Lecture Notes: Maintaining Faith Through Tribulation and Adversity

Key Themes

• Faith and endurance through trials and tribulations
• Importance of prayer and reliance on God
• The inevitability of facing hardships
• Turning to scriptures for guidance and comfort
• The reward for enduring tribulations

Introduction

• Lecture begins with various music and a prayer.
• Importance of staying faithful and enduring trials until the end.
• Opening prayer highlights thanks to God, seeking blessings for the congregation, and praying for protection.

Biblical Exhortation

• Romans 15:4: Scriptures were written to provide us with patience and comfort.

Facing Tribulation

• Definition: Great trouble or suffering, including worry, anxiety, and hardship.
• Acts 14:22: Through much tribulation, we enter the kingdom of God.
• Deuteronomy 4:29-30: If from thence you seek the Lord, you will find Him.
• Sirach 2:1-4: Prepare your soul for temptation and endure troubles faithfully.

Understanding Distress

• Definition: Extreme anxiety, sorrow, or pain.
• Deuteronomy 28:15-67: Describes the curses and distress that result from not following God's commandments.
• Sirach 30:21-23: Advises not to give over your mind to heaviness and not to succumb to sorrow, which kills many.
• 2 Timothy 2:15: Study to show yourself approved unto God.

Bodily Health and Mental Health

• Sirach 30:15: Health and good state of body are above all gold.
• Discussion on dealing with various ailments and trials in captivity.
• Job 2: The story of Job as an illustration of enduring health issues and distress while maintaining faith.
• Joseph 32:39: Highlights that God is responsible for both life and death, health and wounds.

Persecution and Hostility

• Definition: Hostility and ill-treatment due to race or religious beliefs.
• Mark 10:33-39: Jesus explains the persecution He will face and tells James and John they will face similar trials.
• Luke 21:16: Betrayal and hatred from even close family and friends for following Jesus.
• Acts 5:29-42: The apostles face persecution but continue to preach boldly.
• Acts 16:16-25: Paul and Silas are imprisoned for preaching but maintain their faith.

Preparing for Famine and Need

• Matthew 24:7: Jesus warns of famine in the last days.
• Psalm 33:18-19: God's eye is on those who fear Him to keep them alive in famine.
• Psalm 37:19: The righteous will be satisfied even in times of famine.

Peril: Serious and Immediate Danger

• Definition and examples include dangers in city, wilderness, sea, and among false brethren.
• 2 Edras 7:6-10: Illustrates the narrow and dangerous path to the kingdom of heaven.
• 2 Corinthians 11:23-27: Paul recounts his perilous experiences for the sake of the gospel.

False Brethren and Betrayal

• Sirach 6:8-13: Warns against false friends who will not stay in times of trouble.
• 2 Timothy 4:9-10: Paul recounts being forsaken by Demas, who loved the world.

Enduring Hardness as a Good Soldier

• 2 Timothy 2:3: Endure hardships as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.

Chastisement and Growth

• Hebrews 12:6-8: God chastens those He loves as a father disciplines his children.

Reward for Enduring Tribulations

• Isaiah 14:1-3: The Lord will have mercy on Israel, and they will rule over their oppressors.
• 1 Corinthians 2:9: No eye has seen, nor ear heard, what God has prepared for those who love Him.
• 2 Timothy 2:3-5: Enduring hardship leads to the ultimate reward in God's kingdom.
• Hebrews 2:1: Pay careful attention to what you've heard to avoid falling away.

Conclusion

• The class is a strong reminder to maintain faith and endure hardships faithfully.
• Encourages believers to look forward to the ultimate reward of eternal life and ruling alongside Christ.