One of the greatest challenges in Christianity has to do with tragedies and unfair life circumstances. Why does a six month old baby die, or why is a child born with a life altering disease? Why does a mother die before raising her children? While preparing this message I have been contacted by family members to officiate at the funeral for one of our members. He was simply walking home from the store and an unidentified person shot and killed him, for no apparent reason. The list is endless of seemingly unfair and unanswerable questions. This question has probably created more atheists than any other. While the answer to this question is not simple, there are some indicators in God’s Word that talk about some of life’s circumstances.

Our answer to this question will tell us much about our ability to trust God. Many have resisted making a commitment to God, because of their views on this subject. Let me tell you up front, no one knows for sure why a Christian or non-Christian has to go through pain and suffering. Humanity has such limited knowledge that the only thing we really know is that our deepest parts scream that it’s not right.

Perspective can help us as we wrestle with this question. Perspective means a point of view after viewing things or events in their true relationship to one another. Perspective means getting a panoramic view of things and seeing how all the different smaller scenes create one large panorama. If life were simple 60-80 years on this earth, then the question would not make sense. But when we view life as God tells us, this earthly life is simply part an eternal journey. This life is a comparatively short transitional period leading to eternity, and our time here is a training period. A time where the quality of our character is displayed and assessed by the amount of compassion we show to others, in order that we are judged fairly on judgment day. The quality of compassion in a person’s character shows up much more clearly when some of those around them are suffering.

The perspective of only seeing things with a physical earthly view puts great limitations on a person’s understanding of God (Romans 8:18).

God sees the beginning from the end; He knows the whole picture. The worst physical circumstances of suffering may lead to physical death. But when a Christian gets sick if God does not heal them on earth the only thing that can happen is that their body dies and they go to heaven. Christians always get healed, either here on earth or in a far better place (I Corinthians 15:55). Without truly believing this life would definitely seem unfair.

Most Christians have no real answer to this question about pain and feel unable to defend the goodness of God when questioned, as if God needs us to defend Him.

As Christians, we hold these two truths about God dearly, but they seem to add to the dilemma:

1. God is good.
2. God is all powerful and able to do anything.

If these are true, and we know they are, then why the unfair happenings? Why doesn’t God eliminate all the pain and suffering?

Part of the dilemma is somewhat easier to accept than other areas. We know as long as people do bad or evil things, others can be hurt. If a drunk driver hits your car on your way home you and possibly your family would suffer. As long as people make mistakes, there will be suffering. We aren’t supposed to like suffering. We weren’t created to suffer. We were created to have joy. Yet we do suffer, from first heartbeat to last. This is the effect of being part of a broken, sinful world. It is part of being alive. But why?

Decent people will often suffer, and those who do terrible evils will often prosper. Jesus told us the rain falls on the just and the unjust alike (Matthew 5:45). This question of seemingly unfairness has been the subject of much discussion throughout history and frequently spoken of in the Bible.

The “problem of pain,” as C.S. Lewis, once called it is atheism’s most potent weapon against the Christian faith. They make one of two claims about God.

1. Either He is not a God of love and is indifferent to human suffering.
2. He is not a God of power and is therefore helpless to do anything about it.
Suffering is not a problem for all religions. However, it is for Christianity because we believe God is both good and all powerful.

We as God’s creation do not establish the standards of what is right. Only the Creator of all can do that (Romans 9:20).

We need to settle it, in our minds and hearts, whether we understand it or not, that whatever God does is, by definition, right (Genesis 18:25).

There is really no such thing as the innocent suffering. (Romans 3:23) In Romans we realize we are all guilty, even babies are sinners by nature or poses original sin.

This entire world is now under God’s curse (Genesis 3:17, Romans 8:21-22) and will continue to be until we occupy a new heaven and a new earth.

Why doesn’t God just eliminate pain and evil?

Understanding why God allows evil and its resultant suffering requires a fundamental understanding of one of God’s greatest gift which is a free will.

Some Biblical Reasons for all The Pain

The gift of a free will, or freedom of choice. This freedom is necessary to establish righteous character (Deuteronomy 30:15-19). For free choice to operate, it’s obvious that evil has to have the possibility of existing. Choosing to obey God and learning to love others when we have the freedom to do otherwise is vital for the future God has planned for us. Of all of God’s creation it is only man that has the capacity for advanced decision making abilities. God gives us the ability to choose right or wrong. He encourages us to choose right (Deuteronomy 28:2). There are blessings for choosing right and curses for choosing wrong.

God has often tried to impress on man the crucial principle that every effect has a cause. But we have difficulty grasping this truth, so we continue to suffer the debilitating effects of our transgressions.

Sir Isaac Newton brought us the law of relativity, which states when an object is in motion “Every action has an opposite and equal reaction”. We can believe this but do not understand when our bad actions in life bring about bad results.

Actions yield consequences. (Galatians 6:6-7, Proverbs 22:8)

Decisions have consequences. Many forms of suffering are simply the inevitable consequences of personal decisions. For example, often poverty can be traced to individual decisions. Students drop out of school, cutting short their education and end up in a life of difficulty finding jobs, low wages and low self-esteem. Many teenagers become sexually active giving birth at young ages with no father in the picture, and then these children are much more likely to use drugs, get in trouble, drop out of school etc.

Many people cut short their lives because of health issues. We eat poorly, exercise little, and consume harmful substances which affect our health and well being.

This world is not the way God created it, but it is the result of sin, disease, sickness and crime. There was a time on this earth when suffering and sorrow did not exist. When God first created man upon the earth, everything was perfect. It was God’s plan for man to live in peace and harmony never having to experience sorrow. After Adam sinned everything changed (Genesis 3). The laws of nature treat everyone the same. If you come in contact with a person with a contagious disease, you run the risk of catching it. The laws of nature do not make exceptions for nice people. Bonnie and I recently visited our daughter in Florida and while working in her yard I picked up a good amount of poison ivy and ended up in the clinic. This planet is not a safe place.

Sometimes people suffer for the salvation of the lost. Watching others go through tragedies can actually bring some people to Christ. When Lazarus was sick Jesus knew it but did not come to him till he was dead. The Bible tells us it was because of his death that many came to Christ (John 12:11).

This can only be understood when you view life the way God wants us to. For most people a “good life” means that they make a comfortable living, enjoy good health, and then die peacefully at age 80. To some extent that is true. But, if we have a soul and there is such a thing as eternity, then that changes the picture entirely. Eighty years in the face of eternity is not such a big deal. We now see life through a glass darkly the Bible tells us, God sees eternity. That simply means we can’t always understand why life turns out the way it does, that is why we need to trust the one who has the panoramic view of our lives. We only see the close up shots. God plans life a little farther out than we do! He sees farther than 80 years ahead, seeing He has always existed and will always be.

In the movie “Soul Surfer”, a true story about Bethany Hamilton, a Christian, had her arm bitten off by a shark. As she cried out to God for the answer why, God showed her how thousands of people heard of her determination and wanted to go on with life because she did. (Soul Surfer promo 2:14)

Sometimes the suffering and pain of unsaved men is used by the Holy Spirit to cause them to realize their need of salvation. Suffering can sometimes make people want to search for God, and from a Christian perspective, if that inspires them to follow Him and they end up in heaven because of it, then ultimately, it worked out for good (2 Corinthians 4:16-17).

Pain and suffering that Christians go through should also be the means of developing a stronger dependence on God and a more Christ-like character (Hebrews 12:11). It can actually make our lives more fruitful (John 15:2). Sometimes what we perceive as punishment is really an opportunity for growth. We learn more about God during these times than any other time in our lives. As the psalmist tells us “Yea though I walk through the shadow of death the Lord is with me”. We grow when we have to extend ourselves. During the dry seasons plants have to grow their roots deeper to get the water and nutrients, those roots make that plant much stronger and resistant to adversity.

God can allow suffering in our lives to test our obedience and faithfulness. Often God has plans for our lives but can’t use us until we have proven ourselves faithful and trustworthy. Before we can be used for His glory, we need to be faithful. Before God could use Abraham as the father of the faith, Abraham had to prove he was trustworthy. He had to offer his only son on the altar in obedience to God. God did not want Abraham to kill his son; He just wanted to see if he would do it (Genesis 22:1-2). Joseph had to go through years of being thrown into a pit, then after being falsely accused of a crime, thrown into jail before God could trust him to be a part of saving the known world from a great famine (Genesis 37-50). Jonah had to spend three days in the belly of a whale before God could use him to save an entire city. Jesus had to suffer and die to save the entire world.

Seeing people less fortunate and suffering can give people a desire to dedicate their lives to helping others, or simply to change their attitude. After pioneering Old Town, Bonnie and I witnessed many people who were suffering financially and not having an adequate food supply or clothing which led us to begin a simple mobile soup kitchen, which has expanded greatly over the years.

Suffering can sometimes be discipline, purifying a person. The Bible tells us that God can actually cause painful events to happen in people’s lives sometimes in order to purify them. (Hebrews 12: 5-11)

Much of the suffering in the world would be eliminated if people followed Biblical instructions. That would include the suffering caused by greed/profiteering, domestic violence, unwanted pre-marital pregnancy, incest, murder, other crime and excessive alcohol use, as well as the suffering caused by sexually transmitted diseases and many of the other diseases that have plagued humanity.

It may be that in God’s foreknowledge He knows that if a person were left on the earth they would suffer more pain, hurt and sorrow. Or God may know the person can’t handle the coming problems or temptation and trials and may take them out to spare them. Children go straight to Heaven until they reach the point of understanding God’s presence and reject Him by doing their own thing. Even though God gives us free will to choose or reject Him, He can see into our future and knows who on this earth will accept Him. He also knows that some people will face a life of pain, suffering and trials through choices made for them or by them. For some children possibly God rescues them to Heaven before their heart hardens against Him under the influence of the world. For others perhaps He rescues them from a life of pain and trauma which is coming, but which they can’t possibly see.

Suffering can cause joy to be more intensified. Someone who’s had a scare with death may think of life as more precious and so take more delight in it than someone who’s always taken it for granted. The fictitious story of Scrooge gives us a picture of this principle. He was a stingy, mean old rich man until introduced to his mortality and then he changed his life. While the story may not be true the principle has happened to countless people who have had a life altering event happen in their lives.

Another reason God allows suffering is so that we can reveal God’s loving compassion to others by being a vessel of His compassion, through meeting the needs of others. If people did not have any needs then there could not be any demonstrations of compassion. If one of the characteristics God wants us to develop and possess for His future Kingdom then we need to have opportunities to show and develop this compassion.

God sometimes allows us to endure trials, tribulations, and sufferings so that we can have empathy with other people going through the same (2 Corinthians 1:3-5NIV). We can truly understand their feelings. If Christians never faced pain and sorrow we would not be able to help others going through difficulties because we couldn’t relate to them. In the movie “Courageous” the key actor lost his 9 year old daughter when a drunk driver killed her. After he went through the grieving process he became a better father and was able to help many other men become a better father (Courageous 1:56:23-2:01:27).

God sometimes brings situations in our lives that cause us to seek Him; this is so that we can receive the blessings of seeking Him (2 Chronicles 7:13-14). God allows or causes circumstances in our lives when we pull away from Him to draw us back (Psalms 78:34-35). It is when God brings about tribulation upon a people that they then lose their pride, pray, and seek the face of God, turning their faces away from everything else to face God.

Some believers will go through trials to refine them (Daniel 11:35 NKJV).

God wants us to be totally dependent upon Him, and suffering seems to bring us to that point.

God will also use suffering to teach us patience. Romans 5:3 tells us the “tribulation worketh patience”.

Sometimes, however, it’s best not to look for explanations for suffering. They won’t necessarily be found easily. The Bible says in Deuteronomy 29:29 “The secret things belong to God”, there are many times in life we will not know why, we will just need to trust God and go on with life. Sometimes, any positive effects it may have may not become apparent till years later. I have seen a lot of suffering over the years, and it seems to me that the key is “attitude”. How people deal with it depends on what attitude they have. I have seen people whose attitude were of anger or hurt to such an extent that they never got beyond a particular event-which then became the defining moment of their lives.

For some, an unfair or terrible life event seems to be their ticket to dismiss God and never revisit Him or Church again in their lives. While they may never find the reason for the unfair event, surely running from God will pay untold devastation in their lives now and eternity. Often, over time, these people have built a wall of separation between them and God. Over the years the wall is reinforced and their hearts so heard it would take a jack hammer to open them up to God. I realize the Holy Spirit convicts and draws us to Christ, but our will is still involved.

When Christians see their suffering from the point of view of eternity, it can seem less significant (Romans 8:16-18).

The person in the Bible who suffered more than anyone was Job. Job learned much through his suffering, he lost his children, wealth, health and prestige. Even at the end of his suffering he never knew why it all took place but he did learn much about God. Job’s knowledge of God caused him to have total faith in God, no matter how bad his temporary suffering was. Job stated “Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him” (Job13:15).

Trust the One who is for you and will help you through the tragedies of life, even though you don’t have the answer, “why”.

In Summary:

1. Suffering is a necessary part of the Christian life. This is part of our experience as we travel from here to eternity. You may think you would only want pleasure but you wouldn’t enjoy it. I learned in the U.S. Marines, “No pain, no gain”.
2. God uses our present suffering to prepare us for future glory (Romans 8:18-27). In the Marine Corps “Boot Camp” was our basic training, it lasted four months. As Christians, “Life” is our basic training and it prepares us for eternity. God is using everything in your life to prepare you for future glory. In the life to come all the pain and suffering won’t even be remembered.
3. Our suffering can’t separate us from the love of God. God loves you as much in the valley as He does on the mountain top. Job’s suffering took many things away from him, but not the love of God. No matter what you go through God loves you and will never leave you. Once we see His face all this will be forgotten, but until then our Trust in Him is what will carry us through the dark times in this life.