"Life is full of misery, loneliness and suffering -- and it's over much too soon." -Woody Allen
But who are you, O man, to talk back to God? "Shall what is formed say to him who formed it, 'Why did you make me like this?'" (Romans 9:20).
"I AM" -God
This Mother's Day, two people I know lost their mothers, unexpectedly, days before.The stories were heartbreaking and vivid. While losing a mother must be terrible, it is surely not like losing a child. Just last week, a Californian man was sentenced for rape and murder of two teenage girls. One of the mothers, at his arraignment said there were not enough words to describe her "minute-by-minute agony.""I've thought often about her final moments," she said of her daughter. "Was she scared? Was she calling my name?"
This leads us to the only positive argument agnostics have, that, incidentally, also seems to be a really, really strong one. If the God of the Bible exists, they say, than how is it that genetic disease, spontaneous abortion, and genocide exist? How is it that He allows, even seemingly his most "faithful" servants, to suffer almost continuously -- emotionally, physically, mentally and spiritually. This is, of course, "the argument of pain." There is no other argument that is both succinct and valid against the existence of the God of Scripture. And it is one Christians have been fumbling trying to explain for generations.
While you could easily build a library of books by Christian thinkers on this subject, in my mind, there are only a few things you can actually point to with conviction (conviction, of course, meaning supported by the word of God).
Firstly, the question needs to be restructured: that is, not "Why do bad things happen to good people", but, rather, "Why do good things happen to bad people?"
If by Christian we mean repentant sinner clinging to the cross, then the Christian should struggle with understanding this the least; if we know we are deserving of condemnation, we can only question why we are blessed instead. If I was physically abusive to my wife continuously, I would not question why she would be upset towards me. I would question, however, why a wife would continue to love an abusive husband.
Secondly, we all continue to try to view the forest from the trees, and make sense of the cell without examining the organism. What I mean is simply this: this thing we call life right now, is a blink of an eye compared to eternity. Just like we insist on our babies undergoing painful (more so maybe for the parents) pricks of the skin in order to obtain some sort of immunity against circulating viruses, we undergo Fatherly discipline, for our good and the good of those around us, in ways we cannot begin to understand in this world.
Thirdly, if not death, where is the chance for my baby girl to be born, grow up with food and light and energy, and develop into a person who can reject love or accept it, give love or suppress it?
Fourthly, if not pain and suffering, how can man demonstrate to God and His angels compassion and selfless love?
Fifthly, isn't this life without God? Isn't this all a result of a world given to us, and thrown back to God in rebellion? Isn't this how sin manifests? Jesus Christ and the Apostles regularly present a dualism of world and God. If one loves this world, He cannot love God, because he is of this world. This is what we all chose through Adam.
Six, and the conversation stopper: Jesus Christ came to suffer.
There was an article published in a scientific journal called Nature recently (keeping with my precedent, more footnotes missing) which examined several breeds of Chimpanzees, which, for those whom do not know, share the highest percent of DNA homology with humans than any other animal. Interestingly -- though probably not surprising to anyone whom has owned more than one dog or cat at the same time -- when two young chimpanzees over the course of the study were infected with what turned out to be deadly respiratory infections, the mother and community "mourned" through several behavior modifications. Chimpanzees, like all of nature, "groan" in unison with man; there is something very wrong with death, pain and this world. Something deep within us knows this, and knows this well. We all suffer, but we suffer justly. (I don't want to speculate why animals suffer). But in this all, God came down to earth to feel the pain generation of men have harnessed, and to end that pain forever. Jesus took the morphe doulou, form of a servant, and ultimately, a sufferer. We can look at all the hell on this earth and we can experience it (all of us will at some point). If we are lucky we will not die a slow death, nor ever have to bury a child or feel the black hole of depression. But, truth be told, many, many Christians have and will. Jesus Christ never promises a pass to His flock -- in fact, a cursory read of John assures us the opposite.
How does a God defined by Goodness, and fully Sovereign, exist in all this misery, misery we call "life" on Earth, misery that He thus must allow? Misery that existed before man (and presumably sin) even arrived on Earth? The only answer can be found in the person of Jesus Christ, the faith of Jesus Christ, and, ultimately, the suffering of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ suffered on earth like no man suffered and he suffered as a completely innocent servant. To all Christians whom have suffered immensely, lost children, died terrible deaths, lived and left this world in a sea of pain... this is the only answer. Our Creator is in control in an out-of -control world, His love will one day dilute out all the pain of existence. John is completely faithful when he reports, "God will wipe away every tear" (Revelation 21). But for now, pain and suffering will run rampant. Our only answer to those looking for God and for those whom He has found, seeking a solution to the problem of pain can only be the biography of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. And our response to suffering can be found in His last earthly act towards man before His resurrection - the compassionate request to the apostle He "loved the most" to take care of His widowed mother in his absence - "John", He musters moments before death, "here is your mother." (John 19:27).
