Holy Tuesday: Suffer Well
Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name's sake. . . . But the one who endures to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. (Matthew 24:9, 13-14)
Walking faithfully toward his death and resurrection in Jerusalem, Jesus pauses with the Olivet Discourse after an inquiry from the apostles. Only recently, the apostles witnessed his triumphal entry, galloping through Jerusalem’s Golden Gate worshiped by the people. Surely Jesus’ kingdom arrives soon; the apostles, eager with anticipation, ask Jesus about the future. In a lengthy response, Jesus frankly proclaims, “they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name's sake” (Matt. 24:9).
The Savior's response is faithfully honest to apostles still bewitched by the traditional conception of a political, military Messiah of warfare. Instead of triumphant warfare with Christ in this worldly realm, Jesus instead details a vision of intense suffering and rejection for the apostles—and for every follower of Jesus. All the nations will actively seek your suffering, your pain, and your death. Christ minces no words in detailing the implications of following Him—anticipate it, endure it, even rejoice in it. Resistance against the believer because of his gospel calling means he trudges the Via Dolorosa1 with his Lord Jesus. The earthly journey of the believer, mimicking the persecution of Jesus, will always be a journey of suffering and rejection by the world (John 15:18-24; John 16:33).
Jesus speaks of a difficult, heavy calling, yet simultaneously a wonderful and comforting one. To endure suffering faithfully is a trial by fire: a testament to both oneself and those around us that our faith proves unbending in the face of resistance. To endure well generates hope: that Jesus’ transformation of my heart produced fruit. To bear fruit testifies to the genuineness of faith: the fruitful faith in Jesus’ death and resurrection on the cross assures eternal salvation. A few years later, Stephen, one of seven men chosen within the early church to oversee its widow’s ministry, testifies simply and emphatically before the Sanhedrin. A man otherwise lacking any other biblical descriptions besides overflowing with faith and the Spirit, Stephen bears fruit in the form of a vibrant defense of the gospel before intense opposition—yearning for his heavenly lodging moments before perishing by stoning. In a moment’s notice, he will sit by his Savior’s side. He will soon “be away from the body and at home with the Lord” (2 Cor. 5:6-8)—as will we, in a momentary time, cross death’s door into the eternal presence of Jesus Christ through suffering well.
1 Latin for Sorrowful Way, and the name ascribed to the traditional procession Jesus took in anticipation of his crucifixion in Old City Jerusalem. The route winds from the Praetorium in the Muslim Quarter of the Old City to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the Christian Quarter.Gabriel Cao is a junior at the Dual Degree Program between Columbia University and Tel Aviv University. He enjoys bowling and playing pool during his free time.