Month: May 2022

There is so much suffering in our world that it can be hard to know how to respond. We are going to use the HelpFinder Bible to see how the Bible answers questions about suffering and how we can respond.

Taken from the HelpFinder Bible

Who among us does not suffer, bearing persistent pain and hurt? Sickness or disabilities, broken relationships, insufficient resources—these are all sources of pain and suffering. Some are by chance, like an auto accident that maims us or a disease that cripples or takes the life of a loved one. Some is by neglect, such as our failure to prepare for times of pressure. Some is by design, where we willingly take on enormous responsibilities in order to achieve some goal. Some are because of sin, where we willingly go against God’s commands and then must suffer the consequences. Whatever the source, we all feel the dark shadow of suffering. While the Bible never promises a life free from suffering, it does assure us that God is with us in our pain.

How do I stay close to God in times of suffering?

PSALM 126:5-6 | Those who plant in tears will harvest with shouts of joy. They weep as they go to plant their seed, but they sing as they return with the harvest.
Recognize that suffering is not forever. In the dark hours of the night of suffering, it is hard to think of a morning of joy and gladness.

LAMENTATIONS 3:32-33 | Though he brings grief, he also shows compassion because of the greatness of his unfailing love. For he does not enjoy hurting people or causing them sorrow.
Recognize that God does not want you to suffer and that his compassionate love and care will see you through it. A loving God does not enjoy the adversity and pain of life which must come your way.

MATTHEW 17:12 | “And in the same way they will also make the Son of Man suffer.”

LUKE 24:26 | “Wasn’t it clearly predicted that the Messiah would have to suffer all these things before entering his glory?”

JOHN 3:16 | “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.”
Recognize that Jesus himself suffered for you. He suffered the agonies of the cross, which embraced not only the incredible physical suffering but also the unthinkable suffering of bearing the sins of the entire world.

ROMANS 8:17-18 | And since we are his children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God’s glory. But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering. Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later.

HEBREWS 2:18 | Since he himself has gone through suffering and testing, he is able to help us when we are being tested.
Recognize that suffering is not forever and will end when those who believe in Jesus are
welcomed into heaven.

How can I respond to the suffering of others?

1 CORINTHIANS 12:26 | If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it, and if one part is honored, all the parts are glad.
When one Christian suffers, it should hurt us all, for we are all members of Christ’s body—unified. If one part of our body hurts, sympathetic pain is sent throughout our entire body. So it should be in the body of Christ. If you know someone who is hurting, suffering along with that person can bring them comfort and hope.

GALATIANS 6:2 | Share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ.
Seek to provide whatever practical support you can for a person who is suffering.

2 CORINTHIANS 1:3-4 | God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us.
Suffering enables you to comfort others. Wounded healers are more effective than healers who have never been wounded. Why? Because they have wrestled and agonized over the same questions, and they know they don’t have all the answers. Woundedness may appear to weaken you, but it actually makes you stronger.

Promises From God
PSALM 147:3 | He heals the brokenhearted and bandages their wounds.
2 CORINTHIANS 1:5 | For the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with
his comfort through Christ.

Learn more about the HelpFinder Bible

“When Timothy comes, don’t intimidate him. He is doing the Lord’s work, just as I am. Don’t let anyone treat him with contempt. Send him on his way with your blessing when he returns to me. I expect him to come with the other believers.” 1 Corinthians 16:10-11, NLT

Profile from the Every Man’s Bible

Too many of us shrink back from ministry involvement because we tell ourselves we just don’t have the right temperament. We hear of the fiery fisherman Peter or the bold apostle Paul and think, Hey, I’m nothing like that. I could never get up in front of three people to speak, let alone a crowd. I’ll leave ministry to the professionals.

Yet God doesn’t think this way. Consider Timothy “Exhibit A.” Timothy grew up in a mixed home. While his Jewish mother became a Christian, his Greek father apparently never came to faith. It appears that both Timothy and his mother accepted Christ during Paul’s first missionary journey when the apostle visited their hometown, Lystra. On Paul’s second trip through the area, he took note of Timothy, a young man “well thought of by the believers in Lystra and Iconium” (Acts 16:2). Paul and Timothy developed a close bond, and the apostle became the younger man’s spiritual mentor.

From that time on, Timothy often accompanied Paul on his journeys, sometimes staying behind and sometimes working with others in “advance teams,” paving the way for Paul’s arrival (Acts 17:14; 18:5; 19:22; 20:4). Paul grew to love this young man as if he were his own flesh and blood.

He counted him a “fellow worker” (Romans 16:21) and “brother” (2 Corinthians 1:1); but more than that, he thought of Timothy as “my dear son” (2 Timothy 1:2), “my beloved and faithful child in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 4:17) and “my true son in the faith” (1 Timothy 1:2). And he could say, “I have no one else like Timothy, who genuinely cares about your welfare. . . . Timothy has proved himself. Like a son with his father, he has served with me in preaching the Good News” (Philippians 2:20, 22).

Yet Timothy was no Paul; Paul was an example and mentor for his son in the faith, but Timothy was not a mirror of Paul’s strengths. Timothy struggled with fear and hesitation. So Paul admonished his timid protégé: “God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline. So never be ashamed to tell others about our Lord. And don’t be ashamed of me, either, even though I’m in prison for him. With the strength God gives you, be ready to suffer with me for the sake of the Good News” (2 Timothy 1:7-8). The apostle instructed those who might be his hosts, “When Timothy comes, don’t intimidate him. . . . Don’t let anyone treat him with contempt” (1 Corinthians 16:10-11).

Timothy proves that God can and does use all kinds of temperaments in ministry. The big question for each of us is this: Do I want him to use me?

Learn more about the Every Man’s Bible

Immerse: The Reading Bible was awarded the 2022 ECPA Bible of the Year award during the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA) annual Christian Book Awards.

“This honor for Immerse is so exciting,” said Tyndale Bible Publisher Amy Simpson. “Understanding the Bible changes everything, and as a Bible built for reading, Immerse has been providing new access and understanding of the Bible for individuals and groups, encouraging more reading of God’s Word by including fewer interruptions. We’re so grateful for this professional recognition.”

Created in partnership with the Institute for Bible Reading, Immerse is a reading Bible that is split into six books, created with one goal in mind: to provide the best reading experience possible. The text is laid out in an easy-to-read single-column setting with chapter and verse numbers, section headings, and footnotes removed and with the content of each book displayed according to its literary genre.

Immerse is in the clear and accurate New Living Translation, which conveys the precise meaning of the original languages in a flowing, effortless writing style that promotes comfortable and meaningful reading.

You’ll have a great experience using Immerse by yourself. But for an even richer experience, try reading with friends. Immerse: The Bible Reading Experience is an invitation to a different kind of community interaction with the Bible—less like a Bible study, more like a book club.

Learn more about Immerse