How can a loving God allow people to suffer?
Dec 3, 2009
The Case for Grace - part eleven in a study of the book of Romans
Mike Gaudet
If God is all-powerful, He could do something about suffering.
If God is all-loving, He would do something about suffering . . . wouldn’t He?
“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.” Romans 5:1-5 (NIV)
When we have faith in Him, God lovingly removes our suffering . . . right? Well, there’s “good” news and “bad” news.
First the “good” news; faith in Christ does connect us to God . . . eternally.
When we transfer our trust from what we do for God to what God did for us, God declares that we are “justified.” To be justified means to be declared righteous . . . to be credited with clearing the bar of His righteous standard.
You don’t need to worry about having to measure up to God’s standard when you place your faith in what Christ did for you. God has already decided that you cleared the bar. God’s acceptance of you is not a pending decision. It is a foregone conclusion!
God has determined that faith in Christ is the key into His presence. God will never shut the door to those who come to Him on the basis of what Christ has done. We have “peace with God” and “access by faith” into His presence because of this faith. This is why “we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.”
Now for the “bad” news; faith in Christ also connects us to suffering . . . temporarily.
Even though we have peace with God, we are told to “rejoice in our sufferings.”
How in the world can we rejoice in sufferings? I can think of a lot of responses to suffering that come naturally. “Rejoicing” is definitely not one of them!
God uses suffering to develop a greater capacity to understand and experience His love. This is why we are to rejoice.
Suffering “produces perseverance.” Perseverance is endurance- the capacity to continue to walk with God when life is stormy. Faith that can only live in the climate of “sun and fun” is not deep enough to draw deeply from the love of God.
Perseverance produces “character.” Character is evidence - the suffering-certified proof that faith is deep enough to access the love of God. God’s love is the only fuel that can keep the motor of faith running when the winds of adversity blow.
Character produces “hope.” Hope is assurance - the deep sense of confidence that comes when faith survives the “wilderness.”
We come into a fuller appreciation of God’s love in the context of sufferings. God “has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit.” A tree that is exposed to harsh conditions drives its roots deeper into the soil in order to stabilize itself. The same is true of our faith and God’s love. When it comes to experiencing God’s love, the roots of our faith are driven deeper into God’s love when we are exposed to harsh conditions.
If you are enduring difficulties in your home, your work, your life, it is not because you don’t have enough faith or because you did something wrong or because God doesn’t love you. He does love you! Suffering is the context in which His love is experienced most deeply. God is not invested in removing suffering . . . not yet, anyway. We will experience times of difficulty this side of eternity. Faith in God enables us to endure suffering, not eliminate it.
How does God want us to relate to Him in the midst of suffering?
God does not ask us to pretend that we don’t have pain. He does not ask us to pretend that we like what we are going through.
This is hypocrisy.
God asks us to believe in His love in the midst of pain. He asks us to wait patiently for the time when, “There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain” Revelation 21:4
This is faith.