Better to Suffer

"For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God's will, than for doing evil" (1 Peter 3:17).

Often this passage is used as a motivation to witness in a hostile environment.

You share Christ and your friends make fun of you. That's better than going to jail for robbing a bank.

That may be a valid application, but I think there are other possibilities.

We can suffer for doing the right thing when we are obedient to Christ. And we can suffer at the hands of other believers.

In April 2011, the Lord worked in my heart through the preaching of His Word and I confessed sinful behaviors and struggles that had been plaguing me for over thirty years. I had thought that there was no hope of overcoming these temptations.

Like the demon-possessed man in Mark 5, the situation seemed hopeless. But when I cried out to Jesus, He has helped. As I have submitted myself to His will, I have seen great victory.

I did the right thing, but I have suffered.

My wife determined that she no longer wanted to work on our marriage and split our family. One of my sons refuses to communicate with me. I lost my job. I'll never be a pastor again. I'm carrying mattresses and couches. A large circle of acquaintances no longer has contact with me. My opportunities for teaching and discipling have vanished. Being ignored and avoided at church by people who are supposed to care is discouraging. Loneliness is constant.

But I know I did the right thing. I did what God commanded me to do. He has heard my prayer and gives me victory over temptation.

The suffering for doing good is not easy.

Doing right and having a clear conscience before God is better than suffering under a life of hidden sin.