Reasons for God - Why Does a Good God Allow Suffering?

Our series, “Reasons for God,” aims to equip believers to “make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you” (1 Peter 3:15). Each message looks at a significant question people ask about Christian faith. Christian faith is reasonable and there are good answers to our questions. Even if some questions cannot be fully answered, our mind and heart can still find rest in God. As the ancient church leader Augustine said:

 

 

The question we will explore for this discussion study is “How could a good God allow suffering?”  C.S. Lewis explored this problem in depth. In his first book on the topic “The Problem of Pain” he provided a reasoned set of responses such as “Pain is God’s megaphone to rouse a deaf world.”  That is at best a partial response. Pain and suffering can push us towards God, but it can do the opposite. Such intellectual reasons often fall short when we are in deep pain. Lewis’s later book, “A Grief Observed,” was written after the loss of his wife. It is more raw and honest. In that it is like the Bible. The Bible does not offer neat answers to suffering. Instead, it gives us stories of real people—like Job, Jeremiah, Jonah, and ultimately, Jesus—who wrestled with pain and God’s purposes. 

 

Job is a book of unanswered questions. He had lost everything—his crops, children, and health. His friends tried to say his suffering was a consequence of wrongdoing; but their answers did not help. Job knew he was innocent. He poured out his complaint to God with more than seventy-seven questions. “Why are you silent God? “Where is justice?” “Who can argue my case?” God’s response was unexpected. He answered emphatically, but with more questions. He reminded Job—and us—of our human limitations.

 

 

God’s response to Job suggests logically that in comparison to God we are vastly limited. If there is an all-powerful God surely there would be aspects of his creation, purpose, and justice that we do not fully understand. Like a child trying to understand the complexities of physics, biology and ethics, there must be things beyond our grasp. In his book The Reason for God, Tim Keller puts it well: “Just because you can’t see or imagine a good reason why God might allow something to happen doesn’t mean there can’t be one.” (p 23).

 

The Bible does not answer every “why?”  But it does show us that God is good, and he is acting to make things right. The next story points us towards the goodness of God despite suffering. Jeremiah lived through the destruction of Jerusalem and wrote the book of Lamentations to express his anguish. He is known as the weeping prophet. Yet, in the middle of his lament, he finds hope:

 

 

Even in suffering, Jeremiah discovered God’s goodness, and his words encourage us too. As Tim Keller says “…though Christianity does not provide the reason for each experience of pain, it provides deep resources for actually facing suffering with hope and courage rather than bitterness and despair.” (The Reason for God, p 28)

 

This raises an even deeper question which theologians call the “problem of good.”  If the world is just an accident of chance, why is there any goodness at all? Why is there beauty, mercy, compassion, kindness, forgiveness, and love? The problem of good points us towards a good God. The only thing that makes sense of the good we see and experience in this world is the existence of a good and faithful God. 

 

Jonah’s story confronts us with the related problems of forgiving those who caused our pain. How do we balance God’s goodness with the claims of justice? Jonah’s community had been traumatized by the violent invasions of the Assyrian empire whose capital was Ninevah. He wanted justice for his people, but he also knew God was good and compassionate. That caused him immense conflict. So he ran away from God rather than prophecy to the Ninevites. After the dramatic events of the storm and the great fish, he reluctantly did what God commanded. But he was angry and petulant when the Ninevites repented, and God forgave them. 

 

slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity. Now, Lord, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live.” Jonah 3:10–4:3 

 

There are times when we want God to act immediately against injustice, but Jonah’s story reminds us that God’s mercy is bigger than our sense of fairness. The Christian hope is that God is at work to make things right, even if we do not see it yet.

 

Ultimately, the answer to suffering is not a theory, but a person: Jesus. God entered into our suffering through Jesus. On the cross, He took on the world’s pain and sin. In doing so he reconciles his justice with his compassion, he brings together justice and mercy, kindness, and fairness. As Isaiah prophesied about Jesus:

 

 

Amid our pain, the cross reminds of Jesus’ faithfulness, God’s heart of compassion, and our hope that he is acting to make things right. Through the cross we experience forgiveness and healing. We also find power to forgive. Jesus does not answer all our questions, but he gives us comfort and hope. And that is a comfort we can also share with others.

 

 

1. Which of the four biblical characters (Job, Jeremiah, Jonah, Jesus) do you most relate to in your experience of suffering, and why?

2. How does Job’s story challenge or encourage your understanding of God’s justice and our human limitations?

3. In what ways does Jeremiah’s hope in God’s goodness speak to you during times of pain?

4. In what ways, does Jonah’s struggle help us understand the problem of pain?

5. How does the cross of Jesus change how you view suffering and God?

6. What practical steps can we take to comfort others in their suffering?