When We Want to Know Why | Spirit of God Fellowship Church 2

We see events in the world that make us question “Why?” We have tragedies in our family that make us ask “Why?” Even minor setbacks cause us to ask “Why?” And there’s never an answer that seems to make sense.

The Bible makes it clear that asking God for answers is a reasonable response to suffering. We know this because when Jesus, Who was sinless and blameless, was hanging on the cross, even He cried out to the heavens and asked, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” (Matthew 27:46, NIV).

I wish that this article could answer the whys of life, but we can’t provide that. No one here on earth can answer that for you. That probably doesn’t offer you much comfort, but perhaps these thoughts will.

It isn’t always about punishment.

When you experience pain, that doesn’t mean God is punishing you. Of course, sometimes our pain is the result of God disciplining us in order to draw us back to him (Hebrews 12:7-11), so it’s always wise to take the opportunity to examine our lives when we encounter suffering. But look at the life of Job.

Job was experiencing the worst life imaginable: his children died, he lost almost everything he owned, and he was experiencing horrible physical pain. Some of his friends tried to convince Job that this was all God’s punishment and that he needed to repent. God later rebuked those friends.

So don’t let anyone, including yourself, say that if you were a better person, or made better choices, or changed something about yourself, then your life would be rainbows and roses. That simply isn’t true.

We will all experience suffering to varying degrees, no matter how closely we follow what God wants us to do.

We live in a broken world.

The answer to “Why do bad things happen to good people?” is both simple and complicated: it’s because our world is broken (Genesis 3). We are flawed people who have created a flawed world.

There are many pieces of this life that are absolutely beautiful, but the sin of this world means that bad things will also happen, even to the best of us.

And here’s the news that no one wants to hear: We will probably never get the answer to our whys on this side of eternity. And would it change anything if we did know the answer? Would it bring back our child, our health, or whatever was lost?

The “why” would not be powerful enough for our human minds to help alleviate the intense sorrow of tragedy.

There is an answer.

What we can know, and what can bring us a measure of comfort, is knowing there IS a why. Romans 8:28 tells us, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose” (NIV).

What a promise! Those who love God can know that He will work all things for our good. It may not feel that way or look that way. But we know that God’s promises are true.

And while we’re talking about God’s promises, Paul assures us in Romans 8:18 that “I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us” (NIV).

These horrible, painful, unimaginable sufferings are temporary. When we reach eternity, all will be clear, and all will be beautiful. We won’t even be able to compare those sufferings to how incredibly wonderful the glories of eternity will be. We can’t even IMAGINE what it will be like in God’s kingdom. We just need to get through this life, and then we’ll see the big picture.

If you are in the midst of personal suffering right now, you probably don’t feel comfort with these words. What does it matter if you will hold your baby in eternity when your arms are empty now? How can you process the mass murder of children that you have to deal with right now? What does this mean as you’re sick from your cancer treatments, knowing you have many more weeks of these treatments?

God cares about your pain.

All I can tell you right now, in this moment, is that God cares about your pain. He has never left you. He has never stopped caring about you. Hebrews 13:5 tells us God will never leave us or forsake us.

John 10:33 tells us no matter how many troubles we experience in this life, we can feel hope because God has overcome the world.

Even if our family leaves us, Psalm 27:10 assures us that God will hold us in His hand.

There are so many verses that attest to the truth that the Lord holds us close and carries us through whatever heartaches we face. We hope these Scriptures can bring you a measure of hope and comfort.

Whatever you are experiencing, we are so sorry that you are in pain.

If you are going through a rough time, please know that we are also here for you.
Please reach out if you’d like someone to pray with you or for you.

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If you’d prefer if we called and prayed with you, just let us know and we will do that.

Of course, you can always visit Spirit of God Fellowship Sunday mornings at 10 a.m. and talk with us in person. Just go over to the welcome desk, right in the back, and we will pray with you and talk with you.