The second kind of suffering Christians experience is suffering that comes from sins and mistakes. If we are careless or foolish in the exercise of our responsibilities, we may suffer a certain kind of loss. For example, a brother may have a job that requires him to be at work at a certain time. However, he may consistently come to work quite late. As a result, he is fired from his job. This may be regarded as a kind of suffering. But it is a suffering that results from carelessness. Should a brother lose his job for such a reason, he should not say that this suffering is the putting to death of Jesus. This suffering has nothing at all to do with the putting to death of Jesus. It comes from the failure to fulfill one’s responsibility.
In 4:10 Paul speaks of the putting to death of Jesus. Then in verse 11 he says, “For we who live are always being delivered unto death for Jesus’ sake.” I would call your attention to the words “for Jesus’ sake.” The putting to death of Jesus in verse 10 is used interchangeably with being delivered unto death for Jesus’ sake in verse 11. This means that the putting to death of Jesus involves suffering that is for Jesus’ sake. A brother who loses his job because of carelessness and irresponsibility does not get fired for Jesus’ sake. He should not ascribe this to Jesus. He was fired for the sake of his carelessness. It would absolutely not be fair to regard that kind of suffering as the putting to death of Jesus, as suffering for Jesus’ sake. Suffering because of sins or mistakes is not the experience of the putting to death of Jesus.
To make this matter even more clear, let us use another illustration. Suppose you do not lock the door of your house when you leave home for the church meeting. In fact, you even forget to close the door. While you are in the meeting, someone enters your home, steals many things, and causes a great deal of damage. When you survey the damage and the loss, you should not say, “Praise the Lord, this is an experience of the putting to death of Jesus.” Once again, that kind of suffering and loss is not the putting to death of Jesus. You should not ascribe that kind of loss to Jesus, or think that you are experiencing the putting to death of Jesus. When you suffer purely for Jesus’ sake and for the sake of the church, the Body, that is the putting to death of Jesus.
When we sing a hymn such as “Each Blow I Suffer,” we need to be careful not to unconsciously bring in asceticism. Asceticism involves gradual suicide, a slow, steady self-killing like that described in the book The Imitation of Christ. That book contains a strong element of asceticism. When those who practice asceticism talk about bearing the cross, they are actually talking about self-killing. We should not have an ascetic concept when we sing the hymn “Each Blow I Suffer.” Actually, to sing this hymn in relation to the putting to death of Jesus may indicate that our understanding of the putting to death of Jesus is not accurate. The putting to death of Jesus is not a matter of common suffering. In fact, to cause us to suffer is not the purpose of the putting to death of Jesus; it is to consume our outward man.
The third category of suffering experienced by Christians is the putting to death of Jesus. Paul did not experience this because he was wrong. On the contrary, he was right in every way. Nevertheless, he was afflicted, perplexed, persecuted, and cast down. But all this was for the sake of Jesus, for the sake of the Body, and for the sake of the new covenant ministry.
Paul and the other apostles were not wrong, and these particular sufferings were not related to any mistakes of theirs. But they still had the outward man, and this outward man needed to be consumed.
When the Lord Jesus was on earth, He did not make any mistakes, and He was not wrong in anything. But He had an outward man that needed to be consumed. Therefore, the putting to death of Jesus is not punishment, correction, or discipline. These are related to the second category of Christian suffering. To correct us, punish us, or discipline us is not the goal of the putting to death of Jesus. Neither is it a matter of natural calamities. Instead, it is a kind of persecution, operation, or dealing that comes upon us to consume our natural man, our outward man, our flesh, so that our inward man may have the opportunity to develop and be renewed.