How to Handle Trouble

Timothy Keller Sermons Podcast by Gospel in Life

Tim Keller

Religion, Religion & Spirituality:christianity, Spirituality, Religion & Spirituality, Christianity

4.9 • 16.2K Ratings

🗓️ 9 February 2026

⏱️ 36 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

There’s only one God who has wounds that can speak to your wounds. There’s only God who has been through it. The Buddhists look at suffering as an illusion. Western secular culture looks at suffering as a curse. But Christianity looks at it as something both extremely real and far more hopeful. Our Savior, Jesus Christ, came to glory through suffering. And when you see what he went through for you, then and only then have you got a framework and a power to get through your own suffering. In 1 Peter 1 it teaches us that 1) you’ll never be able to face suffering without knowing a lot of biblical doctrine, 2) Christians do experience grief and troubles of life, and 3) when suffering comes into your life, God hates the brokenness but uses it to teach you things he wants you to learn. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on September 26, 1993. Series: Splendor in the Furnace: 1 Peter, Part 1. Scripture: 1 Peter 1:6-9. Today's podcast is brought to you by Gospel in Life, the site for all sermons, books, study guides and resources from Timothy Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you've enjoyed listening to this podcast and would like to support the ongoing efforts of this ministry, you can do so by visiting https://gospelinlife.com/give and making a one-time or recurring donation.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Each year, Gospel and Life offers a daily devotional during the season of Lent, the 40 days from Ash Wednesday through Good Friday.
0:10.1	You can sign up to receive these daily devotionals by email at gospelandlife.com slash lent.
0:15.8	That's gospelonlife.com slash Lent.
0:18.6	Now here's Dr. Keller with today's teaching.
0:27.5	Thank you. life.com slash lent. Now here's Dr. Keller with today's teaching. Let's take a look at we're going through the book of First Peter. And today we get to
0:32.9	chapter 1, verse 6, 7, 8, 9. Let me read it to you.
0:39.0	I'm just going to cover it.
0:42.1	We're going through the book of 1st Peter consecutively.
0:50.6	And I mentioned before that the theme of Peter, the whole book of 1st Peter, is really about how a Christian can face troubles and suffering in such a way that it turns
0:56.6	you or me into something splendid instead of crushing us. And let me just show you that this
1:03.5	passage actually gets into the heart of the teaching of First Peter. Chapter 1, verse 6 to 9.
1:11.9	In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief
1:17.3	in all kinds of trials.
1:21.5	These have come so that your faith of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined
1:26.4	by fire, may be proved genuine
1:28.5	and may result in praise, glory, and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Though you have not seen
1:34.4	him, you love him. And even though you do not now see him, you believe in him and are filled
1:40.5	with an inexpressible and glorious joy. For you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
1:49.5	This is God's word.
1:54.3	As we said before, the great theme of Peter,
1:59.2	you can actually see in verse 11 of this chapter. In verse 11, it says,
2:05.0	it just refers to the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. And that's,
	...

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