The Mystery of Sufferings

This is my first message for 2007. This is not a negative message; but on the contrary I attempt to impart a few words of comfort and encouragement to those who are going through a period of sufferings and trials.

The mystery of God is what God "kept secret since the world began" (Romans 16:12). Examples of the mystery of God include, resurrection of believers (1 Cor. 15:51), the gospel (Eph. 6:19), godiness (1 Tim. 3:16) and "Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Col. 1:27).

When Bible teachers or theologians talk about suffering they are likely to confine to physical suffering. But the type of suffering that human beings encounter everyday in their lives on earth covers a much wider field - physical, mental and spiritual. This message, like most of my messages posted so far, are the product of my Bible research work. I find myself most inadequate to present a good message on suffering because of my lack of personal experience on personal sufferings and also the lack of exposure to the sufferings of other people. Fortunately the Bible has much to say about sufferings.

Soloman said, "It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the glory of kings to search out a matter" (Proverbs 25:2, NKJV).

As believers are "made kings and priests to our God" (Rev. 5:10), and therefore it is our glory to search out the mystery of God.

The most general definition of human suffering

We cannot talk about human suffering unless we can define what human suffering involves. And we cannot talk about suffering as a Christian unless we understand human suffering in general. I think the following general definition of human suffering will cover all forms of suffering from the smallest to the greatest. Here it is:

"Suffering is having what you do not want or wanting what you do not have".

You do not want sickness and poverty, but you are having them. This is suffering! You are hungry and thirsty but you have nothing to eat or drink. This is also suffering. We can think of many examples.

Would it be wonderful if we do not need to suffer? We have everything we want and do not have things we do not want. Let us think about it more deeply. Can you imagine a world in which nobody has anything that he does not want; no discomfort, no taxes, no traffic jam, no touchy relatives and difficult bosses or workers and so on? Or, by contrast, where everybody has everything they wanted; they have perfect weather condition, perfect wives, perfect husbands, perfect health, perfect scores and perfect happiness and so on. I think the world would be a dreadful place in which to live if there is no suffering at all. The reason being, everything that corrects the tendency of man to feel overly important and over pleased with himself will disappear. He will take everything for granted.

Our concept about God determines how we view suffering

Suffering becomes a problem to us if we have already believed three things about God:

1. We must believe in one God. There is no problem if there are many gods. Some gods may be good and some bad. Obviously suffering comes from a bad god.

2. We must believe in an almighty God. If God is not almighty but is as helpless as we are, then He is not able to stop suffering even if He wants to. So, we can expect some sufferings in our life.

3. We must believe that God is love. If God is hate then there is no problem. If I love people it is obvious that I will not hurt them or want to see them suffer.

Relationship between love and suffering

There is an intimate relationship between love and suffering. Every perfect gift comes from God (James 1:17). God is love (1 John 4:8), but with the gift of love also comes with the gift of suffering. These two gifts are inseparable. If we do not ever want to suffer we must be very careful never to love - anything or anybody. Can you imagine a life without love? We simply cannot avoid suffering without avoiding love also. For example if I do not love my children I will not suffer if they are sick. I will also not suffer if they misbehave or fail to follow sound advice.

The seemingly contradiction between suffering and love can only be understood via the Cross of Calvary! God's love for you and I is demonstrated at the Cross. He loves much and suffered much for us. He allows Himself and His only begotten Son to suffer so that we might have life. The Cross saves the world and brings into harmony with suffering. It is only at the foot of the Cross that we can begin to harmonize this divine paradox between love and suffering. We will never understand suffeing unless we understand the love of God!

We are talking about two different levels on which things are to be understood. The Scripture seems to be in complete paradox because there are three different kingdoms - the visible kingdom of this world and the two invisible kingdoms (God's Kingdom and Satan's kingdom) on which the facts of this world are interpreted.

Take for examples the Beatitudes, those wonderful statements of paradox that Jesus gave to the multitudes when He preached to them on the mountain:

"Blessed are those who mourn (suffer), for they shall be comforted" (Matthew 5:4, emphasis added).

"Blessed are those who are persecuted (suffered) for righteousness sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 5:10, emphasis added).

The apostle Paul understood perfectly well the meaning of suffering for righteousness sake:

"Remember that Jesus Christ, of the seed of David, was raised from the dead according to my gospel, for which I suffer trouble as an evildoer, even to the point of chains; but the word of God is not chained. Therefore I endure all things for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory" (2 Timothy 2:8 - 10, NKJV, emphasis added).

The cause of suffering

There are three views regarding the cause of suffering - two non-Biblical views and the Biblical view:

Non-Biblical views

1. Some philosophers and thinkers believe suffering is due to the imperfection of the world in which we live. Put it simply, when God made the world He did a bad job. If He had made the world properly there would not be any earthquake; no volcano, no hurricane, no pollution, no tropical storm and so on. This view must be rejected. Genesis 1:31 says, "Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good. ...".

2. Some believe suffering is due to the ignorance of men. This view must also be rejected. Knowledge can only relief suffering but not eradicate it.

The Biblical view

The Biblical position of suffering points to a single cause. All suffering is due to sin. But there is no simple answer. We must not jump into conclusion that when a person suffers he must have sinned. The suffering of Job is a good example. There are many saintly and godly persons suffered terribly and experienced premature death. On the other hand some wicked people died peacefully in their old age.

Therefore we cannot equate suffering with sin in the individual lives. But, taking the whole sufferings of the whole world and the whole human race the Bible says that suffering is due to one single cause - SIN!

Sources of sin which cause suffering

In my opinion there are three sources of sin which cause sufferings to human beings:

1. Sufferings caused by the sin of an individual

Undoubtedly there are cases of suffering which are due to an individual's own sin. A man who drinks and smoke heavily and habitually, knows the result of what he has done. He might have cancer of the lung or liver later in life. The Bible says, "Whatever a man sows, that he will also reap" (Gal. 6:7). Young people cannot sow their "wild oats" and get away with it later in life.

2. Sufferings caused by the sins of other people

Wars, aggressions, acts of terrorism, violence and cruelty are examples of suffering caused by the sins of other people. But we cannot say wars are bad and unnecessary. Sometimes more suffering arises if a was has not been fought. The fact remains if I sin I cause others to suffer. If one nation sins other nation or nations will suffer.

A question arises why does God allow me to suffer because of someone else's sin? A Biblical answer is that God created us so that we can relate to one another. We can help and care for one another. We can love and also hate one another. We are not created to live individual lives in isolation. There is no such thing as private Christianity!

Paul said, "There should be no schism in the body, but that the members should have the same care for one another. And if one member suffers, all members suffer with it; or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it" (1 Cor. 12:15, 26, NKJV).

3. Sufferings caused by Satan's sin

Sufferings due to natural disasters, earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes and the like, are caused by Satan's sin.

From the Book of Job we learn that Satan cannot cause suffering or harm to people unless God allowed him. Jesus Himself acknowledged the fact that a woman with a spirit of infirmity for eighteen years was the work of Satan.

Jesus answered the ruler of the synagogue, "Hypocrite! Does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or donkey from the stall, and lead it away to water it? So ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound - think of it - for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath" (Luke 13:15, 16, emphasis added)?

Why did God allowed this woman to suffer under Satan? Why does God allow sufferings as a result of Satan's sin? This remains a mystery to me and perhaps to you also! I believe we may never know until we get to glory. The right attitude should be - I do not know but I know God has His reason.

Conclusion

So we see we can never avoid suffering and suffering remains a mystery. We take comfort that even in the midst of suffering we know God is with us as He was with His Son when He suffered for our sin! Joy is not the absence of suffering but in the presence of God!

David the psalmist said, "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for you are with me; Your rod and Your staff they comfort me" (Psalm 23:4).

The apostle Paul knew exactly the meaning of suffering because he was called by God to suffer for His name sake (Acts 9:16). He had more than his fair share of sufferings during his missionary journeys.

He said, "For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us" (Romans 8:18, NKJV).