It's a blessing to be here and thankful the Lord hooked us up, amen, and thankful for the accommodations and everything. And I'm kind of the new guy, don't know a lot of you, and please don't let that get in the way. I'm gonna preach God's word, amen. Pastor Buchanan says I look like Steven Segal. One of them boys down there in the room said I look like an Italian gangster. I just want you to know this is just from pride because during COVID, I did not want to schedule an appointment. I thought that was effeminate. So I just let my hair grow long, started slicking it back. And then when I started looking around, I saw that most of the older men of God do that. So I thought this is the right thing to do, amen. All right, praise the Lord, all right. Let me find my place, I'm trying to figure out what to do, amen. Grab your Bible, 2 Corinthians chapter number one, I wanted to go and preach one of them shout her out type messages, amen, on the Godhead and see if we could get some folks shouting, but that's not what the Lord's gonna let me do, amen. I wanna try and give you something to help you today if I can. Talked about we gotta experience all the different things that God's got for us to really see how good he is. Brother Dietz talked about patience in tribulation. The man of God just preached on Job and how Job lost everything he had. But when you lose everything, when things happen, we've gotta understand that that's God taking us to another level. That's God doing something in our life to get us where he wants us, amen? And it seemed to be a staple of my ministry over the past two or three years because of some of the things we've gone through and different things that I've been preaching on suffering a good bit. I've been trying to get away from it, Preacher Green, because it seems like every time I preach on it, some more suffering comes my way, amen? but God wants us to look at this today, I think. The main message that I preach in a series on suffering talked about the perspective of our suffering, and we looked at the reason that Christians suffer, because that's the great question, is it not? Why do the good suffer, amen, while it seems like the world just goes along with everything, going la-di-da, and everything's great, but people that want to live for God, and do everything in their life for God seem to suffer over and over and over. And in that message, I compared the physicality of our sufferings, the cancers and the pains and all the things. I was telling them young boys earlier that right when God began to call me to preach at the age of 30 or so, God's let me be struck with a disease called fibromyalgia that 60 year old women get and it took my memory from me and it caused me migraines and things like that. I didn't understand when I was going in the ministry why God would allow a physical suffering like that that in my mind I thought would hinder what I could do for him. but God knows more than we know. God knows exactly what we need. I took those sufferings and I compared them because we are partakers in Christ's suffering and we ought to be like Paul and count it worthy to suffer with and for him, amen. And he suffered on the cross of Calvary for you and I. He shed his blood for you and I. He gave his life for you and I. And if he sees fit to let me suffer, in my life over something for his sake and for his glory, then bless God, I ought to be joyful to receive that, amen. I then compared his sufferings, compared the psychology of it, what he suffered in the garden, the agony as Satan attacked his mind and as he prayed for us. in John chapter 17 for those that would become the church in the garden, and he sweated drops of blood, amen. And I compare that to the demonic assaults that we have in our minds, amen. I don't know about you, but you preachers, Satan fights our minds over and over and over again, and the more you do for God, it seems like it's a relentless attack that we suffer from him. And then I talked about the purpose, that our lives are to bring God glory, amen. 1 Peter 4 and 13, but rejoicing as much as you are partakers of Christ's suffering, that when his glory shall be revealed, you may be glad also with exceeding joy. We figured out when we compare our sufferings to Christ's sufferings and we have the proper perspective and understand we can be more like the apostle Paul and say for our light affliction, y'all know his affliction wasn't light, right? More than we've probably ever suffered, but Paul still was able to say for our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. Then later on he said, most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities that the power of Christ may rest upon me. You see, when we suffer, man, it does things for us. It brings him glory, amen. And it brings glory to us later on, amen. It brings us joy, and it puts power on us. You think about Brother Percy Ray, and we talk about all the good stuff. We don't talk about when his family left him, amen, because he crossed that creek and went and preached where they didn't think he ought to be preaching, amen. We don't look at the strokes that he suffered, and we don't look at the fact that God forbid him to marry, how he probably laid in bed alone in that quiet place thinking, God, why won't you let me have a helpmate? God, why won't you let me have a companion? But he suffered for Christ and God put all that power on him. That's where the power comes from, men. Hey, listen, so the church has suffered, it was Roman emperors in the beginning, the Jews, amen, the Roman Catholics later on, and the Muslim jihadists, amen, and in 1 Peter 4 and 12, he said, beloved, think it not strange concerning the fire which I will try you, as though some strange thing has happened. Christian, it's the norm for us to go through this. It's the norm, don't get discouraged, don't get down. The Bible says, yea, all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution, amen. Back then it was the government, but now we are battling principalities and powers of darkness, amen. And the fact of the matter is, we are gonna suffer demonic assaults in our lives. But thank God, thank God, we've got a God that's in charge, amen. He's a sovereign God, that's not Calvinism tonight. Hey listen, we got a God that if anything happens to you, my friend, it goes across his desk, amen. And if God allows anything to happen in your life, he's got a purpose. but thank God he's got a reason. He ain't gonna let you get beat to death for nothing. You hear me? He knows what we need. When you get that thing in perspective, Brother Michael, when we realize that we're suffering for the one that suffered for us, am I right? My kid used to play basketball, Christian school, and if y'all know anything about that, you get five warm bodies. Hey man, they ain't gotta know how to play ball. You're a Christian school, you're just trying to get a team together. I'd watch them get beat 90 to two. I'd drive three hours one way, three hours back, watch three games of getting slaughtered, amen. Destroyed, eating stale nachos in an old coliseum somewhere, wishing I was at home doing something else, amen. But then on the way home, I'd hear my boy in the back talking to his friends, saying, did you see the one shot I got off? Did you see the one steal I got? and when we thought about who we were suffering for, it changed the perspective of what we were doing, and we realized we're suffering for somebody we love. Listen, when I think about where God brought me, y'all don't know me from Adam, but he wrenched down years ago, found an old drunk, dope dealing fool, filled with pride, put me under Holy Ghost conviction, saved my soul, changed my life, amen. And bless God, if I gotta suffer a little bit for him, I'm willing and able. Oh, but rejoice in as much as your partakers in Christ's suffering. When we realize why and who we're doing it for, it changes everything. Amen, amen. Hallelujah. Let's get to today's text real quick. I'm trying to skip through this, amen. I want you to notice, let me just read Colossians 1 and 24, what Paul said there. He said, who now rejoice in my sufferings for you and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for what? His body's sake, which is the church. Paul said, I'm rejoicing in my sufferings, but I'm suffering for his body's sake, which he is the church. Let's read the text, 2 Corinthians 1, and verse number three says, blessed be God, even the father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the father of mercies, and the God of all comfort, who comforteth us in all our tribulation, this is a preacher talking, amen, that we may be able to comfort them which are in trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ. Whether we be afflicted, it is for your consolation, as he's talking to the church at Corinth. It is for your consolation and salvation, which is effectual in the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer, or whether we be comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation. And our hope of you is steadfast on that your partakers of the sufferings so shall ye be also of the consolation. For we would not, brethren, have you ignorant of the trouble which we were in Asia, that we were pressed out of measure above strength, insomuch that we despaired even for life. But we had the sins of death in ourselves that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God, which raiseth the dead, who delivered us from so great a death and doth deliver in whom we trust that he will deliver. You see why Paul was suffering there in that text? for the church. And I know, I know you wanna hear a feel-good message, amen, we do, we like to, and you wanna know that your suffering is gonna help you. Well, that was other parts of the series, that's not today's, amen. We do suffer so that God'll bring us joy, but do you understand we suffer so that he will make us more Christ-like, amen? more like him, and why does he do that? Well, Paul said in Colossians, for his body's sake, which is the church. Could I present to you tonight that a primary purpose of our suffering is so that we can help each other in the church, amen? Now let me say this, I understand Paul's talking about himself as a preacher. And I've preached this at pastor celebrations for Homer Hensley, the man that just died two weeks ago. I preached it at his church as I talked to his congregation for pastor appreciation about how much he has suffered for them, amen. But we suffer for each other, child of God, amen. Listen, you are in the ministry of salvation tonight. If you're saved by the grace of God, you're in the ministry. The Bible says, I ain't gonna read all the verse, I don't have time. But you were put in the ministry of reconciliation, it says in 2 Corinthians chapter number five. You're in the ministry whether you're a preacher or not. Every saved person in the ministry but to minister to save people. 1 Peter 4 and 10, as every man hath received a gift, even so minister the same one to another. You're in the ministry of edification of your brothers and sisters, amen. You're in the ministry of edifying each other. And God gave you a pastor to teach you the ministry. That's what the Bible says in Ephesians 4 and 11. And honestly, pastors, preachers, seem to deal with so much. Pastor Michael, I mean, And could it be because we're ministering to a larger amount? I was messing with Seth earlier. I said, you got called to preach. Justice joked with him, said, not yet. I said, oh, don't do it, son. You're just signing up for suffering. For people that's probably gonna stab you in the back. But it's joy and it's peace. I got no complaints. But I'm just trying to encourage you that when you go through something, God's got a reason. And when you get bitter because of what you're going through, and you get upset and you seclude yourself, and you don't help the saints, You're not doing what God intended that for. You understand, Brother Terry mentioned that he does it to perfect us and settle and strengthen. That word perfect, I looked it up while he was preaching, and it means to mend something that's broken. It's like when you break your nose and it's crooked and messed up, fighting, amen, and then they gotta break it again to mend it and get it in the right place. And that's what God tries to do through our suffering. He's trying to change you and break you and do something in you to get you in the right place. where you're supposed to be for him, amen? So what does that tell you if he breaks you or does that and you don't allow it to make you Christ-like, you don't allow it to make you closer to him, you don't allow it to bring that fellowship between you and him that it's supposed to do and you get angry or you get bitter or you get mad and quit on church or you get mad at the other preacher and you do all that, what's that mean tonight? Sounds to me like he's gonna have to break you again. Sounds like you're just signing up for more suffering every time you say, God, I'm mad! I'm not doing this! Oh, well, looks like I gotta do it again. Hey, pastor, I wonder if you'd suffer so that you could help your people. Mama, I wonder if you'd go through some suffering to make sure your youngins are strengthened in the faith. Amen? Daddy, I wonder if you'd go through some things in this life and let it be something that'll bring your children to a point of salvation. I wanna look at three ways in which our suffering helps the church, amen. Father, we love you, Lord, help us. God, thank you for who you are. God, thank you for what you've done. Thank you for what you allow in our lives. God, we praise you, we worship you. But God, let us get to the place where we praise you and thank you for the bad. Praise you and thank you for what we think's bad, but God, you know what we need. Lord, we love you and we praise you in Jesus' name, amen and amen. First, I want you to notice we suffer so that we can comfort others. I'm not gonna read all the text, but verse five says, for the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ. What all that says is we suffer, amen, and Christ has comforted us and consoled us, and therefore we take that comfort from that tribulation and comfort and console others, amen. But could I just mention it said, blessed be God, even the father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the father of mercies. I'm thankful he's the God of mercy, amen. He doesn't ever do anything that should not happen, you understand that? Our God is just, our God knows all. That means as a Christian we shouldn't live discouraged, we shouldn't live down, we know God's right, amen. He's never done anything wrong, amen. But the recipe that God has given us to comfort and console people. It's not through a feel-good sermon by a preacher. It's not through joining hands and singing kumbaya, amen. It's not through meditation and yoga and Joe Holstein books and Rick Warren books, amen. It's not through any of that, but it's comfort and consolation provided by other children of God that have been through things like that. He said comfort you in all. so that you can help them in any, it don't even have to be the same type of trial. When you go through it, you can help somebody else. Vance Havner said, God uses broken things. It takes broken soil to produce a crop, broken clouds to give rain, broken grain to give bread, broken bread to give strength, broken alabaster box that gives forth perfume. I always wondered why it seemed like pastors suffered, Brother Dietz. I've only been doing this thing nine years, preaching 11, pastor nine. I got no rank on y'all in suffering. Y'all been through way more than me. But I'm just gonna tell you, I always wondered. I always wondered. I preached the previous message of this at Mountaineer Camp meeting up there in West Virginia. Had no idea that Dale Vance was sitting there. I knew Dale, but I didn't know Rachel was out in the car just being re-diagnosed with that cancer again that was eating up in her body. But I watched after that meeting, as Dale walks out, tore up, and he's tore up because of what's going on in his life and Roger Cox, the man I preach for in Logan County, walks over to him and is talking to him and they're over there bonding and talking and they end up leaving, nobody bothered them, God kept everybody away from them, then they leave and go somewhere else and eat lunch together and talk and what that was is Roger Cox had been through the same exact cancer that Miss Rachel was going through and God was using another child of God to console that child of God. That's how he does it. I wondered why we have to go through seasons of loneliness and depression and despair and all that. Y'all understand, listen, I was one of them rambunctious younger guys, amen, and the way I was, I'd never suffered anxiety, I'd never suffered depression, I'd never suffered mental attacks on my mind, but bless God, I started pastoring Baptist people. And that'll get you, man. And then I started going to prayer camps and I've taken 30 men down to Camp Zion to pray for days on end. And I thought God was gonna bless my socks off. But I come home and went through hell by the acre. I wondered why pastors go through the discursion. Used to think, how weak could a Spurgeon have been? Y'all read about him? He said, I'm the subject of depressions of spirits so fearful that I hope none of you ever get to such extremes of wretchedness as I go. Locked himself in rooms in depression. Used to think, how in the world? But could it be because he was ministering to the thousands? We gotta go through the death of loved ones. We've gotta go, man of God, through all that stuff so that God'll give us sermons and God'll help us be able to help them. That's why it hurts so bad when people of God do the pastoral. That's why, what does God think when a church member hurts another church member knowing that the suffering in their life was to help them? We've got our own concept of the church, y'all. We're to love each other, even preachers, we get mad and chide and we've got cliques and groups, but bless God, this man of God may go through cancer or something else because you're getting ready to go through it. I wondered why so many pastors had wayward children. I begged God not to let my All of your suffering can help somebody. Y'all don't know this from Adam. I was raised up in church, false profession when I was five. Got into drugs and alcohol. Complete hopeless alcoholic. Selling drugs to pay for it, 24 years old. Met a little girl in a bar. That's my wife now. Thought I'd destroyed our life, destroyed a little girl's life. Thought I'd messed everything up. She was abused from the age of six to 16 by a stepfather. Destroyed her life, she never got to have a childhood. She never got to know what love was like. Can you imagine your whole childhood being living in fear? No joy, no peace. Then she begged God to save her mom. Even though her mom was part of the problem, she begged God to save her mom after she got saved for 15 years. But on a Thanksgiving four years ago, I hear her knees hit the ground, and I hear her punching the floor. And at 53 years old, her mama went to sleep and never woke up, never made a profession, and I watch her punching the ground saying, my mom's in hell! She got bitter at God for nine months. She didn't speak to him. You know, it says prayer and supplication. It says the peace of God will pass you. It's gotta take prayer to have that peace, and she didn't have no peace. She was about to lose her mind. Through a series of events, God healed her of that bitterness. Don't you ever get bitter. Don't get bitter. God healed her of that, and as soon as God healed her, I've watched her over the past two years preach her. She spoke at nine women's conference. used her and after that she spoke at like eight more. At Pastor Daniel's, there's 400 women, 300 women in there. And there's a woman in a sound booth who went through the same exact thing. Her mom allowed to have her, and she wrote her mom off and said, I hate your guts, and hadn't talked to her in years. She heard Carla's testimony. Before Amy Edwards even spoke, she comes running out of the choir booth, gets in her car, drives to her mama's house, reconciles with her mother, says, I love you, I forgive you, it's okay, and tells her mom about Jesus Christ. And what God did there is he took all that suffering that my wife has been through and he took the power of God and put it on her so that she could comfort somebody else. Everything you ever been through, God can use it to help somebody else. He used us to comfort others. Secondly, he used us to convert others. And whether we be afflicted, verse six, it is for your consolation and salvation. I've studied the context, I've looked at it. Many men said that is physical salvation. Few said it would be salvation of the soul. but could I tell you I've watched what happens when Christians take suffering and they receive it properly and they don't get bitter and they let God use it. I've watched God draw men to Christ through that. I've watched God draw people to himself as somebody receives that suffering properly, amen. Remember the most, right? It was Brother Sechrist. Brother Seacrest is a pastor in Summersville, West Virginia. His son and his daughter-in-law come up to an altar several years, five years back, laid a list on the altar of 100 names and said, God, do whatever it takes to see him saved. Philip, 13 days later, was driving through an open intersection, stop sign, nobody was around, nobody saw it, no cars. Boom, Jeep rolls over, he hits his head on the roll bar, severe brain damage. They put him in the room and he's not even responding. They can't do anything. They flipped him over. They did all these different little things they did. Mark pulls Lindsey out into the waiting room and says, we're gonna have to do something. They said, we gotta pull the plug and we gotta do something. Lindsey said, let me go pray over him. Lindsey walks in that room. They said there was an atheistic nurse sitting in there that's been negative the whole time. And Lindsey walks in there and begins praying over Philip. Said the tears were running off her face so thick that it looked like Philip was laying there crying. and she started yelling and crying. Brother Mark said it was the most powerful prayer he's ever heard. She said, God, you promised me! God, you promised me! God, you've gotta do something! They said they stepped back, and for the first time since the wreck, Philip lifts his hand up. They said that atheistic nurse starts screaming. This can't happen! They said, Lindsey and Mark, run out in the waiting room, There's 80 people in the waiting room. She said, Phil's gonna lay there till some of y'all get right with God, cause he's doing something. And my God's amazing. Mark, Lindsey, Cheryl, Mark's wife, started going all over that hospital, going in waiting rooms, going in hospital rooms, telling people about Jesus Christ. Mark told me, this is five years ago, Mark told me to this day, Brother Moss, that he's received phone calls every single week, that the story of Philip has seen people saved. They've heard about what God can do. And listen, don't feel bad for Philip, amen. Listen, he said God took his memory. He don't remember running heavy equipment, he don't remember driving cars, but he remembers every Bible verse he ever did. He remembers every song he ever sang. And Mark said, if you wanna worship, come over to my house. You and Philip can go out by the lake. And he'll just say, God's good, God's good. I love God, you love God, God's good. And said he's at pure peace and joy. but listen to me, had Mark and Cheryl got bitter, God, why'd you take my boy? God, why'd you let this happen if they wouldn't have taken it right? I'm telling you, they'd be bitter, full of anger, full of hatred, and nobody would have got saved. God'll use what you go through. Mom and Dad, you better be careful how you react to what's happening in your life, because God'll use that on your children. I'll suffer if it'll see my kids safe. I'll suffer if it'll help my children. We suffer to see souls converted. And lastly, I'm trying to get out of the way. We suffer so that we can consolidate others or strengthen others. And Paul, and I'm not gonna read all the text, but in text he says, we were in fear of death. He said, I want y'all to know that we were in fear of death, we had a death sentence on our life. And he said, but he doth deliver, amen, right there. Paul was pressed out of measure. He was being pressed into Christ, amen. One man said, sometimes God's gotta let you have a fear like you're gonna die that you can't control so that you'll strengthen your faith and learn to trust him. Like that cancer diagnosis where you're scared to death you're gonna die. Or that doctor's result that you're scared to death. That wayward child is destroying their life. And it's got you in a place where you've just gotta trust him. People have no idea. There's a lot of preachers in the room. People have no idea what preachers go through. Every child of God suffers. I don't wanna discount what everybody else goes through. But people rarely understand what it takes to get behind the sacred desk. I didn't. One man said, if you're any kind of minister at all, God will send you trouble. He sends that trouble your way so that you can minister to others in their trouble. If you have no trouble, you cannot minister. I'll give you this illustration and get out of your way. My daughter, it seems like the past so many years, and I'm not complaining at all, but Satan's attacking our family. You ever been through that? You know when it's like a domino thing, he'll hit every one of your kids, boom, boom, boom, boom. All of a sudden, everything's right, then pow. I've watched my son, who went out in evangelism two years ago, develop an IBS type deal where he can't even eat. Satan attacks his mind because he almost died What's Satan attacking? What's Satan attacking my daughter? Was at a youth camp, 160, 170 kids. She sang Aunt Mark Withers' song, More Like You, Less Like Me. That's what I wanna be. She was saying, God make me Christ-like. God make me Christ-like. All them kids in there started raising their hands, 160 kids saying, more like you, less like me, that is how I wanna be. All them kids, you know how it is, the singer, a lot of singers in here, still a lot of kids look up and idolize and come talk to them and stuff like that. None of them realized that Friday morning after camp, She's sitting in our living room. She's developed nodules on her throat. She's had them for two years now. We can't get rid of them. We've been to doctors and everything. She sits down and looks at her daddy and says, Dad, I just don't understand. It's hurting so bad. It feels like somebody stabbed me with a knife. I can't even, all I want to do is serve God. And I can't even sing. It hurts so bad. She said, why dad? And I start trying to give her all them things like, we'll go to the doctor, we'll figure this out, we'll do this, we'll do this. But I've been working on missions like this. I had to look at her and say, honey, if you really wanna be like him, and you really want God to use you, and you really want power, I'm talking about power. That's why them old men of God had that power. That's why some of you got what you got, I said, honey, you may just have to suffer. I don't want my children, I don't want my children to suffer. I know a lot of preachers that have made statements to me, I don't want my kids in the ministry, it's too rough, it's too much stuff. I don't wanna go through that, but brother Mike, my whole life, I said, God, Jesus. I said, God, use my kids. Put a power on them, Brother Ethan. Give them that power like you was talking about, Percy Ray. Give them that power that they can minister to people and help them and do things for them. I don't want them to suffer. Boy, I tell you what, when we get to a place where we can worship and thank God for every bit of suffering, and every bit of it, and say, God, I know that this is making me more like you. That's when we're gonna get to that next place. And you men seasoned, listen, y'all know more of this. I'm preaching stuff y'all already know. That's where the power comes in. And if our churches could get a hold of this thing. and the person in this pew over here, love this person over here with that undying love, listen, that sacrificial love, and share and help each other. What would happen in our churches? What power, we could have a Myrtle, Mississippi again. We could have a Percy Ray again. If we love each other, if the people of God would look at their pastor and say, he suffered, he went through that cancer, but he did it for me. And love him and hug on his neck. Preachers would say, you helped me so much in my ministry. Just hug him and love on him. Say, thank you for suffering for me. Thank you for, and listen, I'll go through anything. I don't want to volunteer for it, but I'll go through anything God's got for me for this little one. for him to stay right with God, and for God to use him and put a power on him. I'll go through anything for that one right there. And that one, and that one. Where you at this morning? I want God's power. You want it? I ain't saying God lay it on me when I get old, God. I ain't saying lay it on me, God, please. He said for a time, right? That's 1 Peter somewhere, chapter four. For a time. Give me a break, God, I've went through a season. Just give me a break, God. I want your power and I'll suffer for it, but give me a break for a little while, I'm about to crack. All this, I don't even know how to end this sermon. I'm just telling you, you know what we ought to do? We'll pray for each other. That's why you gotta pray for your pastor. I mean, God, I don't know y'all, but you're on my prayer list, Brother Deacon. Brother Melton, I'm gonna start praying for you. I just met y'all. We need each other's prayers. I love to see a room full of men of God so filled with power, so filled with power that we're seeing real revival. It's there for us. Lord, I love you. Thank you, God, for what you've allowed me to go through, for what you've allowed in the life of my kids and my wife. God help it, God change me that I'll pray for people with a passion and fervor, Lord. God help the people of God pray for their pastor and love on their pastors. God help us preachers love each other, Father, in Jesus' name, amen.