Got Questions? 4-16-18
Hey guys! Welcome to "Got Questions," the Spiritual Life Article for this year. I am Hudson Roseboom, your NSA Spiritual Life Leader. In this article I will answer any of your questions about the Bible, God, or the Christian faith.
Why does God allow bad things to happen to "good" people?[edit | edit source]
This is one of the hardest questions a Christian can ask himself about God and his character. My answer won't be perfect, but I will give it my best shot.
I would like to start by pointing out the fact that God is eternal, infinite, omniscient, omnipresent, and omnipotent. Humans, on the other hand, are not. Why should we, as humans, expect to be able to fully understand the character of an infinite God? The book of Job deals with this problem. After God allowed Satan to take everything away from him, Job responds in worship, "The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; Blessed be the name of the LORD." Job did not understand what was going on, but he knew that God was good, and he trusted him. Ultimately, this is should be our response toward suffering.
Second, the reason I put good in quotations for the title of this article was because the Biblical answer to this questions would be that there are no good people in the world. Romans 3:10 states this very clearly, "There is no one righteous; no, not one." Every single human being on the planet deserves to be thrown in Hell at this very moment. The fact that we are alive is a gift of God, flowing from his grace and mercy. Even the most terrible suffering on this earth is merciful compared to what we deserve.
Having said this, you could wonder why non-Christians seem to have such an easy life, and Christians seem to have so much suffering. In order to answer this, I want to start by reminding you of what Jesus said. "In this world you will have tribulation..." (John 16:33). Jesus told us to expect suffering and persecution. In fact, he taught that it was sign of true faith. The answer to our question - why does suffering occur - is answered in the second part of John 16:33: "... But take heart; I have overcome the world." Jesus has overcome what we are going through and we can have hope in this fact. When you endure suffering, trust that God is in control and that he has a plan.
One of my favorite passages speaking of suffering commands us to rejoice in it. "More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us." (Romans 5:3-5). As I think about this passage it reminds me of an illustration I once heard.
Imagine that you struggle with patience. You always seem to get mad when someone annoys you. If you were never tested, you would never get better. If your siblings never annoyed you, you would never learn how to be patient with them. God uses suffering in order to develop our character. Romans 5 clearly states that suffering builds character. When you are going through trials, remember that God is working in you to make you more like his Son. This is the the process of sanctification and it demonstrates God's work in our lives.
Matthew 5:10-12 10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you."
Sources:
https://www.gotquestions.org/bad-things-good-people.
html https://www.biblegateway.com
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Have a great month!
Your friend in Christ,
Hudson Roseboom, SLL