Thank you for joining me this wonderful Sunday morning! I listened to a wonderful sermon... Adrian Rogers, now with His Lord, gave this awesome sermon which reminded me of the importance of suffering. I hope you will take the time to check it out Part 1 and Part 2!
Here are some important points that really spoke to me and I hope they will speak to you during your time of need or maybe during someone else in your lives that may be of need.
#1: Those of Greatest Devotion May Know the Deepest Darkness
“Who is among you that fears the LORD, that obeys the voice of His
servant, that walks in darkness, and has no light? Let him trust in the
name of the LORD, and stay upon his God.” (Isaiah 50:10)Darkness is not unusual for God’s choicest saints. No matter how close we walk to God, it’s not always sweetness and light. Who ever came up with the distorted idea that if we give our lives to Jesus, all will be joy and rose petals?
Job was a saint who went through much suffering. Remember what he said.....
Job, godly man, wrote, “He hath fenced up my way that I cannot pass, and He hath set darkness in my paths” (Job 19:8).
Paul, the great apostle, said, “We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed” (2 Corinthians 4:8-9).
So if you’re in darkness, you’re in good company.
Notice that Isaiah describes the person in darkness as one who
“fears Him and obeys the voice of His servant.” Darkness, therefore,
does not mean we have sinned or are out the will of God.
# 2: The Faith That Is Born in the Light Often Grows in the Dark
“We should never doubt in the dark what God has shown us in the light.”I like this...really let this sink in. I had not stopped to think about this in this manner. It seems that at times when we are in suffering its hard for us to really grasp what is going on because we are focused on just surviving...when if we would focus on God...there would be no need for us to do anything. God has done it all for us!
It is in darkness that we have to trust the Lord and “stay” upon Him. Think carefully: when have you grown the most? In sunny days when everything seemed perfect? Or at midnight when you cried out to God? It was in the darkness that you grew, wasn’t it?
God wants us to develop a faith that goes beyond our understanding and experience. How you act in the dark is the real test of your character
I like what Adrian Rogers concludes in his sermon.... It makes a lot of sense.
What should you do when the lights suddenly go out in your life?
· First, look to the Lord. Isaiah 50:10 says “trust in Him.” Just because things don’t make sense to you doesn’t mean they don’t make sense. And just because they don’t make sense now, doesn’t mean they won’t make sense some day. If it doesn’t make sense, nonetheless trust the Lord.
· Not only trust, but also obey. Don’t stop praying for an unsaved spouse, even if they seem to get worse. Don’t stop giving in a financial reverse. Don’t stop witnessing, even if no one seems to respond. Don’t stop praising, even if you don’t feel like praising.
· Lean upon the Lord. “Stay” comes from the word for “staff.” Just as a shepherd leans on his staff, lean upon the Lord. David said, “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for Thouart with me.” (Psalm 23:4) It’s better to be in a dark valley, leaning on Jesus, than on a sunlit mountain without Him.
We may not understand, but relationship is really more important than reason. It may be that we do not know Why in order that we may know Who. In the dark valley, David no longer talks about the Lord (“the Lord is my shepherd”), he now talks to the Lord (“Thou are with me”).
However dark life becomes, you will find Jesus standing somewhere in the shadows.
Awesome! Jesus is always with us!!!
By Adrian Rogers
Click Below to Read Adrian Rogers' Article:
http://www.oneplace.com/ministries/love-worth-finding/read/articles/the-discipline-of-darkness-part-1-11898.html
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