8 Then the LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.”
9 “Does Job fear God for nothing?” Satan replied. 10 “Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. 11 But stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face.” – Job 1:8-10
I was led by the Holy Spirit to write on the subject of suffering and on why ‘bad things happen to good people.’ I was recently questioned by a friend about it and now this article has brought it to light once more. Read the article here. This man’s personal story is powerful and hits home.
You must read the entire book of Job to really understand what goes on. It’s a good read, but will take a good sitting to get through it. Ultimately, everyone in Job’s life turns on him. He is plagued and cursed it seems by God(not true) but seems that way to us humans. He loses his whole family and money and everything that matters to him, yet he is still found blameless in God’s sight. He even says, “Naked I come from my mother’s womb and naked I shall return, Blessed be the name of the Lord!” Even his own wife says, curse God and die! God ultimately blesses Job, 10 and a 100 fold with more than he ever had. OK, so this won’t happen to everyone in both extremes that the book takes you in(whether in curses or pain or in blessings-spiritual/physical/monetary)
To make things abundantly clear, SIN is in this world and will ever be until Jesus returns from Heaven, PERIOD!
What does that mean for you and me? Well, my friends, we will cry, hurt, feel pain and grief and strife and ultimately physically die one day. Are you shocked and surprised yet? Yeah, I didn’t think so. So now your asking, get to your point…what are you saying Sam???
Good question?!?! OK, Job suffered and so will we. Good things happen to bad people too! Shocked again? I didn’t think so. But your asking, if good things happen to bad people, then what’s the difference if bad things happen to good people? Great question again. The fact is, the sun and the rain fall on both the good and the bad correct? Same with blessings and curses. If your blessed monetarily, for example, and you have a family member that is bad, but needs help financially, would you help them? Maybe yes or maybe no, but the option is there for you to bless and thus this person could receive some of your blessings. Same way when say, like the earthquake in Haiti hit, did it strike the believer and non-believer alike? Of course it did, does that mean that the believer shouldn’t experience the struggle that the non-believer did just because they are a believer? Didn’t think so. So do bad things happen to good people? Yes!
Are we all human and share in this world the natural disasters or the break-down of our bodies? Yes! My ex-wife got cancer at 29!! 29!!! Is that fair? Is that right? She is a believer, so does that exclude her from the ‘bad things?’ NOPE! Did I suffer through it with her? Yes.
There are a million reasons for things that happen and there is no perfect answer to why these things happen, fact! They do happen though and it’s our job to support, pray, help, guide and love through it! I have had my share of problems in my life, believe me!!! But through it all, God is good and has always been there for me, even when I didn’t know it or realize it!
Horrible things happen to all kinds of people, good and bad alike. That’s the way it is. The GOOD NEWS and question is this. When you die, where are you going? Do you believe in Jesus? We are all gonna die one day sooner or later and our souls will need a place to live.
I’m sorry if you have experienced tragedy. I’m sorry if a Christian has wronged you in the past. Please don’t let life’s troubles stop you from believing in a Father that truly loves you, the God of all comfort, who wants a special relationship with you and who knows everything about you and a Father who welcomes you into His home.
Blessings!