God allows struggle and difficult times because we are sinners and we all come short of the glory of God. In a universe with no ultimate standard of good, there could be no "good, better, and best.". The suffering we experience we see as too harmful, the damage too extreme, to be repaired much less be used for something good. Man stayed awake by day and slept at night, and had a full day to rest at the end of the week. But the creatures are not happy. Although we cannot grasp the master plan of the universe, which allows for so much evil and pain (the Why? (John 17), Thats My King! So, what do we know about why does God allow suffering? Reconciling how a good and loving God could allow such pain in their lives (or someone close) is difficult. We are finite beings trying to grasp at an infinite God. Acts of God: Why Does God Allow So Much Pain? 52:13-53:12). He will give us the comfort, peace, patience and strength we need. These are questions central to the Christian faith, and questions that have not gone unexplored in the cannon of Christian philosophy. Moral evil is the immorality and pain and suffering and tragedy that come because we choose to be selfish, arrogant, uncaring, hateful and abusive. Let me offer three answers: 1) To let us see the gravity of our choices. So, why does God allow pain? Pain is a blessing. 10 To find out why God allows suffering, we need to think back to the time when suffering began. And our actions brought evil and suffering into the world. There is no joy unmixed with sorrow in this world for people who care about others.". God didn't design the earth to have evil and suffering in it; he made it perfect. God enters into our suffering in his pursuit of us. to learn more. If we seek God, He is faithful and He will provide. Jesus suffered and died for us on the cross, but God raised Him from the dead. "Sorrowful yet always rejoicing.". With God allowing the Holocaust do you think another Holocaust will ever happen? Paul the sufferer turns his pain into a Christ-exalting experience by showing Christ's all-sufficiency in his weakness. Their minds were created to be governed by communion with God through the power of the Holy Spirit. When God created everything, He said it was all "good." If you touch a hot stove your body reacts with pain that causes you to quickly move your hand. How has pain caused growth in your life? Pain is a form of physical suffering that may be the result of injury, illness, genetics, or something else. The closest he ever came was when he said, Show me why You contend with me (Job 10:2). One of our cultural values is freedom. The meaning of this verse makes it clear that pain and suffering have a way of bringing our strengths and weaknesses to the surface. While God grows our faith through pain, it is not His foremost reason for allowing us to hurt. A headache might tell you that you are dehydrated. He can bring good out of evil. My guess is that what caused the most growth in your life was some kind of pain. There is a mystery as to why He put people on this earth. Let me offer three answers: 1) To let us see the gravity of our choices God didn't stop Adam from sinning (see Genesis 3:1-9 in context). Trying to be more like Jesus each day. Thus insisting to be at the center. Those who have been abused wear scars that seemingly never heal. What Im about to say will be of little, or maybe no, help/comfort to those currently suffering. Theres also pain and suffering that occurs from the consequences of our sin or when we are a victim of anothers sinful actions. Ground yourself in these Bible-based truths Billy Graham once shared. What is needed is an experience of deliverance from affliction, comfort in grief and restoration in brokenness. Because tragedy happened to you, it gives you a greater sense of oneness with others who experience tragedy. C.S. to learn more. Twice in the verse below Paul states that the reason for his thorn in the flesh was to keep him from becoming conceited. God Has Experienced Suffering and Understands Your Pain God's Will and Human Suffering A World Without Suffering God's Plan to End Suffering God Cares About Your Suffering Jesus Shows How Much God Cares God Cares About Suffering: Big or Small How God Shows His Goodness Amid Suffering You Can Turn to God in Your Suffering Suffering as a Christian In John 15:20 Jesus promises his followers that others will cause them pain. Feeling pain leads many people to have compassion toward others who are having the same experience. Failing to recognize or master these things often creates suffering for others. But hopefully this has helped you understand why suffering exists and Gods response to our pain. Here are five biblical reasons why God allows suffering. God uses pain to conform us more into the image of his Son. I think the reason so many of us struggle with this question of suffering is that we cant trust God. As a spiritual advice columnist, I am frequently asked why God allows suffering. Billy Graham The more acutely we see our need, the more likely we are to seek His face. What Happens When You Come to the End of Yourself? This is at no cost to you and helps keep Rethink up and running. Weve established why pain and suffering exists, but we also know that God has the power to stop pain and suffering. When Satan led Adam and Eve into disobeying Jehovah, an important question was raised. Lets dive into the question, Why does God allow suffering? And I get that. The point Im trying to make is that until we put God at the center, we will struggle with this question of why suffering exists. Thats what faith demands, believing in advance what will only make sense in reverse. Grief causes ones life to halt and become devoid of meaning. We can only see whats right in front of us. The loss of mystery Our culture lost something vital through the Enlightenment, and that is a love of mystery, or the acceptance of concepts that are difficult to understand or explain. Consider what God told Paul when he was in pain: "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." Yes, the innocent suffer (see Job 1-2 ), but God can redeem that suffering. Find hope, peace, and security today. to learn more. We too have played the role of sinner, harming others with the choices we make. Want articles like this one delivered straight to your email? But God isnt finished yet. Thats why its so important to not run away from failures, challenges, difficulties, and pain so fast. Thanks to us, the moral . Until we understand that there are things we will not see this side of heaven, this question will cause us to stumble. In doing so they broke the perfect communion that they had with God and plunged the world into sin and darkness. Why is He allowing these bad things to happen to me? But pain isnt our enemy. Thus God had to give us the ability to chose, He had to give us free will. Sometimes pain increases a persons dependence on God, leads them to draw near to him more, and causes them to study the Bible and pray more. Have you ever heard the question, If God is love (good) and is all-powerful why doesnt He just get rid of suffering? Writer. Thats why its imperative that when we are going through a time of trial and suffering that we remember how much God loves us. He knows it will bring little comfort. These answers dont comfort and often arent even true. Im not saying every time you stub your toe you become a better person. Do Gods children experience pain? Some of the most faithful believers in the Bible experienced pain. Not by trying to produce heaven on earth but by recognizing that for the Christian the best is yet to be.. Its through pain that we will grow and develop into who God has created us to be. Yet, God will carry us through some of the darkest seasons of our lives to show His incredible love for us. This is not an extensive list, rather the top four things I think we should recognize. Our loving and merciful God has a perfect plan to use that suffering to accomplish His threefold purpose. So even in the sorrow you feel right now, you can look forward with hope to the fulfillment of this plan. God Loves Me. Paul points to this mindset in 1 Corinthians 13:12. That way they can benefit from it as you have. It's an unavoidable chance you take if you want to experience love. Rather, Satan questioned Jehovah's right to rule. Please see his About page for details. Local: 704-401-2432 We have all been the victims of the evil choices of others. But before you decide just consider that God didnt spare Himself, He entered into suffering Himself. Jesus said, "In this world you will have trouble" ( John 16:33 ). Again, let me reiterate Im not talking about suffering. What significance do colors have in the Bible? This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. If there was no sin in the world there would be no suffering. Well, not so fasttheres a problem with that question. God is restoring creation to His original design. Because He allows us to have free choiceto be humans and not preprogrammed robots. To understand what I mean, consider four verses from the Hebrew Bible. DISCLOSURE: This post may contain affliliate links, meaning I get a small commission if you decide to make a purchase through my links. Instead, he responds with, Im with you. Pain isnt something we need to get rid of. The logic being: If God is all powerful, then He cannot be loving and allow human suffering, because a loving God would not tolerate pain. So why is there suffering if God didnt create it? Let me explain. There is life and health, and there is disease and death. While the Bible has valuable things to say on the topic of suffering, it doesnt directly answer our question. 1: If God won't allow suffering, we will lose our FREE WILL. Use PayPal or a Credit Card for safe, secure giving. While our natural reaction to pain is to avoid it, get rid of it, or numb it; we need to realize that God allows pain. question), we can nevertheless respond in two important ways. This was a mission destined to have failure in it. 1. The gift of free will was given to the first human parents, Adam and Eve. Jesus said, for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me (Matthew 25:35-36). But with time and it may take us a long time we need to get to the place where we stop asking why and ask what. In Second Corinthians we read: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. Of course, its not just physical pain that brings about suffering. Being in perfect communion with God they had everything they needed to trust God in all things, but sadly they chose to disobey God and eat of the forbidden fruit. Is it possible that He using pain for our good? Why does God allow suffering and evil? Jesus prayed that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You (John 17:21). In Matthew 16:24-26 Jesus tells his followers to pick up their cross. For the purposes of this article, we should not mix the two. God took the initiative in giving His Son, Jesus Christ. We can trust in His goodness even in the midst of our suffering. But there are pains that cause us to grow. Those are two very different responses. Christians experience pain for the purposes of chastisement. Suffering holds a message of comfort. Pastor. Have You Read Jesus Last Will and Testament? In this article on what of focus on our response to pain and how its a good thing. Philip Yancey in The Question that Never Goes Awa, What Is Sin? We are the creators of suffering. Solicitation Disclosure Statement The Bible teaches that Satan is the author of sin. Reasons for Hope* Jesus, Yes, send me answers to interesting and challenging questions about Jesus and the Bible. We should not waste the trials in this life, but rather use them as an opportunity to turn to the Lord and draw close to Him in trusting faith, remembering that the goodness of God endures continually (Psalm 52:1b) and His mercies are new every morninggreat is His faithfulness. I want to forgive you. Here are two possible answers: It's God's job to keep human beings happy, comfortable and pain-free. "Savior" is a vital name of Christ for dealing with the . Do Gods children experience pain? He uses it to test our faith, discipline us, and to grow our character. 3 Reasons Why God Allows Pain And Failure In Our Lives, Virginia Gov. There is joy and there is misery. We, like Cain must battle our fear, insecurity, shame, resentment and anger. When you see someone who is clearly suffering but can still say: God is with Me. The Bible actually does the opposite, it promises that we will experience pain in this life. This verse doesnt mean that God wont give you more than you can handle. In other words, Christians still sin. Keep reading to explore the answers to these questions and many others. First, it should be one of worship. Adam and Eves bodies were created to be perfect in all ways no illness or injury. The Bible spends much its time reminding us that our suffering is not meaningless, there is hope. Human experience also argues against this false idea, as followers of Christ suffer at the same rate as non-believers. The problem is our culture sees pain as the enemy. Because of this, some people will get angry with God, believing He did nothing to stop the sin that unfolded. It can continue for weeks, months, even years. Then Jesus dies on the cross, and in the mystery of faith, all the junk of the world, all the junk that's in our hearts, all the junk that's in our relationships, all of that junk dies with him. What faith demands, believing in advance what will only make sense in reverse the ability to chose, is... 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