For people of faith, what role does suffering play?

Catholicism teaches that suffering is redemptive - and this teaching is Biblical:

Matt. 10:38 - Jesus said, "he who does not take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me." Jesus defines discipleship as one's willingness to suffer with Him. Being a disciple of Jesus not only means having faith in Him, but offering our sufferings to the Father as He did.

Matt. 16:24; Mark 8:34 - Jesus said, "if any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me." Jesus wants us to empty ourselves so that God can fill us. When we suffer, we can choose to seek consolation in God and become closer to Jesus.

Luke 9:23 - Jesus says we must take up this cross daily. He requires us to join our daily temporal sacrifices (pain, inconvenience, worry) with His eternal sacrifice.

Luke 14:27 - Jesus said, "whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me, cannot be my disciple." If we reject God because we suffer, we fail to apply the graces that Jesus won for us by His suffering.

John 7:39 - Jesus was first glorified on the cross, not just the resurrection. This text refers to John 19:34, when Jesus was pierced on the cross by the soldier's lance.

John 12:24 - unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone and bears no fruit. Jesus is teaching that suffering and death are part of every human life, and it is only through suffering and death that we obtain the glory of resurrection.

Rom. 5:2-3 - Paul says that more than rejoicing in our hope, we rejoice in our sufferings which produces endurance, character and hope. Through faith, suffering brings about hope in God and, through endurance, salvation.

Rom. 8:17 - Paul says that we are heirs with Christ, but only if we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with Him. Paul is teaching that suffering must be embraced in order to obtain the glory that the Father has bestowed upon Jesus.

Rom. 8:18 - the sufferings of the present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. We thus have hope that any sufferings we or others endure, no matter how difficult, will pale in comparison to the life of eternal bliss that awaits us.

1 Cor. 1:23- Paul preaches a Christ crucified, not just risen. Catholic spirituality focuses on the sacrifice of Christ which is the only means to the resurrection. This is why Catholic churches have crucifixes with the corpus of Jesus affixed to them. Many Protestant churches no longer display the corpus of Jesus (only an empty cross). Thus, they only preach a Christ risen, not crucified.

1 Cor. 2:2 - Paul preaches Jesus Christ and Him crucified. While the cross was the scandal of scandals, and is viewed by the non-Christian eye as defeat, Catholic spirituality has always exalted the paradox of the cross as the true tree of life and our means to salvation.

2 Cor. 1:5-7- if we share abundantly in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort as well. If we unite our sufferings with His, we will be comforted by Him.

2 Cor. 4:10 – Paul writes that we always carry in the body the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. Christ has allowed room in His Body for our sufferings, and our sufferings allow room for Christ to bring us to life.

2 Cor. 4:11 - while we live we are always being given up to death for Jesus' sake so that His life may be manifested in our flesh. This proves the Catholic position that our sufferings on earth are united with Jesus in order to bring about Jesus' life in us.

2 Cor. 12:9-10 - Jesus' grace is sufficient, for His power is made perfect in weakness. If we are weak, we are strong in Christ. Our self-sufficiency decreases, so Christ in us can increase.

Eph. 3:13 - Do not to lose heart over my sufferings for your glory. Our suffering also benefits others in the mystical body of Christ.

Phil. 1:29 - for the sake of Christ we are not only to believe in Him but also to suffer for His sake. Growing in holiness requires more than having faith in God and accepting Jesus as personal Lord and Savior. We must also willfully embrace the suffering that befalls us as part of God's plan. Thus, Christ does not want our faith alone, but our faith in action which includes faith in suffering.

Phil. 3:10 - Paul desires to share in Christ's sufferings in order to obtain the resurrection. Paul recognizes the efficacy of suffering as a means of obtaining holiness which leads to resurrection and eternal life. There is no Easter Sunday without Good Friday.

Col. 1:24 - Paul rejoices in his sufferings and completes what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of His body. This proves the Catholic position regarding the efficacy of suffering. Is there something lacking in Christ's sufferings? Of course not. But because Jesus loves us so much, He allows us to participate in His redemptive suffering by leaving room in His mystic

Biblical suffering is resisting those things that will cause us to bring the curse on us.We are to partake of Jesus's sufferings. That never meant for us to be hanged on a cross. Jesus became sin for us, so we might be made righteous. He bore our sicknesses and carried our diseasesOur suffering is to resist those things Jesus bore. Accepting cancer is not bible suffering. Resisting the cancer is our part in His suffering.And our bodies would rather lay down and be sick. But our partaking of god's healing will make us stand up and be healed.Jesus said, " In the world you will have tribulation, BUT be of good cheer, I have overcome the world. And this is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith."

His divine nature (II Pet. 1:4)—as “longsuffering”?

The Holy Spirit, given at conversion to those who obey God (Acts 2:38; 5:32), defines God’s character. Notice: “But the fruit of the [Holy] Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance…” (Gal. 5:22-23).

Mankind’s suffering is not an accident. It is actually one of the most marvelous tools within God’s Plan of making sons who have developed His character within them. The purpose for every human being’s life is to develop the perfect, holy, righteous character of Almighty God. Suffering is directly tied to building character. Since God is longsuffering, it is also obvious then, that no person is complete in the development of God’s nature and character until he has learned the value of human suffering!

http://www.thercg.org/articles/wdgas.html?cid=g023...

Suffering is a huge part in my life. Yeah I suffer because things happen, but suffering is also love. Look at Jesus on the cross. If He didn't love us, he wouldn't have suffered for us. For love is suffering and everyday we should love everyone as we would love ourselves, and I can't forget to love God with all your heart, all your mind, and all your soul.

Suffering is a means of purification to rid ourselves of habits and attachments that lead to sin. Selfishness for example limits our ability to love people around us as Jesus commands. When we suffer and we have the faith to come to God in prayer, we receive consolation and graces that enable us to grow spiritually thereby making it possible for us to overcome our weaknesses like pride, impatience, etc.

The Lord loves a cheerful giver

Rawk!!!

My mother-in-law is going to get her leg off because of gangrene, poor thing, and I've not once heard her complain. She's done nothing but smile and joked about it at every opportunity, but I know that this leg has been with her from the beginning of her life!!!

I could not face that so cheerfully.

If we do it to ourselves as a self righteous way to try to get attention or to try to draw close to God through our own ability

.It would get you NOWHERE but if you suffer as a believer and continue in faith to trust God as your comfort and deliverer it is counted as righteousness.

In Islam, suffering is rewarded, like if someone made fun of you or harassed you for being a Muslim, but God doesn't want us to suffer.

can't find it just now, but there's something in there about the 'gold must go thru the fire before it's beautiful'.....

suffering is a test, like it was for Job

in mathew ch 24 it sayes that like the labor pains before one gives birth to a new we also must endor pain in this life as we prepair for the next to come

It plays exactly zero. God dislikes suffering. It is unnecessary and it doesn't feel good - take my word for it, God does not like suffering.

Those who cause themselves to "suffer," in a demonstration of religious pioty are not demonstrating anything to God other than their own ignorance of God.