N.T. Wright on suffering

In his book Reflecting the Glory, N.T. Wright gives us a new perspective on how our suffering shows the glory of God. Good stuff!

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What Paul wants his hearers to grasp is that they already have, in the gospel of Jesus Christ, all the glory they could possibly want. He will shortly explain that in more detail. But we can imagine the Corinthians being very puzzled, just as people today might be very puzzled. Outsiders often look at the church, full of muddle and sin and shame and half-heartedness and back-biting, and clergy who don't know what they are talking about and laity who go wandering off the point, and they say, "Well, if that's all you've got to show for the wonderful message you talk about, you really are a muddled lot. How can you possibly be the body of Christ, the temple of the living God, as you say you are called to be?"

The answer comes again and again in 2 Corinthians. The glory of Christ is not revealed in spectacular show of success, in people who get everything right all the time. People like that, as we know, can sometimes be a pain in the neck. The church reveals the glory of Christ through suffering and shame as much as through what the world counts as success.

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In another article he mentions how Christ is the ultimate revelation of the glory of God and yet He suffered greatly! God's glory is truly revealed in suffering. Even OUR suffering! What a blessed reminder.