Why Does God Let Good People Suffer ?

Common Sense Commentary: Why does God let innocent children and good people suffer ?

I conducted a funeral yesterday for a medical doctor who was in his fifties. He was our neighbor. Doctor Roy's life was dedicated to healing sick people but he, himself, had a long list of illnesses. I think he had more incidents of long term illnesses befall him and in the greatest variety, in the shortest time period (six years since I've known him) than anyone I've ever met.

I've conducted hundreds of funerals in the past fifty five years and the questions most often asked by loved ones and also by others, unrelated to funerals, is this: "Why does God let little children suffer and die?" or "Why doesn't God spare Christians and good people tragedy, sickness and early death?" or "Why does it seem that Christians suffer as much or more than the non-Christian"? I have also heard a good many say, "That person must have done something terrible or had secret sins for God to make them suffer so". The Biblical fact is that accrediting great sin to great suffering in this life is contrary to Scripture. Consider the magnitude of Job's suffering. God said Job was a strong believer, upright, reverenced God, hated evil and was the "greatest" of men. Job 1. But, Job's sufferings are reckoned to this day as a world record for pain, loss, and discouragement. His story would not even be in the Bible without the suffering he endured. Even Jesus' disciples were in error as they ..."passed by...a man...blind from his birth". "And His disciples asked Him, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?" It was a commonly thought religious conviction in their culture that sin had to be involved with suffering. Their question, like so many of ours, was a contradiction on it's face. If the man was "born blind", how could it be his sin that caused it ? Jesus answered that it was neither his nor his parent's sin that caused the blindness, but that God's power to heal might be seen in him. John 9:1-3. On another occasion, in Luke 13:1-5, a crowd of people were discussing how Governor Pilate had slaughtered some Galileans. Someone must have insinuated that those murdered must have had a serious sin problem for that to happen to them. Jesus asked them if they thought those who suffered so were "sinners above all", because they suffered such things ? Then He reminded them of eighteen others upon whom a tower had fallen, recently, and killed them. "...think ye that they were sinners above all men"? Jesus answered His own question, "Nae" or "No". "But, except you repent, you shall all...perish". Almost all of God's prophets in the Old Testament suffered a great deal and His Apostles in the New Testament suffered a life of persecution and were then martyred. Does that suggest they were very sinful ? Of course not !

Jesus also said that, our "Father... in heaven... makes His sun to shine on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust". Both good and bad touch all of our lives. For the "unjust", it serves to motivate them to consider their sins and turn to God in repentance for forgiveness. But, for the "just" (Acceptors of Christ) it serves to revive their faith, repentance, or to draw them even closer to our Lord or, as with the blind man, for God's purposes or Glory. Also, God does hear and answer the believer's prayers for healing...when it is within His will.

The good news is that, as Apostle Paul said, "...The sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us". Rom.8:18. The true Christian's suffering is but for "a short time" in this world of conflict and sin. Not so for those who have not accepted Jesus as their Saviour. Their sufferings are...eternally... separated from God. Jesus died in your place, for your sins and mine. Write me if I can tell you more. Pass It On. RB