Eighteen years ago I was diagnosed with prostate cancer. The surgeon said he should be able to add 15 years to my life. I consider myself truly blessed!
Since the diagnosis I have become a walking medical dictionary, and made considerable use of the health service, with such things as migraines, high blood pressure, nosebleeds, pleurisy, a badly broken leg, an eye defect, a cyst behind an ear, a heart attack, cataracts, and now a diagnosis of mesothelioma—a particular form of lung cancer for which there is no cure.
This might seem to be a list of complaints, but in fact it is not. During this time my wife and I have been truly blessed in many ways, and have been able to carry on with our life of faith. We have had constant reminders of our mortality, but these are also reminders of just how much we need our heavenly Father’s care. All life, including this one, is in His hands, and I am so thankful to have been blessed with a happy life of over 80 years.
Four important observations arise from thinking about my situation, as a Bible believer.
In the Bible’s letter to the Hebrews there is a list of people who served God in their lives—they were ordinary men and women who became extraordinary because of their faith in what God had promised (Hebrews 11:39–12:7). Why not read chapters 11 and 12? Elsewhere in the Bible we read about these people’s lives. They were not easy by any means. But they all died in faith (11:13), awaiting the resurrection from death. The Bible urges us to share their faith.
One of the blessings of this faith is the love and care of those who share it, who are thinking about us and praying for us and sending messages of encouragement and support.
The key figure of faith is of course the Lord Jesus Christ. I am happy to consider him as my Saviour. He was born into humble circumstances and lived a life representing all that God, his Father wished—his Father’s grace and truth, love and mercy (John 1:14).
Jesus underwent cruel torture, mocking and death upon the cross. He did all this without once succumbing to his human nature, without sin or complaint (1 Peter 2:22). He gained a great victory, rose from the dead and lives for ever, providing us with the hope of life everlasting. Now he overrules his new creation, his bride, the community of his disciples, the church (Ephesians 5:25–30). He is the Great High Priest ministering before God on behalf of all faithful believers (Hebrews 2:17). His victory over sin and death shows us the Father’s love and gives us the hope of life, through resurrection, in the Kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 15).
This was all done out of God’s love, not just for His Son but also for all of us (John 3:16). But it isn’t just plain sailing into the Kingdom of God. We have to prepare, making God’s will our number one priority, showing to others the love we have received through Jesus (Acts 14:22). In addition, we must recognize that our nature is weak so must be overcome—quite a challenge! We have been promised support with this. There is the Bible’s message, then there is prayer, with the promise that the Lord Jesus will be our constant companion (Matthew 28:20), and he has sent angels out to help us.
But this passage in Hebrews tells that God disciplines us. ‘It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons’ (Hebrews 12:7-8).
This is right at the heart of the many things that appear to have gone wrong in my life—actually they are opportunities, challenges to develop the faith I have in God and the Lord Jesus.
One of the prime examples in Hebrews 11 is Abraham (vs. 8–12). God made him certain promises, and by belief and baptism into Jesus we too can inherit those same promises (Galatians 3:29). Through resurrection at the return of Jesus (1 Corinthians 15:23) we have the hope of everlasting life in the Kingdom of God on earth, a world at peace reigned over by King Jesus, fully restored and beautified, as it was when God first created the earth. Instead of being afflicted with human nature we will be transformed by the divine nature (2 Peter 1:4), in company with all those who down the ages have lived by faith and have longed for this time of righteousness and peace.
Let’s now simply share the passage of Hebrews together with the above in mind:
‘These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth…
‘And all these, though commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised, since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect…
‘Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God’ (Hebrews 11:13, 39–40, 12:1–2).
‘My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him. For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives’ (12:5–6).
What an amazing and humbling thing it is for the disciple of Christ, that our heavenly Father loves us enough to keep us on the right track, so that by faith, we will attain to that Kingdom He has promised!
There is a passage that I have found particularly helpful, during this period of my life; it’s worth reading it in more than one version. This is from the New Testament in Modern English by J B Phillips:
‘As you live this new life we pray that you will be strengthened from God’s boundless resources, so that you will find yourselves able to pass through any experience and endure it with courage. You will even be able to thank God in the midst of pain and distress because you are privileged to share the lot of those living in the light. For we must never forget that he rescued us from the power of darkness and re-established us in the kingdom of His beloved Son, that is, the kingdom of light. For it is by His Son alone that we have been redeemed and have had our sins forgiven’ (Colossians 1:9-11).
All this has come from knowing what the Bible teaches us, reading it expectantly, hopefully and with a determination to follow its teachings by faith in daily life. What a privilege it is to be told these things and to know that, however challenging this life becomes, we travel hopefully. There is a vision ahead provided by God’s promises to us.
DAVID NIGHTINGALE
(to be concluded)
