The Beauty of Suffering

The word covenant appears throughout the Old and New Testaments, but many of us do not understand the depth of its meaning.  The term comes from a sacred and ancient ritual between two people making an agreement.  A covenant is more than just a commitment; it is a solemn binding agreement in which two people literally give their lives to each other.  David and Jonathan made such an agreement in 1 Samuel 18.  Historically the two covenanters would cut themselves and comingle their blood to symbolize the highest level of their dedication, as if saying, “Your life for mine,” hence the term “blood brother.”  Thereafter, when either of the covenanters saw their scar associated with the ceremony, it served to remind them of the importance of their agreement. 

                Jesus has covenant scars.  The wounds in His hands are there for eternity, always before Him as a reminder of the agreement He made with us, His bride.  He promises to give us His clean and pure life in exchange for our dirty, sinful one.  His life for ours.  Where is our covenant scars though?  Paul gives us an indication of where our part of the agreement comes in:

“I bear in my body scars from my service to Jesus.”

-Galatians 6:17

When we suffer for our faith, we receive emotional, physical, or spiritual scarring.  As a soldier for Christ, dedicate your scars as a reminder of your covenant relationship with Him.  We need not shy away from struggle or pain because it is an opportunity to share in the sufferings of Christ.  Scars are beautiful.

Paul tells us in 2 Timothy 2:3 to “share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.”  The occupation of a soldier blends together some of the most difficult situations in life:  leaving behind family, enduring uncomfortable living conditions, and facing the threat of death.  Yet Paul finds it a perfect metaphor for the Christian life.  Christianity, riddled with obstacles and booby traps, is the most difficult existence anyone could undertake – but also the most glorious.  Charles Spurgeon paints an excellent illustration of the Christian soldier metaphor:

“Suppose that your record should be: From birth a sufferer, through life a struggler, at home a wrestler, and abroad a soldier and a cross-bearer – and not withstanding all this you proved to be full of joy and peace, through strong believing in God; tried to the uttermost, yet found faithful.  In such a chronicle there is something worth remembering.  There is no glory in being a featherbed soldier, a man bedecked with gorgeous medals, but never beautified by a scar or ennobled by a wound.  All you have ever heard of such a soldier is that his spurs jingle on the pavement as he walks.  There is no history for this carpet knight.  He is just a dandy.  He never smelled gunpowder in a battle in his life.  If he did, he fetched out his cologne to kill the offensive odor.  Oh, if we could be wise enough to choose, even were as wise as the Lord Himself, we would choose the troubles which He has appointed us, and we would not spare ourselves a single pang.”

Following after Jesus in His sufferings requires that we bear our struggles with a stout heart as He did.  There is grace at every turn to mold your soul to look more and more like Jesus, even gaining scars like His in the process to symbolize our commitment to sharing in the work of the Gospel.