Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing; so that also at the revelation of His glory, you may rejoice with exultation. If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. I Peter 4:12–14.
How are you going to react to the things that happen to you? I can hear you saying “Oh, I’m going through it. Such testings! What is happening to me shouldn’t happen to anyone!” And what are you doing about it—rejoicing? Peter says, “Don’t be surprised at the fiery ordeal.”
People come in, and God meets them. There is a witness to their hearts, “This is the Lord.” Two or three weeks or a month later, nothing is working right in their lives and they wonder what happened. God never gives you a word without putting the fire to it. He takes the clay when it is pliable and can be molded, and He forms it into the vessel. But then it is not just left to dry. It is put into a furnace and baked. A glaze is applied to it and soon you have a beautiful piece of pottery. God is helping you, in your faith, to take shape and form; however it would not be a permanent form and your ministry would not be durable if He did not allow a fiery trial to come and blast you. After that you are set in it and have gone too far to change. To change now would break you. You are no longer pliable after the fire has set the mold. It is not some strange thing that has happened to you. As you share the sufferings of Christ and continue rejoicing, great joy and exultation will take place in your life. If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and the Spirit of God rests upon you.
It takes faith to respond correctly to the situations and circumstances in this life. For instance, the last time somebody persecuted you and said some nasty things about you, what did you do? Did you boil inside, ready to strike back—or did you rejoice in the Lord? You’ll know how far you are in Christ by the answer you give to that question. Jesus said, “When you are persecuted and they say all manner of evil against you for My sake, rejoice and be exceeding glad, for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you” (Matthew 5:11–12). How do you react?
The Scripture says that the Christian takes joyfully the spoiling of his goods, knowing that he has a more enduring substance in heaven (Hebrews 10:34). That is contrary to human nature. To manifest the reaction of the believer is not an easy thing. It must be your nature to do so, and God has to put it in your heart. “When they take your coat, give them your cloak also,” is the command in Matthew 5:40. Can you picture some Christian running after a man who took his coat, shouting, “Hey, you took my coat.” “Yeh, so what!” “I want to give you my cloak also.” Have you witnessed a scene like that recently? Or, somebody comes to the Christian and says, “Buddy, can I borrow five dollars?” “Sure, why don’t you make it ten? I’ll give you ten dollars.” “Okay, I’ll pay it back.” “You don’t have to pay it back.” I haven’t seen that happen lately, either. How can these reactions and responses come about? You must believe God for that new nature to be so inspired by God that there is a rejoicing, a continual joy. You know that your life, your destiny is in the hands of the Lord. You know you are God’s person.
Are you thinking, “This is a ridiculous sermon”? When you get back to the Bible and what it really teaches, it is ridiculous. Have you read the Sermon on the Mount recently? Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Matthew 5:5. Nobody believes that—not even the meek. Yet, we are going to believe it and walk in the ways of the Lord. Christians must come to grips with the Word until they believe it just as it is written, just as God has said it. We not only accept it mentally, but by the Holy Spirit we condition our spirits to respond the way God wants us to respond in every instance. We are going to live it, as living epistles read and known of all men.