He Suffered First

“And those the Lord has rescued will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away.” 

Isaiah 35:10 

How does a Christian who is bruised and battered by very deep trials remain tender toward God instead of becoming bitter or cynical? By remembering this: Our God suffered first, and He has suffered more. No other God of any other religion can claim that. It all comes into focus in the person of Jesus. He suffered first, He suffered most, and He suffered for us—the indescribable agony of the cross and the crushing burden of carrying the sins of the whole world on His shoulders.  

Soon, Jesus will return to earth to close the curtain on suffering—forever. In today’s Scripture, we read: “They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away.” In the meantime, as we yield to Him in our brokenness, He authenticates our faith, refines it, and makes it strong.  

Lord, You have never asked me to go where You haven’t gone Yourself. If I find myself on a path of pain or sorrow, I can see Your footprints ahead of me. And I know where this path leads—to joy! Just around the bend, all of the suffering will be over forever—and little more than a dim memory on a fresh, eternal morning.