Why Good People Suffer?
Good people suffer in this world because of sin (Genesis 3:16-19). Jesus understands their sorrow because He has lived on earth as a human being and has endured hunger, thirst, temptation, shame, persecution, bereavement, betrayal, mockery, injustice and finally death (Hebrews 5:8).
When asked how much God cares about the problem of evil and suffering, the Christian God can point to the cross and say, “that much.” The Cross is where justice and mercy were fully satisfied. There the sufferer finds hope and realizes that one day there will be no more pain and sin (Revelation 21:4).
God promised to be with His saints that suffer. He promised, “When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee” (Isaiah 43:2).
And He assures that when a believer “shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him” (Psalms 91:15). Suffering is temporary “weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning” (Psalm 30:5).
When Jesus healed a man born blind, the disciples questioned Him “‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’ ‘Neither this man nor his parents sinned,’ said Jesus, ‘but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life’” (John 9:1-3).
Also, God uses suffering to speak to His children. Suffering reminds the righteous not only that they live in an imperfect and fallen world, but that God who loves them will turn this misfortune to their very best. For “we know that all things work together for good to them that love God” (Romans 8:28). If God allows suffering and hardships to come upon us, it is not to destroy us but to refine and purify us (Romans 8:17).
To conclude, the suffering that the righteous experience in this world does three things. It leads them to seek God, it develops their spiritual strength, and it increases their desire for heaven (Romans 8:18-25; James 1:2-3; Titus 2:13; 1 Peter 1:7). In the end, they will be able to say that Satan “meant evil against me; but God meant it for good” (Genesis 50:20).
In His service,
BibleAsk Team
