When the Body of Christ Suffers

[Ramez5]

Son of man, behold, I take away from you the desire of your eyes with a stroke: yet neither shall you mourn nor weep, neither shall your tears run down. So I spoke to the people in the morning: and at even my wife died; and I did in the morning as I was commanded. Ezekiel 24:17-18

The body of Christ and the church and even our bible are built at the cost of the suffering of the saints all through the centuries. Last night, testimony after testimony was shared by ladies from our church of the great suffering they have endured through the years and how the Lord turned that into blessing both for themselves.. and though they may not have been aware.. for so many others too!

I was awed to listen to them..and my heart ached for them too. So much suffering.. yet the Lord is glorified through it, if we let him take us through those trials and bring us out victorious on the other side.

There is no way to avoid suffering nor should we--it is a part of the process in God's great eternal plan. The Lord does indeed grieve with us because he knows we are just dust, yet his church is built through it. Our testimonies bring glory to our Heavenly Father and shine light along the path of those who follow in our footsteps. The Lord holds us up every step of the way, however dark that path may seem. His heart aches with us.

When I read this passage this morning, I could not even fathom how he was able to do this but by the grace of God! Only the Jamiseon-fauset-brown commentary mentions what a huge sacrifice this was on the part of Ezekiel. He did this because the Lord wanted to use him as an example of how they were not to mourn when the Lord destroyed Jerusalem for it's apostasy.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

16. desire of … eyes—his wife: representing the sanctuary (Eze 24:21) in which the Jews so much gloried. The energy and subordination of Ezekiel's whole life to his prophetic office is strikingly displayed in this narrative of his wife's death. It is the only memorable event of his personal history which he records, and this only in reference to his soul-absorbing work. His natural tenderness is shown by that graphic touch, "the desire of thine eyes." What amazing subjection, then, of his individual feeling to his prophetic duty is manifested in the simple statement (Eze 24:18), "So I spake … in the morning; and at even my wife died; and I did in the morning as I was commanded."

stroke—a sudden visitation. The suddenness of it enhances the self-control of Ezekiel in so entirely merging individual feeling, which must have been especially acute under such trying circumstances, in the higher claims of duty to God.

How his heart must have ached.. and what devotion and surrender to God Ezekiel had in his heart to give up his life so completely to God's purposes! My own paltry attempts at surrender to the Lord's will pale in comparison.

It makes me wonder.. just how much am I willing to suffer for the sake of the gospel? How many Christians suffer.. in the Lord's name? I know so little of surrender and sacrifice as compared to Ezekiel's example.. or Paul for that matter or so many others who have given up everything for the sake of the gospel.

Can I not bear my little crosses when others have been called to bear so much? I'm off to see the doctor again to see if any bone growth has taken place yet. I am praying that my broken foot has begun to heal as it had not even started healing last month. Almost 3 months of no driving.. but the Lord knows what he is doing. Of that I am certain. It's a tiny cross as compared to so many.


Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church Colossians 1:24


Dear Lord, We pray today that you would comfort those who have lost their spouses.. Only you can reach through the deep hurt and anguish that is theirs. May we be faithful to pray, to comfort, to ask how they are doing, to pray more, to do practical things. May we never be too busy or too lazy to go the extra mile for those in our body who are hurting.

And Lord, and for those who give up so much for the sake of the gospel.. both our persecuted brothers and those in ministry, I pray you help us to remember the great sacrifices they make daily. I pray you would open our eyes and ears, that we would do the work of prayer for those who have given their all in service to you.

May we be willing to suffer much for His sake and the sake of the lost throughout the world. Help us to see the world through your eyes and pray and act accordingly. Amen