Is God Still Good When Life Hurts?

Pain has a way of shrinking our world down to one question: why would God allow this? We open 1 Peter 1:6-12 and follow Peter’s steady, hope-filled logic that trials are not random, and they are not forever. God is doing something in the fire, refining genuine faith like gold so that when Jesus Christ is revealed, our lives bring him praise, honor, and glory.

We also get honest about what suffering feels like. Trials bring real grief, and Scripture never asks us to fake strength or hide behind a plastic smile. At the same time, Peter refuses to let us interpret hardship as God abandoning us. He reminds us that God controls the furnace, keeps his eye on the clock, and uses even varied, unexpected troubles to meet needs we often can’t see in the moment. That perspective doesn’t erase pain, but it gives it direction and a destination.

Then the message turns practical: we can enjoy a taste of glory now. Peter’s pathway is simple and searching: love Christ though we have not seen him, trust Christ when we don’t understand, rejoice in Christ with joy deeper than circumstances, and receive from Christ what we need as we keep believing. We also zoom out to the bigger storyline of salvation, foretold by the prophets and so stunning that even angels long to look into it.

If you’re walking through a hard season, listen and let Scripture reset your expectations and renew your living hope. Subscribe, share with a friend who needs courage, and leave a review that helps more people find biblical teaching that stands up in the fire.

Transcript

Series Setup And Scripture Text

SPEAKER_00 0:00

You're listening to Foundations of Truth, the Bible-teaching ministry of Dr. Timothy Mann. Our mission is to help you build your life on the unshakable foundation of God's Word. Rooted in Scripture, anchored in the grace of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Each week, Dr. Timothy Mann opens the Bible to bring clarity, conviction, and encouragement for everyday life. Today on Foundations of Truth, we continue our series, Hope in a Hostile World, and we return to 1 Peter 1, verses 2 through 12. This is part two of God's Glory is the believer's story. And here now is Dr. Timothy Mann.

Prepared For Glory Through Trials

SPEAKER_01 0:37

You've been born for glory. You're being kept for glory. What the Apostle Peter teaches us through the Holy Spirit is that believers are being prepared for glory. Prepared for glory. Now he says in verse 6 and 7, In this you greatly rejoice. Though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials. Let the genuine of your faith being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ. We must keep in mind that all that God plans and all that God performs here is preparation for what He has store for us in eternity. He's preparing us for the life and the service that is yet to come. Now nobody knows yet what is all that is in store for us in heaven. But what we do know is this. You can mark this down. We know this beyond a shadow of a doubt that life today is a school in which God trains us for our future service to Him in eternity. That's what this is all about. That helps me because that explains the presence of trials in our lives. Maybe you don't mind that. Maybe you don't care. Maybe you don't give a second thought to trials. But every once in a while I'll wonder about a problem. I'll wonder about trials. I'll wonder about difficulties. I'll wonder about why things come and happen. But when I realize this, this explains the presence of trials in our lives. Understand, there are some of God's tools, there are some of God's textbooks in the school of Christian experience. And the Apostle Peter uses the word trials here in this particular verse instead of tribulations or instead of persecutions, because he's dealing with the general problems on planet Earth as we live life that Christians face as we are in this world that's under a curse of sin and surrounded by unbelievers. And so as you think about how believers are being prepared for glory, let me say a few things about these trials that he tells us here that I

What Trials Do In Us

SPEAKER_01 2:47

think are helpful. We need to understand this. First of all, trials meet needs. That's what he says. Trials meet needs. The phrase, look at this. Verse 6. He said, In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while. If need be, you have been grieved by various trials. If need be, that indicates, that little phrase, if need be, indicates that there are special times when God knows that we need to go through trials. That doesn't sound good, does it? He says we need to. Sometimes, according to what the Bible teaches us, is that sometimes trials discipline us when we have disobeyed God's will. Sometimes, at other times, trials prepare us for spiritual growth, or they help keep us from sinning. Now we don't know always the need that's being met in our lives at that moment with trials, but I want to tell you what we can do. We can trust God to know, and we can trust Him to do what is best. Trials meet needs, according to what the Holy Spirit just told us through the Apostle Peter. Not only do trials meet needs, something else about trials is this trials are varied. Varied. He said you're going to go through various trials. He uses that word various, which literally means variegated or mini-colored. He uses this same word in chapter 4, verse 10 to describe God's grace. Many colored, variegated. No matter what color our day may be, whether it's a blue Monday or a gray Tuesday or whatever, God has sufficient grace to meet the need. Sufficient grace. And I think it's helpful too. We must not think that because we have overcome one kind of trial, and hopefully everybody in this room, if you're a follower of Jesus Christ, at one time or another, you have overcome one particular kind of trial at least. But just because we overcome one kind of trial that we somehow automatically will win them all, we shouldn't think that. Because trials are varied. And God, what God does is he matches trials to our strengths and to our needs. He does that. Trials are varied. Trials meet needs, trials are varied. Not only that, trials are not easy. Trials are not easy. You say, I came to church this morning to hear that. I know that. Trials are not easy. Why does he tell us that? I think he tells us that because Peter is suggesting to us that we not take a careless attitude toward trials. Because this would be deceitful. He says that trials produce I like the old King James version on this one. Trials produce what is called heaviness. In the old King James. Heaviness. Here it says you've been grieved. It literally means to experience grief or pain. It's the same word that's used to describe our Lord in the Garden of Gethsemane. As he is beginning to take on the burden of sin. Where he said, My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even unto death. Same word. Or the sorrow of saints at the death of loved ones. In 1 Thessalonians chapter 4, verse 13. You know, I think to deny that our trials are painful is to make them even worse. As it relates to trials sometimes in our lives, you can't fake it till you make it. You don't need to wear a plastic mask. We'd do a lot better sometimes if we'd be authentic and honest about the things in our lives. But we must accept the fact that there are difficult experiences in life and not just put on a brave face to appear to be more spiritual. Trials are not easy. But let me help you out with

God Controls The Furnace

SPEAKER_01 6:20

one more thing. What the scripture teaches here is this trials are controlled by God. Trials are controlled by God. They do not last forever. The text says right here, it's for a little while. A little while. That's encouraging. And I want you to know when God permits his children to go through the furnace, he keeps his eye on the clock and his hand on the thermostat. That's what he does. And if we rebel, he may have to restart the clock. But if we submit, he will not permit us to suffer one minute too long if we submit. But the important thing in the midst of the trial, whatever it is, the important thing is that we learn the lesson that he wants to teach us and that we bring glory to him alone. That's the point. The Apostle Peter illustrates this truth by referring to the goldsmith. He says, so that the genuineness of your faith in verse 7 be much more precious than gold that perishes, though it's tested by fire, may be found to the praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ. No goldsmith deliberately wastes the precious metal. He'll put it in the smelting furnace long enough to remove the cheap impurities. That's what the goldsmith does. And then he'd pour it out and he'd make it into a beautiful article of some sort. It's been said that the eastern goldsmith kept the metal in the furnace until he could see his face reflected in it. That says to me that our Lord keeps us in the furnace of trial until we reflect the glory and the beauty of Jesus Christ. Until he can see his face in us. But the important point here is that this glory is not fully revealed until Jesus Christ returns. One reality that we cannot forget is that our try and experiences today, and I know many of you have gone through recently and are going through trying experiences right now, our try and experiences today are preparing us for glory tomorrow.

SPEAKER_00 8:26

That's what's

Support The Ministry Message

SPEAKER_00 8:27

happening. Before we return to today's teaching, we want to thank those of you who helped make foundations of truth possible through your prayers and faithful financial support. Our purpose is simple: to proclaim the unchanging truth of God's word clearly and faithfully. When you give, you help us continue bringing biblical teaching like today's message to listeners who need the hope, assurance, and transforming truth of the gospel. Would you prayerfully consider standing with us? You can give securely online anytime at foundationsoftruth.net. That's foundationsoftruth.net. Your generosity helps us continue proclaiming God's truth and pointing people to the living hope found only in Jesus Christ. Now let's return to today's

Tested Faith And Future Praise

SPEAKER_00 9:09

message. Here's Dr. Timothy Mann.

SPEAKER_01 9:11

And the Bible says when we see Jesus Christ, in verse 7, when we see Jesus Christ, we will bring praise and honor and glory to him if we have been faithful in the sufferings of this life. This explains why Peter, all the way through this letter, and you'll see it, this is why it explains that Peter associated rejoice with suffering for that very reason. And while we may not be able, and and granted, we probably won't be able to, while we may not be able to rejoice as we look around in our trials, we certainly can rejoice as we look ahead. That one day, God willing, my faith is tried as genuine, and I come through the fires of all. One day I'm gonna bring praise and honor and glory to Jesus Christ. Because isn't that our goal? Isn't that the desire of our hearts that we really long for? And this word, this in verse 6 refers back to our salvation. And just as the assayer tests the goal to see if it's pure or counterfeit, that's what the tests of life do. That's what the trials of life do. It tests our faith to prove its sincerity. A faith that cannot be tested cannot be trusted. If it can't be tested, it can't be trusted. Too many professing Christians have a false faith, and you know where that's revealed? In the trials of life. That's where it bears out. According to the parable in Matthew chapter 13, the seed that fell on shallow soil produced rootless plants that sprung up. And then what happened? The plants died when the sun came up and beat down on it. The plants died. And the sun in that parable in Matthew chapter 13 that Jesus taught about the parable of the sower and the seed, the sun in that parable represented tribulation, he said, trials or persecution. The person who abandons his or her so-called faith when the going gets tough is only proving that he or she had no faith at all. They weren't real. They just weren't real. The patriarch Job went through many painful trials. By the way, all of them, all of them, all of them with God's approval. Don't forget that. All of them with God's approval. And yet he understood somewhat of the truth of the refiner's fire, because in Job chapter 23, verse 10, at the end of the day, he said, But he knows the way that I take, and when he has tried me, when he has tried me. Now who was it? Who was actually doing the inflicting on Job? It was Satan. But that was not the perspective that Job had. Do you remember that? Job said it's God that's doing this. And he said, When he has tried me, I will come forth as gold. And he did. It's encouraging to me this morning. I hope it is to you at least a little bit. It's encouraging to me to know that we're born for glory. I'm kept for glory, and I'm being prepared for glory.

Enjoy Glory Now In Trials

SPEAKER_01 12:20

And the fourth discovery that Peter shared with his readers is perhaps the most exciting of all. Verses 8 through 12. That's that you, if you're a believer, believers can enjoy the glory now. Believers can enjoy the glory now. The Christian philosophy of life is not that it's just pie in the sky by and by. That really is not the Christian philosophy of life. Because it carries with it, the biblical Christian philosophy of life carries with it a present dynamic that can turn trials or suffering into glory today. The Apostle Peter, in these last few verses here, gave four directions specifically, practical applications. And that's what I really want us to focus the last few minutes of our time together on this morning. He gave four directions for enjoying the glory now, even in the midst of trials. They're very practical. Verse 8. He says we need to love Christ. That's what he says in verse 8. Love Christ, whom having not seen, you love. Love Christ. That verse says to me that our love for Christ is not based on physical sight, but it's based on our spiritual relationship with him. Why is it not based on our sight? Because we've not seen him. He even says that to these people right here in this age. We've not seen him. So it's based on our spiritual relationship with him and what his word has taught us about him. What his word has taught us. The Holy Spirit, the Bible says, has poured God's love out into our hearts. And what happens? What happens is we return that love to him. When you find yourself in some kind of trial, and you will, and when you hurt, and you will, what should I do? Immediately, in my heart, I should lift my heart to Christ in true love and I should worship him. Why? Because I found, and I think this is the biblical truth, that is the only thing that will take the poison out of the experience and replace it with healing medicine. It's when I love Jesus and I worship him, even in the midst of my trial. I don't always do that well. And yes, Satan wants to use life's trials to bring out the worst in us, but God's design is always to bring out the best in us. One of the basic discoveries I think I finally made is if we love ourselves more than we love Jesus, if we love ourselves more than we love Jesus, then we will not experience any of the glory now. If we love ourselves more than we love Jesus, instead, what will happen? What will happen is the fire will burn us, not purify us. So we need to love Jesus. Love Christ. Not only do we love Christ, though, we also trust Him. Trust Christ. Verse 8 as well. He said, Though you do not see Him, yet believing. Yet believing. We must live by faith and not by sight. Let me tell you what I get every once in a while as a pastor. Sometimes a believer will come to me and we're in conversation anywhere and say something like this I know the Lord led me to do whatever. I know the Lord led me to do this. And I'm trying to serve him. But I don't see why this trial had to happen. There's nothing good that's coming out of this. There's nothing good that's taking place in this. Listen, friends, children of God, hear me. Romans 8.28 doesn't say that we see all things working together for good. It says that we know they are. It doesn't say that we see they are. We know they are. And what does faith mean then? Faith means surrendering all to God and obeying his word in spite of circumstances, in spite of consequences. See, love and faith go together. If you love someone, you will trust them. If you really love them, you'll trust them. And faith and love go together to help strengthen hope. And where you find faith and love, you're going to find confidence in the future. So the big question is, well, how then, right? What's the practical aspect of that? How can I grow in faith during times of testing, during times of temptation and trial? How can I grow in faith? Well, the same way you grow in faith when things seem to be going well. And that's by feeding on the word of God. See, our fellowship with Christ, through his word, not only strengthens our faith, but it also deepens our love. It's a basic principle of Christian living that we spend much time in the Word when God is trying us and Satan is tempting us. We must. Third instruction he gives us not only is to love Jesus and trust Jesus, but rejoice in Christ, he says. Rejoice, verse 8. Though you do not yet see him yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory. Now, I'm the first to admit you may not be able to rejoice over all the circumstances, but you can rejoice in them by centering your heart and your mind on Jesus Christ. That's what you have to do. Because each experience, each trial that comes can help us learn something new and wonderful about our Savior. Abraham discovered new truths about the Lord on the mount when he was going to offer his son. The three Hebrew children discovered God's nearness when they went through the fiery furnace. The Apostle Paul learned the sufficiency of his grace when he suffered with the thorn in the flesh. Did you see that? He said it produces joy that's inexpressible, unspeakable, and full of glory. That is joy that's so deep and so wonderful that we won't even have words to express it. Words will fail us. And so we rejoice in him. Not only that, we receive from Christ. If we're going to experience now, we also have to receive from Christ. That's what verses 9 through 12 is all about. We receive from Christ. Believing and receiving is God's way of meeting our needs. If we love Him, if we trust Him, if we rejoice in Him, then we can receive from Him all that we need to help turn our trials into triumphs and experience some of this glory now. 1 Peter, verse 9. It says, Whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him yet believing, you rejoice with joy and express one full of glory. That's verse 8. Verse 9. Receiving the end of your faith, the salvation of your souls. Receiving the end of your faith, the salvation of your souls. It could be translated this for you are receiving the consummation of your faith. That is, the final salvation of your souls. In other words, we can experience today some of the future glory. Charles Spurgeon used to say, Little faith will take your soul to heaven, but great faith will bring heaven to your soul. That we long for heaven during times of trial and suffering. For anybody can do that. That's not enough. But what Peter is urging you to do this morning, what he's urging me to do, what the Holy Spirit is saying in our hearts today, is that we're to exercise love and faith and rejoicing so that we might experience some of the glory of heaven in the midst of trial now, today.

Prophets, Angels, And The Gospel Plan

SPEAKER_01 20:09

And the amazing thing is that this salvation that we're awaiting for, this return of Christ, that was all part of God's plan for us from all eternity. That's what those last verses teach us. He said, Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, verse 10, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ who is in them was indicating when he testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. To them it was revealed that, not to themselves, but to us, that we were, that they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things which even the angels desire to look into. The Old Testament prophets wrote about this salvation, and they studied closely what God had revealed to them. And they saw the sufferings of the Messiah and also the glory that would follow, but they couldn't fully understand the connection between the two. They didn't get that completely. In fact, if you read some of the Old Testament prophecies, some of the prophecies about the Messiah's suffering and glory, they're blended together in one verse or one paragraph. It's all together. And then when Jesus came to earth, the Jewish teachers were awaiting a conquering Messiah who would defeat Israel's enemies and establish the glorious kingdom that was promised to David. Even his disciples weren't even clear at all about his need for the death on the cross. And even after his resurrection, check it out in Acts chapter 1, they're still inquiring about a Jewish kingdom that's going to come even after his resurrection. And so if the disciples who walked with Jesus all that time were not clear about God's program, then certainly the Old Testament prophets could be excused. They didn't quite get it all. But what God did tell them God told these prophets that they were ministering to a future generation. Between the suffering of Messiah, Messiah and his returning glory becomes what we call now. And that's deep, isn't it? Already, not yet. The age of the church, if you will. And the apostle Paul says in Ephesians 3 that the truth about the church was a hidden mystery in the Old Testament. The Old Testament believers looked ahead by faith and they saw, as it were, two mountain peaks. Mount Calvary, where the Messiah suffered and died, and Mount Olivet, where he will return in glory. Zechariah chapter 14. The problem is they couldn't see the valley between the two mountains, which is now this age of the church. And Peter says, even the angels were interested in what God was doing and through his church. He hasn't even told the angels what he's up to. Y'all read 1 Corinthians 4 9 and Ephesians 3.10 for further education on how God right now is educating the angels through the church. Through you. And so if the Old Testament prophets search diligently into the truths of salvation and yet had so little to go on, and yet search diligently, how much more ought we to search into this subject now that we have the complete word of God? We have no excuse. The same Holy Spirit who taught the prophets and who through them wrote the word of God can teach us the truths in it today. He can. He can illuminate it to us. Furthermore, we can learn these truths from the Old Testament just as well as the New Testament. You're going to find Christ in every part of the Old Testament scriptures. What an absolute delight it is to meet Jesus in the Old Testament law, the types, the psalms, the writings of the prophets. If you're not spending time meeting Jesus in the Old Testament, you're missing out. Because here's what takes place in the time of trial that comes, and it's going to come. In the time of trial that comes in your life, you can turn to God's word. You can turn to the Bible, both the Old Testament and the New Testament. And I promise you, you will find what you need for encouragement and for absolute enlightenment. For Christians, for believers, it's glory all the way. Glory all the way. And when we've trusted Christ for salvation, we were born for glory. We're being kept for glory. And as we obey Him and we experience trials, we're being prepared for glory. And when we love Him and we trust Him and we rejoice in Him, we can experience glory here and them. Here and them. Joy unspeakable and full of glory.

SPEAKER_00 24:50

What an extraordinary salvation belongs to those who are in Christ. It was foretold by the prophets, proclaimed through the gospel, accomplished by Jesus Christ, and is so glorious that Peter tells us even angels long to look into these

Glory All The Way Closing

SPEAKER_00 25:05

things. And that means the Christian's life is never merely a story of what we have suffered, what we have lost, or what we have endured. It's the story of what God has done, what God is doing, and what God has promised yet to do. Our faith may be tested, but it's not abandoned. Our circumstances may change, but our inheritance does not. And though we do not yet see Christ with our eyes, we love him, we believe in him, and we rejoice with a joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory. Thank you so much for joining us today for Foundations of Truth, the biblical teaching ministry of Dr. Timothy Mann. If you'd like to hear this program again, or if you'd like to support our ministry financially, you can do so at foundationsoftruth.net. That's foundationsoftruth.net. May the truth of God's word strengthen your faith, deepen your hope, and remind you that in Jesus Christ, God's glory truly is the believer's story.