Understanding Suffering - The Christian Perspective
Pic Courtesy - Guardian - Internet
Good news is hard to find these days, and the question “Where is God?” or “Where is God during such times of suffering?” keeps coming up in times like this.
In this blog, I try to present the Christian perspective to suffering.
I hope the post helps both believers and friends from other faith, understand suffering from the Christian perspective.
Before we move on to the purpose of suffering, I would like to address a few critical questions. I shall be borrowing many of these thoughts from Ravi Zacharias and his talk on suffering.
You can hear the talk on the link - Ravi Zacharias – Where is God in the Midst of Suffering and Injustice?
The 1st question I want to address is Does suffering in this world mean God is absent?
- The important point to note here is we are defining something as good and something as bad, which means that there has to be a definition of good and bad somewhere, this means that there needs to be a legal framework to universally govern good and bad, which means there needs to be someone who can define this legal framework, within the Christian worldview this someone is God. God and His word the bible are for us the single point of reference for good and evil
- Each time we speak about suffering we associate it to someone or something. This means that we associate the person with some value. Meaning we value human life. This value for human life is not possible in the absence of God. If we were all created from time+matter+chance, then there is no intent behind our creation, hence no value, basically put, we came into existence by chance, so even if our life did end due to suffering, it would mean nothing. But in the Christian world view, God has created us in His image, and that is how we derive value for our lives. There is a purpose behind creation and value behind life.
- Thus the presence of suffering only proves that there is a definer of good and evil, and a value to human life, all of this is only possible if there is a single point of reference for our good and evil and a creator who gives value and purpose to our life. In essence, suffering does disprove God, but rather proves Gods existence
The next question we will have is, if God is present and He is good, then why did He create a world with suffering?
The answer to this is simple, there are 3 ways God could have created the world
- He could not have created this world
- He could have forced us to always obey Him
- He could have created a world like ours, where there is free will, where there is love
Now that we understand suffering does not disprove God and that in a world with choices alone is it possible to love, which the supreme ethic of all our values. Let us understand what could be the purpose of suffering in a Christian perspective, and how does suffering help us?
1. Suffering helps us to fulfill Gods plan
Suffering of Peter - Luke 22:54-62
One of the most terrible sufferings undergone by any of the disciples was undergone by Peter. He was always impulsive, always wanting to be the 1st to respond, the 1st react to any situation that the disciples face. But when the real moment of test came, just as Jesus said, Peter ended up denying Christ not once but 3 times, the story to this can be found in - Luke 22:54-62.Did Christ know Peter would do this? Yes He did and Peter did exactly as Christ had predicted.
In Luke 22:62 it says “And he went out and wept bitterly.”Peter would have suffered for 3 days like no one else. We would think it’s virtually impossible to compare the suffering of Peter with anyone else in history, because there has been no one in history who has betrayed, someone even after being warned about it. But that is wrong.
Romans 7:19 – For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do--this I keep on doing.We all betray God, its in our nature to do that, even after being warned in the bible and through family, friends, and so many other ways we still betray Him. But there are 2 things I would like all of us to focus on:
1. How much do we suffer when we betray God?
It broke Peters heart, to the extent he wanted to forget about Christ and go back to fishing. Does sin break us? Do we love God so much, that it hurts when we sin against Him? For Peter it did.
2. How do we respond when realize that Christ still loves us no matter our betrayal?
In John 21:15-19, we see Christ demonstrate his love for Peter and for Peter this moment was transformational. Peter became the boldest disciple and held the 1st evangelistic meeting, to add 3000 believers on the day of Pentecost to the church.
The suffering and pain that Peter faced, together with the love he received helped in fulfill Gods plan better. There are many such examples, were suffering prepared Gods people for His plan (Joseph). The sovereign plan of God is far richer than men can understand, but through every story in our life, God is writing His-story. Let us always remember this.
2. Suffering helps us minister to others
Suffering of Paul – 2 Corinthians 11:23-31
I remember the moments in engineering college during the vivas, we would wait for the people facing the examiners to come out, so that we could understand what questions where being asked. Experience would always matter more than anything else at that moment. We would rather go to the person, who had experience of what the examiners was asking than to someone else.Just like that, we all search for someone who is going through the same things that we have experienced. When such a person gives us advice it gives us more comfort than the words from anyone else.
Paul was this rock for the 1st century church, he had been through so much and yet held on to Christ, it was just awe-inspiring. If you would read 2 Corinthians 11:23-31, its amazing to see the things Paul has survived, everything from flogging to being beaten with rods, from hunger to being in the cold.
To the suffering church, which was being persecuted from all corners, Pauls’ life was a challenge. And when Paul preached “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” and lived those words, the church had an example of what it meant.
Each of our lives come with different forms of suffering:
- some struggle in their career with job loss, office politics, wrongfully being blamed, being taken for granted
- some have major family issues, sudden death of loved ones, health issues, broken marriages, financial problems,
- some deal with addictions, some with other personal problems
But when we go through these struggles, we should know this that these experiences in our life, are for us to understand what are the pains others around us are going through, and for us to experience how God guides us through those pains and to share the guidance of God with the others.
Pic Courtesy - Internet
Again Paul is not the only example my favourite example from our century is Nick Vujicic and life without limbs ministries. As of 2014, he had preached the gospel to half a billion people. And his aim is to preach to 1 billion people by 2020. Sufferings are opportunities for us experience the pain of men and to show them the grace of God!
3. Suffering helps us develop a dependence on God
Suffering of Job – Job 13:15
Often as humans with so much technology and science around us, we think we have understood it all. We think that we are strong enough to handle all the situations in our life. But then we hit that serious roadblock that reminds us that no matter all that we have, God is still our Shepherd.Job’s suffering was such a roadblock, he lost his family, his wealth, his health, all that one would be proud of on this earth was lost, and Job still said - “Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him.” Job 13:15. Job in His suffering is completely dependent on God.
Another similar verse is from the prophet Habakkuk, in one my favourite passages from the Bible, brings out this point in an amazing manner.
Though the fig tree does not bud
and there are no grapes on the vines,
though the olive crop fails
and the fields produce no food,
though there are no sheep in the pen
and no cattle in the stalls,
yet I will rejoice in the Lord,
I will be joyful in God my Savior.
The Sovereign Lord is my strength;
he makes my feet like the feet of a deer,
he enables me to tread on the heights.
- Habbakuk 3:17-19
Habbakuk is saying even though there’s no food, no celebration, no wealth, no economy, yet I will rejoice in God. Habakkuk, makes it clear that all the things that we depend on might fail us one day, because they are all so temporary. And the Coronavirus situation just emphasize this point, that life is temporary and most times with all our knowledge we will still not be able to predict what will happen next. In such a situation the only comfort we have is in knowing that Christ is our strength and in our weakness and frailty He is strong
4. Suffering prepares us for heaven
Suffering of Heroes – Hebrews 11:13-16
Hebrews chapter 11, says talks about the men of faith, it talks about how they lived and then it says this:“All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.”All the men of faith, Abraham, Isaac, Moses lived with eternity in mind. They knew their lives on earth were for a few years, but this life is a preparation for eternity. This is best explained in the 2 Corinthians 4:16-18. Each suffering that we face prepares us for heaven, each suffering it reminds us that there is a place where we can go, where there is no pain, no sickness, no war, but peace, each suffering helps us fix our eyes like the Heroes of faith on eternity. Through each suffering we are depending on God, through each suffering we are fulfilling Gods plan and through each suffering we are ministering to others. Through all of this, we are reminded us that we are but travellers, pilgrims on a journey going back to our eternal home.
Conclusion:
The world might be lost for answers, the world might be lost when it looks at the depravity of human hearts. How could the terrorist kill little children? How could they just destroy families like that? But we should remember, the world does not have Jesus. Suffering has a purpose, and in the Christian perspective that purpose is found.“I came to Him because I did not know which way to turn. I remained with Him because there is no other way I wish to turn. I came to Him longing for something I did not have. I remain with Him because I have something I will not trade. I came to Him as a stranger. I remain with Him in the most intimate of friendships. I came to Him unsure about the future. I remain with Him certain about my destiny. I came amid the thunderous cries of a culture that has 330 million deities. I remain with Him knowing that truth cannot be all-inclusive.” – Ravi ZachariasOnly in the Christian view can we see that in all our moments of pain, struggle and suffering we are reminded that this is not it, there is a long way to go and in Christ our destiny is certain.
Finally in closing to each of us as we struggle to come to terms with what is happening and the consequences of this, all I want us to remember is that through all the suffering God will fulfill His plans, through all the suffering God will help us minister to other us, through all the suffering God will teach us dependence on Him and through all the suffering god will prepare us for heaven, where finally we will find complete answers to our deeper questions.
Wonderful reflection. Thank you Giftson.
ReplyDeleteThank you Pastor for the encouragement!
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