Have you ever had somebody get in-your-face? It is a phrase that normally is characterized by or expressive of a bold and often defiant aggressiveness. Some think it was originally used in 1975 in a book by NBA coach Phil Jackson called More than a Game.
But who knows where it originated? It is a way putting down somebody after your shot in basketball swishes through the hoop. It expresses an attitude of superiority with the idea of your superior skills against your opponent often followed by a two-word phrase that I will not mention but has the initials M F.
I actually believe it was first said by a teenage boy not in the hood but on a battlefield after sinking a smooth stone into the forehead of the nine-foot-tall Goliath. Big Gogo, as he was known by his friends, dropped to the ground and David ran to him and said, “In Your Face,” took out Big GoGo’s sword and cut off his head.
Yesterday we looked at the love of God our Father by learning that He is a shield around us. However, Peter also mentions that in spite of that reality we have to suffer “various trials.”
“In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.” 1 Peter 1:6
Before we move away from this passage, I want to point out something that has been very helpful to me in developing a deeper love for my Father. I know that He is a shield about me. I know that He allows things to pass through His shield and that some of them hurt me just as He allows blessings to come into my life that I do not deserve. So, what are we supposed to do when those trials come and we feel deeply the hurt?
The word “various” is an interesting word in Greek. It is only used 10 times in the New Testament. The basic meaning of the word is obviously “various”. It is used to describe people who came to Jesus with “various” diseases. It is used to describe people who give “various” teachings or to talk about “various” miracles. Each time it is used it is describing things that we would normally think of as coming in a variety of ways. There are multiple kinds of sicknesses, teachings, and miracles.
However, this word is used twice by Peter. The first usage here in 1 Peter 1:6 is to describe the “various trials” that God allows to pass through the shield around us. Again, not an unusual thought. However, the second time Peter uses it is when he writes;
“Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.” 1 Peter 4:10
Notice two things in this verse. First is that God’s grace comes in “various forms.” I had never thought of God’s grace being in various forms before. I mean I guess I just thought of grace as grace. But here Peter attaches that same word that he uses with the word trials in the first chapter of his same letter. Literally the word can mean “multi-faceted”. Like a diamond is multi-faceted. Someone takes the raw stone and cuts tiny facets in it so that the beauty of the diamond is revealed, and it sparkles. The facets allow the light to come into the stone and reflect the beauty that is in the light.
I believe that for every kind of various or multi-faceted trial God allows into our lives there is a corresponding facet of the multi-faceted Grace of God. If I have been wounded by someone there is a facet of the grace of God for that wound. If you have been abandoned, Jesus knows what that is like, He was abandoned by his disciples and forsaken by His Father on the cross. He has experienced it and has grace for your wound of abandonment. There is a facet of the grace of God for every kind of trial God allows to come into our lives.
But notice this…where does that grace of God come from so that we can experience it in our lives? It comes from other Christians when they use their spiritual gifts in ministering in the lives of other people. It comes from other believers when they use their gifts of compassion. It comes from other believers when they hear about your trial and they have gone through the same thing and tell you about their experience.
All of a sudden you are not alone in your suffering. You find someone who can empathize with your pain. Look at how Paul describes it in his second letter to the Corinthians;
“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.” 2 Corinthians 1:3-4
The grace of our God comes to us either directly from Him or indirectly from others if we allow them to minister to us. What can keep this thing from happening? If we are silent in our pain and refuse to share it with others. We are ashamed and too embarrassed to share with others what we are feeling or the mistakes we have made. We have stuffed the memories that are so painful thinking they will go away. They never do. They fester and rot away in our souls until the puss comes bursting out in an angry tirade. They cause us to act out and medicate our pain with alcohol, drugs or sex. When all along there is a grace of God waiting to salve the wound and bring healing.
We need to open up to our Father about our trials and the pain we feel. We also need to open up to others about what has happened to us and find the people whom God will use to administer the facet of His grace to heal the pain we are feeling. For every single trial that can afflict us there is a facet of the grace of our Father waiting to be poured over our wounds so they can heal. If we try to suffer silently, like most men try to do, or ignore the pain and just go on in life the wound will become infected and greater damage will be done.
What wounds are you trying to hide and suffer in silence about? Where is there a group of people who have suffered the same thing that you need to be in? Who do you need to share your secret pain with? If you do you will find the grace of God poured out into your wound and you will begin to experience the healing from the grace of your Heavenly Father.