What Does It Take to Be a Resilient Christian?

Of course, today, as we know, is the last day of unleavened bread. And for seven days, we've been eating unleavened bread, which is in Deuteronomy 16, 3, is called the bread, I should say, bread of affliction. As it says there in that verse, it says, seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, that is, the bread of affliction. For you came out of Egypt in haste, that you may remember the day in which you came out of the land of Egypt all the days of your life. Deuteronomy 16, verse 3. Of course, we know they were actually driven out of Egypt by night. As it says in Deuteronomy 16, verse 1, they left by night before their bread, dough, had time to rise. And then for seven days, they were pursued by the Egyptians, and they had little time to stop and rest, no time to stop and allow their bread to rise. For seven days, they were being pursued. They had to go run for their lives, and they had very little time to stop and rest, no time for their bread to rise and have regular bread. They had to eat 11 bread for seven days because they were being pursued, and on the run, hence, seven days of unleavened bread. As we know, they had been afflicted in Egypt, and then God delivered them in such haste that they, again, had to eat the bread of affliction for seven days. But then, as they were being pursued, as they were leaving, as God was leading them out of Egypt, they were led... God led them in even greater affliction than they possibly could have imagined. At least, in their minds, it was greater affliction. He led them into where they suddenly found themselves trapped with no way of escape, seemingly. The Red Sea was before them as it got to that seventh and last day of unleavened bread. Mountains were on either side of them, and the Egyptian and all the Egyptian armies were behind them seeking to utterly destroy them. And there was no apparent way of escape.

They were in a position now where they literally had to trust God with their very lives, and they had to trust in the power of God to save them. There's no other way. We could say they were exactly where God wanted them to be, in a position where they had to trust God and trust in God's power. They definitely need to learn that. But you think about it.

If they go back and just think back 3,500 years ago, whenever it was, what if you'd been there with those Israelites at that time, in that situation, on that last day of unleavened bread? Or, as you're approaching the last day of unleavened bread, at least. And what if the ones that were pursuing you from behind, what if it was the ISIS terrorists? And if they caught you, you knew exactly what was going to happen.

Things were going to happen you wouldn't even want to describe. Do a register to even contemplate. How would our faith in trusting God have held up under those circumstances? I don't know. I'm not sure mine would have held up very well. Now, you think about it, and you take a parallel for us today, calling we've been given. We were all, in a sense, called out of Egypt and haste by night as well. Our Egypt being the world and the ways of the world, which is destroying millions of lives today, as you read about the news and seeing the news every day.

And just before God began to deliver us, we were in the dark. We had to be delivered at night. That is, we had to be delivered out of darkness into God's light.

We were in the dark as far as God's truth and knowing God and Jesus Christ were concerned. But even as the ancient Israelites, we also have had to learn to trust God with our lives, as we've gone through various trials after God has called us.

And we've had to come to trust and have faith in the power of God to deliver us and save us through many circumstances we faced. Israel escaped out of Egypt, but that didn't mean they escaped from all trials and afflictions. It didn't escape from that at all. They continue to have plenty of trials and tests and afflictions all the way to the Promised Land, all the way to the land of Canaan.

And so it is with all of us on our journey toward the kingdom of God, we're always going to have trials and afflictions and tests we have to go through that we'll have to face. We'll have to face many trials and afflictions on our journey as we eat the bit of affliction. How will those trials impact our lives?

How are we going to affect us? Will it result in discouragement and a feeling of despair? Or will it affect us in a way that we can become resilient? That we can become resilient in facing our trials and tests and afflictions. That is what I want to talk about today as we contemplate what we can learn from the Days of Unleavened Bread and from meeting the bread of affliction for seven days.

What does it take to be a resilient Christian? What does it take to be resilient in the face of continual trials and tests and difficulties and obstacles? You know, only resilient Christians are going to make it to the end of the journey, going to make it to the kingdom of God.

It's going to take people who are resilient. And that is my title. My title for the sermon here this afternoon is What Does It Take to Be a Resilient Christian? What does it take to be a resilient Christian?

R-E-S-I-L-I-E-M-T. First thing I wanted to ask is, what does that word mean? What do we mean by the word resilient? What kind of a Christian is a resilient Christian? A person who is resilient is a person who has the ability to always bounce back, to never let what happens in life get the better of them. They haven't been always bounced back, no matter what's happened to them, how much pain they've gone through, or losses they've suffered. To always be able to bounce back no matter what life throws at them.

No matter what setbacks or losses they may suffer. A resilient person will always go to God to regain their strength, their spiritual strength, to keep moving forward. Because, you know, as we face some trials, some trials and things we go through can literally sap our strength. They can be devastating. They can flatten us to where we're not sure we can recover.

Because sometimes after some trials and losses, we know that life will never quite be the same again. We'll know it never will be as it once was. But a resilient Christian will recover his or her spiritual strength, even in the midst of those kind of trials. They will bounce back. They will continue to move forward and grow in faith. They will continue to depend on the power of God to deliver them and help them to move forward. So what kind of a Christian is a resilient Christian? A resilient Christian is a Christian who will always bounce back and who will never let the trials of life get the best of them, no matter how severe they happen to be. That's what we mean by the word resilient. But let me go a little bit further. Let's go to the next step. What qualities does that take? What qualities will it take to be a resilient Christian that will never let life get the best of them? Do we have any examples of that in the Bible? Well, before getting to that, another overall point I'd like to make first before getting to what qualities it takes to be a resilient Christian is this. This something is always important to keep in mind. We never know what might lie just around the corner. Never know. They can be going along pretty good and all of a sudden, bang. You're hit with something you just didn't expect.

In 1803, President Thomas Jefferson commissioned what was called the Corps of Discovery. After the Louisiana Purchase, he commissioned to marry Weather Lewis and William Clark to lead an expedition through the vast newly acquired land to discover what it was like. Had the whole two-thirds of the United States of America had never been really discovered or mapped out. Now, after Louisiana Purchase, it was about two-thirds of the entire area of the United States. A tremendous deal from France. He set these two men out with supplies to take a journey and to go all the way to the Pacific Ocean to map out the land, see what it was like. They set out on May of 1804 and didn't return until September of 1806. So they'd gone for over two years. And they had very incomplete information to go on. Didn't have any GPS or any idea what it was going to be like, what they're going to encounter, what obstacles they would face, hostilities, reminians, whatever. They would have to be resilient in order to successfully complete their journey. It wasn't going to be easy. It's interesting you'll read this story. At one point, they thought they were getting close to the Pacific Ocean. They thought they were getting close to the end of their journey. And they'd suffered so many hardships. After facing hunger and fatigue and desertion and hostile enemies, illness and even death, in some cases, a few of them had died, they finally reached a point where they thought they were nearing the Pacific Ocean. Or at least a river they could then use to easily reach the Pacific Ocean from there. They'd gone through some over mountains and things. They thought, well, while we're getting closer, maybe I think they're probably going to be downhill from here. After they'd crossed the Continental Divide, they thought they must be getting close. That was a huge obstacle to go over the Continental Divide and over those mountains. So at one point, Meriwether Lewis then climbed some bluffs that would allow him to see what they believed would be the remaining downhill part of their journey that they thought. He got up there at the top of those bluffs and guess what he saw? He saw the Rocky Mountains.

He saw another huge obstacle in their path. You know, you think about that could be the case at times when it comes to trials and afflictions. Just when we think we may have our biggest problems behind us, we've finally just been warming up. That the real Rocky Mountains might still lie ahead of us. And the Rocky Mountains would end up being the biggest obstacle of their whole journey. We never know what might lie just around the corner, especially in the world we live in today, with all the dangers and instability that there is.

Now, warming up to bigger problems and not knowing what might lie just around the corner reminds me of a joke. I don't tell jokes very often, but it's baseball season and this is a baseball joke. It's a good news, bad news story. Two friends loved baseball. Boy, they go to every Mariners opening game. They love baseball. So they got together and they agreed. They're getting older and they agreed, well whoever dies first, you've got to come back and let me know if there's baseball in heaven. So the first one dies and he goes back to tell his friend, the answer to that question, he says, you know, I have good news and bad news. The good news is there is baseball in heaven. The bad news is you're scheduled to pitch this coming Friday.

You never know what lies just around the corner.

But before getting to what it actually takes to be a resilient Christian, I want to give a scriptural example of how a stormy trial can cause us to lose our bearings or to lose our focus. The example I want to use to illustrate that is an example of the Apostle Peter. He was a disciple who had a great deal of confidence. He was going to follow Christ and wherever he went. He said, I'll follow you wherever you go and didn't realize what that would mean, what that would entail, as we know. As also, as most of us know, Peter was a fisherman. This example took place right after Christ had miraculously fed a large number of people with just five loaves of bread and two fish. It's in Matthew 14. Let's turn to Matthew 14.

Matthew 14, and I'll begin in verse 20. So they all ate and were filled, and they took up 12 baskets full of the fragments that remained. Now those who had eaten were about 5,000 men besides women and children. Immediately, Jesus made his disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side. Well, he sent the multitudes away. So he went on the Sea of Galilee in the boat, and Christ stayed on the shore. And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up to the mountain top by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone. But the boat was now in the middle of the of the sea. He was out there in the middle of the Sea of Galilee, and a storm was coming up. A certain wind was coming up. It was starting to get a little scary out there. The boat was now in the middle of the sea, tossed by waves, and the wind was becoming contrary. So on the fourth watch of the night, Jesus went to them, walking on the sea, walking on the water across to the boat to be with them.

This would be sometime between 3 a.m. and 6 a.m. a particular watch. So it'd still be fairly dark, even if it was closer to 6 a.m. It'd still be pretty dark. Going on in verse 26, when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled. I think I used you might imagine. It's a ghost. Can't be any person out there walking on the water. That's impossible. It has to be a ghost. And they cried out for fear. But immediately, Jesus spoke to them, saying, Be of good cheer, it is I. Do not be afraid. And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it is you, Peter is very bold. Command me to come to you on the water. Wow.

Peter seems to be exhibiting a great deal of faith here. He is thinking that he can do what is humanly impossible as long as Christ is calling him to do it. He thinks he can do it. Verse 29. So what did Christ say? He said, Fine, come, he said. And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus. Imagine that. Peter gets out of the boat in the stormy sea and he starts walking to Christ on the water. Something is humanly impossible. Would you and I have had the faith to do that? Probably not. I don't think I would have. But as we know, the boat was now tossed by the waves, for the wind was contrary, as we just read. Peter came down out of the boat. He got out of the boat. That's saying something. To get out of the boat, stormy sea, and start walking on water. You had to realize something there. The only way he could do that, he had to forget about the circumstance and be thinking about just walking to Christ.

You and I probably would not have the faith to do that. I don't think I would have. But Peter did do it, to his credit. He gets out of the boat and begins walking on the water. He begins to do what is humanly impossible. Impossible for a human being to walk on water without some spiritual help. At this juncture in the story, here is the point. As we go through trial and trusting God, we grow in faith. We come to realize Christ can do things for us, or through us, that we could not do of him by ourselves. That would be impossible otherwise. And as we grow in faith and realize that, that God can do things through us that we could not do of him by ourselves, what then might cause us to lose our bearings to where we could begin to doubt?

Verse 30. When Peter saw the wind was boisterous, he was afraid. And began to sink, he cried out, saying, Lord, save me! What caused Peter to begin to doubt, to where he began to sink in the water? What did he see? What caused him to begin to doubt? He saw that the wind was boisterous. He looked at the wind. He looked at the circumstances. He saw the wind. He saw the wind was boisterous. Verse 31. Immediately Jesus stretched out his hand and caught him and said to him, Oh, you of little faith, why did you doubt? You were doing great. Why'd you start looking at the wind and all the circumstances? And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. See, does that ever happen to us? Does that ever happen to you and me? When we suddenly find ourselves in the midst of a stormy trial, do we look at the wind? Do we look at the circumstances of the trial instead of God and God's power to deliver us? Do we see the severity of the trial or do we keep focused on Christ on his power over the wind? The point being that even after we have grown in faith, maybe to the point of being able to get out of the boat, even after growing in faith, a severe storm can cause us to lose our focus. All of a sudden you look at the storm and say, wow, this is quite a storm. I don't think I should be out of the boat. Sphere trial can come along unlike anything we've experienced before, which can then cause us to lose our our bearings to where we begin to doubt and to where we might begin to sink. That can happen spiritually. Has ever happened to you? That's happened to me a couple times where I begin to sink.

What does it take to weather those kinds of storms? It takes resiliency. It takes a resilient Christian who will bounce back no matter what the storms of life throw at him or her. I will now get to the heart of this message. What does it take to be a resilient Christian? What three qualities must we incorporate into our lives in order to weather any and all storms we might face, even though some we don't know if they're going to hit us around the corner, we can't anticipate right now? What three qualities must we incorporate to be a resilient Christian? Number one, a resilient Christian will never let the storm control their destiny. They'll never passively resign from their calling because of the storm is getting really, really bad. They'll still not begin to doubt. They'll still have faith in God and God's promises. And they'll fight on and keep control over whatever is still under their control.

Think about that. You might be in a situation where everything seems to be out of control. Where you have no control over circumstances whatsoever. You've lost control of everything. There's one thing you never will have to lose control of unless you allow it. The one thing we can always have control over, even after everything else may appear to be lost, is our thoughts, it's our mind and our thoughts.

For example, no matter what happens to our lives, we can refuse to believe that we have become a victim.

Even though we may become victims of circumstances beyond our control, we can still refuse to develop a victim mentality. How can we do that? Well, one way we can do that is just saying, well, why me? Why this happened to me? Well, it was me. Still being able to say, well, why not me? Hey, I've been in God's church for this many years. I know God's through there. I know He's all-powerful. I know He's sovereign over all things. I know this is just one more step in my journey that God wants me to go through so I can become more like His Son, Jesus Christ. I know God could remove this trial in a second if He wanted to, but maybe this will truly make me more precious than gold that perishes, as Peter said. Who better weather this storm than me? I've been through a lot of trials. God's got me through it now. He can get through it again. Why not me? See, a resilient Christian will never let a stormy trial control their destiny. They instead will stay and control their destiny by refusing to develop a victim mentality. Along with staying and control their destiny, a resilient Christian will also know God is with them no matter what their circumstances are. They will still know and believe that God is with them no matter how much things have turned against them. They will never doubt God's presence in their lives. Even though it may appear that all is lost, that God has deserted them, that will never be the case. If we believe that, it will never be the case. God never deserves this unless we desert Him. Two examples illustrate that. One, let's look at an example of Joseph. Joseph is a prime example. He will take these days of almond bread and coming out of Egypt. Let's go to an example of Joseph. We all know the story. He'll be turning back to Genesis 39. But Joseph was sold into Egypt by his jealous brothers and became a servant or a slave to Potiphar. He could have thought, well, why would God allow this all to happen to me? I've been striving to follow God and obey God and set the right example to my brothers and do everything that's right. Why would God allow this to happen? He could have thought, why would God allow this to happen to me? Where is God? Let's go back to Genesis 39. Let's begin in verse 1. Genesis 39. Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt and Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard and Egyptian, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him down there. Was God still with Joseph even though he had seemingly become a victim of lies and foul play from his brothers and then sold as a slave into Egypt by the Ishmaelites? Verse 2. The Lord was with Joseph, says. Now, if you've been Joseph, you might not have thought that after what had happened. He says the Lord was with Joseph and he was a successful man. Wow! He'd be successful even though everything's going wrong if you trust in God.

Then he was falsely accused and falsely put into prison. We'll go through the whole story, but let's drop down to verse 20. Then Joseph's master took him after this false accusation that Potiphar's wife made against Joseph. Then Joseph's master took him and put him into prison falsely. He was doing everything right. He was following God and yet he was sold into prison. A place where the king's prisoners were confined and he was there in the prison.

Even after all that, was God still with Joseph? If you were Joseph, would you think, well, is God forsaking me? Does he know what's going on? Was God still with Joseph even after all that? Verse 21, but the Lord was with Joseph. That's the point of this story. It's just no matter what happened, no matter how bad things were, how all the circumstances turned against him. The point that God wants to know here is that God was still with him through all of this. The Lord was with Joseph and showed him mercy and gave him favor.

The point is this, if we refuse to forsake God and if we refuse to develop a victim mentality, if we refuse to lose heart, God will always be with us, no matter what our situation might be. As Christ himself tells us, I will never leave you nor forsake you. Hebrews 13 verse 5. That was one example.

Second example is an example of Paul and Silas. In this example, Paul has cast a demon out of a certain slave girl who had been greatly annoying this girl. After that, her masters were no longer able to make a profit from her fortune telling, which she was doing from being demon possessed. So her masters then brought Paul and Silas to the Roman magistrates and falsely accused them.

Let's pick up the story there in Acts 16. If you turn to Acts 16, we'll pick up the story of what happened to Paul and Silas. Acts 16 verse 19. But when her masters saw that their hope of profit was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to the authorities. They brought them to the magistrates and said, These men being Jews exceedingly troubled the city. They made false accusations. They teach cousins which are not lawful for us being Romans to receive or observe. Again, they made up lies and made false accusations. Then the multitude rose up together against them, and the magistrates tore off their clothes and commanded them to be beaten with rods. And when they had been many stripes, they're not only just falsely arrested and accused, they're a beaten false sleigh of rods and go through all this pain and agony. You'd think they could really be victims.

When they had laid many stripes on them, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to keep them securely. Having received such a charge, he put them in the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks. So they're in an inner prison, their feet are fastened in the stocks. They've been beaten, they've been falsely accused, all for doing what's right before God.

What would your attitude be at that point?

Paul and Silas had seemingly now totally lost control of their lives and of their destiny. Or had they? They still had control of one thing. They had control of their mind. They had control of their thoughts. They had control of their attitude.

They had control of their mindset. They could still control how they reacted to all of this.

Acts 16, verse 25. But at midnight, Paul and Silas were praying. They could still pray. They couldn't go anywhere. They were confined in stocks, but they could pray. They could use their mind in a positive way. Instead of dwelling on their circumstances and thinking they were victims. At midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God. And the prisoners were listening. And the prisoners were listening.

Singing hymns to God. They were in the inner prison with their feet fastened in the stocks. They couldn't move or go anywhere. But they could still pray. And they could sing hymns.

Which would put their mind in a positive frame of mind.

Would you and I have done that in that same situation? I'm sure it shocked all the other prisoners who would have then wondered, what on earth are they singing about?

I would say they were singing hymns for at least three reasons. One, it kept them in control of their destiny. They could look at a positive destiny. They knew God was still sovereign over all things. And God could get them out anytime he wanted to. He had the power over God has power over everything.

Number two, it kept them in a positive frame of mind to where they didn't develop a victim mentality. And three, it helped them to know that God was still with them.

That God was... He was with them in all this. He knew what their situation was. And he was there with them. He hadn't deserted them or forsaken them. They were singing these psalms to get their mind in that positive frame of mind and help them in all those ways. They knew that no matter how hopeless their situation was, it was never hopeless as far as God is concerned.

At midnight, Poland saw us praying and singing hymns to God. And the prisoners were listening to them. And then verse 26, and suddenly there was a great earthquake. So the foundations of the prison were shaken and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone's chains were loosed. That is God's sovereignty, God's power. God was with them.

See, a resilient Christian will never let their trial of the situation control their destiny. They will always know that God is with them and that God is sovereign over all things.

Now let's go from the first overall quality we're talking about there. Let's go to the second overall essential quality to be a resilient Christian. That is this. A resilient Christian will always remain committed to God's values no matter what, even when tempted to compromise. Many examples could be used to illustrate that. Let's briefly look at two of them. Again, one example of Joseph. Joseph not only stayed in control of his destiny by doing whatever was in his means to do and by knowing that God was with him. Joseph also set a fantastic example. He refused to compromise God's values. He always remained committed to the laws and values of God no matter what the cost might be. Let's go back again to Genesis 39.

In Genesis 39, let's begin in verse 7. He came to pass after those things that his master's wife, Kath Longan, lies on Joseph. He refused. He was a young man, probably in his late 20s. He refused and said to his master's wife, Look, my master does not know what is with me in the house, and he has committed all that he has into my hand. There is no one greater in this house than I, nor has he kept back anything from me but you, because you are his wife. How can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?

So it was as she spoke to Joseph day by day that he did not eat her, to lie with her or be with her. But it happened about this time when Joseph went into the house to do his work and none of the men of the house were inside, that she caught him by the garment and said, Lie with me. But he left his garment in her hand and fled and ran outside. He fled immediately, as fast as he could go.

See, Joseph not only stayed in control of his destiny by doing what ever means he could to do, follow God, and by knowing God was with him, he also refused to compromise God's values. He always remained committed to the laws and values of God, no matter what the cost. He was a resilient Christian who always remained committed to God's laws and values. As a result, as we know, he was eventually elevated to the second highest position in all of Egypt, Genesis 41 verse 40. Let's look at one other example of that, example of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, example of refusing to compromise. Let's go to Daniel chapter 3.

Daniel chapter 3, beginning in verse 1, Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, whose sight was sixty cubits with six cubits. He set up in the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon, dropping down to verse 4. And then, in a herald cried out to you, and his command, O peoples, nations, and languages, that the time you hear the sound of the horn flew to harp, leer, and sultry, and, simply with all kinds of music, that you shall fall down and worship the gold image that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up. And whoever does not fall down and worship shall be cast immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. Of course, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, as we know, they refused to do that. They refused to worship an idol. That would be contrary to God's laws.

Verse 8, therefore, at that time certain Chaldeans came forward and accused the Jews, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Verse 12, they said, There are certain Jews whom you have set over the affairs of the province of Babylon, namely Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. And these men, O king, have not paid due regard to you. They did not serve your gods or worship the gold image which you have set up. Never can ever, as them went into a rage. And he said, Bring them to me. Verse 14, And then never can ever spoke, saying to them, Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the gold image which I have set up? Well, if you are ready at the time you hear the sound of the horn flute and all the music and so on, that you fall down and worship the image which I have made, well then good. But if you do not worship, as I tell you you should, you have to, as you must, you shall be cast immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. And who is the God who will deliver you from my hands?

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, they knew that their God is sovereign over all things, and that He could deliver them from Nebuchadnezzar's hands if He desired to do so. They didn't know if He would or not, but they knew He could.

Notice the response in beginning verse 16. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered and said to the king, Oh, Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. We already know what our answer is going to be because we are committed to God's values, and we know no matter what happens, we're not going to compromise.

But if that is the case, if you throw us into the fiery furnace, our God whom we serve, He is powerful. He has power over all things, so He is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace. And regardless of what happens in time, He will deliver us from your hands one way or another. We even have to be in a future resurrection. But no, if He does deliver us right now, let it be known to you, O King, verse 18, that we do not serve your gods. No, we worship the gold image which you have set up. It doesn't matter. See, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were resilient Christians who always remained committed to God's laws and God's values, even when tempted to compromise in order to save their lives. They weren't even willing to save their lives to compromise with God's values. They were willing to die and put their life in God's hands. Was God with them? Verse 23, And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell down bound in the midst of the burning fire of your furnace. Then King Nemedon Knesser was astonished, and he rose and haced, and he spoke, saying to the consular, Didn't we cast three men into the furnace? And then he said, Yeah, true, O King. We've got three men in there. He says, Look, verse 25, I see four men in there walking in the midst of the fire, and they're not hurt. And the former of the fourth is like the Son of God.

You know, it's seemingly an impossible situation, but Christ, as the Son of God, was right there with him. Nothing is impossible with God. This then brings us to a third quality, overall quality, of a resilient Christian that we must incorporate into our lives in order to weather any and all storms. Third overall quality, a resilient Christian will find meaning and purpose in all the storms of life they go through. In other words, whatever trial they go through, they're going to find meaning and purpose in that trial, something they can learn from. It's going to make them help them to grow spiritually. They'll always find a way to make their lives meaningful within that trial and that situation. Again, we have another example from Joseph that illustrates that. Let's go back once again to Genesis chapter 40. Let's just go to Genesis 40 and begin in verse 1 of Genesis 40. It came to pass after these things that the butler and the baker of the king of Egypt offended their lord, the king of Egypt. He got the story about the baker and the butler. And Pharaoh was angry with his two officers, the chief butler and the chief baker. Remember, now Joseph in prison falsely accused of something he didn't do, and he's rotting away in prison. Probably been there for a couple three years by this time. So Pharaoh put them in custody in the house of the captain of the guard in the prison and to the place where Joseph was confined. So they get thrown into prison with Joseph. And the captain of the guard charged Joseph with them and he served them. So they were in custody for a while. Then the butler and the baker of the king of Egypt. So they're being under, you know, Joseph got in favor with God even in prison. He charged some of the prisoners. But I want you to think about what's this going to say here in a moment, because you're in that you've been forgotten. You've been in prison for three years, maybe, or more. Say, when is God going to remember me? You get me out of here. You could feel like you're a victim, but not Joseph.

Something amazing happens here in this story. Just a very brief comment, but something's very important. Then the butler and the baker of the king of Egypt who were confined in the prison had a dream, both of them, each man's dream in one night, each man's dream with its own interpretation.

And after they had these dreams, they were troubled. They didn't know what they meant, but the dreams troubled them. They were very real.

And when Joseph came into them in the morning and looked at them, he saw that they were sad. He saw they were dejected. Think about this now. Joseph seems to be, you think he'd feel like he was a victim himself, but he comes in there and he's two guys to throw in the prison with him, and he sees that they're dejected. So he asked Pharaoh's officer who are with him in the custody of the Lord's house, saying, why do you look so dejected? Yeah, he goes over to these prisoners. Why do you look so dejected? What's what's bothering you? What's something really troubling you? What is it? How can I help you?

Here, Joseph finds meaning and purpose in his confinement by helping a couple of cellmates, a baker and a butler. And one day after they had troubling dreams, he notes they appear to be somewhat downcast, that their demeanor has changed. And then all of a sudden, Joseph has concern for these two individuals. Instead of thinking about his situation and his problems, he's concerned about these other men that are not with him because they're downcast. Obviously, something is very troubling to them. And he's concerned about them instead of about himself. What a tremendous quality. To be a resilient Christian, we need to have that kind of equality.

I mean, this is really a striking detail in the story, an extremely important detail. Especially, we think of the days of unliving bread and striving to incorporate Christ into our lives. And we strive to bring every thought into captivity to the mind of Christ. Here, Joseph, instead of focusing on his own situation, his own problems, on his own bitter disappointment of how he was wrongly accused in prison and how he's been routing in prison for three years and forgotten there. Instead of, he becomes concerned for others, and he finds meaning and purpose by reaching out to see if he can help these two individuals who are downcast. It would have been very easy for Joseph to have ignored them and simply remained focused on his own problems and his own situation. See, when our life doesn't always turn out as we had planned or as we had hoped for, it's good to remember that others have also faced bitter disappointments in their life, like just Butler and Baker. So when we are hurting and in pain, whether literal or emotional, it is easy to be so focused on our own pain and situation that we fail to notice the pain others may be going through as well. Because no matter what we're going through, you know, there's thousands of others going through probably things that are something far worse.

Joseph was a resilient Christian because he found meaning and purpose in the storm of his life, and he reached out to others to help them who were in similar situations, who were having problems and predounged guests and having difficulties and were discouraged. He noticed their demeanor. He noticed what they were going through. He noticed how they were troubled. In so doing, he was in his own small way walking where Christ also walked. Let's go to this example of Christ, the best example of all of someone who was in a terrible situation but was more concerned about others about himself. Luke 23.

Luke 23. Let's begin in verse 20. Apollod therefore, wishing to release Jesus, again called out to them, but they shouted, saying, Crucify him! Crucify him! Then he said to them the third time, Why? What evil has this man done? I found no reason for death in him. I will therefore chastise him and let him go. He has nothing worthy of being crucified. The Pilate, referring to Christ. But they were insistent, demanding with loud voices that he be crucified. And the voice of these men and of the chief priests prevailed.

Verse 24. So Pilate gave sentence that it should be as they requested. And he released to them the one they requested, who for rebellion and murder had been thrown into prison, but he delivered Jesus to their will to be crucified.

Talk about something that was unfair.

There was never anything in the history of the world that was more unfair than this. Not only unfair, it was downright evil.

They released a rebellious murderer and instead, falsely convicted and condemned Christ, who was perfect, who never sinned.

But under those of the most extreme circumstances you can possibly imagine as ever has happened in the history of the world, what was Christ's mind focused on?

Verse 26 of Luke 23.

Now as they led him away, they laid hold of a certain man, Simon the Cyrenian, who was coming from the country. And on him they laid the cross that he might bear it after Jesus. In a great multitude the people followed him, and women who also mourn and lamented him. But Jesus, verse 28, turned to them, said, Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me, but weep for yourselves and for your children, because he knew what they were going to face right around the corner they didn't know was coming.

For indeed the days are coming in which they will say, Blessed are the barren, blessed are the wombs that never bore, and the breast which never nursed. And then they will begin to say to the mountains, fallen us and to the hills, cover us. For they do these things in the green wood, what will be done in the dry.

You know, rather than focusing on his own terrible, terrible pain that he was in, he was going to face, he instead was more concerned about others. He was focused on others and what they were going to face and the pains they were going to go through. He was more concerned about their pain than his own.

I want to mention one final example before closing.

In this case, it's not a resilient Christian, it's a resilient Jewish girl.

One in the entire world now knows by name, a young Jewish girl by the name of Anne Frank.

Anne was born on June 12, 1929, in Frankfurt, Germany. Her family then moved to Amsterdam, Holland in 1933, after Hitler came to power and began his program against Jews.

By May of 1940, they were trapped in Amsterdam by the German occupation of the Netherlands. On June 12, 1942, Anne had her 13th birthday. She's turned 13. Now, all you young people out there are teens. I want you to think about this example. This is absolutely amazing. On June 12, 1942, on her 13th birthday, Anne received a special birthday present. She received a diary.

She began writing in it that very day.

Here is part of her first entry. Here is what she wrote that very first day.

I hope I'll be able to confide everything to you. She had a special name for what she called a kitty. She would just open her heart to this diary and write her thoughts to the diary. She thinks she was afraid to express to any other person, but she expressed it to her diary, which she called kitty. She said, Dear Kitty, she's referring to her diary. I hope I'll be able to confide everything to you, as I've never been able to confide in anyone. And I hope you'll be a great source of comfort and support.

Little did she know that her diary would someday make her name famous, and that her diary would be a great source of comfort and support for people of all ages around the entire world. It's translated in many languages.

Less than one month after she received that diary, less than one month later, on July 9, 1942, her family went into hiding in a secret annex above her father's place of business, where they remained until an unknown informer revealed to the German officials that they were hiding there. That informer that they were discovered then because of that informer on August 4, 1944. She was then taken to a concentration camp where she died on March, in March of 1945, just before Germany was liberated by the Allies.

But what could find in that addict, she found meaning and purpose in her life by writing in her diary every day, or not every day, but two or three times a week.

She was resilient in at least three major ways. One, she refused to abandon her values, even at age 13, 14, and 15, she refused to abandon her values. Number two, she continued to find meaning and purpose in her life, even though she was confined to this addict, and she continued to make her own life meaningful in that situation. Number three, she also remembered and focused on the sufferings that she knew were happening outside the rest of the world. They got newspapers. She could read about what was going on. She could see a little window of the addict. She could see the German soldiers taking people away, and she got some reports. She knew what was happening. She knew millions of suffering outside of that little addict where she was, and she was concerned for them. She focused on the sufferings she knew others were going through. Here are a couple of short quotes from her diary that especially tie into the meaning of examining ourselves as we partake and go through the days of unleavened bread after the Passover. This is the Dyer van Frank. The date is July 6, 1944. She was aged 15 by this time. She just turned 15. July 6, 1944. Here's what she wrote. Think about this. A 15-year-old girl in this situation. She said, people who are religious should be glad since not everyone is blessed with the ability to believe in a higher order. How noble and good everyone could be if at the end of each day they were to review their own behavior and weigh up rights and wrongs. Can you imagine that? She's up there in this attic, and every day she weighed her own behavior. She waved her thoughts. What kind of thoughts she had about people being confined in that situation. I shouldn't have thought that towards that person. I was wrong. She would analyze herself. She would examine herself. She said, if they did that, at the end of each day they would review their own behavior and weigh up rights and wrongs. They would automatically try to do better at the start of each new day. After a while, we'll certainly accomplish a great deal. She says, everyone is welcome to this prescription. It costs nothing. It's definitely useful. Those who don't know will have to find out by experience that a quiet conscience gives you strength. Wow, that is something for a 15-year-old girl in that situation. Then, nine days later, and only about two weeks before her final entry, she wrote this on July 15, 1944.

It's difficult in times like these. Ideals, dreams, and cherished hopes rise within us, only to be crushed by grim reality. It's a wonder I haven't abandoned my ideals. They almost seem absurd and impractical in this situation. Yet, I cling to them because I still believe, in spite of everything, that some people are truly good at heart. It's utterly impossible to build my life on a foundation of chaos, suffering, and death. I see the world slowly being transformed into a wilderness. I hear the approaching thunder that one day will destroy us, too. I feel the suffering of millions. Wow, I'm a 15-year-old girl. You can find it in an attic.

And yet, when I look up at the sky, she said, I somehow feel that everything will change for the better, that this cruelty, too, will end, that peace and tranquility will return once more. In the meantime, I must hold to my ideals. Perhaps the day will come when I'll be able to realize them.

Of course, as we all know, the day will come when Anne Frank will realize her ideals. The ideal will be realized by all resilient Christians.

In conclusion, then, what kind of a Christian is a resilient Christian who has the ability to always bounce back and keep moving forward, no matter what life throws at them?

What does it take to be someone who will never lose their bearings, no matter what happens?

Resilient Christians, if you will, have three major qualities. One, they will never allow adverse circumstances to control their destiny. Number two, they will always stay committed to God's laws and God's values and to God's way of life, even when tempted to compromise.

And they refuse to compromise, even under the threat of imprisonment or death. And number three, they will always try to find meaning and purpose in what they're going through. They will never turn inward.

They will be as concerned for others as they are for themselves, if not more so. And that is what it takes to be a resilient Christian.