Being Loved
‘Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance character; and character hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us’. Romans 5:3-5
No one looks for suffering. No one likes suffering. No one enjoys suffering. But notice something amazing here. God’s final objective in dealing with our character is to bring us into an enjoyment of His love.
It might seem a long journey. Suffering produces perseverance. Perseverance literally means to keep going while under something else (some kind of pressure). Giving up under pressure isn’t perseverance. Enduring under pressure is perseverance. Perseverance produces character.
Some versions have proven character because the word meant ‘character that had been tested and passed the test’.
Character produces hope. Hope in the New Testament means a confident expectation of good. It’s a stronger word than our English “I hope it doesn’t rain today.” And hope doesn’t disappoint because God has poured His love into our hearts through His Holy Spirit.
God wants us to enjoy His love, to actively enjoy the reality of being loved by the one true God. So this active enjoyment of being loved is the final outcome of God’s working in us, a working that began with suffering.
While it’s true that no one enjoys suffering, it’s also true that suffering has the potential to bring us into a very real experience of knowing God’s love for us.
If you face suffering, let God reveal His love for you in the midst of it.
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