“One of my favorite Latin expressions : ubi dolor, ibi Christus; “wherever there is suffering, there is Christ.”
Just got this as a tweet (thru twitter) from Len Sweet who is kind of a cultural, theological and social architect of modern Christian thought (not sure how else to describe him, or if it’s possible to be those things!). It’s not anything new, like something we just discovered about suffering and our Savior. It is simply a truth. Wherever you go and there you find suffering, you will also find Christ. I firmly believe Christ is in the midst of suffering, not separate and distant from it. He embraced it on the cross. He called us to deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow Him. Then grab hold of suffering as a prize for the redeemed. That’s big! If we truly took that seriously…wow. Paul saw suffering as an opportunity to be like Christ in His death and resurrection. So essentially we are the most like Jesus in our own suffering. More good news – he is remaking us in the midst of it. Like an ugly lump of clay to a beautiful, colorful vase that is a joy to look at, so are we being formed and fashioned into the most incredible piece of God-pottery.
So, if you’re in the middle of it, hang on, don’t let it go until God has finished His work. Ubi dolor, ibi Christus – yes.
