And when they had preached the gospel to that city and made many disciples, they returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch, strengthening the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to continue in the faith, and saying, “We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.” Acts 14:21-22
Of all the head scratching titles you have seen from my desk, this one probably takes the cake for many of you. I assure you the comparison above illustrates an important spiritual principle that will prove helpful if we apply the principles to our Christian walk. I read this illustration in a book about surviving life in Bible college while simultaneously doing the rest of life. A man named Rory Vaden wrote about the need to face life’s struggles head on rather than trying to run away from them, and he used the comparison of buffaloes and cows to illustrate why such is in our best interest.
When a storm approaches, buffaloes and cows respond in opposite ways. Cows try to flee the storm while buffaloes charge into the storm. Running from the storm appears to be a good policy when hoping to escape its troubles. However, the cow cannot outrun the storm, so it keeps running in the same direction as the storm. The buffalo runs straight into the storm and continues through it in the opposite direction the storm is traveling. When all is said and done, neither the cow nor the buffalo escaped the storm. Yet, the buffalo spent much less time in the storm conditions because it was running through the storm thereby increasing the rate of speed at which the storm passed over it. The cow, meanwhile, lengthened its time in the storm conditions by negating part of the speed of the storm’s travel.
The same principle holds true of the storms of life we all must face. Try as we may, we cannot outrun the spiritual battles we face in this life. as Paul said in the passage above, our entry to the kingdom of God is “…through many tribulations…” not in the absence of such. Jesus and the apostles repeatedly spoke of the trials and tribulations serving Him would bring (Matthew 10:34-39; 2 Timothy 3:12). The trick is to remember the brightness of the sun on the other side of those storms and order our lives with that glory in view (Romans 8:17-18; Philippians 3:10-11; 2 Timothy 2:12).
Jesus left us the perfect example of the blessings God sheds on those who suffer for righteousness (1 Peter 2:18-25; Philippians 2:5-11). Looking back upon the suffering servant passage in Isaiah 53, Peter showed how the only truly pure man to ever live willingly accepted the suffering He endured and granted us the privilege of returning from our wandering as lost sheep. Philippians 2:5-11 assures those who embrace Christ’s example of humility in suffering that God exalts the humble (cf. James 4:6-10; 1 Peter 5:6-7).
The Lord’s rest follows the struggle, and the struggle is unavoidable. Therefore, it is an exercise in futility to try and outrun the storms inherent to Christian living. Knowing that it is through many tribulations that we must enter the kingdom of God, may we take up our cross and follow Him (Luke 9:23-24). I would rather be a buffalo than a cow, so the unpleasant realities of life’s inescapable storms pass by more quickly. Let’s charge the storm with the power that God supplies!