Evil and suffering
When it comes to evil and suffering, no one is exempt, all of us experience it to some degree or another. And when suffering comes our way, all of us cry out in protest, why, why has this happened to me, only we Christians cry out slighly differently, we cry why Lord, why have you let this happen to me?
And herein lies a problem for us Christians, because we believe that God is the creator of the universe, he knows each of us personally, he is loving, all-powerful, and the sovereign Lord over everything that happens within the universe. But if this is true, why does evil exist and cause so much suffering?
And inside our Christian worldview, those outside it, with no faith, look on in bewilderment, shaking their heads while asking, how can you believe in a God you claim is loving, personal, and all-powerful when faced directly with this world, a world that is steeped in evil and suffering. It’s a legitimate question, and a hard one to answer at that.
To make matters worse, they argue, if God is all-powerful, he could simply prevent evil and suffering, but since he doesn’t, he mustn’t be the loving God you say He is. Then to compound the problem they say, if God is loving and longs to prevent evil and suffering but can’t, then he mustn’t be all-powerful. The argument is a double-edged blade that cuts deep whatever way we turn in response.
Thankfully when we look for answers in the Bible, we find confirmation that God is loving and all-powerful. But along with it, we also find stories of horrific evil and suffering. But in its pages, we also read cries of protest with “How long Lord” rather than “why”. Which is a cry for God to do something to bring an end to evil, rather than give an explanation for it.
But where did evil come from?
God didn’t create it, evil isn't part of God’s good creation. But when we read Genesis 3, we find the talking serpent, who whispers words of disobedience, against God, into the ears of Adam and Eve. As all of us know the serpent is the devil, a created heavenly being, who because of his sin of arrogance and self-pride, was cast down from heaven.
Spiritual Evil: The devil in his absolute hatred of God, does everything he can to corrupt God's creation by spreading spiritual evil. This is the evil that invades, exploits, and amplifies human wickedness until it manifests itself in rebellion and evil against God and His good creation. The Bible doesn’t give us reasons for evil, but it does tell us to resist it. James 4:7
Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
Thankfully what the Bible does give us is hope that we can trust in completely. Namely Jesus Christ, the Son of God, our saviour. Like us Jesus experienced evil at the hands of evil men. Whereby He willingly suffered and died on the cross, where he too cried out in protest, Matt 27:46
About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”).
Whilst we don't fully understand the reason for evil, we know that we are never alone when it comes our way, and we find hope in his promise that He will never leave us.
Natural Evil: This is the suffering that comes as being part of life on earth for all of creation. Earthquakes, volcanoes, tsunamis, floods, wild predatory animals, viruses, hurricanes, etc., All these natural processes can cause immense suffering and loss to those who experience them directly.
Moral Evil: We experience pain and suffering due to the result of the wickedness of other human beings. The largest part of which is the result of human sin. But here's the crux, we all suffer because we are all sinful. These are the sins we commit by what we think, say and do, causing harm or exploitation of others, in both our actions and inactions, knowingly and unknowingly.
Sometimes the links between sin and suffering are clear, like the drunk driver who crashes his vehicle killing himself and/or others. Sometimes the links are blurred and unclear, like the maintenance crew failing to complete all the safety checks on a job, then at a later date, the equipment fails, killing the operators.
What about our inaction? In our silence are we not exercising complacency? And therefore complicit in the evil that allows people in far-off lands to suffer through hunger and thirst because of famine and insufficient humanitarian relief? While we watch these disasters play out on our TV screens from the comfort of our armchairs! Then there are the Refuges, Ukraine, and disease, where does it end?
Why do we suffer? we suffer because of the evil that is sin.
From the fall of Adam, sin has pervaded every human person. Sin distorts every facet of our being, our personality, our spirituality, our mind, our emotions, and our social interactions with one another and how we view one another. Because of sin, all of us are capable of total depravity, we see this in the Bible. God is Holy, and because He is holy sin cannot enter his presence. And the further we turn from the will of God in disobedience, the eviler we become until we reach total depravity.
Thankfully God gave us a way to return to Him, and in this way, we find the most wonderful thing, which is the forgiveness of our sins, and liberation from evil, death, and destruction, simply by believing in Christ Jesus as our Lord and saviour.
Wishing you a blessed day,
Trev.