SORROW

Why does God allow suffering?

People ask this sadly when pain, crime, war or other tragedies come. They ask, “Why does God, if He is all-powerful, loving and just, allow His world to be so full of hatred, injustice and sorrow?

In the Bible, you will find that faithful God fearing people had the same questions. Consider the suffering of Job who was “perfect and upright, one that feared God and turned away from evil” (Job 1:1). Habakkuk asked, “How long will you ignore me? I cry out to you about the violence, yet you do not save us. Why do you make me watch such bad things? Why do you tolerate evil? People are destroying everything and hurting others… arguing and fighting… no one ever receives a fair trial… evil people entrap good people” (Hab 1:2-4, IEB).

People often blame God for evil, not realizing Satan the Devil is the ruler of his world (I Jn 5:19; Rev 12:9). Satan is deceptive, hateful and cruel. This is why there is so much sorrow and suffering. This sorrow has existed ever since the rebellion in the garden of Eden (Gen 3). Read Ecclesiastes 4:1; 8:9; 9:11. God does not cause suffering, pain, wars or crime. “God is love,” but He did make man a creature of choice, not a robot. Read I Jn 4:7-21. Wrong choices have brought sorrow, sickness, dying and finally eternal punishment to the disobedient (Mt 25:46; Mk 16:16).

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