As Christians we should not be surprised that we suffer. The late Warren Weirsbe has written, “For some reason, many new believers have the idea that trusting Christ means the end of their battles. In reality, it means the beginning of new battles.”[1] The apostle Paul was in the middle of one of those battles while in prison in Rome writing a letter to the believers in the city of Philippi.
Paul wrote to the believers in Philippi, “For to you it has been granted for Christ’s sake, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake, experiencing the same conflict which you saw in me, and now hear to be in me” (Phil 1:29–30, NASB).[2] Paul tells us that we shouldn’t be surprised that we experience suffering.[3]
David Garland, who serves as professor of Christian Scriptures at Truett Seminary says, “In the biblical world, to be chosen by God does not protect one from suffering for God. It is a call to suffer.”[4] Max Anders, who has dedicated his life to creating discipleship tools for Christians writes, “Adversity is a part of the Christian life and should come as no surprise. Those that follow Christ should expect opposition. Believers have two privileges: to believe in him and to suffer for him. Both are integral part of Christian living.”[5]
I think Paul addresses the topic of suffering to the Philippians because suffering for religious belief was foreign to the Philippians. They were converted out of a pagan background in which the deities promised happiness and blessings, not suffering.
That worldview of the Philippians is not much different than the American one. Some people think—even within the Christian church in American—that the Bible is something you read to help you live a happy, healthy, and successful life. Some people think that when you have problems you need to give your life to Christ so that he will make your problems go away.
Yet that is not taught in Scripture. The word for “conflict” in Philippians 1:30 is the Greek word, agona, that generally means a struggle against opposition.[6] Peter O’Brien, who taught the New Testament for thirty years at Moore College in Austria, believes that this word[7] “involves untiring toil and labor, an intense wrestling and struggle for the spread, growth, and strengthening of the faith as the goal of his [Paul] mission.”[8]
Now, what type of suffering is Paul talking about? He’s describing specific suffering someone receives as a result of living a godly life as a Christian. Here’s an example from “M.”
Athens in Greece has traditionally been one of the refugee highways. Millions of desperate people travel through Athens after being forced from their homelands by violence, terror, and persecution. These refugees seek a safe place to end their journey and begin new lives in freedom.
In 2003 an earthquake destroyed everything M knew. He constantly asked why something like this would happen. With no place to go, he went to live with relatives in Afghanistan. M eventually traveled to Athens and stayed with other relatives.
While M and all his family were Muslims, M became interested in Christianity as he saw the crosses decorating the Orthodox churches in the city. A Christian gave M a Bible and he started reading. Since M’s relatives were Muslim they forbade such a thing. As a result, M used a small flashlight to read his Bible at night after his uncles were asleep. He studied the Bible this way for two years.
M believed God was calling him to be born again so he contacted the refugee ministry center, declared his faith in Jesus Christ, and asked for more information. He eventually scheduled a day to be baptized with other believers, but M’s cousin had discovered the plan.
On the morning M was supposed to be baptized his cousin boiled water in a pan and poured it on M while he slept. This scalded both thighs and one arm. M went to the baptism anyway. He stood before those gathered—the burn on his arm clearly visible—and declared, “No matter what they do to me, I will love Jesus.”[9]
That obviously is an extreme form of suffering. We might not experience that in America, but we still need to be prepared for suffering because of our Christian faith.
[1] Warren Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1996), 72
[2] Scripture taken from the New American Standard Bible, Copyright The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995. Used by permission.
[3] The Greek here is very precise and exact. Daniel Wallace gives a literal translation, “the on-behalf-of-Christ thing has been given to you, namely, not only the believing in his name, but also the suffering for him” (Wallace, Greek Grammar, 236).
[4] David E. Garland, “Philippians.” The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Ephesians–Philemon (Revised Edition), ed. by Tremper Longman III, vol. 12 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2006) 211
[5] Max Anders, Galatians-Colossians, vol. 8, Holman New Testament Commentary (Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman, 1999), 211
[6] William Arndt, Frederick W. Danker, Walter Bauer, and F. Wilbur Gingrich. in A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000), 17.
[7] Its cognate, ἀγωνιζομαι, is used in Luke 13:24; John 18:36; 1 Cor 9:5; Col 1:29; 4:12; 1 Tim 4:10; 6:12; 2 Tim 4:7.
[8] Peter O’Brien, The Epistle to the Philippians, New International Greek Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1991), 161.
[9] Story adapted from Kallie Skaife, International Teams, personal email. See Craig Brian Larson and Phyllis Ten Elshof, 1001 Illustrations That Connect (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 2008), 444.