A Question From a Friend
Several days ago I received a message from a friend. It is an often asked question that all of us, those of faith and those not, ask at one time or another in their lives. The message posed the following, “…what do you say to a friend when she says that everything good and bad must come from Him (God) and why would he allow my mom to be sick and die? If He (God) is such a just and wonderful, all knowing God why would he allow bad things to happen to good people?…”
I have been praying, pondering and reading about this question, this is not the first time it has come up over the years and here again after recently reading the Book of Job. This question does not get discussed enough, if at all, in the Church (when I say Church I am referencing the body of Christ, which is made up of the people who belong to Him regardless if they are a leader or a member of the congregation). This question is one of the oldest questions that has been asked by humankind of their creator since time began; it is a universal question. It has been written about by many different men and women around the world.
Having a technical career background, I am a firm believer that if you want answers then you must go to the source. In technological speak you go to the “system of record” that maintains the original data undisturbed and in its proper form. In this case after reading many other sources that tackle this question I went to the Bible (aka “system of record”), specifically the book of Job in the Old Testament. Job, a faithful man, a father, husband, and livestock owner, expresses the pain, anger, frustration and confusion that he experienced through terrible suffering. It is a powerful and poignant book that discusses the question; why does an all knowing, ever present just God allow bad things to happen to good people and good things to happen to evil people?
The book of Job provides for us a theological and philosophical “deep dive” into this question through the actions and discussions that occurred between Job, his friends and culminates into God’s direct response to Job and ultimate blessing. Job’s integrity, insights and awareness of suffering are laid out in the book for all of us to benefit from in its reading. At the end of the book of Job I found that I did not have the answer to why God allows the good to suffer and the bad to flourish. I also do not want to sound like Bildad who gave excessive and sanctimonious commentary on why God allows suffering. I think Job’s sarcastic response to Bildad in Job Chapter 26 verse 3 speaks to the nonsense of what I have heard from many others who have an opinion on this question, “How you have enlightened my stupidity! What wise advice you have offered!”
What I have learned is that I cannot see what God sees, I do not have his point view, because his view is from the vantage point of an all knowing, ever present supreme being. I am reminded that this is similar, in a sense, to the way I fail to love others as he loves me. If I believe in Him and if I believe He is a just and loving God then it leads me to also believe that all things come according to His will and that what I experience, suffering or otherwise, is for my good and quite possibly for the benefit of others as well.
The answer to this powerful question is one that I do not think I will ever fully understand as to why God allows what He does to happen. I simply accept it as a matter of faith and trust in God that He will ultimately settle all accounts, correct every wrong and reward those who have placed their faith and trust in our Lord and Savior Jesus, His Son, for our salvation, and it will be in His time not mine. I think it is pointless to try to understand or know the why, as Zophar said in Job Chapter 11 verse 7, “Can you fathom the mysteries of God? Can you probe the limits of the Almighty?” Instead I will focus on doing as he asks me to do…trust in Him and love Him. Whatever trials I go through in this life I am convinced they are for my good and I will be richer for it, than I would have been had I never suffered them. I tell my children “nothing worthwhile is easy…” and perhaps I should listen to my own words, because being a follower of Christ is not easy.
Peace in Christ be with you,
Phillip Allen