The problem of pain

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(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

“And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect. And I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly.”

Even though the Lord asked Abraham and Sarah to wait for twenty five years, He still took the time to remind them of His promise every now and then so that they could continue to hope and have faith in the Lord. This raises the old question of pain. Why do good people suffer? Surely, if God is God and does control everything why does He let His people suffer. There are many people who say that we will never know why we suffer or have to wait for many years. Others say that one day will realise why we suffered when we are able to help someone else but this implies that God lets one person suffer for another person’s benefit. What kind of God is this? The only time one Person suffered for the benefit of another person was when the Lord Jesus Christ suffered to become the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world. The real clue is found in Deut 8: 2 “And thou shalt remember all the way which the LORD thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no.” The Lord works to humble us and to prove us so that we can do what He wants us to do. In many cultures it is bad to be humble because that means we feel bad about ourselves but in God’s economy we are to be humble so that we realise God’s absolute majesty and feel good about God. If we feel good about God then “And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” (Phil 4: 7) Everyone wants peace of mind and contentment and God works in our lives to make sure that we have free access to this blessing from God whenever we want to take advantage of it. After all there is only room for One God and we do best if we understand Who He really is (see Is 42: 8; 48: 11). Surely God is good to His people for He made us and knows what is best for us, corporately and individually.