We Endure in Obedience

“Endure: to remain firm under suffering or misfortune without yielding though it is difficult” – Merriam-Webster Online

Here we see the definition of endure that I usually think of. We are to suffer but remain strong. We are to continue pressing on even in the face of difficulty.

“¹¹To the present hour we hunger and thirst, we are poorly dressed and buffeted and homeless, ¹²and we labor, working with our own hands. When reviled, we bless, when persecuted, we endure; ¹³when slandered, we entreat. We have become, and are still, like the scum of the world, the refuse of all things.” – 1 Corinthians 3:11-13 (ESV)

As Paul writes to the Corinthians, he is describing the ministry of the apostles. In the above passage, he reminds them that he and the others have a difficult time as they serve and obey God.

“¹⁶I urge you, then, be imitators of me. ¹⁷That is why I sent you timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, to remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach them everywhere in every church.” – 1 Corinthians 4:16-17 (ESV)

And we are to obey the same, including in our suffering and endurance. As children of God, we are to be an example of Him. To go along with the example of the love, honor, and obedience we share, we will also endure being “reviled”, “persecuted”, and “slandered” in this world. I am drawn to the final few words of verse 13 as a description of how the world sees me; “the scum of the world, the refuse of all things”.

But, in the eyes of the Lord, we are elevated to glory in our obedience. I have to remember that I am the heir of greater things that these here. I am only sojourner here in this world. My home is in heaven where I will endure no more.

Paul, Peter, Timothy, the other apostles and, most importantly, Jesus are our example of how to go about life in this world. We are to obey God’s Word and in doing so we will suffer, yes, but our ultimate reward is much greater than these here.

Are you obeying God’s Word, and suffering because of it? What are your thoughts of the endurance needed to get through it, or are you simply looking for a quick and easy way out? Will you endure in your obedience?