I Wonder Why Bad Things Happen To Good People*
Faith Development
Charles D. Reeb
Answers to Our Most Troubling Questions
Object:
As we remember the terror of 9/11, we long for answers. As we experience pain in our lives, our hearts cry out. As we continue to face the difficulties and challenges of life, our minds seek satisfaction to this enigma. It is the age-old puzzle that haunts us: "I wonder why bad things happen to good people." This is a burning question for anyone who has experienced the horrors of life. Churches are flooded with people asking this question. Counselors are overbooked with clients asking this question. People all over the world pray this question: Why do bad things happen to good people? The brokenness of life shatters many people's ideas about how the world is supposed to operate.
We don't live life very long before many of our illusions are shattered. I recall a cartoon that appeared in The Atlanta Constitution after a man named Mark Barton walked into an Atlanta business office then shot and killed several people. In the cartoon, a small boy is sitting next to his mother and a newspaper is lying on the table. The headline reads, "Atlanta Murderer: Mark Barton." Confused, the boy is looking up at his mother saying, "You said monsters don't exist."1 We are all like that boy, and we ask about this monster in many ways: "Why do the innocent suffer and the wicked prosper?" "Why does God allow evil and suffering?" "If God is great and good, why is there suffering?" Another way it is put is: "If God can't stop suffering, then he is not great. If he can, then he is not good." In the study of theology this wonder is called the theodicy question, and it has been asked since the very beginning of recorded history.
A Biblical Question
It may come as a surprise to some that the theodicy question can be seen throughout the Bible. The Psalms ask it. Job asks it. Lamentations is full of it. The prophet Habakkuk complains to God about it. The prophet Jeremiah questions God about it: Why do the wicked prosper and the innocent suffer? We ought to take a lesson from the biblical writers who cry out with this same burning question that we ask today. The lesson is that if we are going to be intimate and personal with God, we need to give him all that we have inside of us, even our deepest complaints and questions. Don't worry. God is big enough to handle them!
It may be some consolation that the Bible asks the theodicy question, but is there an answer? Unfortunately, there is not an answer, at least not one that would satisfy most of us. The simple fact is that the Bible asks the question, but it never completely answers it. Deuteronomy 29:29 says, "The secret things belong to the Lord our God." This side of heaven we will never know why bad things happen to good people.
The Evil Side Of Free Will
There is an incomplete response to the theodicy question: free will. God wants us to love him because we choose to love him, so he has given us free will. It is a great gift, but there is a negative side to it. People can use their free will to do evil things and cause much pain and suffering. So, on 9/11/01, certain people chose to use their free will to get into airplanes, crash into buildings, and kill innocent people.
However, free will is an incomplete response to the theodicy question because it does not address things like natural disasters and various diseases -- those things that human beings do not cause to happen. The truth is that we live in a sinful world that runs amok and bad things happen to both the innocent and the guilty.
As Christians, we believe that one day Christ will come in glory and all of our questions will be answered, all of the great mysteries will be solved, and all of our confusion will turn into clarity. So get your list of questions ready for that day. I know I've got mine! And the question at the top of my list will be, "Why did bad things happen to good people?"
You know what Mother Teresa said? She said, "When I die, God will have a lot of answering to do." Billy Graham also said, "When I die and go to heaven, I will spend the first 100 years just asking God questions." We can look forward to doing the same thing.
Until that great day comes, however, we still have to cope with life in all of its suffering and tragedy. We still have to deal with the bad and unfair circumstances of life. So, I want to offer some things that have helped me as I have struggled with the question of why bad things happen to good people. My prayer is that they will help you, too.
Don't Become Cynical
The first bit of help I offer is simply this: Do not allow the theodicy question to make you cynical. It's fair and healthy to ask this question and struggle with it, but I have seen too many people hang on to it way too long, like a protest, and remain stuck in their faith, or stop believing in God altogether. I have also seen people use it as an excuse. Some feel that as long as they wear a badge of prideful agnosticism, they will not have to deal with the truth of God in their lives.
Don't allow unfair pain and suffering to harden your heart. A good way to protect yourself from cynicism is to reflect on the insightful words of Harry Emerson Fosdick: "Goodness is a far greater problem for the atheist than evil is for the believer." Instead of focusing on the evil and suffering in the world, look at all the goodness that abounds! Where does all this goodness come from? It can only come from a loving God who cares for us. Allow the goodness in the world to lead you back to the goodness of God.
A Better Question
I believe the best help I can give as we grapple with the question of why bad things happen to good people is to offer another question: What happens to good people when bad things happen to them? This is a question that the Bible does answer. In the eighth chapter of Romans, Paul uses several words to describe the pain and suffering of life: hardship, persecution, distress, nakedness, famine, peril, and the sword (v. 35). Paul and the early Christians were very much in touch with unfair suffering. But what did Paul say happens to us when we experience bad things? Not only did he say that we will never be separated from God's love, but in Romans 8:28 Paul says something truly remarkable: "We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose."
This remarkable verse expresses that evil and pain are never the will of God, but God can take evil and pain and use them for good. Over and over again in life we see this. When evil attacks with pain, God uses it to build character. When evil shows resistance, God uses it to build strength. When evil cripples with tragedy, God finds a way to victory. When evil destroys with death, God restores life. God is in the transformation business. God can turn our trouble into triumph!
One of the greatest examples of God turning rough times into glory is the story of Joseph in Genesis. Joseph was the favored son and his brothers were jealous. In a jealous rage they beat him and sold him into slavery as a youth. Through an amazing turn of events, as Joseph grew older, his abilities impressed the authorities of Egypt and the Pharaoh made him second in command in Egypt!
Joseph had the power to get revenge on his brothers, but he didn't. Instead, he forgave them. His brothers approached him, scared to death, and Joseph said, "Don't be afraid. Am I God? I can't judge you. What you did was meant to hurt me, but God used it for good. I have strength and character, and now I have the power to save and provide for the people of Israel." At that moment Joseph knew that God had taken something very ugly and made it beautiful.
It Is Well With Our Souls
H. G. Spafford had the same experience. In 1873, his wife and four children sailed from New York to France on an ocean liner. Mr. Spafford was unable to make the voyage with his family because of business commitments in Chicago. He told them "Good-bye," promising to meet them in France in a few weeks.
At two o'clock on the morning of November 22, 1873, when the luxury liner was several days out, it was hit by another liner. Within two hours, the ship sank. Nine days later when the survivors landed at Cardiff, Wales, Mrs. Spafford cabled her husband these two words, "Saved alone." When he received her message, he quickly booked passage on a ship to Europe to join his wife. On the way over, the captain called him into his cabin and said, "I believe we are now passing over the place where your family's liner went down."
That night in the mid-Atlantic, filled with much pain and sorrow, Mr. Spafford wrote five stanzas, the first of which contained these lines: "When peace like a river attendeth my way, When sorrows like sea-billows roll, Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say, It is well, it is well with my soul!"2 These familiar words have been a part of one of the most popular hymns in the church today. Little did Spafford know that his words would give comfort to so many people. God turned his scar into a star.
We can't control the fact that bad things will happen to us. They just do, and one day we will find out why. But the one thing we can control is how we respond to the bad things that happen to us. We can get bitter or better! We can stay angry at life and at God and never move on, or we can give our pain to God and allow him to do something beautiful with it. If we choose what God can do through our pain, we will be able to say with confidence:
I will be untouched in the midst of fire
I will stand firm in the midst of a storm
I will not crack in the midst of chaos
I will not lose heart when the world is torn
I will not fear when the heat blazes
I will not fret when drought comes
I will bear fruit in the midst of all of it
I will march to a different drum
I will discover victory in tragedy
I will trust in El Shaddai
I will laugh in the face of death
I will wave evil and pain good-bye
-- Charles D. Reeb
____________
*Sermon aired on Day 1 on September 11, 2005 (www.day1.net).
1. Cartoon by Mike Lukovich of The Atlanta Constitution.
2. Words by Horatio G. Spafford, 1873, in public domain.
We don't live life very long before many of our illusions are shattered. I recall a cartoon that appeared in The Atlanta Constitution after a man named Mark Barton walked into an Atlanta business office then shot and killed several people. In the cartoon, a small boy is sitting next to his mother and a newspaper is lying on the table. The headline reads, "Atlanta Murderer: Mark Barton." Confused, the boy is looking up at his mother saying, "You said monsters don't exist."1 We are all like that boy, and we ask about this monster in many ways: "Why do the innocent suffer and the wicked prosper?" "Why does God allow evil and suffering?" "If God is great and good, why is there suffering?" Another way it is put is: "If God can't stop suffering, then he is not great. If he can, then he is not good." In the study of theology this wonder is called the theodicy question, and it has been asked since the very beginning of recorded history.
A Biblical Question
It may come as a surprise to some that the theodicy question can be seen throughout the Bible. The Psalms ask it. Job asks it. Lamentations is full of it. The prophet Habakkuk complains to God about it. The prophet Jeremiah questions God about it: Why do the wicked prosper and the innocent suffer? We ought to take a lesson from the biblical writers who cry out with this same burning question that we ask today. The lesson is that if we are going to be intimate and personal with God, we need to give him all that we have inside of us, even our deepest complaints and questions. Don't worry. God is big enough to handle them!
It may be some consolation that the Bible asks the theodicy question, but is there an answer? Unfortunately, there is not an answer, at least not one that would satisfy most of us. The simple fact is that the Bible asks the question, but it never completely answers it. Deuteronomy 29:29 says, "The secret things belong to the Lord our God." This side of heaven we will never know why bad things happen to good people.
The Evil Side Of Free Will
There is an incomplete response to the theodicy question: free will. God wants us to love him because we choose to love him, so he has given us free will. It is a great gift, but there is a negative side to it. People can use their free will to do evil things and cause much pain and suffering. So, on 9/11/01, certain people chose to use their free will to get into airplanes, crash into buildings, and kill innocent people.
However, free will is an incomplete response to the theodicy question because it does not address things like natural disasters and various diseases -- those things that human beings do not cause to happen. The truth is that we live in a sinful world that runs amok and bad things happen to both the innocent and the guilty.
As Christians, we believe that one day Christ will come in glory and all of our questions will be answered, all of the great mysteries will be solved, and all of our confusion will turn into clarity. So get your list of questions ready for that day. I know I've got mine! And the question at the top of my list will be, "Why did bad things happen to good people?"
You know what Mother Teresa said? She said, "When I die, God will have a lot of answering to do." Billy Graham also said, "When I die and go to heaven, I will spend the first 100 years just asking God questions." We can look forward to doing the same thing.
Until that great day comes, however, we still have to cope with life in all of its suffering and tragedy. We still have to deal with the bad and unfair circumstances of life. So, I want to offer some things that have helped me as I have struggled with the question of why bad things happen to good people. My prayer is that they will help you, too.
Don't Become Cynical
The first bit of help I offer is simply this: Do not allow the theodicy question to make you cynical. It's fair and healthy to ask this question and struggle with it, but I have seen too many people hang on to it way too long, like a protest, and remain stuck in their faith, or stop believing in God altogether. I have also seen people use it as an excuse. Some feel that as long as they wear a badge of prideful agnosticism, they will not have to deal with the truth of God in their lives.
Don't allow unfair pain and suffering to harden your heart. A good way to protect yourself from cynicism is to reflect on the insightful words of Harry Emerson Fosdick: "Goodness is a far greater problem for the atheist than evil is for the believer." Instead of focusing on the evil and suffering in the world, look at all the goodness that abounds! Where does all this goodness come from? It can only come from a loving God who cares for us. Allow the goodness in the world to lead you back to the goodness of God.
A Better Question
I believe the best help I can give as we grapple with the question of why bad things happen to good people is to offer another question: What happens to good people when bad things happen to them? This is a question that the Bible does answer. In the eighth chapter of Romans, Paul uses several words to describe the pain and suffering of life: hardship, persecution, distress, nakedness, famine, peril, and the sword (v. 35). Paul and the early Christians were very much in touch with unfair suffering. But what did Paul say happens to us when we experience bad things? Not only did he say that we will never be separated from God's love, but in Romans 8:28 Paul says something truly remarkable: "We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose."
This remarkable verse expresses that evil and pain are never the will of God, but God can take evil and pain and use them for good. Over and over again in life we see this. When evil attacks with pain, God uses it to build character. When evil shows resistance, God uses it to build strength. When evil cripples with tragedy, God finds a way to victory. When evil destroys with death, God restores life. God is in the transformation business. God can turn our trouble into triumph!
One of the greatest examples of God turning rough times into glory is the story of Joseph in Genesis. Joseph was the favored son and his brothers were jealous. In a jealous rage they beat him and sold him into slavery as a youth. Through an amazing turn of events, as Joseph grew older, his abilities impressed the authorities of Egypt and the Pharaoh made him second in command in Egypt!
Joseph had the power to get revenge on his brothers, but he didn't. Instead, he forgave them. His brothers approached him, scared to death, and Joseph said, "Don't be afraid. Am I God? I can't judge you. What you did was meant to hurt me, but God used it for good. I have strength and character, and now I have the power to save and provide for the people of Israel." At that moment Joseph knew that God had taken something very ugly and made it beautiful.
It Is Well With Our Souls
H. G. Spafford had the same experience. In 1873, his wife and four children sailed from New York to France on an ocean liner. Mr. Spafford was unable to make the voyage with his family because of business commitments in Chicago. He told them "Good-bye," promising to meet them in France in a few weeks.
At two o'clock on the morning of November 22, 1873, when the luxury liner was several days out, it was hit by another liner. Within two hours, the ship sank. Nine days later when the survivors landed at Cardiff, Wales, Mrs. Spafford cabled her husband these two words, "Saved alone." When he received her message, he quickly booked passage on a ship to Europe to join his wife. On the way over, the captain called him into his cabin and said, "I believe we are now passing over the place where your family's liner went down."
That night in the mid-Atlantic, filled with much pain and sorrow, Mr. Spafford wrote five stanzas, the first of which contained these lines: "When peace like a river attendeth my way, When sorrows like sea-billows roll, Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say, It is well, it is well with my soul!"2 These familiar words have been a part of one of the most popular hymns in the church today. Little did Spafford know that his words would give comfort to so many people. God turned his scar into a star.
We can't control the fact that bad things will happen to us. They just do, and one day we will find out why. But the one thing we can control is how we respond to the bad things that happen to us. We can get bitter or better! We can stay angry at life and at God and never move on, or we can give our pain to God and allow him to do something beautiful with it. If we choose what God can do through our pain, we will be able to say with confidence:
I will be untouched in the midst of fire
I will stand firm in the midst of a storm
I will not crack in the midst of chaos
I will not lose heart when the world is torn
I will not fear when the heat blazes
I will not fret when drought comes
I will bear fruit in the midst of all of it
I will march to a different drum
I will discover victory in tragedy
I will trust in El Shaddai
I will laugh in the face of death
I will wave evil and pain good-bye
-- Charles D. Reeb
____________
*Sermon aired on Day 1 on September 11, 2005 (www.day1.net).
1. Cartoon by Mike Lukovich of The Atlanta Constitution.
2. Words by Horatio G. Spafford, 1873, in public domain.
