Why do the righteous suffer?

Because the unrighteous screw them over.

haveahope thank you for sharing that poem as it says it all and praise the Lord we have a Savior that is always there for us in all things good or bad, amen.

Praise the Lord
Greetings

Suffering apart from grace works death in the soul, but Paul directs our attention that grace and suffering can work together.

2 TIMOTHY 2:12 If we SUFFER, we shall also REIGN with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us:
1 PETER 5:10 But the God of all GRACE, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have SUFFERED a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.

Suffering is the denial of the voice of the aspirations to control your life. While God set these against each other, it was for the purpose of manifesting His glorious grace in those that believe called overcomers.

An example is where Jesus was tempted to use His powers to provide food for His hunger or pleasure. Satan was tempting Jesus to extend Himself beyond human design. God restricted Himself to the body of flesh to preach to us that God has power over the flesh and Satan and the world. Those of faith will remain under the shadow of grace and not fall prey to Satans perspectives of survival and achievement for the honor and praise of man.

Paul teaching the saints shows what it means to be crucified with Christ by this example, to fill up the sufferings of Christ for the Church.

COLOSSIANS 1:24
Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and FILL UP that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body's sake, which is the church:

2 CORINTHIANS 4:10
Always bearing about in the body the DYING of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.

By the renewing of the Holy Ghost such a circumcision is possible as we hold fast the confidence of the truth.

The world fears loss and so covets his neighbors things oppressing rather than blessing. The crown of the righteous is not of this world but of Christ Himself. Charity builds while envy plunders.

So as we put-on Christ walking in the covenant prieshood of Jesus' blood and not the blood of animals as the lamb, ox and goats, wherein is the tithing, sabbath, circumcision, baptism and communions, we have now partaken of heavenly things and our affection is on things above wherein in Christ and the throne of Grace.

No despair in the spiritual affections.
No crushing of the will in the heavenly grace.
No consuming or loss of the sacrifices of praise.

Now we bear the cross dying to the worlds aspirations having the mind of Christ thinking on these things and manifesting His fruit in the moderation of His grace.

In His grace

Apostle Eric

ss: The contradiction of sinners is the barriers of grace which seeks equity by the law and not the covenant of Christ

Praise the Lord, Glorious;

The KEY word is REGENERATION; TITUS 3:5
The suffering of the saint is in connection with regeneration.
Apart from this divine work those that suffer will only endure the pain with no benefits of salvation.
The suffering of the world works death because there is no divine reciprocation taking place in the soul.

The CHASTENING of the Lord is not His wrath. The WICKED suffer His wrath for their idolatry, molding the soul with the aspirations of the world. The righteous suffer the chastening of circumcision for renewing of the mind as a result of regeneration.

Sinners desire God to reward their suffering while God only rewards faith in covenant.

HEBREWS 12:5 And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the CHASTENING of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him:

Regeneration is in the work of the saints priesthood where God circumcises the heart by His baptism. Peter said to ADD to your faith, VIRTUE which is the result of His Spiritual baptism.

1 PETER 3:21 The like figure whereunto even BAPTISM doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ:

 
2 PETER 1:5 And beside this, giving all diligence, ADD TO YOUR FAITH virtue; and to virtue knowledge;

And Paul said; circumcision and baptism.

COLOSSIANS 2:11 In whom also ye are circumcised with the CIRCUMCISION made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the CIRCUMCISION of Christ:

COLOSSIANS 2:12 Buried with him in BAPTISM, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.

This is the protocol of the priesthood of the believer.

Now Jesus suffered the CONTRADICTION of sinners. When we put-on Christ we endure the longsuffering of the pull of the aspirations of the world and the power of our principle is put to death.

COLOSSIANS 2:8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the RUDIMENTS of the world, and not after Christ.
20 Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the RUDIMENTS of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances,


By the power of Christ;
We replace our aspirations of life with FAITH;
We replace our principles of life with TRUTH;
We replace our coveteousness with MODERATION of Fruit.

This is the DIVINE POWER (resurrection of Christ) which we put-on through the covenant priesthood not of man but of God.

HEBREWS 12:3 For consider him that endured such CONTRADICTION of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds.

By the effectual working of the Spirit our perception of life changes so we won't faint in our minds or lose the SEAL of Christ. For the PEACE of God assists us through the transition from darkness to His Light. This is the true term for salvation.

Hope this helps you.

Be blessed in Him

In His grace

Apostle Eric

ss: The fountains of life pour through the lips of the righteous springing up from the soul filled of His Word  

 

Good and valid comments.  BLESSINGS.  Doc

Praise the Lord, HRoberson;

I like what the apostle Peter said to the church;

1 PETER 4:18 And if the RIGHTEOUS SCARCELY BE SAVED, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?

Ungodly means one that is barren of fruit while sinner means a resister of grace .
Wicked are those that express the aspirations and impose the principle and evil has to do with the worldly knowledge   because it is absent of grace.

We overcome by the armour of the covenant priesthood waiting at the altar of Christ in the temple of the soul.

1 CORINTHIANS 6:19 What? know ye not that your BODY IS THE TEMPLE of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?

HEBREWS 13:10 We have an ALTAR, whereof they have no right to eat which serve the tabernacle.

The ungodly and the sinner do not approach or appear at the altar of Christ and so are denied the meat of the altar which is His truth that saves the soul.

So the suffering which begets fruit in the Christian must be born out of obedience to the terms of the Covenant priesthood.

In His grace

Apostle Eric

ss: By the circumcision of the Spirit in the soul we have the mind of Christ
 

Praise the Lord, son of God;

LUKE 1:72 To perform the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember his holy COVENANT .

Many religious leaders believe in the existance of God but fail to keep the WAY of the Lord.

JUDGES 2:22 That through them I may prove Israel, whether they will keep the WAY OF THE LORD to walk therein, as their fathers did keep it, or not.

The Way of the Lord is the COVENANT, not just acknowledging the existance of God or performing acts of contrition for the conscience.

Religions today still try to fit God's judgments into a perspective for the conscience sake. This form of resolve is an offense to God. This is where the wicked speak well of the sinners works as righteousness, whereas the person was never in covenant with God.

LUKE 6:26 Woe unto you, when all men shall SPEAK WELL of you! for so did their fathers to the false prophets.

Jesus saw and pointed out to His disciples for learning discernment, that each religious system honors its own achievers as does the world, but will resist the covenant and its stewardship.

JOHN 15:20 Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have PERSECUTED me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.

This shows that those that "KEEP THY WORD" are those that keep His covenant and not just selecting a scripture to represent their aspirations with as did Satan when tempting Jesus.

MATTHEW 4:6 And Satan saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: FOR IT IS WRITTEN, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.

The Pharisees were "WORD" oriented but dim sighted concerning covenant faith. Jesus called it leavened doctrine.

JOHN 7:49 But THIS PEOPLE who knoweth not the law are cursed. And again in Matthew,

MATTHEW 16:6 Then Jesus said unto them, Take heed and BEWARE OF THE LEAVEN OF THE PHARISEES and of the Sadducees. 11 How is it that ye do not understand that I spake it not to you concerning bread, that ye should BEWARE OF THE LEAVEN OF THE PHARISEES and of the Sadducees?

Today many Christians are not converted into Covenant but have established a practice of worship in traditions of men. This learned mannerism then becomes a scale to weigh truth and practice with and blinds the mind to Covenant faith.

So now as the psalmist says IN covenant, Psa 119:67   Before I was afflicted I went astray; but now I have kept Your Word, is seen more clearly as one that kept the WAY of the Lord.

In His grace

Apostle Eric

ss: To show love towards God is to keep His commandments and to love one another in His charity.

suffering occurs because of three things;

Incorrect use of Geometry, Electricity and the incorrect use of  Words and its understanding.

In order not to suffer we must discard that which harms.

Are we prepared to make that sacrifice?