Thursday, June 14, 2018

Why Does God Allow Tragedies? (4 of 5)


This is the fourth part of a five-part series. If you missed the earlier posts, you can read them here:
The first post
The second post
The third post

Background:
The points presented in this series are in response to a friend's questions a few months ago. She asked questions like:
- Why doesn't [God] save more from tragedies?
- Young girls are being raped and murdered. Why won't he save that kinda stuff?
- Why does a sweet, kind God not save children?

I will do my best to address these and answer the question about why God allows tragedies, understanding that I don’t have all the answers myself either. There are many resources in print and online about questions such as these, some of which I'll share at the end of this series.

As I have been reading, praying, and sharing about this topic, God has been drawing my attention to this topic of suffering repeatedly. Bible verses will stick in my mind when I read them with an inner voice saying, "This!" Devotionals read with my kids will mention suffering. My pastor's current sermon series is entitled "Holiness in the Hard Times" and has made me contemplate more. If I can't get it all in these last two posts, there might be a bonus post at the end of the series!

_____________________________________

Here we go with a few more thoughts about why we have tragedies and why God would allow them.


9. There will be trouble, but take heart – Jesus has overcome the world! In John 16:33, Jesus said, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” Did you ever think about the fact that Jesus, himself, went through suffering? Consider all that Jesus went through! He endured a 40-day fast in the desert. (Yes, that one was His choice, but it was still suffering - and sometimes our suffering and trials do come by our own hands, don't they?) He was verbally abused and cursed. He had crowds who wanted to stone him. He was beaten, whipped until his back was in shreds, nailed to a wooden cross through his hands and feet, and hung on the cross to die. He endured incredible pain for the sins of which we are guilty – not Him. That was an innocent life that was greatly hurt by other people! If Jesus went through suffering, why would we think we wouldn't?

a.       For verses about some of Jesus’ suffering, see Matthew 27:26-50, Mark 15:15-37, Luke 22:63-65, Luke 23:11, 35-46, John 19:1-3. These verses are about the end of his life, but there are more about earlier times in his life and ministry as well, such as John 10:31 and 39.
b.       “But what about when life is unfair? What about those horrible circumstances that hit us in life, caused by someone other than ourselves? When we are feeling victimized, it’s useful to realize that God [Jesus] himself endured horrendous treatment from others. God more than understands what you are going through,” (www.everyperson.com, “Why Does God Allow Suffering in the World?”).
c.    "In fact, everyone who wants to live godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted," - 2 Timothy 3:12
d.    "Now if we are children, then we are heirs - heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory." - Romans 8:17
e.    "For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows." - 2 Corinthians 1:5

      10.  We must hold on to hope. Faith is believing without completely seeing or understanding. (See 2 Corinthians 5:7, Hebrews 11:1, and John 20:29.) 

a.       “For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently,” – Romans 8:24-25
b.       “We will all face these moments in our lives, when everything we can see tells us that God is not good to us. At those moments, whether we realize it or not, we ask ourselves this question: Do we believe God is good by what we see or do we believe God is good because of who he is?” (Hope When It Hurts).
c.       “Friend, this life is filled with circumstances that will leave us questioning or even denying God’s goodness if we live by what we see, rather than by faith in what God has promised. The choice we face is a daily one. We can choose to either trust what we see and define what’s good for us ourselves, and grow annoyed with God and doubt his goodness, or we can live by faith in a crucified Savior and let him define what’s good for us, even if it means exercising our faith muscles as we choose to trust him over what we can see and feel,” (Hope When It Hurts).
d.       “So let’s come to Christ with our doubts and weaknesses and ask him to give us the faith to take our eyes away from what we can see in front of us and lift our eyes again to the cross – because that is where we will find assurance and confidence in the undeserving goodness and faithfulness of our heavenly Father. Is God good? Yes. He died for you,” (Hope When It Hurts).

      11.  The question was asked, “Why won’t he save that kinda stuff?” The answer is that He does save it! He redeems it, but it is in His way and timing, not ours. He does care about us and our trials, wanting nothing more than for us to be saved and to remain with Him forever.

a.       “But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” - 2 Peter 3:8-9
b.       “And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.” - 1 Peter 5:10
c.    "Israel, put your hope in the LORD, for with the LORD is unfailing love and with him is full redemption. He himself will redeem Israel from all their sins." - Psalm 30:7-8
d.   "But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship." - Galatians 4:4-5
e.   "But God will redeem my life from the grave; he will surely take me to himself." - Psalm 49:15
f.    "I will strengthen the house of Judah and save the house of Joseph. I will restore them because I have compassion on them...I will signal for them and gather them in. Surely I will redeem them; they will be as numerous as before." - Zechariah 10:6, 8

         12.  In the initial questions, God was referred to as a “sweet, kind God.” So many people want to see God only as this, but He is so much more than that! He is just, merciful, gracious, jealous for your devotion, all-knowing, all-powerful, all-present, patient (but not as we understand patient), loving (but beyond what we understand as loving), forgiving (but forgiving does not mean removal of consequences). In the Old Testament, there are many times we could interpret God as being harsh. God is the same today as He was then. All of the characteristics of God have always been true of Him - the soft, fuzzy ones as well as the hard, strict ones. Here are a few verses to consider:

                  a.       “The LORD works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed,” - Psalm 103:6
                  b.       “The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.”
                                Psalm 103:8
c.       “Then the LORD came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the LORD. And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, ‘The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation.’” – Exodus 34:5-7
d. "The LORD is a jealous and avenging God; the LORD takes vengeance and is filled with wrath. The LORD takes vengeance on his foes and maintains his wrath against his enemies. The LORD is slow to anger and great in power; the LORD will not leave the guilty unpunished. His way is in the whirlwind and the storm, and clouds are the dust of his feet." - Nahum 1:2-3
e.   "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." - 
f.   "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever." - Hebrews 13:8


See you next week with more thoughts. 
I'd love to know what you are thinking about this topic.


      Sources (listed in the order in which they first appear in this post):
      1. Holy Bible, New International Version. East Brunswick: International Bible Society, 1978. Print. (Some quotes also came from the NIV version (not 1978) on biblecc.com and the YouVersion Bible app.)
      2. “Why Does God Allow Suffering in the World?” Everyperson.com, Accessed: January 2018.
      3. Wetherell, Kristen and Sarah Walton. "Hope When It Hurts," The Good Book Company, on YouVersion Bible app, Accessed: January 2018.   

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