David Yarbrough
Micah 6:9 (CSB)
The voice of the Lord calls out to the city: “Pay attention to the rod and the one who ordained it.
WHY GOD?!?! Have you ever prayed that?
Often times, when we find ourselves in a tight spot, we ask the question, "Why?"
Many things in this life and in this world don't make sense.
Discipline is all about learning and growing.
Proverbs 3:12 (CSB)
for the Lord disciplines the one he loves, just as a father disciplines the son in whom he delights.
You must always keep this in mind when we face trials:
What the devil wants to use to destroy you, God wants to use to develop you.
The purpose of our suffering in the Kingdom is to grow and learn, and we must view our trials as opportunities to develop our faith. Often times, we make the mistake of rushing to have our afflictions relieved rather than being sanctified by them. Thomas Case said, "People would rather break out of jail themselves or jump out of a window rather than wait for God to open the door for them.” It is difficult for us to wait on God. It takes supernatural, Holy Spirit-powered faith when we are under affliction to wait on God's deliverance. But when we, by our own choice and strength, escape the confines of our suffering by leaping out the window, we are, in a sense, spiritually immature because we have not allowed God to complete His work in our lives. It is as if the affliction is an incubator for our spiritual immaturity. We must stay under the pressure of suffering until God is ready for us to come out and live in the fullness of our identity in Christ for our Kingdom purpose.
But whenever God opens the prison doors of our affliction, nothing or no one can stop Him.
When our sanctification is complete and He has purposed to set us free, then nothing in heaven or earth will stop Him. Our deliverance will be complete, and our freedom will be fully realized by the love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control that have grown during our incubation of suffering (Gal. 5:22–23). This is the purpose of our affliction—life transformation. Equally, God is working in our hearts, souls, and minds to break us from the authority and influence of the world, the flesh, and the devil. Through the humiliation of our suffering, we realize our weakness and corruption and release our grip on our own bondage.
The shortest path to liberation is learning.
When we find ourselves in affliction, we must allow the Holy Spirit to humble us, prove our faith, and reveal what is at the root of our motives. To understand why we do what we do. Our hearts motivation behind why we do what we do is of the utmost importance in the Kingdom of God. When we do good things with selfish motives, it is destructive to our souls and to the work of the Kingdom. But when we have the pure motive of joining God in His work and for His Kingdom purpose, we are truly living in the freedom of Christ Jesus, our King.
So what is God's purpose in affliction, pain, and captivity? To put it simply, our freedom!
“It is sad to have the affliction but not the blessing of affliction: to fill the wood of the cross, but not the good of the cross; To taste the bitter root, but not the sweet fruit; to know the curse, but not the cordial." -Thomas Case
John 8:36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.