{"id":342,"date":"2020-04-22T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-04-22T06:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wearefaith.flywheelstaging.com\/why-do-bad-things-happen-to-good-people\/"},"modified":"2021-02-13T03:54:11","modified_gmt":"2021-02-13T03:54:11","slug":"why-do-bad-things-happen-to-good-people","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wearefaith.org\/blog\/why-do-bad-things-happen-to-good-people\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Do Bad Things Happen to Good People?"},"content":{"rendered":"

This past weekend, we examined the question “Why Do Bad Things Happen to Good People?” as part of our sermon series looking at “Big Questions” that people have. This particular question is even more specific than the related topic we studied in the “Explore God” sermon series last year on why there is evil and suffering (for thoughts on that question, see <\/span>this post from last year<\/span><\/a>). This question deals with the fact that people endure suffering and hardships that they don’t appear to deserve. Natural disasters strike people who are upstanding citizens and faithful servants. Some people who are seeking to help others in this season may get sick or even die from COVID-19. Why do these bad things happen to good people?<\/span><\/p>\n

Possible Answers to the Question That Deny the Question<\/b><\/p>\n

This is a question that all religions and belief systems have to address, and some address it by actually denying that there is suffering or that there are good people in the world. The concept of karma actually assumes that there are no good people — while they may be doing good in this life, their suffering ultimately stems from evil done in a past life. Other people and belief systems actually deny that there is evil. For example, Buddhism teaches that suffering is really an illusion and we can free ourselves from suffering when we detach ourselves from our desires. Similarly, Christian Science and Hinduism view suffering as an illusion we need to get past by remembering that the universe is spiritual (evil is actually faulty thinking). These answers do not seem to align with our experience in which suffering seems all too real and actually turn the question around on the one who asks it or is suffering by blaming them for something that could never be verified. If someone asks this question, these answers would tell them to stop asking and change their perspective — either denying that they are actually suffering or admitting that they deserve it. Rather than denying the basis for the question like other systems of thought, Christianity affirms that there is real suffering in the world and that this suffering does not just happen to “bad” people. In fact, much of the book of Psalms features people crying out to God in the midst of their pain, not denying it and also not blaming themselves.<\/span><\/p>\n

Particular Challenge In Light of Christian Beliefs About God<\/b><\/p>\n

In addition to affirming that suffering is real and even affects those who seek to do God’s will, the Christian faith affirms that there is a God who is good and who is all powerful. Some people think that these things cannot all fit together because if God is good, He would not want bad things to happen and if He is an all-powerful God, then He wouldn’t allow bad things to happen. This leads some people to deny that God is good; they might believe that there is a God out there but do not want to worship Him. Others will say that there is a good God, but that this good God cannot control all things.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Bible has many stories of plagues and other types of suffering the people experienced, but they did not stop believing in the goodness or power of God nor turn away from Him. In fact, we see faithful people who suffered and praised God rather than blame Him. For example, in Job 1-2, we see Job praising God and acknowledging that He is in control, despite his suffering. He acknowledges that God gives blessings, but also takes them away (as we see in the story, God does not afflict Job but lets Satan do so and also limits what he can do). In Genesis 37-50, we see Joseph suffer at the hands of his brothers, but he does not blame God for his suffering but instead acknowledges that the evil things that his brothers did to him, God used for good (Genesis 50:20).<\/span><\/p>\n

The Cause of These Sufferings and God’s Control<\/b><\/p>\n

I think Joseph’s words greatly help us think through what it means that God is sovereign and in control and not the cause of the evil and suffering that comes upon innocent people. The evil that happened to Joseph was caused by the jealousy and the desires of his brothers. These things do not happen without God permitting them to happen; they are not simply the result of chance or happening in a blind spot of God’s knowledge or while He is resting. The Belgic Confession, one of Faith Church’s statements of faith, says that “<\/span>nothing happens in this world without God’s orderly arrangement. Yet God is not the author of, and cannot be charged with, the sin that occurs. For God’s power and goodness are so great and incomprehensible that God arranges and does his works very well and justly even when the devils and the wicked act unjustly<\/span><\/i>” (Article 13). God is in control in such a way that we know nothing happens by chance; this is why the Heidelberg Catechism (another one of Faith Church’s confessions of faith) says that<\/span> “<\/span>He<\/span><\/i> watches over me in such a way that not a hair can fall from my head without the will of my Father in heaven<\/span><\/i>” (Q & A 1). God is showing care and concern for His people even when there is suffering. <\/span><\/p>\n

While under God’s control, the cause (or author) of the suffering is to be viewed as coming from the “devils” and actions of wicked people. The suffering we see in this world is often inflicted by the particular actions of individuals or the systematic consequences of such people. Murder and abuse come from the particular acts of particular people, while diseases and disasters come from the effects of sin on this world and is no longer the perfect world the way God designed it. We affirm these reasons for the evil, but also know that these evil things that happen are a part of God’s sovereign plan for the world in general and His people in particular. Heidelberg Catechism notes later on in the first Q & A, citing Romans 8:28: <\/span>“in fact, all things must work together for my salvation.”<\/span><\/i> Nothing happens outside of God’s plan, but God is not the one who is inflicting pain and suffering on the innocent.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Mystery that Remains….and the Comfort That is Available<\/b><\/p>\n

Something that I like about the Belgic Confession when it discusses God’s providence (that God continues to exercise care and control in this world) in Article 13 tells us:<\/span><\/p>\n

“We do not wish to inquire with undue curiosity into what God does that surpasses human understanding and is beyond our ability to comprehend. But in all humility and reverence we adore the just judgments of God, which are hidden from us, being content to be Christ’s disciples, so as to learn only what God shows us in the Word, without going beyond those limits.”<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

There is mystery in how this works, in that God is in control and allows for the evil things to happen. Job and Joseph understood this mystery — they believed that God was in control but also that He was not causing these evil things to happen to them, making Him the author of sin. Instead of seeking to have questions answered completely from a logical perspective, they rested in the reality that these truths offer, as Article 13 continues: “<\/span>This doctrine gives us unspeakable comfort since it teaches us that nothing can happen to us by chance but only by the arrangement of our gracious heavenly Father, who watches over us with fatherly care, sustaining all creatures under his lordship, so that not one of the hairs on our heads (for they are all numbered) nor even a little bird can fall to the ground without the will of our Father.<\/span><\/i>” The Heidelberg Catechism similarly notes that this knowledge of God’s sovereignty means, “<\/span>We can be patient when things go against us, thankful when things go well, and for the future we can have good confidence in our faithful God and Father that nothing in creation will separate us from his love. For all creatures are so completely in God’s hand that without his will they can neither move nor be moved<\/span><\/i>” (Q & A 28). Our suffering and those of others should not cause us to think that God does not love us or care for us, but instead remind us of God’s love for us, a love that is deeper than just a desire to keep us happy, but one that ultimately ties to having us know Him more.<\/span><\/p>\n

Why Do Bad Things Happen To Good People?<\/b><\/p>\n

Why do bad things happen to good people? Because evil exists in this world and affects even those who believe in Jesus and trust that God is our Father and is in control. We know that the existence of evil is not the end of the story and does not have the final word. Let us look to the cross, where we see Jesus, the perfect one, endure great evil and suffering. God enters into the suffering and evil of this world to rescue us from it, showing us His plan and the ultimate care of our Heavenly Father.<\/span><\/p>\n

Questions about the Bible or theology? Email them to Pastor Brian at Theology@WeAreFaith.org. You can also request to receive weekly emails with our blog posts by filling out the information on the right side.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This past weekend, we examined the question “Why Do Bad Things Happen to Good People?” as part of our sermon series looking at “Big Questions” that people have. This particular … Continued<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_editorskit_title_hidden":false,"_editorskit_reading_time":0,"_editorskit_is_block_options_detached":false,"_editorskit_block_options_position":"{}","_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","kk_blocks_editor_width":"","_kiokenblocks_attr":"","_kiokenblocks_dimensions":"","wds_primary_category":272,"footnotes":""},"categories":[272],"tags":[160,171,212,210,62,213,211],"acf":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":false,"thumbnail":false,"medium":false,"medium_large":false,"large":false,"1536x1536":false,"2048x2048":false,"awsm_team":false},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Brian Dennert","author_link":"https:\/\/wearefaith.org\/author\/brian\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"This past weekend, we examined the question “Why Do Bad Things Happen to Good People?” as part of our sermon series looking at “Big Questions” that people have. This particular … Continued","publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2024-05-03 23:55:12","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wearefaith.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/342"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wearefaith.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wearefaith.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wearefaith.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wearefaith.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=342"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wearefaith.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/342\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wearefaith.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=342"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wearefaith.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=342"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wearefaith.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=342"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}