Geeks And Suffering (In Search Of Truth, Hebrews 11:36-40)

(Hebrews 11:36-40, ESV)
Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated—of whom the world was not worthy—wandering about in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth. And all these, though commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised, since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect.

The author of Hebrews has been talking about faith and defining it in part through the example of notable believers in history. He then describes what was made possible through faith and then turns to describing what many suffered because of their faith and their refusal to let go of it.

An unfortunate side-effect of living in America among the demographic that takes Internet access for granted is a detachment from the suffering that people experience elsewhere in the world, and detachment from Christian suffering in particular. But as I read these words I'm struck by the reality that believers being mocked, flogged, chained up and in prison is not a scenario limited to ancient barbaric history. It's happening in the barbaric present.

While the execution methods may have changed a bit, Christians are still being executed for their faith. Others are being persecuted by the culture around them to the point of living in poverty because of their profession of trust in the forgiveness of Jesus. Like the ancient believers referred to here, some believers are wearing clothes we would call rags and are forced to survive day and night out in the wilderness in deserts, mountains or caves, wherever they can manage to sleep for a night or find shade for the day.

I try to put myself in the shoes of these believers, both those recently killed and those referred to by the author of Hebrews. They likely each had at least one moment somewhere along the way where they could have at least lied and pretended to reject Yahweh in order to spare their lives or make life easier. Why didn't they?

For modern believers it may have been because of their trust in the eternal future life that Jesus promises his followers. But these ancient believers didn't even have that yet. They just knew that Yahweh was in control, that he had a plan for them and that he was good. And even after suffering and dying for their faith they still didn't receive The Promise.

Sure, they had received a ton of fulfilled promises from God. (Hebrews 11:33) But there was a particular, ultimate promise they never received. They had to wait until Jesus came to provide that ultimate gift that applied to all who would believe in him. That ultimate gift is perfection. Completeness.

The Christians in the author's day are the "us" he refers to when he says "apart from us they (ancient believers) should not be made perfect." They were not made perfect back then through obedience while the rest of us catch up to them through faith in Jesus. Believers past, present and future are all made perfect together by the "once for all" sacrifice of Jesus.


The author highlights two realities of faith here, I think.

1. Faith is a trust in God that outweighs even horrible circumstances. It treats the promises of God as more concrete and tangible than the suffering we experience in life.

2. Faith doesn't wait to have all the answers before trusting in God. Faith isn't mindless or blind, but it also doesn't require every question to be answered before committing to obedience.


SO WHAT'S IN THIS FOR GEEKS?

I mentioned in the Agape Geekout promo recently that I think our tendency as geeks is to focus in on what gives us pleasure or makes us happy in the moment, not looking outside of ourselves to the needs and concerns of others. I think this tendency to prioritize pleasure also makes us want to live in denial of pain, trying to smother our difficulties with increasingly larger and more immersive doses of entertainment. But this "stalling tactic" doesn't work for long. Eventually our suffering will become too great and our entertainment too weak to numb it away.

It's not my agenda to give you a big downer here, although don't tune me out, because sometimes the Holy Spirit uses downers to get our attention about something.

If you haven't truly suffered yet in life, as I believe I have not, statistically our time is coming. We will likely watch loved ones die, maybe slowly and painfully. We will likely experience pain and disability in our bodies and may even face a dramatically shortened lifespan via diagnosis. True, God may choose to spare you and I from real suffering, but we have no reason to think he will single us out that way.

If you have suffered in life, or if you are suffering right now, I am so sorry for what you're going through. And I won't pretend to understand what you're feeling or try to give you easy answers. I can't make your pain go away. Suffering is something we have to figure out how to face, one way or another.

We can try to ignore the reality of evil and suffering, but biblical faith, contrary to the popular version, pursues truth and deals in reality. The reality is that we have this one, short, broken life in which to truly invest in God's kingdom. Right now is when it costs something, so right now is when it means something. And investing in the plans of a good and perfect God results in reward from a good and perfect God that will be more than worth what we suffer right now.

As I've said before, if you're having trouble believing and trusting in that reality, just like I do, we should ask ourselves what the source of that doubt is and then start a journey of investigation to sort it out. As much as we're able we want to clear up issues that cause doubt so we have the foundation to endure suffering through our trust in Yahweh.

Suffering is coming. I'm slowly coming to terms with that. And my hope is that I'll move beyond just accepting the reality of suffering, and learn to suffer well, like these believers did, when my time comes.