We live in an evil world. All bad things (death, illness, injury, suffering, evil, etc.) can be traced back to the Fall, when sin disrupted God’s perfect world. God limits suffering and restrains much evil. But when God does permit suffering and evil, He will use it for good, even though we may not see the good during our lifetime. Nothing happens by chance. God has a plan.
There may be darkness and confusion in the middle of God’s plan for you, but remember, “For I know the plans that I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” – Jeremiah 29:11.
For example, Joseph suffered terribly and he could not imagine all God was doing. He eventually realized the wonderful things God accomplished through his suffering. God planned good through Joseph’s suffering as He does for us. It continues even today and will bring Him glory forever.
The suffering of Job reminds us that we may never know the reason why we suffer, but the truth still remains that “The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord” – Job 1:21 Isaiah 55:8-9 tell us that our thought are not God’s thoughts and our ways are not God’s ways, but what is promised is God will ultimately work all things for good for believers.
Sometimes God lets bad things happen to get our attention. He wants us to love our neighbor and to love Him. If we don’t love and honor Him, we won’t obey Him; we won’t give Him or our neighbor attention. Jesus said, “If you love me, you will obey what I command.” – John 14:15
As good example of God trying to get our attention is the story of Jonah. God wanted him to got to Nineveh and preach His message, but Jonah refused. God got his attention by throwing him into the belly of a fish for three days. Sometimes God is jut trying to get our attention.
Scripture teaches us “all things God works together for good to those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” – Romans 8:28 Scripture also teaches us that we are to rejoice in our suffering. “rejoice in our suffering, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” – Romans 5:3-5 So choose to trust God to bring about His purposes when bad things happen to you.
Be confident that nothing will happen to you without His permission. Nothing will happen that will not ultimately bring you more good than destruction. Psalm 121 teaches us that God will always watch over your life now and forevermore.
Are people just puppets if God controls everything? No, people are not puppets. We have free will. We make actual choices and are responsible for our actions. God does not override our will, but He does direct circumstances to accomplish His will. God always acts for good. When people act in an evil way, they are guilty of doing wrong, even though God works through their actions to bring about good. God never deserves blame for people’s evil actions. He always deserves our praise.
We can trust God’s good purposes even when we do not understand what He is doing. Living by faith gives God’s children joy and brings Him glory. We must trust Him to show us all we need to know. Only God knows His infinite purposes for everything that happens. God leads His children by His Word and His Spirit. We do not need to look for signs to know what to do. Knowing our heavenly Father is in control should be more than enough for us.
Bad things happen, but this world is not the end. God uses those bad things for an ultimate lasting good. Those bad things equip believers for deeper ministry. Jesus suffered and we as Christians share in His sufferings. Jesus was the only truly Righteous One, yet He suffered more than we can imagine. “If you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. ‘He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.’ When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.” – 1 Peter 2:20-23
God never promises Christians an easy and pain-free life. Actually, we’re promised that we will have trouble and hardship in this world. “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart I have overcome the world.” – John 16:33. The difference is the hope and help we have in Christ.
Join me here next time -- I encourage you to trust in Jesus.
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