Evil & Suffering

If you could only ask God one thing? “Why is there suffering in the world?” Lee Stoebel, Christian Apologist, Nationally Commissioned Survey

First Corinthians 13:12  “Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely.”

Problem of Pain How do we reconcile what we believe about God (that an all-powerful, good, wise, loving, just & merciful God) with the undeniable realities of sin, death, pain, & evil in this world?

Epicurus Either God wants to abolish evil & cannot; Or He can, but He does not want to; Or He cannot and does not want to. If He wants to, but cannot, He is impotent. If He can, but does not want to, He is wicked. But if God both can and wants to abolish evil, Then how come evil is in the world?

Fundamental Principle: God gave us choice  We live in a fallen world.  God made the world perfect.  He made us without sin.  But He gave us a choice.  Adam made the wrong choice  Now- a world that bad choice created.

If God had NOT given us choice, we would never really be fully human or fully made in the image of God.

CHOICE leads to SUFFERING “The fact of SUFFERING undoubtedly constitutes the single greatest challenge to the Christian faith.” John Stott, Theologian

Why didn’t God create a world where suffering didn’t exist?”  Genesis 1:31 says: “God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.”Genesis 1:31  The Triune God has existed eternally together in a relationship of perfect love. Love is the highest value in the universe. When God decided to create humans, he wanted us to experience love. But to give us the ability to love, God had to give us free will to decide whether to love or not to love. Why? Because love always involves a choice.

The Problem of EVIL Moral: murder, theft, rape, war, carnage, etc. Natural:disasters, accidents, calamities in the physical world.

Moral Evil is linked to Natural evil Moral evil is such an affront to God’s created order that it even affected the Universe’s operation. Man is brought to calamity by a natural consequence of the disorder that now plays a role in the universe.

World’s most violent weather is in the United States  10,000 violent thunderstorms  5,000 floods of various sizes  1,000 tornadoes  Numerous hurricanes

Praise God, don’t blame Him!  Wonder why MORE lives aren’t lost.  MAN is to blame for all Natural Evil.  Sin led God to curse earth. Gen 3:17  The world is in bondage & is suffering from man-induced corruption. Romans 8:21-2

God will make the world new again Revelation 21:4  And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

Dealing with reality of EVIL: 5 Choices  ATHEISM: There is No God.  Dualism: Good-Evil are the Same Thing.  Illusionism: Evil = illusion. Nothing is truly bad/good.  Finite God-ism. He wants to get rid of evil, but can’t. Perhaps He isn’t good, or evil is part of his character.  Trinitarian Monotheism. God is good & omnipotent. Evil is present & the universe will one day get rid of it.

Where did Evil come from? Evil entered into the world by our CHOICE. Romans 5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin ; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:

God did not create evil and suffering. He did create the potential for evil to enter the world, because that was the only way to create the potential for genuine goodness and love. But it was human beings, in our free will, who brought that potential evil into reality.

Charles Spurgeon There is no learning sympathy except by suffering. It cannot be studied from a book, it must be written on the heart. You must go through the fire if you would have sympathy for others who tread glowing coals. You must yourself bear the cross if you would feel for those whose life is a burden to them.

But WHY must the innocent SUFFER? 1.Remember all humans are inherently sinful. God says no one is truly innocent. Romans 3:23 A. All inherited the Adamic sinful nature. B. All commit sinful deeds on our own. 2. Weknow the difference between right & wrong. 3.Without prompting of the Holy Spirit- We always choose against God. 4. Free will is the origin of pain, suffering, & the entry point for sin in the world.

Purposeful Pain If we accept that the results of evil-pain, suffering & death- are not from God, yet He allows them, then we must assume that they play a part in His plan.

“God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: It is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world.” C.S. Lewis

1. uncovers what is really inside of our hearts.16. can create an opportunity to witness. 2. breaks us of our pride17. can lead a person into ministry. 3. can deepen our desire for God.18. can make us grateful for what we had. 4. can mature us.19. can position our lives to bring glory to God. 5. Can breed humility.20. properly handled will result in rewards. 6. May be a warning of something worse. 7. Can jump-start our prayer life. 8. May prompt a lost person to accept Christ. 9. May lead a Christian to confess sin. 10. Helps us deepen our trust in God. 11. Can deepen our appreciation for God. 12. Helps us appreciate other Christians who were victorious. 13. Can take our eyes off this world & ourselves. 14. Can teach us firsthand that God is truly sufficient. 15. Can connect us with other people.

Suffering can be a Springboard  Demosthenes: Stuttered, laughed off the stage.  Napoleon: Graduated 46th out of 65 students.  Beethoven: Deaf his entire life.  Dickens: was lame.  Edison: Deaf, failed multiple times with light bulb.  John Bunyan: Entire adult life in prison

God’s in the Restoration Business  Glenn Cunningham: burned so severely doctors thought he would never run again. (World record mile)  Einstein: teachers labelled him a slow learner, retarded, and uneducatable.  Handel: physically challenged (stroke, carriage crash, cataracts, blindness)

The Case for Faith God took the very worst thing that has ever happened in the history of the universe —DEICIDE, or the death of God on the cross — & turned it into the very best thing that has happened in history of universe: the opening up of heaven to all who follow Him. So if God can take the very worst circumstance imaginable and turn it into the very best situation possible, can he not take the negative circumstances of your life and create something good from them?

“I believe all suffering is at least potential good, an opportunity for good. It’s up to our free choice to actualize that potential. Not all of us benefit from suffering and learn from it, because that’s up to us, it’s up to our free will.” Quoted by Lee Stoebel