Beyond Suffering Bible Reading Plans
Beyond Suffering Bible Reading Plans
Death, along with the pain and suffering brought about by death, is an ever-present reality in our fallen world. But for the Christian, death is not the end of the story God is telling. Christians know that because Jesus defeated sin, death, and the devil at the Cross, there awaits a future glory for those who are united to him in faith. Therefore, Christians can hope even while mourning the loss of loved ones.
DAY 1:
Death and the suffering that accompanies it are the result of humanity’s fall into sin. See profile on page 7.
DAY 2:
God himself has experienced the pain of death: The Father watching as the Son died on the cross.
DAY 3:
God promises to be present with and comfort his people always, especially when they are facing the imminent death of a beloved person.
DAY 4:
The comfort we receive from God enables us to comfort others in their grief.
DAY 5:
Believers look forward to a glorious reunion with other believers who have died in Christ; therefore, they mourn with hope.
DAY 6:
Nothing—not even death—can separate God’s people from his love for them. Even when we are weakened by grief or loss, the indwelling Holy Spirit pleads with the Father on our behalf.
DAY 7:
Christ’s resurrection guarantees the defeat of death and secures our hope for a future free of pain, sorrow, and tears.
All human beings are created in the image of God. The Fall allowed suffering and disability to enter the world, but disability in no way diminishes the image of God in a person. Humanity’s role in representing God in the world includes personal suffering as well as suffering on behalf of others. God uses pain for his sovereign purposes, some of which are to encourage, challenge, and build up all who suffer to become spiritually mature.
DAY 1:
Human beings were created in God’s image to have a relationship with him and to represent him in the world.
DAY 2:
As God’s image-bearers concerned with suffering, humanity’s exalted role over all creation brings praise to God.
DAY 3:
With God’s help, believers should throw off their old natures and self-serving desires, trusting the Spirit to reveal their new righteous nature.
DAY 4:
As we persevere through suffering and allow ourselves to be conformed to Christ, God will transform us to reflect his character and image even more deeply.
DAY 5:
God instructs believers to renew their understanding of him, as he helps them progress in his image.
Although suffering is painful, it matures us and refines our character, making us into more effective servants. Patience in difficulties, empathy for the pain of others, and courage to reach out and offer assistance are all developed through the fires of physical, emotional, and spiritual suffering.
DAY 1:
Job was a faithful man, but he gained a new perspective on his faith through the process of losing everything. See devotional on page 623.
DAY 2:
God hears our cries, and he will redeem our struggles in his timing and in such a way that he will be glorified.
DAY 3:
Problems and trials develop our endurance. We can rest assured that regardless of our circumstances, we have peace with God and he will strengthen us as we remain faithful.
DAY 4:
When we suffer, we can ask God for wisdom to endure, and he will give it. See devotional on page 1421.
DAY 5:
God provides numerous examples of patient endurance throughout Scripture to help us know that what we face is not new, that we are not alone, and that he rewards those who remain faithful.
DAY 6:
Sometimes God will choose to heal us or eliminate our burden, but God may also choose to work in and through our weaknesses and suffering to reveal his strength. See devotional on page 1329.
DAY 7:
We must keep our eyes fixed on the promise that one day God will wipe away every tear caused by suffering from our eyes and all things will be made new.
Many individuals and families affected by disability have experienced healing services or prayers for cures that resulted in no discernible change, often causing pain and social suffering beyond their experience of disability. What does Scripture have to say about miraculous cures? Does God still heal? Do people with disabilities lack sufficient faith to be healed?
DAY 1:
God names himself as Healer, the source of peace and wholeness. In the Old Testament, health (rapha) is the restoration of peace (shalom) and is used in the broadest possible sense: not only to mean physical and spiritual but also to describe people (; ; ), objects (; ), water (; ), and the land itself (). God is interested in all of us, not just the physical state of our mortal bodies.
DAY 2:
God is sovereign over all, including our physical health. Hezekiah prays, and God chooses to miraculously heal the king and gives him another 15 years, though Hezekiah still eventually dies. The length of our lives is not within our control, though God is richly merciful.
DAY 3:
In this final sign before his crucifixion, Jesus allows Lazarus to die for the glory of God by raising him from the dead. But the response of the crowd, like every other miracle in John, is mixed: some believe, while the Pharisees plot to put Jesus to death. Miraculous healings do not always produce true faith in every witness.
DAY 4:
Thomas needs to see things for himself, including Jesus’ resurrected body. But Jesus responds to his confession of faith by blessing those who will believe without personal sight. This is a description of the purpose of the whole Gospel of John—coming to faith without having seen miracles.
DAY 5:
As believers, our hope is not based on physical pleasure. Even in bodies that experience suffering, we trust that the future (with new, heavenly bodies) will bring true healing. Faith endures suffering and allows us to please God even in the midst of physical pain.
DAY 6:
This hymn of praise for Jesus, drawn from , uses the language of healing to describe salvation. Scripture often uses the same words for physical and spiritual healing (see ; ) because salvation is a deeper reality than relief from our symptoms. The restoration of relationship with God and our community achieves true peace, which is possible even without a physical cure.
DAY 7:
The church is called to care for the sick, which is primarily a matter of prayer. The anointing with oil James described was a common medical practice. Some illnesses (though not all) may be related to sin, and confession of such sin is necessary not only for physical healing but also for restoration to the community of faith.
Some Christians wonder whether a person with low cognitive abilities can comprehend “enough” of the gospel to be saved. But faith is not primarily a matter of intellect: it involves our entire self, including our hearts and wills—our whole relationship with God. While salvation is individual, faith development involves the whole community and continues throughout the Christian life as God more fully transforms us into the image of Christ.
DAY 1:
The prophets are scathingly critical of Israel for giving lip service to the law, engaging in empty religious ritual without true heart change that results in a sacrificial lifestyle of solidarity with the vulnerable. Isaiah says that salvation comes to the faithful who truly fast by freeing the prisoners and feeding the hungry.
DAY 2:
Jesus’ parable of the sheep and the goats is shocking: The righteous will enter eternal life because of their acts of love for the least of society, not because of their cognitive awareness of correct truths about God. Feeding the hungry, welcoming the stranger, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and imprisoned—the King counts that as ministry done to himself, worthy of inheriting the Kingdom.
DAY 3:
In the story of the paralytic healed by Jesus, Mark makes a startling comment: Upon seeing the faith of the man’s friends, Jesus says his sins are forgiven and then heals him to demonstrate his authority to forgive sins. Faith is more mysterious than individual intellectual comprehension or confession of specific theological truths (see also ).
DAY 4:
The criminal crucified beside Jesus was a revolutionary () who probably expected the kingdom to mean political restoration of Israel at the end of time. But because of his trust in Jesus, his theological confusion is accepted: Jesus tells him that salvation is immediately at hand. The criminal will be with Jesus today in paradise, without time to learn more about who Jesus is.
DAY 5:
After an earthquake, Paul and Silas tell the jailer that salvation is solely by belief in Jesus. In communal response to the miracle, the jailer’s entire household comes to faith through simple belief, without a deep intellectual understanding of theology or the Christian life.
DAY 6:
It is natural to take pride in our accomplishments, but Paul reminds us that our salvation is from God alone. Even our faith is not something we accomplished by our own power because we are dead in our sins. God gives us life out of free mercy and love, not in reward for anything we have done or any abilities we may possess.
DAY 7:
True faith results in fruit, as James makes very clear. The demons have an accurate intellectual understanding of God, but not faith. This means that the proof of living faith is an active life of love and obedience to God, which is worked out in good deeds.
Suffering is an essential element in our union with Christ and an important part of our fellowship (koinonia) in the church. Jesus’ church should be a place where all who suffer feel welcome and accepted. The church can serve as a collective caregiver, locking arms with people with disabilities to serve the Lord and one another.
DAY 1:
As he prepared for his crucifixion, Jesus emphasized that it would be the disciples’ love for one another that would set them apart.
DAY 2:
The early Christians formed a community where they not only learned alongside one another but also shared life experiences and resources to meet each other’s needs. See devotional on page 1241.
DAY 3:
God has uniquely gifted each one of us, including people with disabilities, to serve the body of Christ.
DAY 4:
God’s plan is for believers to strengthen and help each other mature, growing more like Christ and reflecting his love.
DAY 5:
Jesus addressed our human tendency to bless others who can respond in kind. Instead, we are called to serve the poor, crippled, lame, and blind with an eye toward heavenly rewards. See profile on page 1159.
DAY 6:
God comforts us in our suffering so we can then minister to others. See profile on page 1321.
All of creation suffers. People, animals, and even nature are damaged by the effects of sin. But God’s people differ from unbelievers in that they can continue to trust and praise God in the midst of suffering because they know he has a greater purpose. God is glorified through such faithfulness.
DAY 1:
When it seems like all is lost and you feel vulnerable, look to God for provision and protection. See devotional on page 309.
DAY 2:
David lost his wife, his kingdom, and his good reputation, but he learned to praise God at all times. See devotional on page 375.
DAY 3:
Although we may suffer and the wicked seem to prosper, the Lord has not abandoned us.
DAY 4:
God promises his children that no amount of suffering will compare to the glory that will be revealed in eternity.
DAY 5:
As Paul endured suffering from behind bars, he assured his protégé, Timothy, that whatever the cost for proclaiming Jesus’ name, the Lord could be trusted. See profile on page 1245.
DAY 6:
Jesus suffered and was glorified. We also must submit to the same spiritual process in order to serve God.
Nothing in our lives is beyond the reach of God’s redemptive action, but he especially uses suffering for our sanctification—to make us holy. These readings describe some of the ways that God uses suffering for spiritual formation, transforming his people into the image of Jesus Christ, who suffered for us and our salvation.
DAY 1:
This song begins with despair and ends with praise because God accompanies us in the depths of our suffering: a truth perfectly fulfilled and quoted by Jesus Christ while dying on the cross ().
DAY 2:
The Suffering Servant (a prophecy of Jesus Christ) saves his people by dying in their place. This agony is undeserved, yet in God’s mysterious plan, it illustrates how God can use suffering for salvation. See “Suffering Servant: A Man of Sorrows” on page 831.
DAY 3:
In Jesus’ prayer for his disciples (both the twelve apostles and all who follow Jesus), he reminds us that the world hated him and will likewise persecute his disciples. The Holy Spirit will supply the strength and words to maintain a faithful testimony to Jesus in the midst of such persecution.
DAY 4:
Paul is clear that our experience of suffering for God need not be feared; on the contrary, it is a cause for rejoicing because suffering shapes and strengthens us, conforming us to the image of Christ.
DAY 5:
After describing the extent of his suffering in the service of Christ, Paul says that God refused to take away the thorn in his flesh, reminding Paul that God’s grace is sufficient. The Lord’s power is made perfect in our weakness and works more effectively through our sufferings.
DAY 6:
The writer of Hebrews describes Jesus as the perfect high priest who is familiar with all of the human condition, including suffering, which is necessary for our salvation (, ; ). As children of God, we experience discipline, which is painful but necessary in order to be made holy. Some suffering is to be expected as part of such growth in the Christian life.
DAY 7:
Suffering is the main theme of this letter, which urges Christians to rejoice in their suffering that is a result of being persecuted for following Jesus because it makes us partners with Christ in his suffering, a momentary pain that will pale in comparison with the glory to come.
We often take our understanding of what causes disability from our surrounding culture, a mistake Scripture directly addresses in terms that are astonishingly applicable today. Starting with the Fall, these readings dwell on how God calls out our wrong views and reasserts his mysterious sovereignty throughout the world, including all occurrences of disability.
DAY 1:
Humanity’s rebellion resulted in death, destruction, and all sorts of suffering, including various physical, emotional, social, and relational difficulties that accompany such difference in a fallen world. The curse describes a broken world that exists in conflict, disharmony, and despair. But even in the curse (), there is a promise of future hope ().
DAY 2:
None of Moses’ excuses are satisfactory, but his protests of inadequacy prompt this strong claim of sovereignty from God. The Lord is the creator and sustainer of all things—no disability or impairment is beyond his control, and he can use those apparent weaknesses to his glory.
DAY 3:
God promises to bless faithful individuals on the margins of Israelite society: foreigners and eunuchs. Uniquely, eunuchs (men unable to have physical children) are not healed but are included as they are, without their disability being “cured,” which is a powerful foretaste of future salvation and a rejection of the idea that this socially shameful condition prevented their inclusion within the people of God.
DAY 4:
Jesus’ disciples were creatures of their culture, believing that congenital blindness was either caused by parental sin or by an individual’s sin in the womb. Jesus rejects any causal connection between disability and sin, explaining instead that the man’s blindness was an opportunity for the power of God to be revealed, not only through physical cure but also through the response of the community to disability.
DAY 5:
In this powerful description of individual and cosmic suffering—creation groaning for freedom from death and decay and believers’ longing for new bodies—Paul offers hope. God is at work in the midst of everything, even disability or suffering, turning brokenness into glory for the good of those who love him. Nothing is beyond his redemptive reach.
DAY 6:
Paul’s description of the church as the body of Christ reframes what we value. The parts of the body we consider to be “weaker” are actually indispensable—and people with disabilities are almost universally considered to be weaker. This means that the body of Christ is incomplete without people with disabilities. Given the larger context of different spiritual gifts working together for the common good, people with disabilities need to be exercising their spiritual gifts for the sake of the church.
DAY 7:
In the end, disability will pass away along with all pain, suffering, death, and sorrow. Jesus is making all things new, including our bodies and the world we inhabit, made fit for pure dwelling with God. That hope assures us that God has not forsaken his people, and is working to fulfill that perfect redemption.
Suffering can be perplexing. God’s people—even Jesus himself—have often asked the “Why?” question when facing suffering. Scripture pulls back the curtain to reveal some, though not all, of God’s purposes in permitting suffering to enter our lives. Through it all, we are called to persevere faithfully, resting in the assurance of ultimate victory and eternal reward.
DAY 1:
We all face the “Why?” question; ultimately, our best answer is to intentionally praise and put our hope in God.
DAY 2:
Suffering is a normal part of life in general and the Christian life in particular.
DAY 3:
Suffering becomes meaningful in light of God’s eternal plan and purposes. See devotional on page 1285.
DAY 4:
God uses suffering to develop maturity, endurance, and strength of character in us. See devotional on page 1421.
DAY 5:
God’s power is displayed and put on center stage in our weakness and suffering. See devotional on page 1329.
DAY 6:
We are called to endure suffering patiently, even when we don’t understand the “why.”
DAY 7:
Because the Lord never grows tired or weary, we have an endless supply of strength to draw from.