In Judges 6:1, we read about the Midianites invading the country of the Israelites. This lasted for 7 years, their crops were destroyed, their livestock was stolen, the people were forced to seek refuge in dens and caves. They had a very, very difficult time. In verse 12, we see a messenger of Jehovah declaring, "Jehovah is with thee," to which Gideon replied, "Oh, my Lord, if Jehovah is with us, why then is all this befallen us?" How often has the sufferings of humanity caused the question to be asked, "If there is a God, why am I afflicted with cancer? or, why was my wife killed in the accident? or, why is my child suffering?" or, the thousands of other questions that have been raised.

Statement of the problem

Perhaps, you have placed the blame on God for the sufferings of your life. With many people, the great obstacle to belief in God is the problem of evil and human suffering. Since suffering is here, many assume there cannot be a loving God such as the Bible teaches.

The Greek philosopher Epicurus (342-270 B.C.) argued: "If God wishes to prevent evil, but cannot, then He is not all powerful. If He can prevent evil, but will not, then He is not good. If He has both power and the will to eliminate evil, they WHY is evil in the world?" The mistake of this argument is the assumption that no good purpose can be served by the allowance of evil and suffering in the world.

Surely, we cannot completely understand the problem of suffering. Other than what has been revealed to us through the Word of God, the mind and purposes of God are unknown to man. Romans 11:33, states, "O the depth of the riches, both of the wisdom and the knowledge of God; how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways are past tracing out!" Yet, enough of the answers are given in the Bible to allow us to accept by faith the loving God who always does what is right. Let us look as the problem of human suffering and a benevolent God.

Answering the Problem

First, when a person raises the question of "evil," he is inadvertently appealing to some universal system of justice, which evil allegedly violates. But, if there is no God, hence no universal system of "rigorousness," how could there be any such thing as "evil"? Does not the word "evil" suggest the violation of some standard? Let atheism, therefore, define for us that standard by which certain things are judged to be "evil." Actually, no atheist can, consistent with his own philosophy, even introduce the problem of evil.

Second, one must note something of the nature of God, and how He has constituted mankind. 1 John 4:8, reads, "God is love." Man's creation was an expression of God's love. Also, God's love was demonstrated in that humanity was endowed with free will. Man was granted the freedom of choice. Genesis 2:16,17, "And Jehovah God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it; for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die." In Joshua 24:15, we read, "Chose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell; but as for me, and my house, we will serve Jehovah." It is most difficult to conceive of a loving God who created intelligent beings, but then forcing them to serve Him without personal will power. May I stress just here again;

• God is love.
• But, love allows freedom of choice;
• thus; God allows freedom of choice.

Further, where freedom of choice is permitted, there is certainly the possibility that finite creatures (such as you and I) will make the wrong choices. But, wrong choices must entail some adverse consequences. If all actions or choices, both good and bad, produced the same effects, how would one ever learn to choose the good and reject the bad? It should be clear to all, therefore, that finite beings as we are, with personal will-power, must be allowed to suffer the consequences of the wrong choices if they are to learn that the good is to be valued over the bad. Let us look as suffering at we see it in the world.

Suffering in our world

1. Sometimes our suffering is the direct results of our own bad choices.

We often bring suffering upon ourselves because of the bad decisions which we make. In the verses we began with, Judges 6, Israel did that which was evil, and they suffered the consequences of their own evil. In 1 Peter 4:15, we read, "Let none of you suffer as a murderer, or a thief, or an evildoer, or as meddler in other men's matters..." If a man steals and goes to prison, is it not his fault? If a man murders another and is executed, shall God be blamed? Yet, one may argue God could have prevented the crime, hence, the suffering. Not if He wanted to preserve man's freedom of choice!! God limits His own activity by lovingly granting man free will power!!

2. Others make the wrong choices and sometimes these wrong choices effect us.

Secondly, a considerable amount of suffering is caused by the bad choices of our fellow man. We cannot argue that WE must be allowed freedom of choice, and yet it should be denied everyone else. God is no respecter of persons. Acts 10:34; Romans 2:11. Thus, an innocent person may be killed in a wreck involving a drunken driver. In times of war, many are killed as a consequence of the evil decisions of a few evil leaders. We sometimes pay the price for others' freedom of choice.

3. The sins of former generations sometimes effect us today.

Thirdly, much of the world's suffering is the result of the freedom of choice that was abused by generations of the past. If we reap the benefits of the good labors of former generations, can we avoid reaping the evils as well? God warned that rejection of Him would affect generations yet unborn. Read with me Exodus 20:5,6, "thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them: for I Jehovah thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, upon the third and upon the fourth generation of them that hate me." Innocent children starve to death in India because their ancestors turned from God and decided to worship cows (which are not used for food today).

With reference to this point, let us observe: Mankind is blighted with numerous diseases. Why did God allow deadly germs? This is a highly complex ares, but we note briefly some points: Disease is ultimately related to man's bad choices or sins. Before their transgression, Adam and Eve were unaffected by disease and death. They rebelled and were deprived of the "tree of life." They became heir to the conditions they themselves introduced into the world. Romans 5:12 reads, "Therefore, as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin; and so death passed unto all men, for that all sinned." Death is decreed upon all, not because of our individual sins, but because of Adam's sin. Many organisms, which are sometimes harmful, are also very beneficial. Certain types of bacteria facilitate digestion or the decomposition of waste materials. were it not for bacteria or decomposition, this world would be one huge, stinking garbage dump.

But, what of the suffering in today's world as a consequence of natural phenomenons, such as hurricanes, earthquakes, and such like? The first question here is to ask, "What produces the violent physical conditions of this planet?" The answer is the drastically different geophysical features of the world on which we live, such as mountain ranges, deserts, varying pressure areas, etc. But, what created these divergent conditions, which precipitate the disasters to which we suffer? Many scholars believe that the universal flood of Noah's day described in Genesis, chapters 6 through 8, brought about these conditions. But, what was responsible for the flood? Man's wickedness and sinfulness. Had it not been for man's evil, the flood would not have come, the features of the earth would not have been so altered, and man today would not suffer the results of these things.

4. We live in a world regulated by natural law.

This being true, a certain amount of suffering seems inevitable. If the law of gravity acts consistently, a building may fall on someone, killing or injuring that one. Shall we blame God? We benefit tremendously from the laws of nature, gravity being one of these laws. We also suffer the consequences when we violate these laws, either ignorantly or otherwise. Suppose a plane crashed and many are killed, shall we blame God because of some engineer, mechanic, navigator, or pilot overlooked or ignored some problem, or perhaps the weather was not properly considered. "But," someone asks, "could not God intervene, and prevent such disasters?" Do you realize what sort of world this would be if God directly intervened, suspending His natural laws, each time one of His creatures encountered a life threatening situation. This would render the law-system of our planet completely undependable and make life a sphere of hopeless confusion. Such haphazard system, in fact would argue more for atheism than for theism.

Benefits of suffering

If we are honest, we must admit that there are some benefits to sufferings. For instance, what if we could experience no pain. Suppose one's clothing caught on fire; he might be engulfed before he even realized what was happening. Doesn't pain sometimes cause us to go to the doctor for treatment and cure. 

And is it not true that suffering helps to develop the noblest qualities of which mankind is capable? If there were no suffering, could such traits as patience, bravery, loving kindness, etc., be cultivated. Where there is only sunshine, there is desert.

Suffering and evil serve to remind us that this world was never designed to be man's eternal abode. We are to consider ourselves strangers in this world. Peter stated, "Beloved, I beseech you as sojourners and pilgrims, to abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul." This world is suited for eternity. The Lord has prepared a better home for those who serve Him, and suffering helps us to be "homesick." Homesick for a better place than this. That suffering, per se (itself) is not contrary to the goodness of God is revealed by the fact that even Christ was subjected to suffering, to Calvary. Hebrews 5:8, "though he was a Son, yet learned obedience by the things which he suffered."

Conclusion

We may not understand every facet of human suffering, but we don't have to. We can explain enough of it to negate the atheistic charge that misery is incompatible with the existence of God. If man will but employ the wisdom with which he has been endowed by God, he can use the adversities of life to mold the kind of character with which the Lord is pleased.

Source: Apologetics Press