This is the final blog post in a series on apologetics that I began
November 12 of last year.
I have written this series to share some of the most convincing and reassuring apologetic truth that has helped stabilize and strengthen my faith over the years.
Now we look at the final stumbling block… the question of whether God truly loves us, because if He did, it seems that He would make our lives go better.
This, of course, is the
problem of evil come down from the cosmic level to the personal level. Most Christians struggle from time to time with the pain and suffering in their own lives. It may be the accumulation of nagging little things over time, or a major blow that rocks their world.
But sooner or later, it is common for Christians to wonder if God loves them… because if He did, why doesn’t He help them? Why doesn’t he bless them? Why doesn’t He make their lives go better?
Trials bring us hidden blessings
Yet Scripture makes it clear that God does love us… in spite of the fact that we have trials in our lives… and that the trials are God’s tools to forge us into the character of Christ if we will let Him.
Trials are the avenue through which God brings us the blessings in life that we long for.
The Bible tells us that through trials, we can:
- Become stronger and more spiritually mature (James 1:2-4)
- Become more capable of ministering to others (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)
- Increase our eternal reward (Romans 8:18)
- Deepen our relationship with Him (Philippians 3:10)
There are many good and wonderful things that can only come about through struggle and trial and pain.
In my own life, time has demonstrated that many of my struggles with God were rooted in ignorance, selfishness and pride. It is clear that if God had given me an easy life, I would have remained arrogant and self-entitled, absorbed with my own welfare over the welfare of others.
Sandwiched in between promise-laden Scriptures on the one hand, and an unimaginably bright future in which those promises will be fulfilled on the other hand, the only thing God hasn’t done for us is make this life on earth easy for us.
But He intends to do so in the end in lavish, magnificent and deeply personal ways. Revelation talks of a time when
“He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain…” (Revelation 4:21)
And on top of that, He will give us the best gift of all, which is a personal relationship with Him that is not limited by sin.
The greatest gift is God Himself
Like coming into the presence of someone you love deeply on earth… only much more so… we will come into the presence of God, which will be infinitely more precious to us than any gift He could give us.
When I called my (now) wife, Margie, in high school and asked her to go to the prom with me, I was delirious with joy when she agreed.
On the fateful day, I washed and waxed my car to a blinding shine, put on my finest clothes, and went to pick her up. When she met me at the door in her dazzling white dress, smiling and perfectly made up… at that moment, I didn’t wish for another thing.
I did not wish I had made better grades that year. I did not wish I had scored more points in the last basketball game. I did not wish I had more money. I did not wish for another thing. I was completely happy in the moment with her… in her presence. I felt like the luckiest guy in the world.
And so it will be with God – yet infinitely more so – that we will be filled up and completely happy and satisfied in His presence. The fact that He did not,
from a temporal perspective, take better care of us on earth will become a non-issue.
As Timothy Keller has written, “
On the day of the Lord – the day that God makes everything right, the day that everything sad becomes untrue – on that day the same thing will happen to your own hurts and sadness. You will find that the worst thing that ever happened to you will in the end only enhance your eternal delight. On that day all of it will be turned inside out and you will know joy beyond the walls of the world. The joy of your glory will be that much greater for every scar you bear.”
Conclusion
Even though we may be able to see the ultimate benefit of suffering, this is not to suggest that our suffering will ever be easy. No suffering is easy, or it wouldn’t be suffering.
When I think of those who have suffered more than I have…
- Joni Erikson Tada who has been a quadriplegic since young adulthood, who has survived cancer, and who is now living in chronic pain…
- Corrie ten Boom who witnessed the death of her father and sister, and who suffered terribly in a German concentration camp for helping Jews escape Germany…
- Countless nameless individuals today living in communist or Islamic countries who endure unspeakable persecution because of their faith…
… I have to admit that sometimes the suffering can rise to almost seemingly unbearable levels.
C. S. Lewis wrote, “
What do people mean when they say, ‘I am not afraid of God because I know He is good?’ Have they never been to a dentist?” And, “
We are not necessarily doubting that God will do the best for us; we are wondering how painful the best will turn out to be.”
Yet Joni, and Corrie, and countless other individuals – and even C. S. Lewis – give testimony to the goodness and grace of God, even in the midst of their trials… confirming that even in such extreme levels, trials can make us stronger, make us more capable of ministering to others, deepen our relationship with God, and increase our eternal reward.
So, by faith, we embrace the goodness of God, in spite of the fact that He does not make our lives easier, trusting in His sufficient grace, and waiting for that day when all will be well.
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