Suffering is difficult to understand.
Jesus suffered. Suffering is something we too will experience. I find it interesting that people ask the question, “If there is a God why is there suffering?” What they are really asking is, “why do I have to suffer?” That is an arrogant question to ask of God. God our heavenly Father permitted His only Son to suffer. How can we dare ask God to not allow us to suffer? Jesus shows us that although there is extreme pain in our world, suffering is dignified. Suffering and death are unexplainable parts of life. We all must endure death. Death is difficult to comprehend. However as Christians we understand that death is not the end of a relationship. We have hope in Christ’s promise that those faithful who go before us are granted eternal life and we pray we may see them again when we too pass from this world to the next.
Have hope because we know the story of Jesus does not end in the tomb, as our story does not end in death either.
Actually, I disagree. I think that when people ask, "Why is there suffering?" we are asking, "Why do innocent people suffer?" I think we're asking, "Why are there starving babies with swollen bellies?" and "Why have so many women and children in Zimbabwe been raped?"
ReplyDeleteThis is not dignified suffering. It's brutal and dehumanizing and pointless. I do agree that it's totally unexplainable.
The question is fundamentally a logical one, not an arrogant or selfish one. Why does a good God allow horrible things to happen to innocent people? It just seems like a contradiction.