Life Chain Reaction

 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. II Peter 1:4-8

Partakers of the what, brother Peter? Can the very nature of God be found in His saints? Well, saints, this is what he is saying. How to understand this? To me, a list such as the above text seemed to be very flowery and other-worldly. I mean yes, brother, in Heaven after we shed away this body of sin, sure. But the Bible is not written to the dead, but is a guide for the living. 

The foundation is faith. This is "The evidence of the unseen, the assurance of what we hope for" per the writer of Hebrews. So this chain of character begins with something that is NOT seen, but is nevertheless the most real thing about the saints. With this foundation as a starting point, Peter invites us to "add to" our faith qualities that take it from the invisible to the visible. 

1. We add to faith virtue. Because we have faith, we can reject the lies that tell us we are less than what we are. Sure, our natural experience falls far short of the character of God - but what of it? The Word says if we are in Christ, we are new creations. The old has passed away. We can take this promise to the bank, and must reject the devil's lies. We may not yet see this in our experience, but the first step is to affirm what the Word says about us, and to stand on that. 

2. We add to virtue knowledge. We know our faith will be tested. When it happens, we are not lost in the dark, nor are we tempted to jump ship. We have taken our stand on the promises of God, and knowledge of what is going on when we are tested is like a helmet around our thoughts. This does not alleviate the suffering with which we are being tested, but it does give us an opportunity for praise. Yes, Paul, our outer selves are decaying, but our inner selves are being built up (2 Corinthians 4:16). This is how "Faith is the victory that overcomes the world" (I John 5:4). 

3. We add to knowledge temperance. This is not the calm before the storm, but the calm within the storm. Why? We KNOW that the storm is only temporary. Though all around us rages, we stay still. Jesus does give us peace, but NOT as the world gives. The world only understands being calm when there is no wind! But the calm Jesus gives is WITHIN the storm. "I am with you, I have overcome the world". No amount of temporal tempest need shake us off our base. Here we stand. Here we praise His Name. 

4. We add to temperance patience. There is no need to run from our trials. Indeed, as James writes, we even consider them all a JOY, knowing that the testing of our faith produces that patience. We have stood up in the midst of the trial, knowing that we are already winners in the Eternal City. The body they may kill, God's Truth abideth still, His Kingdom is forever. Amen. This is the source of our patience. 

5. We add to patience godliness. So here the faith is beginning to be visible to others. No person rejoices in the midst of a trial, unless he has an understanding of what is going on. The world will surely notice this. They have no playbook for someone who is actually happy about suffering. I suggest this really shouts at them, "here is one who really knows the God he claims to worship". When struck in one cheek, we turn the other one. When forced to go one mile, we go two. When we are hated, we love. Blows every fuse worldly people have. They can only give the glory to God. 

6. We add to godliness brotherly kindness. The Greek word here is "Philadelphia", loving our brother. Jesus told us this is how the world would know that we belong to Him. The Roman Tertullian was writing to his Roman superiors about the Christians. He writes, "See how they love one another". The world again has no answer for a body of believers who may be quite diverse, yet move in unity with love for one another. All glory to God!

7. We add to brotherly kindness charity. The Greek word her is agape. This is the highest form of love. Totally selfless. Expecting nothing in return. We love because we know God, and have become love. Love is the greatest. Faith is the foundation, and hope carries us through, but when we love we are most like our God, who IS love. 

This then is the progression Peter has in mind. Let us then not fall short of the mark, saints!

"For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things " Ph. 3:18-19

"Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passes away, and the lust thereof, but he who does the will of God abides forever" I John 2:15-17

Old time preachers used to orate fiery sermons warning the congregants about the dangers of worldliness. I am sure they would have quoted the passages above in their admonitions. I grew up in the Mennonite Church, where often these words were interpreted in a very legalistic way. The way one dresses, the cars one drives, not dancing or playing with cards, etc were commonly understood as ways to avoid worldliness. If it were only that simple, my friends. It is not. A fight against the world must begin with the heart. What clothes you wear, or what games you play are all external things. 

"Love not" begins not with a set of rules, but with a heart that no longer values anything this world offers. Why? Well, John said it best: These things are passing away. I think it was Jim Elliot, who was martyred preaching the gospel to the Auca Indians, who said, "He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose". If the eyes of our hearts are upon that Eternal City of God, well, as the song says, "The things of Earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His Glory and grace". Loving the Kingdom that is coming makes a whole lot more sense than loving the world, which is passing away. 

How then to pass the test: Are we lovers of the world, of loves of Christ? September 11, 2001 the whole world watched as 19 misguided young men flew planes into the WTC and the Pentagon, and crashed another one meant for the White House in a field in PA. This was quite a revelation for me. Indeed, here is evidence that indeed, as John says, this world is passing away - and I found my soul very much in distress over its loss. Ouch. Moravian missionaries used to sing, "Let goods and kindred go, this mortal life also, the body they may kill, God's truth abideth still, His Kingdom is forever", but that song was not on my heart when it looked very much like Babylon was falling. No, 911 was very painful for me. But it was also helpful. I simply did not realize how much in love with the world I was until I saw it slipping away. Since then, I believe God has graciously led me away from the City of Destruction mentioned by John Bunyan. Where my heart is now, I do not say for sure, but I'd like to think I'd not miss this world at all should He call me home tomorrow. 

How then shall we live, saints? We look to Jesus Christ, who is the "author and perfecter of our faith". Our prayer life will be directed towards Heaven, not Earth. We pray not for resolution of whatever cross is before us, but that we understand that all our affliction is only temporary, and that it is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory. Paul writes that any suffering we might walk in here on earth is not worthy of comparison with the glory that is to be revealed in us. We ask only that God be glorified in and through all things. When we fall we call on His Name, and he is very much there for us. He cleans us up and sets us on our way. His intention is not to hear "Lord, Ill do better next time but "Lord help me to trust you more". 

This world is indeed passing away. We know this. But we must be honest. Where are our hearts today? Are we placing our happiness in the future, when situations that are unpleasant are resolved? Or do we, like Our LORD, pray, "Not my will but thine?" Are we complainers, or do we rejoice in our sufferings". Is it not essential to know where we are at? Would anyone want to leave this world, as we all must, looking back like Lot's wife? I'd hope that doesn't describe any of us here today. Would it not be better to be singing and rejoicing that our Eternal Reward is at hand?

Let us pray. Father, we really want to be honest in our prayers. If our hearts are not fully after you, show that to us, and lead us towards repentance. May indeed all the things of this world grow strongly dimmer and dimmer and our hearts long more and more for your coming. Be merciful to us, Lord, for so often our hearts have NOT been after you. Amen. 

 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world. But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you. I Peter 5:6-9

Peter teaches us in verses 1-5 about the responsibilities of elders as shepherds and congregants who they lead. We are to be "subject one to another". This is for our own safety, as verses 6-9 make clear. A lone wolf will sooner or later be taken out by a roaring lion. Together, we can resist the devil. 

So he is walking around "as a roaring lion". He is saying, "This is my territory". Back off. Stay away. They can be heard five miles away. In the same way, the devil uses our sufferings. "If God is good, why then are you in this mess". Etc. We might fight him off in the short term, but he never gives up. If we are standing alone, in our own strength, we will eventually fall. 

Fellowship. "Fellows in the same ship" says brother Watchman Nee. The afflictions we are enduring our brothers are also experiencing. We can take comfort here: Our sufferings are making us perfect. They are TEMPORARY. There is an end. In the meantime, we walk with our brothers and sisters, encouraging and supporting each other. AMEN. 

The Cross before me

But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. 2 Corinthians 3:18

The message of the cross is ubiquitous in the Bible. There is the cross upon which our LORD died, and most believers can correctly point to that event as their hope of salvation.  We know that we were sinners, and so we all came down that sawdust trail, and accepted the finished work of Jesus Christ as the payment for our sins. We were all once lost, but now we've been found, we were blind but now we see. 

Great. Then what? Our consciousness has been awakened to our sins. Were it not so, why then would we have come to Him for salvation? We may enjoy a honeymoon period where we feel so close to him, but that soon fades. What are we left with, saints? The zeal for the new man is gone. The reality of life sets in. Sure, we are now in Christ, and one day He will bring us to Heaven. But doesn't this seem a distant promise? How then shall we live now?

Saul of Tarsus was "Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee;". When it came to looking good, Saul had it made. But then sojourning down the road to Damascus, he encounters the LORD. His old life is shattered. He begins to preach the faith that he once tried to destroy. So far, so good. But he is far away from being the Apostle Paul. 

Off to the deserts of Arabia for 14 years, brother. Go make tents. How long until he begins to wonder if what happened was just an illusion? Listen to his testimony: For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. Saul cannot become Paul until he reckons with this very real struggle: Eschewing evil and embracing good is not easy. In fact, he writes, it is impossible. The accuser is right there. Maybe it was all fake, Saul. Go back to your old, comfortable life. You are still a card carrying Pharisee. Hiss. The revelation of the Cross awaits you, Saul. After much suffering you will be able to understand. 

After all that trial, Paul discloses God's objective: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: 

This is God's economy, what He does, why He does what He does. He has set Eternity in our hearts. We are eternal creatures who walk in a temporal world. This world is where we live, but it is not, and cannot be our home. Until we apprehend this fact and let go of the illusion that we belong here, our life as believers will be one failure after another. Not because God doesn't see our trial, doesn't love us, does not care that we are failing, but because there is a way life in a temporal world works. This is what the Cross is teaching us:

I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

After much trial and testing of our faith, every saint is brought to the foot of the cross wherein we must acknowledge that we simply cannot live the life of a saint until we surrender all and leave it there. One Christian prophet suggested that it is like a battle. When we are fighting in our own strength, we are in the valley. The enemy is raining down arrows of accusation upon our heads as we go from one defeat to another. Until we see that there is a higher place from whence we can fight. He calls it the Galatians 2:20 plane, the place where we are not vulnerable to Satan's arrows, because try as he might, he simply cannot kill a man who knows he is already dead. 

No, the battle does not stop. Our outward circumstances are most often the same. But now that we see that the battle does not belong to us, we set the LORD ahead of us, and He does the fighting. Our bodies he may kill, God's truth abideth still, His Kingdom is forever. Amen.       

Somebody touched the LORD

 And, behold, there cometh one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name; and when he saw him, he fell at his feet, And besought him greatly, saying, My little daughter lieth at the point of death: I pray thee, come and lay thy hands on her, that she may be healed; and she shall live. And Jesus went with him; and much people followed him, and thronged him. And a certain woman, which had an issue of blood twelve years, And had suffered many things of many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse, When she had heard of Jesus, came in the press behind, and touched his garment. For she said, If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole. And straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague. And Jesus, immediately knowing in himself that virtue had gone out of him, turned him about in the press, and said, Who touched my clothes? And his disciples said unto him, Thou seest the multitude thronging thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me? And he looked round about to see her that had done this thing. But the woman fearing and trembling, knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth. And he said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague. Mark 5:22-34

There is a contrast in the stories Mark is relating here. In the first scene, we meet a certain Jairus. He is described as one of the rulers of the synagogue, a man of status and likely also of wealth. But he had a problem that no amount of wealth or influence could solve. His only child, his little girl was at the point of death. Having heard of the power of Jesus to heal, Jairus humbles himself, and comes to the LORD, asking Him to heal her. This is no surprise. What parent wouldn't do the same thing? Jesus of course went with him, along with a great crowd. 

The second scene, which is really a story within a story, is quite different. In that crowd, there was a woman who had been sick for 12 issue with a blood discharge. As such, she would have been ceremonially unclean, and anyone who touched her would also have been made unclean for a day. So not only was she suffering from weakness likely resulting from her loss of blood, she also would have been a social outcast. Not quite a leper, but nearly as bad. Like Jairus, her situation was totally hopeless, but I want to tell you folks, THIS LADY HAD FAITH! She knew if she just touched the hem of His garment, she would be made whole. Unlike Jairus, she doesn't ASK Jesus to come touch her, she boldly reaches out to touch HIM. Far from making our LORD unclean, when she touched Him, SHE became clean, healed of her illness. Of course, Jesus is aware that somebody touched Him. The clueless disciples said, "Well, duh", there are so many in this crowd. But they were not the ones Jesus was referring to. No, He refers to the person who touched HIM BY FAITH. He tells her that it was indeed her faith that has made her well. 

How many of us here could use a touch from Jesus? I think that would be all of us. But what do we do? Do we just passively pray, O LORD, please heal me, hoping that perhaps He will come to our place and make us whole? This woman did not do that. She went out and touched the LORD, and she went away healed. No passivity. BOLDNESS. Hutzpah. She knew what she wanted and was willing to go to any lengths to get it. 

Brothers and sisters, will we be so bold? What is our prayer life like? Do we just passively pray, like Jairus, hoping that someday He might hear us? Or will we be so desperate in our prayers that we will push through any unbelief or doubt, and make an effort to touch HIM? Jesus  makes it clear: Whoever believes, and does not doubt, receives the answer to their prayers. Let us then knock on that door, and knock again, and again, and again. When he opens the door, Jesus will hold open His arms, and give us the chance to touch Him. Don't wait till someday. Make today the day you touch the LORD. 

Born that man no more may die

 That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. John 1:9-14

We have come to the beginning of another year. In December, I heard a sermon by brother Brett Sweet from GCF central. I thought it was so appropriate for the gospel, I thought I'd try to use his basic outline. So if you think it's good, thank him. If not, blame me! LOL. 

A stanza in that great Christmas Hymn, "Hark the Herald Angels Sing" includes this statement: Jesus is "born to give them second birth". Indeed, Jesus told Nicodemus that if a man wants to see the Kingdom of God, he must needs be born again. But what does this mean? 

1. Jesus is born with a backstory. Unlike us, Jesus did not come into being. He is the great I AM, with no beginning and no end. Jesus was, in fact, the Creator of all that there is. We did not choose to be born. We do not choose to die, but Jesus Christ did both. According to the letter to the Phillipian church, Jesus made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. For man, there is a time to die, and a time to be born, per Solomon. Not for Jesus. He chose to be born in a manger, and he chose to die for our sins on a cross. 

2. Jesus was indeed born, and He was rejected. The world, the system founded by sinful men, of course hated him. You see, it's like that. Jesus is the Light of men, but the thing is, we tend to love our sin, and the Light of the World coming into our world is rather inconvenient. The apostle John writes:

And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.

So the world rejected Him. That is not so surprising. But not only did the world reject Jesus, so did his own people. "He came unto His own, but His own received Him not". Why? Same reason as the world. The religious folks of His day tried hard to be holy, to be "good". But He called them "whitewashed tombs"! Ouch. My friends, it does not matter if you are sinning outside of the church, or are a self-righteous Pharisee within its walls. Jesus calls you out. Thus, the Gospel is bad news before it is good news. The Light must come and expose the true condition of your soul. But the good news is: To those who received Him, He gave the power to become His children!

3. This is accomplished by being "Born Again". I suppose Nicodemus' head must have been spinning when Jesus told him this was the only way. Nick could only think of the natural world. He did not choose to be born the first time, but here Jesus is telling him he CAN choose to be born the second time. His first birth was of water, but Jesus is inviting Nick to be born again, this time of the Spirit. You see, he was alive biologically due to his earthly parents, but he was not alive unto God. God is Spirit, and those who would worship Him must worship Him in Spirit and in Truth. However, born into Adam, our spirits are dead unto God. We have no hope of fellowship with our Creator. However, Christ offers us a new birth, that of the Spirit, and upon receiving Him, we can now know God, and we have become His kids!

So here is the problem: We are separated from God on account of our sins. There is no way for us to be good on our own. God offers us Eternal Life through Jesus Christ. But many, far too many, stand aloof and refuse to come to Him. Why? Well, I suppose for each person, the story is different. Shame. Indifference. Suffering. But I suspect that what we all have had in common is Bad Theology. Simply put, we do not come to God because we do not believe He is good. Brent cited a children's book called the boxcar kids. 

Here is a story of four children who have been orphaned. They have a grandfather, but while their parents were still alive, he never came to visit, so they do not know him. What they know of him has come from their mom, who told them that Grandpa did not care about them, that his was an old miser who lived only for himself. So when the four kids are found on their own, their first inclination was to run away. The last person on earth they wanted to meet was grandpa. 

The truth was, however, that grandpa was a man who was indeed very rich in material things, but he was also a very kind man. Even though the kids were not looking for him, he was very much looking for them. He finally does find them living in an abandoned boxcar, where they have spent the summer living on the wages of the oldest brother. However, because he knows they are running from him, he does not immediately tell them who he is. Rather, he displays his kindness towards them. He invites them to come for dinner. He blesses them with presents. He begins to care for them. At the end of the story, the children do find out that he is their grandpa. They have been running from him thinking him to be one way, but in reality he was quite different. 

My friends, so it is with our own journey. We are all spiritual orphans. Though our Father is rich in compassion and mercy towards us, we have been living out of our own resources. Why? We believe, falsely, that God does not see us. He does not care. We certainly have heard about Him, but we have believed a false report. Therefore, instead of running to God, we have run away to false gods. Some of us have turned to relationships, some to success in a career. Others have not found fulfillment in life, and have been broken on the ravages of addition to drugs or alcohol. But what we all have in common is that NONE of these things give any real satisfaction. We have drunk of their water, and have found them ultimately unsatisfying. 

I invite each and every person here to reconsider. According to the Bible, here is the truth: In Isaiah 30:18, He tells us that longs to be gracious to us, and to show us compassion. When God introduces Himself to Moses in Exodus 34:6 - "The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin". 

So my friends, I do not know where you are on the path of life. I certainly hope that some of you have come to know God, to walk with Him, and have found Him to be good. Many of you, however, are very much on the outside looking in. Like the children in the story, you find yourselves alone, struggling, trying your best to negotiate some sort of peace. May I ask you, though - Have you really found it? Thanks to this mission, you are at least out of the cold of Winter and I trust you have eaten a hearty meal tonight. Though your bodies are warm and well fed, what of your souls? Are you satisfied with the walk you find yourselves on? Jesus offered the woman at the well Living Water. She tasted it and found that He was everything she needed and more. 

Some here may be looking back at a train wreck when they consider what their lives have been about. I know I sure do. It is only so easy to think that life has been wasted, and that we are beyond redemption. What we know of God prevents us from even considering an invitation to a new life. But this is a tragic lie. 

There was a man who lived a very upright life outwardly. He went to church. He paid his tithes. He made sure that he followed the law religiously. But on his way to Damascus to persecute the saints, Saul of Tarsus met the living Jesus Christ. And nothing was ever the same. He writes to the church in Phillipi - "My brothers, I don't get it yet, but this is what I will do: I will forget the past, and reach out for the future, towards the goal of obtaining high call of God in Jesus Christ". He went from the religious Saul of Tarsus to Paul, an apostle of the the Lord Jesus Christ. In comparison to knowing Christ, all his former life Paul considered a pile of garbage. And he would never go back. 

I invite those of you who have received this word to pray with me:

Lord Jesus, 

I am not happy with the life I have been living. Because I did not believe that you are good, I have run away from you. Like the woman at the well, I have found that all the world has to offer cannot satisfy my soul. I am ready to come to you, because I have heard that you are, in truth, good. I open my heart to you. I ask you to come in and give me a new life. Amen. 

advent

 The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light

they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined. For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given:

and the government shall be upon his shoulder:

and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God,

The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end,

upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom,

to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice

from henceforth even for ever.

The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.

Isaiah 9_2-7

Well, we have reached yet another Advent season. Will we have some snow on Christmas? I don't recall that many white Christmases since we moved here in 2021. Anyway, I sure hope we do get some. And then let it be gone until next Christmas! It probably doesn't work that way, though. 

What is advent really about? Is it not the story of Light breaking into the darkness? Of Jesus John writes:

In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

The advent story is, of course, a part of the overall story of the Bible. It is a tragic story we know all too well. The first day, God says, "Let there be Light" and there was light. On the seventh day, God saw all that He had made, and said it was "very good". The garden in which our parents Adam and Eve were placed was a utopia that was perfect in every way. In the midst of the garden stood the Tree of Life, from which we were free to eat and live forever. However, perhaps long before Adam and Eve were formed, but after God had said, "Let there be Light", a darkness formed in Heaven. Some angel named Lucifer decided he would be God, and was cast out of heaven to the earth. There he sees the innocent couple in the garden and begins to challenge them. "Did God really say?", and invites them to forsake the tree of life and eat of the knowledge of good and evil. They did so, and the darkness was poured out on the earth. At least for a time, the people did indeed walk in darkness. All hope seemed lost. Has not Lucifer won again? 

Surprise, devil! God is not finished with man yet. The LORD prophesied that a Descendant of Eve would one day overcome the power of the evil one. Light indeed has come, and we have beheld His glory, "full of grace AND truth". Darkness, when exposed to light, ALWAYS runs away. The same Light that created the world in the first place is now shining again, illuminating the world, exposing our corruption. In Jesus was Life, and that Life was the Light of men. 

Brothers and sisters, let us always keep this in mind: The present darkness we experience, even at this festive season of Advent, is not forever. Paul writes to the Corinthian Church:

The Scriptures say, “God commanded light to shine in the dark.” Now God is shining in our hearts to let you know that his glory is seen in Jesus Christ.

7We are like clay jars in which this treasure is stored. The real power comes from God and not from us. 8We often suffer, but we are never crushed. Even when we don't know what to do, we never give up. 9In times of trouble, God is with us, and when we are knocked down, we get up again. 1

Our witness is the Light that is in us. We do not interpret our current unpleasant situation as a discouragement. Rather, we can see that Light is indeed breaking out. No one will need to be confused: When we praise God out of the midst of the darkness of this world, they will know for sure that this power is of God, not of us. By revelation, we know that:

We (need) never give up. Our bodies are gradually dying, but we ourselves are being made stronger each day. 17These little troubles are getting us ready for an eternal glory that will make all our troubles seem like nothing. 18Things that are seen don't last forever, but things that are not seen are eternal. This is why we keep our minds on the things that cannot be seen.