Okay, it would seem really odd for a Pastor to say that there are actually benefits to sin and suffering, so I will start with the most unusual one first: the benefits of sin!
No, I do not mean that there are benefits to sin in the sense of we get to live sensually and any way we want in a hedonistic way that fulfills all our fantasy's or selfish desires. Truth be known, that lifestyle has some serious short and long-term consequences to it no matter what it's advocates might say. What I mean is that there actually are some benefit to our sinful nature, but those benefits only come to those who "get it".
The first benefit to a sinful nature is what happens when we recognize our sinful nature. For those of us who recognize, not only our own brokenness, but the brokenness of the world, we begin to see reality for what it really is. We also begin to see things that point to the fact that we all need a little bit of humility. We begin to see that we are all broken, messed up and in need of something that saves us from our brokenness that is WAY bigger than we are. For those of us who gain that recognition, we also begin to see just how much grace we need to display toward others. After all, when I recognize just how broken I am, I can have a little bit more compassion on someone else - no matter if they recognize their brokenness or not.
I also recognize that my sinful nature is very difficult to overcome on my own. It makes me recognize that I have a difficult time enough "changing myself" so how in the world can I begin to assume that I can change someone else? When I recognize my need for grace, and even more importantly, my need to be an extender and host of grace, I invite myself into a community that not only offers love and grace, I enter a community that offers loving accountability.
If I fail to see my sinful nature, I put myself above others thinking that I am "better than them". Isn't that what most people do anyway? We make statements like, "Oh well, at least I am not as bad as so-and-so." Jesus addressed this when he talked about the self-righteous Pharisee and the sinner tax collector in Luke 18:9-14.
The benefit of recognizing my sinful nature is that it stresses my need to be in a loving community - something that seems to have taken a back seat in our narcissistic and individualistic culture. A lack of recognition of our own brokenness instills in us a sense of "I am right, and you are wrong." It further believes, "I am above accountability" and it patronizes others because a person who lacks humility sees themselves above reproach.
When I recognize the benefit of my sinful nature, it makes me realize that I am called to live in community with others and Jesus. After all, this fulfills the Greatest Command: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength and the second is just like it: Love your neighbor as yourself."
As to the benefits of suffering, there are actually quite a few. First, if we never suffered, we would not be able to have empathy with the other 100% of humanity. It is our suffering that, once again, invites us into community. No one on this earth is immune to suffering. The sufferings might be different and those unique sufferings allow us to be in ministry to others who have suffered similar fates. Who better to minister to a physically abused child than someone who suffered abuse as a child and overcame? Who better to minister to a family who has lost a child than another family who has lost a child and yet overcame? Suffering connects us to each other and, more importantly, our suffering connects us to God who suffered greatest and longest first. From the first rebelliousness displayed by Satan to the rebelliousness of his first (and all subsequent) children to the very crucifixion of Jesus, the Son, God intimately knows suffering far beyond what any human being has ever known.
Simply put, God is in the suffering.
Another benefit to suffering is that it makes us long for something far better. Most every human being understands that there must be something "more to this life" than what we are experiencing. Suffering solidifies that thought. Suffering makes us realize that we are living in an outhouse when there is a palace waiting for us. If we already lived in the palace, we probably would be too content to want to move on. To live forever in our broken state would be a travesty to both God and ourselves. We must recognize that death is nothing more than the doorway to eternity and for those who have their hope in Jesus Christ, that doorway does not seem so daunting.
Isaiah 57:1 states, "The righteous perish, and no one takes it to heart; the devout are taken away and no one understands that the righteous are taken away to be spared from evil." This answers the question, "Why do bad things happen to good people." In the words of Billy Joel, "Only the good die young!"
So, there you have it. There seems to be actual benefits to sin and suffering!
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