God, Evil & Suffering?

Series: Good God Questions

Question: How can there be an all-knowing, all-powerful and all-good God in light of all the suffering and evil in the world?

When many people consider the excruciating suffering and horrific evil in the world, they conclude God cannot be infinitely powerful AND genuinely good. Some think God is willing to end suffering but unable to do so. Rabbi Harold Kushner, who wrote the bestseller When Bad Things Happen to Good People, speaks for this group when he writes, "(God) does not want you to go on having this problem, but He can't make it go away. That is something which is too hard even for God." Others think that God is able to end suffering and evil, but He is unwilling to do so. Job's wife believed this, and accordingly she told Job to "curse God and die!" - Job 2:9

The Bible reveals that God is both willing and able to eliminate both suffering and evil. Through the prophet Jeremiah, God declared, "I am the LORD, the God of all mankind," and rhetorically asked, "Is anything too hard for Me?” - Jeremiah 32:27. Jesus asked people prone to worry, “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny?" and then declared, "Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father” – Matthew 10:29. God is always completely aware of everything and always able to bring His good will to pass. When contemplating the combination of God's kindness and capability, the psalmist wrote, "God heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name. Great is our Lord and mighty in power; His understanding has no limit. The LORD sustains the humble but casts the wicked to the ground” – Psalm 147:3-6. Thankfully, Scripture reveals that God is not only willing and able to end suffering and evil, He has committed to do so. “He will swallow up death forever. The Sovereign LORD will wipe away the tears from all faces; He will remove the disgrace of His people from all the earth. The LORD has spoken” – Isaiah 25:8. This, of course, begs the question: "What is He waiting for?!"

To answer that, let's first consider our place in the history of God's Kingdom on earth. Generally speaking, we are in the Middle Age(s) of God's Kingdom History. In the First Age, God created a truly good world that humanity corrupted by rejecting God and rebelling against His rule. “God saw all that He made, and it was very good. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil” – Genesis 1:31 & 2:9. To give humanity the capacity for volitional love, God gave humanity the liberty to choose against it. God gave our original ancestors paradise to live in, mountains of good options to chose from and one restriction for the sake of choice for the sake of love. Humanity followed the lead of a fallen angel who had apparently forgotten his place and thus lost his place in heaven. So in the first age, spiritual evil seduced humanity to moral evil and paradise on earth was lost. Ever since humanity's fall, everything on earth has been corrupted. We need to remember this when we feel tempted to accuse God of poor workmanship. He created it all very good, and our sin spoiled it all....thankfully not for good.

If I found a spoiled rotten fruit, I would throw it away - particularly if I had plenty more, but God did not chose to throw away His spoiled rotten earth. Instead He chose to redeem His corrupted creation by subjecting Himself to the very worst suffering and evil His gone astray creation can give. Scripture reveals that “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us - for it is written: ‘Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree’”- Galatians 3:13. In the First Age of Kingdom history, God gave us the tree of life, and we lost it. Here in the Middle Age(s) of Kingdom history, God took our tree of death to put an end to death, destruction, suffering, sin and evil. Now, God is saving and preparing a people to inherit the paradise He has purchased with Christ's blood. In the Final Age(s) of Kingdom history, God will complete creation’s perfection and His people will inherit eternal paradise. “I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away…And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Now the dwelling of God is with men, and He will live with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away"- Revelation 21:1-4.

Now let's look back at the question "What's He waiting for?" Thankfully, God has given us good reasons for this season of suffering. For one, God is being patient with those who are persisting in rebellion and giving them every opportunity to turn from sin to Him. Under the inspiration of God's Spirit Peter explained and warned, "Do not let this fact escape your notice…with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day. The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up”– 2 Peter 3:8-10. Once the transition from this age to the next has been made, the window of opportunity to be saved will be closed. When the Biblical flood came, people were either on board God's ark of salvation or under the waters of God's wrath. Jesus said that it will be same when He returns. So one reason for the season is that God is graciously and patiently holding open the window of opportunity. During this age, God is also using the difficulties that His rescued people experience to grow our faith and faithfulness, which will result in tremendous blessing upon Christ's return. Writing to people who were suffering greatly, Peter wrote, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to His great mercy, He has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ"- 1 Peter 1:3-7.

So, how are we supposed to persevere through suffering and respond to evil in the meantime? I think three things will help us. One, we keep things in God's perspective by remembering where we are in kingdom history. Two, we trust in God's purposes for this season, and three, we rely on God's presence for the comfort, strength and wisdom we need to follow Jesus all the way home. God says to His people, "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire the flame shall not consume you. For I am the LORD your God…your Savior” – Isaiah 43:1-3. Awareness of God's presence can bring us extraordinary comfort as we walk through difficult days. As King David famously wrote, “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me” – Psalm 23:4. I think Paul, who valiantly opposed evil and endured tremendous suffering to follow Christ, asked the best question for our closing consideration. “He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him graciously give us all things? Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us!” – Romans 8:32-37 Amen.

Faith and Science?

Series: Good God Questions

Question: How can I have faith in God’s existence in light of scientific reason?

To answer this question, let's first address the common misconception that faith and reason are opposites. Many naturalists contend that they are not people of faith and some even contend those who trust in God's existence are not people of reason. Both contentions are false. All naturalists are every bit as much people of faith as people who trust in the reality of God's existence. If the following sounds harsh, please forgive me. I share it with people's best interest in heart and as someone who placed his faith in nothing for many years before coming to reasonable faith in God. With that said, naturalists are people of faith who are banking on the false hope that nothing beyond the material exists. This is an often unrecognized escape attempt that is doomed to failure, and it is usually based on false assumptions about the consequences of reckoning with the reality of God. Such avoidance has many tragic consequences, including the distortion of logic and reason about spiritual matters in the minds of those who must twist them to continue hiding from ultimate reality. To help us better understand faith, let's consider the Biblical definition of it in Hebrews.

“Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen…By faith we understand the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of visible things…Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe He exists and rewards those who seek Him.”– Hebrews 11:1- 6

In a sense faith is non-sense...that is non-sensory. It is our convictions about things that we cannot perceive through our physical senses of touch, taste, sight, sound and smell. In another sense faith is wishful thinking. By that I don't mean irrational thinking, but that what we believe about non-sensory matters is greatly influenced by our core desires. The Bible declares that "the fool says in his heart, 'There is no God.'" People convince themselves there is no God because they do not want there to be a God. People think life and freedom are found in independence from God and God's rule - To misquote Dr. King, "Free at last...Free at last...Great nothing almighty...We're free at last!" In reality, the exact opposite is true, but our natural disposition since the rebellion of our ultimate ancestors has been to run from God rather than to Him. We do not naturally seek God for the same reason criminals don't naturally seek judges. We are guilty! Though we run and hide, God keeps seeking us and stirring us to seek Him. Contrary to our fears, God is not seeking us to condemn us, but to save us! It is just as Jesus declared, "I did not come to judge the world, but to save it" - John 12:47. When we avoid God, we are unwittingly avoiding true life, freedom, peace, joy, comfort, hope and meaning. With all this in mind, please consider the following statements of faith (one in nothing & one in God) from two notable scientists, who are both men of faith and reason, and then let's examine a couple good reasons for faith in God instead of faith in nothing.

“I cannot know for certain, but I think God is very improbable. I live my life on the assumption that He is not there.”– Dr. Richard Dawkins (Oxford, The God Delusion)

“When you make a breakthrough, it is a moment of scientific exhilaration…It is also a moment when I feel close to the Creator.” – Dr. Francis Collins (Director of Human Genome Project, National Institutes of Health)

Good Reason for Faith in God from Without:

The Existence and Exactness of Creation

“The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness…of men who suppress the truth…because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.” - Romans 1:18-22

The Bible declares that creation itself provides enough evidence to leave people without excuse for suppressing the truth about God's existence. If we think about it, we see that every effect has a cause. If we see light, we know there is a light source. If we hear a noise, we know there is a noise maker. If we apply that logic to the universe, we have good reason to expect there to be a universe source/maker. It is difficult to believe that nobody x nothing = everything. Some people ask "well, who made God?" The Bible declares that God is the alpha (first) and omega (last) - the self-existing Creator and self-sustaining Sustainer of everything else that exist. The magnificence and precision of the universe and the irreducible complexity of the life within it are also evidence of intentional design and thus a purposeful designer.

Good Reason for Faith in God from Within:
The Longing and Law in our Hearts

“God has…put eternity into man’s heart.” – Ecclesiastes 3:11

“When Gentiles who do not have the Law do instinctively the things of the Law…show the work of the Law written in their hearts, their conscience bearing witness and their thoughts alternately accusing or else defending them, on the day when, according to my gospel, God will judge the secrets of men through Christ Jesus.” - Romans 2:14-16

If we think about it, the things we desire actually exist, though we may be deprived of them at the moment. For example, when I hunger for food, I am longing for something that actually exists - food. This even holds true for non-material things, such as love and peace. I may lack the present experience of real love and thus long for it, but I am not longing for something that does not exist. Real love really exists. I am just deprived of it in that scenario - not in real life, thankfully. So, what if we apply this to God? People in all cultures throughout history have expressed deep desire, even extreme longing, for God. Is God the only thing people desire that does not really exist or does the universal longing for God indicate that God, though people experience alienation from Him, actually exists?

Humanity also appeals to a universal code of right and wrong. Why? If matter is all that exists, nothing really matters in any ultimate sense. There is no real right and wrong or fair and unfair. There is only your opinion and my opinion and his and hers, etc. If there is no actual objective morality, then literally everything is relative and subject to "says who?" debates that set us up to slide down into 'might makes right' morality. The Bible says that we intuitively know that there is actual right and actual wrong and that we are accountable to live accordingly. The existence of universal objective moral law, points to a universal law giver. Please take a moment to watch this interview with Dr. Francis Collins, the former director of the Human Genome Project, which mapped the 3.1 billion letters in the human genetic code, and the current Director of the National Institutes of Health.

While these external and internal evidences point to God, they do not prove God's existence. As Scripture declares "he who comes to God must believe He exists and rewards those who seek Him”– Hebrews 11:6. I hope you will genuinely seek God with all your heart, and I know from His promises in the Bible and my personal experience that you will find Him when you do.

Gospel Clarity

I had, and I have heard from many others, a lot of misconceptions about the possibility of enjoying a right standing and relationship with holy God. I hope these points will be clarifying and helpful to you, and I pray God will bless you as you honestly consider them and seek Him.

I. The Gospel (God's Good News) is NOT about being and/or doing good enough for God to accept you.

We cannot earn a right standing with God. All of our attempts to merit His favor through religious endeavors, good deeds, and high morals fall short. So, in the matter of gaining a right standing with God, it may surprise you to learn that it does not matter whether you have been religious or irreligious or even relatively moral or immoral. All of us begin at the same starting point relative to God. The Bible declares that we “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” – Romans 3:23.

II. The Gospel is about God being SO good that He has done everything required to accept us just as we are.

In spite of our rebellion against God (sin) and God’s perfectly just condemnation of it, God’s love moved Him to pay the highest price ever paid (the death of His only begotten Son) to purchase our full pardon and offer us eternal life with Him as an absolutely free gift. God’s Son Jesus lived the sinless life that we have not and voluntarily paid sin’s penalty on our behalf, so that in union with Him we can enjoy God’s fellowship and favor forever. The Bible declares “the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord”- Romans 6:23.

III. This Gospel must be believed to be received.

God wants to give people eternal life. Jesus said, “Don’t be afraid…your Father has gladly chosen to give you the kingdom”- Luke 12:32. In light of this, God has made receiving His gift uncomplicated. The most famous verse in the Bible states that “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life”– John 3:16. God loved and gave. We believe to receive. By ‘believe’ the Bible means more than merely thinking something is true. It means trusting in and relying on that something or someone...betting your life on them.

IV. Accepting God’s acceptance in Christ will transform your life forever.

When a person receives God’s gift of life by trusting Jesus to be their Savior and Lord, they are not just receiving something from God. They are receiving God. The Holy Spirit indwells every true believer’s heart and transforms him or her to increasingly live a life of love and faithfulness that honors and pleases God. The Christian life is not a ‘white-knuckled’ experience of trying to do good enough to repay God for this kindness. Rather, it is a Spirit-empowered life of increasing freedom from sin’s reign and ruin. The Bible states “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law”- Galatians 5:22-23.

I hope you will turn to God and trust Him enough to save you from sin, self-rule and His condemnation of both. This requires trusting Him enough to turn your life over to Him. The move from self-rule to God's rule may be frightening and difficult, but it is infinitely worth it. Life with God, under His loving rule even in the most difficult circumstances, is truly life - one filled with faith, hope and love. Life, even in the best of circumstances apart from Him, is empty no matter how we try to fill it. Please earnestly turn to God and put your faith and hope in Christ. He will forgive your sin and give you true life with Him.

Sincerely yours in Christ,
Thame