How Paul Handled Suffering

How did Paul handle those times of life that were full of suffering and tribulation?

I thought we’d approach this topic from two perspectives: 1) what Paul understood before he went through suffering and 2) how Paul handled suffering.

Let’s look at the first perspective:

What Paul Understood Going into Suffering

He knew sufferings were spiritually beneficial.

Romans 5:3-5– “And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; And patience, experience; and experience, hope: And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.”

Paul understood that because we have been justified on the principle of our faith in Him and His grace to us, we now have peace with God, eternal reconciliation sealed in God’s everlasting love, and we have a sure standing in His grace, so sure that we can always rejoice with the highest expectation of us being glorified with Christ when this life is over. So as a result of our justified standing before God, we’re given cause to glorify Him through all our tribulations, all our distresses, all our troubles, all our afflictions, that we may face in life. We glorify God through our tribulations because our perfect standing before Him now means that “that tribulation worketh patience; And patience, experience; and experience, hope…” As soon as we’re given the guarantee of our sure standing before God at peace with Him, the Spirit then directs our attention to the application of that joy through all the hard times in life. We’re given no promises that God will remove suffering from our lives but that, instead, we’re empowered to endure all suffering with joy and there’s value that suffering brings to our hearts.

Tribulation worketh, or fashions, or refines, patience in us. We learn to put into practice the discipline of patience, of calmness, while enduring sufferings by relying upon His Word and prayer. In that process of patiently enduring while experiencing His power in us through His Word and prayer, we’re able to keep glorifying God for not only our eternal peace with Him, but also for the benefit that suffering brings us, because we already know that the end result is a refined patience, the experience of His power working in us, which results in us abounding in hope. By relying on His Word and prayer while we suffer, we gain first-hand experience of the power of God operating in us. That experience increases our confident expectation of all the glory to come, because if the power of God is so effective in us right now to help us endure all suffering with peace and joy, then we’ve become increasingly aware through experience that the life to come will be all glory and all power and all joy that is beyond all human comprehension.

Because we hope in God’s glory, we glorify God in all our tribulations.

He knew sufferings were opportunities to glorify God for everything God made him in Christ, because that empowered him to endure those hard times with joy.

2 Cor. 12:9, after the Lord told him about the sufficiency of His grace, Paul said, Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. He will praise God for everything God made him in Christ, because God had empowered him to endure the hard times with joy. Suffering is a unique opportunity to glorify God because that act of praising Him through the suffering showcases the power of God. The power in you becomes visible to others when you praise God through the suffering. God’s power can be seen in the suffering servant.

He knew sufferings were opportunities for greater eternal glory.

2 Cor. 4:17 “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.” He minimized the earthly pain by contrasting it with the weight of eternal glory. He always kept in view the eternal perspective of everything which is why he glorified God through the suffering. Can you imagine your life a million years from now? You’ll look back on this and think, “That life I had was the blink of an eye.” But the glory you’ll receive for praising God through all the pain – that glory is eternal. That glory is so blazing and so brilliant there is actual weight to that eternal glory. Imagine! Glory that has eternal weight to is – that’s a lot of glory!

He knew his sufferings were opportunities to appropriate the inner power he already had, which he would not be accessing during normal times.

When he suffers, he is in those moments really relying on God’s grace, the love shed abroad in his heart, the abounding hope, the everlasting joy, God’s peace, and more, to help him endure. Suffering is a time of unique closeness with God because you’re really leaning on His attributes to get you through those hard times.

He knew persecution was an opportunity to experience the fellowship of His sufferings.

He loved that he could experience the kind of sufferings the Lord would have experienced if He was still on earth proclaiming the gospel of grace to the Gentiles. He lived to experience fellowship with the Lord in His sufferings (Phil. 3:10-11).

Now, let’s examine:

How Paul Handled Tribulations

He Rejoiced in His Sufferings

Paul didn’t just endure suffering and spent all his time wishing he could get out of his sufferings. He rejoiced through his sufferings. He praised God through his sufferings. He kept ministering through his sufferings.

He Focused on Excelling in His Walk While Suffered

This, of course, comes from 2 Cor. 6 in which he had those three lists. The first list was of all the different types of sufferings he went through. The second list was what he focused on to help him get through the sufferings. He focused on pureness, knowledge, longsuffering, kindness, all by the Holy Ghost, all by love unfeigned, By the word of truth, and by the power of God. He tried to excel in his walk while he was going through those hard times. That, for me, is the greatest Biblical strategy for how to get through hard times. Focus on excelling in every aspect of your walk while you’re going through that trial.

He Sang and Prayed in Prison

(Acts 16:25) “And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.” In Philippi, beaten and chained, Paul turned pain into praise. Instead of despairing, he worshiped God, which benefited himself and others.

He Preached the Gospel Even in Chains

(Acts 16:30–32; 28:30–31) Whether to a trembling jailer in Philippi or visitors under house arrest in Rome, Paul never stopped evangelizing — his sufferings became pulpits. When the Philippian jailer was about to commit suicide following the earthquake, Paul cried out to him, “Do thyself no harm: for we are all here,” and he saved his life (Acts 16:27-28). Even in the midst of false accusations and imprisonments, he still showed compassion to others. He always, always, was looking for opportunities to minister to people.

He Encouraged Others in the Same Boat with Him

Literally. Remember how men were taking Paul back to Italy by boat and they encountered the storm and Paul encouraged all the other men on the boat and told them (Acts 27:22–25). “And now I exhort you to be of good cheer: for there shall be no loss of any man’s life among you.” While they despaired, Paul comforted the crew and shared with them what the angel said — an extraordinary display of faith under pressure. We’re not going to be able to prophesy people’s future or speak of an angel who appeared to us but we can follow Paul’s example and encourage others who are in the same boat.

He Spoke Boldly Before Authorities

(Acts 24–26)“I think myself happy, king Agrippa, because I shall answer for myself this day…” (Acts 26:2) He was happy to be answering false accusations. Those trials gave him the opportunity to stand before Agrippa and give his testimony.Even in chains, Paul was happy about defending the faith and he did it fearlessly before Felix and Festus, even King Agrippa. Every trial was an opportunity to witness.

He Shook Off Harm and Continued His Mission

(Acts 28:3–6)I’m reminded of that verse about Paul being bit by the snake on Melita (or Malta). “And he shook off the beast into the fire and felt no harm.” That is a perfect encapsulation of Paul suffering persecution. After he got bit by a snake, he shook it off and kept on going. He kept moving forward, looking up, full steam ahead. He refused to allow himself to be slowed down in his ministry by persecution, trials, tribulations. He kept on going. You remember after Paul was stoned and left for dead in Lystra, God brought him back. And Paul got up and marched right back into Lystra and continued his ministry. Then he went back to Antioch (Acts 14:21–22)“Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith.” This, after he was stoned. Plus, encouragement is the most effective from those who suffered the most.

Paul Knew His Consolation is Everyone Else’s Consolation

Many saints were suffering severe persecution, but no one suffered more than Paul. You can’t help but think of 2Co 1:5 For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ. 2Co 1:6 And whether we be afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effectual in the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer: or whether we be comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation. When he says salvation here, he only meant deliverance through the persecution. But notice here that the abounding consolation Paul and his companions felt by Christ was articulated and shared with the saints so they too would know to access that same abounding consolation by Christ – being in Christ. You also remember how Paul said in 2 Cor 1:3–4 — “God… comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble.” Every hardship became a classroom where Paul learned divine consolation — and from that he could teach that same comfort to other believers. He emerged from pain more wise, more empathetic, more heavenly-minded.

His Heart Stayed Tender in Fellowship

Even after horrible beatings and imprisonment, Paul never allowed his heart to become hardened by those trials. He never allowed himself to become bitter and jaded having gone through those awful experiences. Paul’s heart stayed tender throughout and walked away still deeply loving toward people. And the saints. He prayed with them, He wept with them, He rejoiced with them, and he encouraged them to stay faithful.The way Paul kept a tender heart toward the saints after those unbearable tribulations, that stood as a testimony of God’s grace (Acts 22–26)Nearly every time Paul was arrested or beaten, he used every occasion to share the gospel, to testify of God’s grace, to show compassion and love even to his enemies— he turned his personal pain into a public platform to be a trophy of His grace to get souls saved and saints edified.

For Paul, suffering never meant his ministry had been put on hold. Suffering was always an opportunity to allow the grace of God to shine before men. Suffering is a stage where the power of His grace, the greatness of His perfect hope and His joy in your heart can be put on display.