Suffering
and the Sovereignty of God
Why does God allow suffering, sickness, and
death? It is an emotive and complex
question, shrouded in mystery. A full
explanation is never possible, but an outline of the biblical tension of
suffering and the sovereign love of God is useful in preparing us for the
evitable pain that hits all lives[1].
Love,
power, wisdom
The question why does God allow
suffering is significantly heightened when we remind ourselves of the two major
characteristics of God.
God is all-powerful: ...nothing is too hard for
you (Jer 32:17). With God nothing is
impossible (Luke 1:37). With God all
things are possible (Matt 19:26). God
does whatever he pleases (Ps 115:3).
God is all-loving: abounding in love (Numbers
14:18). Eternal love (1Kings 10:9). He is good and his love endures forever (2Ch.
7:3 & x26 in Ps. 136). Great love
(Ne 13:22). Unfailing love (Ps.
13:5). Your love is every before me (Ps.
26:3). Because your love is better than
life (Ps 63:3). The earth is filled with
your love (Ps 119:64). rich in love (Ps.
145:8).
Why does an all-powerful and all-loving
God allow suffering? The only answer,
which neither denies his power and love, nor ignores the reality of suffering,
is that the allowing of suffering is more loving than the removal of
suffering. Put another way: suffering is
the loving act of a loving God with all-power to do all things.
We feel the mystery and pain of this
truth. It does not immediately seem like
a comfort, partly due to the fact our finite minds and shortened vision
magnifies the mystery. Therefore it is
important, alongside the love and sovereignty of God, to remind ourselves he is
also all-wise and his actions are right.
God
is all-wise: His wisdom is profound, his power vast (Job 9:4). To God
belong wisdom and power; counsel and understanding are his (Job
12:13). ...the Lord Almighty, wonderful in counsel and magnificent in wisdom
(Isaiah 28:29). ...to the only wise God be glory forever (Romans 16:27).
The great confidence we have in
suffering is that there is a loving, wise and sovereign God who ordains all
things and whose actions are right and good, even when it is beyond our
capacities to see them as such.
Our
great example of this is Jesus’ death on the cross; a moment of horrific
suffering seeming beyond the control and will of God. Indeed
Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of
Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you
anointed. And yet the next verse
continues: They did what your power and will have
decided beforehand should happen. (Acts 4:27-28) If even the evil conspiring of those who
murdered Jesus is within the loving, wise will of God then we can be confident
our suffering is not beyond his loving, wise sovereignty.
This is the logic of the Bible as it
reveals to us God’s character. So much
so that suffering is described as a gift from God: For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only
to believe on him, but also to suffer for him (Philippians 1:29) The word translated here ‘granted’ in Greek
is charis meaning grace, gift or favour. Its normal New Testament usage is ‘gift’[2].
Suffering is a loving gift of God
How is suffering in all its
pain and anguish a gift from a loving, wise and sovereign God? The answer lies in what suffering
generates. Let me highlight five of the
multiple ways the Bible says suffering brings good that ultimately outweighs the
pain.
i.
Suffering allows us the fullest sight of Jesus.
Suffering is used by God to
illuminate our minds to who he is. For
example the Old Testament man Job, in reflecting on his pre and post suffering
view of God says: My ears had heard of
you but now my eyes have seen you. (Job 42:5).
ii.
Suffering allows us joyful union with Jesus.
Christ suffered, and so as
we suffer it provides us with a unique opportunity to be joined with Jesus, in
a mysterious manner, and experience a nearness and union with him unavailable
outside the pains of life.
I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the
fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death (Philippians 3:10)
But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so
that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. (1 Peter 4:13)
iii.
Suffering allows us the greatest development in Christlikeness.
Suffering is a painful but
purposeful furnace that burns off impurities.
Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of
many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops
perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and
complete, not lacking anything. (James 1:2-4)
Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I obey your
word...It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees. (Psalm 199:67, 71)
iv.
Suffering allows us the clearest opportunity to reveal Jesus to
the world.
Suffering is a unique spotlight that
highlights the majesty of God.
You...suffer
grief in all sorts of trials. These have
come so that your faith – of greater worth than gold, which perishes even
though refined by fire – may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory
and honour when Jesus Christ is revealed.
(1Peter 1:6-7)
v.
Suffering
allows us the unique ability to convey the compassion of God.
Praise
be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and
the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can
comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from
God. (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)
The greatest act of an all-loving,
all-powerful and all-wise God is to enable us to more fully see, enjoy, become
like, and reveal Jesus. Hence, in his
wisdom and goodness suffering is a loving gift from God because it generates
these very things.
John
Piper: the comfort of God’s sovereignty in suffering.
“The painful things that come into our
lives are not described by God as accidental or as out of his control. This would be no comfort. That God cannot stop a germ or a car or a
bullet or a demon is not good news; it is not the news of the Bible. God can.
And ten thousand times he does.
But when he doesn’t, he has his reasons.
And in Christ Jesus they are all loving... To know that our Father in
heaven has ordained our pain is not a comfortable truth, but it is
comforting. That our pain has a loving
and wise and all-powerful purpose behind it is better than any other view –
weak God, cruel God, bumbling God, no God...there is a great advantage in
knowing that God is sovereign over the pain and pleasure of our lives...We will
trust him to do us good – whether it feels like it or not at the moment. And we will wait for the day when all will be
repaid and made plain.”[3]
[1]
This article is designed to prepare us for suffering, placing building blocks
of truth into the infrastructure of our faith.
It is not meant pastorally if you are in the midst of deep suffering and
pain.
[2]
For example in Romans 12:6 and 1Corinthians 12:4 of
the gifts of the Spirit; in Romans 5:15-16 of Christ as saviour; in Romans
11:29 of his calling of people to himself; in 2 Corinthians 1:11 of the
blessings brought through prayer; in 1 Corinthians 7:7 of our marriage status. All are ‘gifts’ using the word charis.
[3]
Piper, John. A Sweet and Bitter Providence: Sex, Race and Sovereignty in the book of
Ruth. IVP2010 p.136-140
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