Skip to main content

What is covered in chapter five of How Long, O Lord? by D.A. Carson?

D. A. Carson's How Long, O Lord? is a text which examines Biblical passages as they pertain to the suffering of mankind; it is written through the lens of Evangelical Christianity.


Chapter five, entitled "The Suffering People of God," deals with the particular sufferings of Christians who are confronted with growing "anti-Christian pressures" in the West and official persecution in other parts of the world. Carson says the most dominant type of suffering which Christians find "peculiar" is the suffering which is dealt out by God himself—a "fatherly" kind of punishment which is the hallmark of being a child of God and is done for our good so "we may share in his holiness" and steer clear of sin. 


One of the most interesting arguments made here is that many of God's punishments—including war, illness, financial troubles, death, and personal losses—are inherently considered evil and can easily be conflated as the work of Satan. Carson argues we must come to terms with these "ambiguities" so we do not find ourselves caught in a dualistic universe in which neither good nor evil can dominate our lives. In other words, experiencing suffering is not a good thing, but good things can arise out of it. Moving through suffering—and the difficulties of faith and steadfastness that it causes—allows us to become closer to God and more disciplined in our worship. Carson cites Romans 5: 3-4, in which Paul proclaims,



We also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.



Thus, we gain access to maturity through our suffering, and we come to realize "there is no future in frustration."


Carson expands this discussion to talk about the persecution of godly individuals who are faced with the presence of evil; this sort of suffering transcends the minor annoyances of our everyday lives and involves "taking up the cross" to stand boldly and proudly as a Christian. As Christians, we must make decisions that cost us something in honor of Christ—again, as means of demonstrating faith and building a moral center around which our lives can be led. This is what Carson refers to as "the death of self-interest." To suffer because one is a Christian is to be deemed worthy of one's Christianity; leaders will be particularly faced with this challenge as they are forged in the fires of suffering—a reminder that there are "no shortcuts." 


The chapter closes with some "Questions for Further Study," most of which you must answer yourself: "Give practical examples from your own life of such discipline," "What opposition have you experienced because you are a Christian? Has it done you any harm—or any good?," "Do you want to be a Christian leader?" I hope this provides clarification on the chapter for you!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

etymology - Origin of the greeting "Sweet dreams".

Does anybody know the etymology of the phrase "sweet dreams"? I tried googling but did not find anything satisfying. Is this a relatively new phrase of the modern world or has this been in use for some time? I think it's the latter one. Answer The OED has the interjection as "a farewell to someone going to bed" from the 20th century: 1908 Sears Roebuck Catal. 198/1 Tenor Solos..Good Bye, Sweet Dreams, Good Bye. But it goes back until at least the 19th and possibly 18th centuries. John Wolcot, writing under the pseudonym of Peter Pindar, used it in his poem "Orson and Ellen; A Legendary Tale" published in 1801: Also from 1801 in The infernal Quixote (Page 287) by Charles Lucas: In the March 1776 of The Universal Magazine was published "The Serenade. A Pastoral Tale. From the German of Gesner" , where the shepherd Daphnis watches over his beloved as she sleeps and sings: The same tale appears in 1776's as Idyl XI, " Daphnis ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Is there a word/phrase for "unperformant"?

As a software engineer, I need to sometimes describe a piece of code as something that lacks performance or was not written with performance in mind. Example: This kind of coding style leads to unmaintainable and unperformant code. Based on my Google searches, this isn't a real word. What is the correct way to describe this? EDIT My usage of "performance" here is in regard to speed and efficiency. For example, the better the performance of code the faster the application runs. My question and example target the negative definition, which is in reference to preventing inefficient coding practices. Answer This kind of coding style leads to unmaintainable and unperformant code. In my opinion, reads more easily as: This coding style leads to unmaintainable and poorly performing code. The key to well-written documentation and reports lies in ease of understanding. Adding poorly understood words such as performant decreases that ease. In addressing the use of such a poorly ...
Post a Comment
Read more

What are the similarities between the relationships of the characters in The Outsiders and Romeo and Juliet?

At first glance, it might appear as if the characters in  The Outsiders  by S. E. Hinton and  Romeo and Juliet  by William Shakespeare do not have much in common; however, when one isolates the core of the conflicts, it becomes clear that the relationships in both stories are rooted in rivalry and secrecy.  In both  The Outsiders  and  Romeo and Juliet , an overarching theme is rivalry. While   socioeconomic status separates the greasers from the Socs in The Outsiders , last names separates the Montagues from the Capulets, who appear to be relatively equal in terms of socioeconomic status. Due to these rivalries, there are instances of deadly interactions in both stories. In  The Outsiders , Johnny kills Bob (whether his actions were justified or not is debatable). In  Romeo and Juliet , Romeo kills Tybalt and Paris, and Tybalt kills Mercutio. These deaths have profound effects on the main characters. In Ponyboy's case, the Johnny's death and other events in the novel inspire h...
Post a Comment
Read more