The Bible is full of stories of failure and promises of suffering. In his letter to the Philippians, Paul talks about advancing the gospel. He says that “what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ” (Philippians 1:12-13). He goes on to say that to live is Christ and to die is gain. Paul then encourages them by saying, “For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake, engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had and now hear that I still have” (vs. 29-30).
Simon Sinek, a famous organizational consultant, says that successful people have failed multiple times, often to the point of “hitting zero” or falling close to it. He argues that failure is not an endpoint but a crucial part of the journey, providing the most important lessons and driving the innovation that leads to success. The key is not to avoid failure, but to learn from it by getting back up and trying again. The Bible agrees. Paul says we “rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope” (Romans 5:3-4).
Over and over again the Bible promises suffering. James says to consider it pure joy when we face trials of many kinds, because the testing of our faith produces perseverance. When we face trials, failures are bound to happen. Moses murdered someone. Peter denied Christ. David was an adulterer. Paul persecuted Christians to the point of death. It was those failures and their suffering that led to endurance, perseverance, character, and hope. Failure is not the endpoint but a crucial part of the journey.
