Hope Hangs A Halo

I suffer trouble, as an evildoer, even unto bonds; but the word of God is not bound. Therefore I endure all things for the elect’s sake, that they may also obtain salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory. If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us.

2 Timothy 2:9, 10, 12

In a sense, Christ is a King in exile, and we who are His followers are often looked upon with derision. To be identified with Him here and now quite naturally entails some “loss of face,” some persecution: but someday, we are told, we shall be “kings and priests” and shall be active participators in His Kingdom.

Paul must have had this fact in mind when he said, “For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God” (Romans 8:18–19).

If we should be called upon to suffer all our lives, it would not be long compared to eternity. We are in the position of heirs to a large estate, who gladly endure a few days of suffering and privation with the hope that we shall soon come into our fabulous inheritance. Such a glorious hope hangs a halo over the drab existence of the here and now.

Life cannot lose its zest when down underneath our present discomfort is the knowledge that we are children of a King. Complaining becomes foolish; behaving in the manner of the world is unworthy; and love, gentleness, and meekness become the hallmark of God’s nobility. “All things” are taken in stride; burdens become blessings in disguise; every wound, like good surgery, is for our good; and etched in every cross is the symbol of a crown.

Our Father and our God, my hope is stayed on You for all eternity. I will follow You wherever You may lead me, knowing Your ultimate destination for me is heaven. Give me courage in the face of inevitable persecution and pain. Keep me safely in Jesus, the only Way. In Him I pray. Amen.

Billy Graham, Unto the Hills: A Daily Devotional (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2010).