I know God is loving and He is all powerful but why do I sometimes suffer as His child?

Lately I've been reading a book about suffering and evil. It's a book that has been recommended, at various times, as a very good examination about this difficult topic - so, I finally bought it. Why did I take so long?

The author is Don Carson and the book is called "How Long, O Lord? Reflections on Suffering and Evil."

What insights does Don Carson offer to what is probably the most difficult of all questions a Christian may face?

To answer that question you will have to read the book; but some personal reflections may be of help to some.

Firstly, Don Carson suggests a fact that is obvious but with profound consequences and it's this: " ... the unavoidable reality is that if we live long enough we will suffer ...". Therefore, if we wait until this inevitable suffering hits us - emotionally, maybe physically, maybe involving great loss, etc. and especially spiritually (because it will shake our faith); we need to have a "theology of suffering" already in place in our hearts - a "theology of suffering" that is thoroughly Biblical and Christ centered. Dare I say it, even practical.

Why is it that some Christians weather great suffering with a steadfast faith (and often a growing faith) in God whilst others may remain bitter and angry with God - even for many years?

Carson believes there a many factors for this (see below) but he is convinced that Christians need to be involved in "preventative medicine" i.e. we all need to think about suffering and evil NOW. Don't avoid it! Don't consign it to the "too hard basket" but confront it. Why? Because the Bible does! The Psalmists, Jeremiah, Job, Habakkuk, Elijah, Paul, Peter are some some Biblical writers who have confronted the topic of suffering - and so should we, now - not later. Don't wait till tragedy strikes. Carson writes, " ... it is important for Christians to have a stable a set of beliefs as possible on these matters before a personal tragedy or a fresh experience of life challenges them ..." (emphasis his).

Which brings us to our next point which I believe is the most crucial - our own view of God. God is 'good' - this is a fundamental premise in the Bible. Is God, though, good all the time and is He good to us all the time - or only sometimes? How do you answer a question like that?

If I encounter suffering - even great suffering - has God, therefore, ceased to be 'good' in the midst of suffering. These are not academic questions. I still vividly remember one of the most committed, loving and humble Christians I ever met die a slow and painful death from cancer (not to mention those close to him who suffered greatly as carers). In the reality of all this pain, tears and real confusion, did God cease to be loving and 'good'?

We need to address these types of questions now ... not later; especially our own personal view of God.

Carson aside (but I think he would agree); God not only remains, at all times, good, but inextricably linked - at all times - with His people - in joy and pain, in sickness and in death. God's commitment to His suffering children never waivers - for there is meaning and purpose in suffering - it never catches Him unawares as it does us. Not for one microsecond does He abandon us.

Do you have a "theology of suffering" in which God remains centre of all that happens? If you do, then you will take 'The Fall' and sin very seriously and you will ultimately know that we, as Christians, are all affected by sin.

Carson writes, " We may get the balance of Scripture wrong. We remember the wonderful triumphs of  Joseph, Gideon, and David ... We are less inclined to think through the sufferings of Jeremiah, the constant ailments of Timothy, ... of Trophimus ... the thorn in Paul's flesh .... Naboth ... The good guys do not always win." (Emphasis mine).

Therefore, some Christians have gone further than others in terms of understanding - not just primarily how we view sin (which can be very weak and inadequate) but how God views sin and evil (extremely seriously).

How do you react to these words? " ... evil is evil because it is rebellion against God. Evil is the failure to do what God demands or the performance of what God forbids. Not to love God with heart and soul and mind and strength is a great evil, for God has demanded it; not to love our neighbour as ourself is a great evil, for the same reason ... The dimensions of evil are thus established by the dimensions of God; the ugliness of evil is established by the beauty of God; the filth of evil is established by the purity of God; the selfishness of evil is established by the love of God. " This is serious stuff but is it serious to us? Let's be honest! Try to 'see' sin more from God's perspective (as imperfect as this will be) and sin will be a more ugly and insidious proposition.

Carson, of course has much, much more to say about suffering and evil but can I leave you with three final thoughts?

The 3rd Last Final Thought!

As we are aware, suffering is bound up in the cross of Jesus Christ. Most of us, I'm sure, have reflected on the pain and suffering Jesus willingly endured to secure our salvation. Intense evil and intense love met at the cross - love prevailed and evil received it's judicial sentence. But the Bible speaks not only about His cross (suffering) but our cross (suffering) as well. We are to take up OUR cross daily and to participate in His sufferings because, frankly, the world hates Jesus and us too. Jesus actually calls us to suffer and so does His apostles (eg Peter) by living a godly life.

Last 2nd Last Final Thought!

According to Carson we are all going to die and God is behind it! He states, " ... death must be seen, not as the supreme instance of a cosmic lack of fairness, but as God's well-considered sentence against our sin ... Death is no accident; it is God's doing."

He explains, " ... death is, finally, the result of our sin, and therefore rage against God, as if he were unfair for passing the sentence that our sin deserved, is inherently foolish, as foolish as critizing a judge for passing a just sentence on a bank robber. Our rage is better directed at the ugliness of death, the wretchedness of sin, our sense of betrayal and self-betrayal. It may be a venting of our profound loss and frustration. But thoughtful Christians will never lose sight of the origins of death, and therefore will not, at least on this ground, rage against God himself."

Finally, and probably the most controversial in my view, is the role of sickness and suffering and divine healing.

Carson makes a very good point in that he believes many of us (consciously or unconsciously) believe we have a right, not only to a healthy life but one that involves 'a civilized seventy years'. Where, O Christian did this assumption come from? From where do we cite the grounds to these rights? If we get sick and suffer (or even die young; or in accidents or from cancer) we claim that God is unjust! Put simply, this view is totally unbiblical. God (listen to this) owes us nothing - that's right, nothing. "It is because of the Lord's mercies that we are not all instantly punished when we sin."

We do not have a God-given right to live to 85 years and die peacefully in our sleep. We do not have a divine right to be healthy or to be rich or to be parents of our children until they all bury us. We do not have a right to security from being harmed from others in this Fallen World. However, we do have a right to be children of God and to have our sins forgiven. Think about that ... before tragedy strikes. And it does. How many Christian martyrs will go to their death during the reading of this article? How many Christians will recieve news from their doctors today that they do not want to hear?

So what about suffering and healing?

Carson does not avoid this - despite it's controversial rumblings within the family of God and he does so in the context of the late John Wimber, who estimated that the healing success rate he was involved in was about 2%. I, therefore, leave you with a final quote about Wimber (whom Carson speaks about as a brother in Christ):

" He [Wimber] has tried to establish a theology of healing and power encounter without a theology of suffering; he has a theology of victory without an adequate theology of the cross; he has a theology of life without proper reflection on the place of death. He sees the triumph of the kingdom when sickness is overthrown, and cannot see the triumph of the kingdom when people are transformed in the midst of sickness. He discusses God's power, but rarely wrestles with God's predilection for displaying his power in the context of continuing weakness. He encourages triumphant faith, but does not establish a broad enough grid to show that triumphant faith may be exactly what is displayed where there is raw perseverance in the face of incredible suffering. He rightly sees that sin and suffering are intrinsically evil but he nowhere thinks through how a sovereign God in some ways stands behind them, even on occasion using them as instruments of needed discipline. In short, Wimber's framework is not big enough." (Emphasis his).

Does this all sound familiar?

"How Long, O Lord?" by Don Carson.

Second edition 2006.

IVP.

ISBN-10: 1-84474-132-X

ISBN-13: 978-1-84474-132-8