When tragedies happen, our natural reaction would be asking questions.
- Why do “bad” things happen to “good” people?
- Is suffering a divine punishment from God?
- Am I suffering just to learn a lesson?
- Do I have an option to opt out?
In reality, suffering is a unavoidable norm in a fallen world
- For suffering, the Bible never gives us any one-size-fits-all answer
- God’s way of addressing human suffering is not providing a reason about why suffering happens
- Instead, the Bible focus on how do we face pain and suffering
Instead, the Bible tell us two characters about God:
- A God who suffers
- A God who is sovereign over suffering
A God who suffers
- God became a suffering God who personally went through human sufferings.
- Through the life of Jesus, God had the first-hand experience of human suffering
- Jesus experienced the ordinary pressures, the difficulties and pains of normal human life.
- Jesus’ most painful moment was on the cross, where God the Son was being cut off from God the Father.
- At the very last hour of His earthly life, Jesus was rejected, betrayed, abandoned.
- The Son of God was even forsaken by God the Father
- As God is no stranger to pain, He understands our pain.
A God who is sovereign over suffering
- Easter Sunday and the resurrection tells us that God has defeated death, and overcome pain and suffering.
- Our God is able to walk us through the darkest and most painful moments in life.
- When we are in pain, we can cry out to Him for courage and strength.
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