Many people are convinced that God does not care about us. This view is usually presented as a question: “If God exists why is there so much suffering in the world?” This is a question, but often it is given as a proof, as convincing evidence that no God exists. First let’s expand that question to give it more force and clarity. “If a loving, all-powerful God exists then how could there be so much pointless pain and suffering in our world?” Either God is not powerful enough to intervene or not interested or loving enough to stop the suffering.
Is God really loving? Often this question takes on a personal nature. “I prayed for God to ____ and nothing happened.” If you feel that way, please remember that God is not obligated to answer your prayer or do what you want. He is not your slave.
Pain and Suffering Challenge All Worldviews
We should point out that pain and suffering are also a problem for the Atheist to explain. First because he has no basis or explanation for evil. No God means no evil, just impersonal random forces. That means whatever suffering we or other creatures experience is just normal life. There is no alternative. Suffering is meaningless apart from God. Hence the emphasis on “pointless pain and suffering”.
Evolution as a theory is no help either. There is no concept of evil, only survival. According to the theory we should be living longer, more resistant to disease, and producing stronger and better offspring with each generation. Instead, we see that there are new health problems and allergies that our grandparents never dealt with. We might also expect to see progress in the moral or social evolution of our species. Yet most human suffering in the world today is not caused by natural disasters but is still caused by human ambition and war. This point has not gone unnoticed by Atheists. Technology is applied for both good and evil. All signs point to COVID-19 as being a virus created in a laboratory.
“I used to think the top environmental problems were biodiversity loss, ecosystem collapse and climate change. I thought that thirty years of good science could address these problems. I was wrong. The top environmental problems are selfishness, greed and apathy, and to deal with these we need a cultural and spiritual transformation. And we scientists don’t know how to do that.” – Gus Speth
Religions don’t offer much help either. Karma in many Indian religions (Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism, and Taoism) is closely associated with the idea of rebirth. Suffering is explained as the result of bad deeds (or intent) in a previous life. The law of karma operates independent of any deity or divine judgement. The question we should ask these belief systems is: Why does everyone universally still experience pain and suffering? After thousands of rebirths, we would expect to find many people who have done so much good that they no longer experience suffering. Yet something is broken inside the human heart. We don’t get better with each generation.
The Suffering of Job
You might want to read the full story of Job (Job 1-42). He was a very wealthy man in the ancient Middle East who feared God and was blameless. Satan accused God of buying Job’s friendship, so God allowed a test. Job had thousands of sheep, camels, oxen, donkeys, and a large family. In one day, Job lost everything. Some of it was caused by marauding Sabeans, other loss by Chaldeans, two different natural disasters caused further loss. It all happened at once. Job still didn’t blame God. But Satan was not satisfied. Satan then gets permission to take his health. Most of the rest of the book is about Job and his “friends” looking for answers. Perhaps that is also your situation too, looking for answers.
The early church experienced a time of intense persecution and suffering. James writes to the Jewish believers, reassuring them that suffering is an opportunity to represent God in the situation by patient endurance. “As an example of suffering and patience take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. We count those blessed who endured. You have heard of the endurance of Job and have seen the outcome of the Lord’s dealings, that the Lord is full of compassion and is merciful.” (James 5:10-11) That is the conclusion we want to make. From the life of Job, you get a unique look behind the scenes, see the reason for his suffering, and the final outcome. The outcome describes God’s character, full of compassion and merciful.
A Suffering Messiah
Suffering and grief are descriptions of the Messiah. Over 600 years before Jesus it was written that He would not rule isolated in a secure pain free palace but instead enter into our condition in a deep way. God is not only aware of our pain, but He took the suffering on Himself. (Isaiah 53:1-9) This prophecy about the Messiah was made by the prophet Isaiah over 600 years before Christ. Jesus was the one who proved that God cares about you. Jesus said this about Himself, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.” (John 3:16) The context made it clear that “gave” was a sacrifice on God’s part. “Should not perish” makes it clear that this is a rescue mission. You are part of this world and God says you need to be saved. Please try putting your name in there, “For God so loved ____”. Let that soak in… God wants a relationship with you! But that relationship must be on His terms, not yours.
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