SUFFERING

SUFFERING

At some point every thinking person is faced with this question: If God is the Sovereign Creator, who loves his creation and desires what is good for it, why is there so much suffering in the world? Are certain things beyond his control? Or does he, for reasons known only to him, permit suffering?

The simplest answer, put forward by many, is that all suffering is divine punishment for sin. This answer matches the world view of some South Asian religions, which argue that we suffer for previous misdeeds, whether committed in this life or in a previous life. But the book of Job shows that this answer is inadequate. Job was a Godfearing man, blameless and upright (Job 1:1, 8), and yet he suffered greatly. His three friends spared no effort in trying to persuade him to admit his sin to God, confident that once he did so, God would set his situation right (Job 8:4-7; 11:2-14; 18:5-21; 22:21; 25:4-6). But Job protests his innocence (Job 29:1-31:40). In his frustration with the situation, he goes so far as to accuse God of being unfair and unjust (Job 9:17-35).

Job is not alone in feeling this way. So did the prophet Jeremiah (Jer 12:1-4; 20:7-18). The book of Psalms contains a number of psalms that are individual and communal cries to God from situations of despair, doubt, anger and frustration sparked by illness, enemies, fear, failure, pain or grief. These psalms have been called the psalms of lament. Yet they have also been called psalms of re-orientation, for they usually begin in desolation but end in delight.

The most important truth these writings teach is that there is no situation that cannot be brought to God for clarification and resolution. The distress, doubt and frustration expressed are not

inappropriate but evidence of a robust faith, a faith that is prepared to protest and seek an explanation from God, who is the object of our confidence and trust.

In the book of Job, after Job has rejected the accusations of the first three comforters, a fourth one, Elihu, appears on the scene.

Unlike the first three friends, Elihu does not see Job’s suffering as the consequence of past sin but as God’s way of drawing Job closer to him and teaching him about himself. However, he reprimands Job for accusing God of injustice and urges him to recognise that all that God does is of his grace and mercy.

Elihu prepares Job for God’s response, which speaks of his sovereignty and creative power (Job 38:4-40:2). In the face of such sovereign power, the only appropriate response is to submit in trust, quietly confident in God’s love (Job 42:1-6). This was precisely what Job did.

Job’s attitude must not be confused with a spirit of helpless resignation or fatalism. Fatalism accepts suffering as something one cannot prevent. One is caught up in a system and has no choice about it. “I suffer because that is my fate, my karma.” Such an attitude is far removed from the attitude that assumes that, even though I may not understand my circumstances, I can trust God, a God of mercy and grace, who is sovereign and will work out his purpose for me and through me.

In other words, there may not be a clear answer to the question of why the innocent suffer. We can, however, take comfort in the knowledge that God is in control of our lives and circumstances and that he is a God of grace and mercy. So, for example, the Joseph narrative (Gen 37–50), which is full of undeserved suffering, climaxes in Genesis 50:20 when Joseph tells his brothers, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.” This is a fundamental perspective on suffering in the Bible: God is sovereign, and sometimes uses even the evil perpetrated by people to fulfil his own purpose in human history.

This perspective is also fundamental to making sense of Jesus’ suffering. From a human perspective, his suffering and death were a consequence of the life he led – a life of confrontation with personal and systemic evil. Almost from the beginning of his public ministry, he was opposed by the Jewish religious authorities. As his ministry progressed, their opposition became increasingly strident until their criticisms of him bordered on the absurd (Mark 3:20-30). From Jesus’ perspective, this confrontation was necessary. He was challenging the nation of Israel not to reject him (Matt 23:37-38). But it did, he suffered and died, and the fall of Jerusalem followed.

On the other hand, it is also clear that, in God’s sovereign will and purpose, Jesus’ death served to reconcile estranged humanity to God.

Repeatedly, the Gospel writers see various details of Jesus’ suffering and death as a fulfilment of the OT Scriptures, that is, as within the ambit of God’s will as revealed in Scripture (Matt 26:23, 56). He died as the suffering Messiah. This understanding is found in the rest of the NT as well. So, for example, Paul taught that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures (1 Cor 15:3) and that God, in Christ, was reconciling the world to himself (2 Cor 5:19).

It is also true that sometimes the suffering of the righteous is vicarious – that is, it is for the benefit of others. So, for example, the Servant of the Lord in the so-called Servant songs in Isaiah 40–55 appears to be a representative figure who suffers with and on behalf of Israel. The fourth song in particular (52:13-53:12) focuses on this suffering and on the servant’s subsequent exaltation. In this song not only is the suffering of the servant described (Isa 53:1-9) but also its true significance (Isa 53:10-12). The servant suffered so as to accomplish the Lord’s will (Isa 53:10).

Down through the centuries, disciples of the Lord Jesus have been called upon to suffer for their faith, just as Jesus predicted (Mark 8:34-37). The Apostle Paul was misunderstood and maligned just as the Master had been. Paul sees his suffering as having a twofold purpose: God was dealing with him (2 Cor 12:9) and was working through him to bring blessing to others (2 Cor 4:11-12). Such suffering for a higher purpose must be distinguished from the ascetic tendency in many South Asian religions like Buddhism, Jainism and Hinduism in which suffering is viewed as a means of salvation.

In a later writing, the Apostle Peter seeks to comfort and encourage Christians who are suffering for their faith. If Christ suffered for the sake of righteousness, he says, they ought not to be surprised that they too are called to suffer. Like Jesus, they ought not to retaliate when they are ill-treated, but rather entrust themselves to their faithful Creator, while doing good (1 Pet 4:19). Indeed, their lives ought to be so above reproach that their detractors would be put to shame (1 Pet 3:16).

Perhaps, however, a final word needs to be said based on Paul’s teaching on suffering in Romans 8:18-30. In this passage he refers to the disobedience of Adam and Eve and describes the consequences of that disobedience as including the subjection of all creation to futility.

However, he adds, it was subjected in hope. He then proceeds to explain the content of this hope. The children of God hope to share the glory of God himself, and this hope is intrinsically connected to the liberation of all creation from its current state of futility. In the meanwhile, he says, we have the first fruits of the Spirit, who helps us to endure our present suffering in the confidence that nothing enters our lives that is not used by God for our ultimate good. Therefore, says Paul, “our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us”. For “we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Rom 8:18, 28).

Brian Wintle