The Same Kinds of Suffering
“Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. To him be the dominion
forever and ever. Amen.”
I Peter 5:6-11
What are you prone to experience anxiety over? Perhaps you are prone to anxiety over family struggles. Do you have a child, a grandchild, a spouse, a niece or nephew, someone who is wandering? Does their life trajectory cause you to lie awake and ponder the outcome of their current path? You would not be alone.
Perhaps you are prone to experience anxiety over finances. Is your job unstable? Do you have something that needs payment, and its hanging over your head? Is your retirement not adding up to what you hoped it would be? Perhaps the concern over the intricacies of money, the blessings and the curses of it, leave you restless. You would not be alone.
Perhaps you are prone to experience anxiety over politics, in one perspective or another. Perhaps the idea of a new administration causes you to lose sleep. Perhaps the fear of “losing more ground” in a sociological sense causes you great trepidation. You would not be alone in this.
Peter, writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, fully understood the experience of human anxiety. We understand Peter to be strong and bold. Certainly, we might say, "he didn’t have anxiety!" But perhaps he did. Perhaps, in his desire to have control over life's tumultuous situations, Peter's anxiety disguised itself as pride.
I believe that is why he pits anxiety against humility in this passage. If we think carefully about it, that seems to be a relevant comparison for all types of anxiety. Is it possible that the reason I’m anxious over finances, or family, or politics, is that I feel helpless, and I don’t like that? Is it possible that the reason I lie awake at night over whatever issue may be coursing through my imagination at any moment is that I can’t actually do anything about it, and that gives me feelings of weakness?
Is it possible that my anxiety reveals not simply a lack of trust in God, but perhaps a view of myself that is too high? A view of myself that says, “if I simply come up with a better solution, the problem will be fixed.” “If I simply work a bit harder, my financial woes will be done away with.” “If my political candidate wins election, then that is certainly the road to peace and stability in our nation.” “If I can just get my children to reconcile, then I will have nothing to worry about.” Perhaps our anxiety, sometimes, stems from this conundrum – we see the process of worrying as part of the solution, rather than part of the problem.
What does anxiety do to us? It cripples us. It robs us of spiritual peace that comes from resting in God’s sovereignty. It builds us up with a sort of self-conscious pride that fuels even more worry due to lack of control. But perhaps most critically, it causes us to be woefully self-centered. Our focus, which should be God-ward and other-ward, remains inward. Peter says that part of this process is resisting the Devil, knowing that our brothers and sisters all over the world are facing the same kinds of suffering.
Do you feel that you suffer alone? Does your anxiety cause you to forget the suffering of your brothers and sisters? Does your anxiety cause you to live in a state of perpetual introspection? Know that you are not alone, but also know that we are called to cast this kind of anxiety, this kind of introspective pride, upon Christ – because He cares for you! Christ, and Christ alone will, in the final analysis, restore you, strengthen you, establish you. The perspective of faith in the time of trouble can turn your anxiety into cause for glorying in Christ. Imagine this – countless children of God around the globe are facing equal or greater challenges than what you are currently facing – yet Christ has born them all.
I write this because I am guilty even today of this kind of sinful anxiety. As I am writing, we are awaiting the closing on the sale of our home. It has been delayed for various reasons. It is not the end of the world, but in my lack of control over the situation, and in my introspective pride, I can be prone to anxiety. I write this out of the loving conviction of the Spirit in my life, and I pray that you don’t make the same mistakes of losing sight of Christ in the midst of a minor difficulty. I pray that you don’t make the same mistake of forgetting that our brothers and sisters are facing much worse, yet Christ has born those troubles! And even our troubles are cause to glory in the sweetness of Christ.
So when your adversary, the devil, tempts you with this sort of anxiety - resist him firm in the faith! Rest, dear one. Rest not in your problem-solving ability, but rest in the providential hand of the God of all grace. Our troubles last only for a lifetime, but Christ's dominion, his kingdom and reign, are forever and ever. Amen.
With love and humility,
Pastor Aaron Frost
