Paul had been translated
to the third heaven, He saw things that words cannot describe. He tells us in chapter 2 of 1
Corinthians, that eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither
hath it entered into the heart of man the things which God has
prepared for them that love him. We haven't begun to conceive. We haven't begun to imagine.
We've never, it's never entered into our minds. The fact of what
God's prepared for us is written in the book, we understand it,
we rejoice in it, but the words, the words, the words of human
language cannot describe the glory that awaits God's people
when our light affliction is ended. work for us a far more exceeding
and eternal weight of glory. You see, the Spirit bears witness
with our spirit that we're children of God. If children, then heirs
of God and joint heirs with Christ. If so be that we suffer with
him, that we may be also glorified together. Now, I try to be a realist. You're
a realist, aren't you, Lydia? I look at things like they really
are. Let me tell you how things really
are. I reckon, I reckon that the sufferings
of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the
glory that shall be revealed in us. Our light of fiction,
which but for a moment were for us a far more exceeding and eternal
weight of glory. Why we look not at things that
are seen. We look at things that are seen. That's our trouble. That's our
trouble. We're focused on things that
are seen. Oh God, focus my heart and my mind on things that are
not seen. The things that are seen are
temporal. They're vanishing quickly. The things that are not seen
are eternal. They last forever. Oh, these light afflictions work
for us an eternal weight of glory in union with Christ our Lord.
And may God be pleased to bless his word to your heart and bless
our lives for usefulness to his glory. while we walk through
this world of woe, looking not at things that are seen, but
things which are not seen. Looking heavenward to Christ
our Redeemer, who is our life, and our life is hid with Him
in God. Amen.