No Difficulties

Those of you, who have a concordance with you, please look up the word “tribulations.” As you can see, there are lots of scriptures listed there. Among others, we have the scripture that says we must, we must, through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God. [Acts 14:22] Would you now look up the word “trials.” I strongly continue to recommend the frequent use of the concordance, but not just for finding a scripture for which you don’t know the reference. That’s what the concordance is designed for, but its usefulness on that score is nothing when compared to the exceedingly profitable, powerful, and all-encompassing effect of having the scriptures grouped according to theme and arranged alphabetically. Practically speaking, all of the scriptures in the Bible that apply to a particular theme are listed there. From this, any dunce, even the most dense, can understand that it has to be extremely profitable to read all that is written there. Then you get light shed on each aspect of every possible subject. You can read about whatever you want. Read about faith; read about love; read about whatever you want. It will shed light on every aspect of the theme, and you’ll be able to tie it all together. Then you will get the correct Biblical understanding about everything.

As you can see, there are lots of scriptures listed under the word “tribulations.” Tribulations are the things that bring trials. Trials and tribulations are among the most beneficial things in the Christian life because all these trials and tribulations show us perfectly, clearly, and irrefutably what our true condition is. When we have trials and tribulations, it is manifested how much, or how little, we have and what we do not have. We are faced with irrefutable evidence of our true condition.

Look up the word “difficulties.” Count how many scriptures there are about difficulties. Are you finished counting? The word isn’t even found once in the whole Bible! The word “difficulties” isn’t mentioned, and neither is the singular form, “difficulty” to be found. Moreover, we find the word “difficulty” only written once. (1 Pet. 4:16—Norwegian). The truth is that God doesn’t send us difficulties. We can ask, “Aren’t tribulations difficulties?” No, far from it! They are only a help; they are a help to show us how we are doing.

Despite this, people talk about their difficulties. Some people have difficulties with their spouse, some with brother so-and-so, and some with sister so-and-so, but these are all problems that they create themselves. No difficulties exist except the ones that we create ourselves; we ourselves manufacture the difficulties. We do this by taking situations in the wrong way. It’s our fault. It’s something that we have created—isn’t it? Or is it God’s fault that we take things in the wrong way? No, we are responsible. We create the difficulty by not taking things the way God’s Word teaches us to take them. The Bible shows us God’s will for every possible situation. When we take things in this way, there are never any difficulties.

I don’t think you have heard me speak about my difficulties very many times, have you? Have you kept track of how often I have done that? You have never heard me speak about my difficulties! I don’t have any! But trials and tribulations are listed in the concordance; we have lots of those, and we must through many tribulations enter into God’s kingdom.

We are to be thoroughly, thoroughly tried. That which is untried is fit for nothing. Even in the natural, things have to be tested. For example, building materials need to be tested. To build something with untested material is pure madness. God’s Word is our guideline! Don’t object and try to find some way of explaining this away. An abundance of trials and tribulations all amount to the same thing. No difficulties! Difficulties never come to us, but we make them for ourselves. When you speak about your difficulties, then what you are saying about yourself is that you have taken things in the wrong way. You are actually saying, “I have reacted in the wrong way. I have taken things in the wrong way, entirely.” You are, so to speak, a manufacturing facility for difficulties. You manufacture difficulties continuously.

Let’s look in 2 Corinthians 4:16-18. “So we do not lose heart. Though our outward man is wasting away,” (that really isn’t anything to worry about, it is destined to perish anyway—sooner or later) “our inner man is being renewed every day.” Have you ever heard anything so glorious? Our inner man is renewed every day, but our outer man is wasting away. Then it says, “For our tribulation” (that’s what we are to have so much of)—“For our tribulation” (here comes the glorious part) “which is momentary and light.” In other words, there are no long, drawn-out tribulations. That’s what is written. Our tribulations are short. The fact that we feel like they are long is due only to our erroneous way of taking things. They are not long-lasting, it’s written here. They are brief.

We must acknowledge the truth of God’s Word. Even if our tribulations last for thirty years, that is nothing when compared to eternity. According to God’s standards, it’s short. It’s very helpful to make a comparison: so many years, and then eternity. How much longer is eternity than this? Are you good at math? No, it can’t be compared. Even a hundred years, if we should live so long, is nothing when compared to eternity. We are not to change the Bible. No, we are to be transformed into what is written in the Bible, by believing what is written there. We have to give up our opinions and what we think; all of that is pure folly. The only thing that’s right is what is written in the Bible.

“For our tribulation, which is momentary . . . .” It’s no problem when it’s so short; it will only last, at most, a hundred years. And what’s next? “. . . and light.” What’s written there? Is it a printing error? Multitudes of trials and tribulations, and they are all light. Yes, but you feel that your trials are heavy! This is of your own making. You have manufactured this heaviness by taking things in the wrong way, by not believing what is written here. On the contrary, you have believed in what you have thought and felt. What we think and feel is wrong. I just remembered an expression used in a physics book. It said, “The human body is not well-suited as a device for measuring temperature!” We have thermometers for that purpose. There are many amusing stories to support this fact. I remember J. O. Smith telling about a fat lady who got on the train and sat down near him. She had piles of clothes on, and said, “Oh my, it is hot in here! Open the window.” Then Brother Smith said, “It’s not hot at all; it’s just right in here.” But it was warm for her. She created the high temperature by piling on the clothes, yet she was of the opinion that it was the air on the train that was so hot. It is positively dreadful how wretched we are! We carry on creating difficulties, and in so doing we reject God’s Word—reject the truth. She rejected the truth. It wasn’t true that it was so hot. She had just put on too many clothes.

“For our tribulation . . . .” He wasn’t talking about just one tribulation; he was talking about all of our tribulations. All of our trials are momentary, and they are all light, and not only that, they are all “producing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all measure, because we “look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen.” Does this sound difficult? An eternal weight of glory beyond all measure! Does that sound dreadful? It’s the truth! Everything else is a lie!

We are to repay evil with good, it is written. Yes, the evil that we meet causes tribulation. That is the trial. And when I repay it with good, then I have a wonderful time—I thrive and flourish! Then I am happy; then I am overjoyed; then I have reacted as the Scriptures say I should. But the most common thing is to carry on about how horrible the evil was that was done to me, how dreadful it was, and how anyone could ever do a thing like that. That isn’t in accordance with what is written! It is written that we are to repay evil with good. And it isn’t unpleasant to do something good! Is it? No! People call it a difficulty when they meet something evil, but they have created the difficulties themselves by taking things in an absolutely insane way, the exact opposite of what is written. You manufacture difficulties non-stop when you take things like that.

Personally I have to say that I have no difficulties in my life! There haven’t been any for many decades, not even one. That means that I have received grace to believe what is written, and to react the way the Scriptures say we should. If you meet evil, then repay it with good! Then you’ll thrive and flourish! Then you’ll have heaven on earth! You can hardly call that having difficulties. And the trials are always momentary, and they are always light. Think how pleasant to have it like that. You need to shut down your “difficulty factory.” You’re the factory owner—and what a pathetic kind of factory! I don’t it’s a very profitable business. Factory owners aren’t interested in producing difficulties! No, they manufacture something that pays, something they can make lots of money on.

Many, many years ago, in my early youth, I testified that if I were married to what people would, in exaggeration, call a witch, then I would thrive and flourish together with her. The basis for my thriving and flourishing would not have been the fact that she was a witch, but that I would have had opportunity to repay evil with good, and you can’t find anything more enjoyable than that. At that time I meant what I said quite literally, and I haven’t changed my position. That doesn’t mean that you should deliberately propose to a witch-like woman. No, but if I thought she was an angel, and she turned out to be a witch, then the real art is to have an enjoyable time together with her. I have years of experience with the brothers and sisters—long and rich experience. There are some brothers whose wives are so-called witches. Generally, these brothers simply don’t manage (so to speak), to keep their heads above water; they go under. But there are a few who manage it.

Many years ago there was a brother in Bergen who was a fantastic example in this area. He managed it exceptionally well. His wife was, quite simply, full of the devil; yet he handled it beautifully. This brother died before his wife, and she came to him while he was on his deathbed, right at the very end, and poured out devilish words on him while he was on the brink of death. That’s how bad it was. He took it perfectly. But there are many brothers who have given up; they have simply gone under because they have a so-called “impossible wife.” They haven’t believed in what we have read here.

Momentary and light! But not only that, it produces an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, in huge quantities, when you react in the right way. There’s no other way one can imagine this than by getting a living faith in God’s Word. But then you have to read what is written—exactly. Don’t be so busy, but meditate and dwell on the Word. You must lose yourself in it, pay close attention to what is written, and believe it like a little child. It is so clear, really clear. I’m not able to use words that are strong enough to express what I mean. Read it for yourself. Spend hours reading this scripture; read it daily! Put a bookmark in that place in your Bible, and read there. Read it again and again and again! It is a real art to be able to see exactly what is written. Then you need to speak to yourself about it until faith comes. In other words, in everyday language, everything that meets us is to our advantage—it produces nothing but income! We become richer and gain an increasing weight of glory, it says, beyond all comparison, when we believe it and live according to it.

The word “difficulties” isn’t in the Bible, at all. On the other hand, the word “difficult” is [1 Pet. 4:18 in the Norwegian], and that is very significant because it is difficult to react rightly. It is difficult to believe exactly what is written. But difficulties caused by others—there is no such thing. That’s a lie, a bold-faced lie.

What is it that you actually do, by not believing the Word? You torment yourself, and it adversely affects others around you, those who don’t have complete victory—and there are plenty of them around! You torment yourself and your fellow men! You make a real nuisance of yourself through your unbelief—by not reading and believing exactly what is written. Had you believed it, you would have come to the life that is described. What is written there is true. It doesn’t matter how you see it, or what you think or feel, or what the majority thinks, or even what everyone else thinks. What is written is true! Period! It is the truth!

“So we do not lose heart. Though our outer man is wasting away, our inner man is being renewed every day” (not just once in a while, no). “For”—here comes the basis for all that was said before. “For this slight momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory” (in immense proportions) “beyond all comparison.” In other words, it produces glory in huge, vast amounts. When it’s like this with you, then it means that you thrive and flourish, non-stop, regardless of what happens. Neither people nor things can in any way keep us from flourishing, precisely because we react in the right way; because we believe what is written, and live accordingly. This is in harmony with Romans 8:28, too. If we love God, then all things work together for our best. No one can be dissatisfied with that. No one can dislike the fact that everything is working together for his best. That certainly can’t be called a difficulty. That isn’t what we would call having difficulties. Is that what we call having difficulties? No, difficulties come about through the rubbish and complications that we create by not following the Word, by not having a living faith in the Word so that we follow it.

My best wishes to you all for a life without any difficulties whatsoever, with no exceptions—not even rarely. May all difficulties be completely ended, finished, may they cease, and be completely eradicated. Best wishes for success!

In any case, everyone should be able to understand that if we can take things in the right way, the result will be very glorious. I wish the very best for each and every one of you! Even if you think you are the most pitiful wretch on two feet, this is completely possible. It doesn’t matter how bad we have been or how much difficulty and trouble we’ve created for ourselves and others in the past. The question is, how will it end? “All’s well that ends well,” as the saying goes, and it’s as true as can be. The way things end is the way they will remain. Things won’t be like they were before.