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More reasons to
believe in a God who allows suffering
Freedom of choice is at
the heart of what it means to be human, and that a world without
choice would be worse than a world without pain. A world populated
by people who could make wrong choices without feeling the
consequences.
Pain often serves a
purpose. If one never experienced pain, the sick wouldn't go to
a doctor. Or a child would never learn danger. Suffering often
occurs because of others and the pain resulting can test our
character. Gold and silver are refined by fire, and coal
needs time and pressure to become a diamond, likewise we, by
enduring the pressure and heat of circumstances, find that our
character is strengthened.
If death is the end of
everything, then a life filled with suffering isn't fair, but this
life is not all we have to live for. The most famous sufferer of all
time was a man named Job. He concluded that if God had the power and
wisdom to create this physical universe, there was reason to trust
that same God in times of suffering.
No one has suffered more
than God. No one has so continuously grieved over the pain of
humanity. No one has suffered like the Jesus who paid for our sin by
allowing himself to be crucified, because he loved us so much he
paid the penalty for our sin. It is this God who, in drawing us to
Himself, asks us to trust Him when we are suffering and when our own
loved ones cry out in our presence.
No one would choose pain
and suffering. But when there is no choice, there remains some
consolation. Natural disasters and times of crisis have a way of
bringing us together. Hurricanes, fires, earthquakes, riots,
illnesses, and accidents all have a way of bringing us to our
senses. Suddenly we remember our own mortality and that people are
more important than things. We remember that we do need one another
and that, above all, we need God. Each time we discover God's
comfort in our own suffering, our capacity to help others is
increased. This is what the apostle Paul had in mind when he wrote,
"Praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!
The Father is a merciful God, who always gives us
comfort. He comforts us when we are in
trouble, so that we can share that same comfort with others in
trouble." (2Corinthians
1:3-4)
This truth is best seen
in the many examples of the Bible. Through Job's suffering we see a
man who not only came to a deeper understanding of God but who also
became a source of encouragement for people in every generation to
follow. Through the rejection, betrayal, enslavement, and wrongful
imprisonment of a man named Joseph, we see someone who eventually
was able to say to those who had hurt him, "You meant evil
against me; but God meant it for good" (Genesis 50:20)
You're not alone if the
unfairness and suffering of life makes you think that God does not
care for you. Jesus suffered and was called by the prophet
Isaiah, "A man of sorrows and acquainted with
grief" (Isaiah 53:3). He was beaten, long thorns
pressed into his brow, nails were hammered through his hands and
feet, his side was pierced by a sword. Crucifixion was the
most painful of deaths. Jesus Christ suffering was
not for his sins but for ours, in order to give us the freedom to
choose. "Christ never sinned! But God treated
him as a sinner, so that Christ could make us acceptable to
God." (2 Corinthians 5:21). "Jesus who
bare our sins in his own body on the cross." (1 Peter
2:24)
When you understand the reason for
Jesus' suffering, keep in mind that the Bible says Christ died to
pay the price for your sins, and that all those who believe in their
heart that God has raised Jesus from the dead will find salvation. "So you will be
saved, if you honestly say, "Jesus is Lord," and if you believe with
all your heart that God raised him from death." (Romans
10:9)
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