Too often we are content to be on the receiving side, giving to God little in return. To avoid living in the shallows, Christian life ought to be an expression of giving as well as getting; of sharing as well as partaking; of sacrificing as well as glorying.
“If, when ye do well and suffer for it, ye shall take it patiently, this is acceptable with God” (1 Pet. 2:20). This means that our attitude to wrongful suffering ought to be the exact reverse of that which in ordinary circumstances human nature would dictate. When we endure suffering on account of our own faults, in getting what we deserve, there is neither glory nor reward.
Note where emphasis is placed: “If when ye do well.” That is to say, when all men ought to think well of you, and speak well of you, and they do neither, but make you “suffer” for doing the right thing, and you, instead of reacting sharply to the sheer injustice of such treatment, take it patiently, “this,” says the Word, “is acceptable with God.”
A man of the world would insist that such an attitude does not make sense, that it invites aggression. But somewhat similar charges might be levelled against the whole course of Christian conduct. The reason is this: the course of the world and the course of the Christian are paths which never can converge. As believers we ought to be prepared for this strange paradox–that the more we love, the less we are loved; that the more righteous our conduct, the more often we are misrepresented; that the more unsparing our efforts, the less they are appreciated.
Were all this behavior to emerge only from worldly-minded persons, that would be understandable, but often such conduct emerges in sharper form from those who call themselves Christians.
The truth for the times is a heart conviction of the reality of the Spirit in the personal life of the Christian. It is a fundamental truth of the faith, the first to be lost in Christian experience, and last, perhaps, to be restored. Living the Christian life is impossible apart from the faith which believes and receives as a reality the gift of His Spirit. Reminding ourselves of these ample resources at our disposal, we can accept with calm assurance the life we are to live. In the life of our Lord the perfect example has been given to us:
Leaving us an example is no lofty ideal incapable of achievement, but one within the reach of all Christians who avail themselves of the power and resources of an ever-indwelling Holy Spirit. It is not a pious expression of the unattainable, but a crucial test, and a practical expression of unreserved submission to Christ’s Lordship. Therein lies the path to more abundant living; there, too, is the secret of mature Christian character–contented, fruitful, and meaningful.
Leaving us an example is a precept for this present world, and not for the world to come. Indeed, in the world to come everything will be marked by perfect correspondence between the members and their Head. The exhortation consequently, will be quite unnecessary there, for everyone there will exemplify to perfection the character and virtues of their Lord.
Leaving us an example is preeminently a precept to practice before a stricken world, which, however much it maligns us, is yet much in need of us; and, not only so, but also in desperate need of the realities of our faith. As Christians, therefore, we ought to show forth the virtues of Christ in congenial circumstances; but also in surroundings hostile and unhappy. In no circumstances should we evade the implications of the example of our Lord Jesus Christ. He, too, was in a world that was neither friendly nor appreciative but always critical and suspicious of Him. He left us an example that we should follow His steps. “Who did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth: Who, when He was reviled, reviled not again; when He suffered He threatened not; but committed Himself to Him that judgeth righteously” (vv. 22-23).