QUESTION:
IF GOD IS IN CONTROL AND CAN DO ALL THINGS, WHY DOESN’T HE STOP THE
SUFFERING OF THE RIGHTEOUS?
God is absolutely in control, and He can do all things. And just because He CAN, doesn’t mean He does.
God waits patiently for His children to surrender their lives to Him because He loves us. And in His waiting, He offers us a choice.
An example of this choice is seen in Joshua’s final instructions to the Israelites before he died.
“And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:15
The choice that we make doesn’t determine if we will suffer on this earth, because suffering is an inevitable aspect of the fallen world. Instead, our answer determines something far more important...
if we will suffer for all of eternity.
Christians don’t suffer without hope. We know that while we may endure trials here, there will come a day when “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed
away.” (Rev. 21:4)
In this place, The New Heavens and The New Earth, there will be no more pain or sorrow, instead, it will be here where the ones that have trusted Christ as their personal Lord and Savior, will be in the presence of God in perfection.
However, for the unbelievers, there is not only suffering here but forever in eternity. On Judgment Day “if anyone's name was not found written in the Book of Life, he was thrown into
the lake of fire.” (Rev. 20:15)
So why does God not stop the suffering of the righteous?
He does –one day he absolutely will for all of the Christians.
The truth is that maybe we should change the question from "Why are we suffering to How can we honor and glorify God during our hard times?" While we are here waiting, we need to trust that our suffering here has a purpose. We trust that it’s not pointless or useless and that instead, it’s refining us into the image of Christ.
In the end, every bit of our suffering will be worth it.
“So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to
the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.” (2 Corinthians 4:16-18
So as we live in the here and now, I encourage you to stand firm in your faith in Jesus Christ. Standing firm does not mean that you make sense of it all and understand it. But it does mean that in moments of pain, suffering, and affliction, you can still Trust that God has a plan and He is there with you during the trials of life.
The subject of struggles has been covered from many different angles throughout this month's weekly blogs. Be sure to go back and read from the beginning of the month if you missed one.
Do you have questions about the Bible? If so, please submit them below. You will receive a response from me within 2 weeks. In addition to this, your question could also appear as the subject of a joyfully HIS Blog Post.
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