Human Suffering
Today we wrestle with the enigma of Human suffering in light of the Sovereignty of God. Does God passively allow human suffering, actively cause it, unable to do anything about it, or able to end it but unwilling to do so? Furthermore, what does our answer say about the character of God?
“’My grace is sufficient for you.’ Most gladly therefore will I boast in my infirmity.” II Cor. 12:9
Several years ago some purported evangelicals proposed a solution to the enigma by hypothesizing a theology they dubbed “Open Theism.” In their scheme, God does not know in advance the future free actions of His moral creatures nor can He control their choices. Because He is eternal though, He can make some pretty good guesses knowing the character of men.
They also believed tragic events could occur over which God had no control. Therefore, God should not be blamed, because He was neither willing they occur nor unable to stop them from occurring. At times, God may even realize that the guidance He gave was inadvertently inadequate and thus, in sorrow God ‘repents’ of those actions.
They painted God as the ultimate risk taker- a Benevolent Being that was willing to take risks and then work for a cosmic solution- even at great pain to Himself. O how nice.
My friend, this is nothing short of heresy!
The God of the Bible is the Absolute Sovereign of the Universe. Of course, we may differentiate between His permissive will and His proscriptive will. God could not actively prescribe sin and still be good (James 1:13). Nevertheless “He actively works together all things for the good of those who love Him” and even “the wrath of men shall praise Him.” In mysterious ways beyond our ability to fathom, Our Father takes the most tragic events and weaves them into a beautiful tapestry of His grace and for His eventual glory.
He does all things well. Ask Job: “The Lord gives, the Lord takes away, blessed be the name of the Lord.” When you are tempted to impugn His character because of some troubling affliction that has come your way, choose instead to see through the lens of the eternal and by faith cling to the truth and rest in His sovereignty. When we are weak, He is strong.
Because of grace,
Tim
