Suffering: Who is the one who started the suffering that God allows? Part 4

This is Part 4 of 5 parts answering the question, “Who is the one who started the suffering that God allows?” in the larger question, “Why does a loving God allow suffering?” Part 5 will be posted tomorrow.

Satan was Created Perfect, But He Sinned

But then Satan sinned. He was perfect (that is without sin or rebellion), until he sinned, “You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created, Till iniquity was found in you.” (Ezek. 28:15) What was the iniquity? the book of Isaiah has the answer.

Continue reading

Suffering: Who is the one who started the suffering that God allows? Part 3

This is Part 3 of 5 parts answering the question, “Who is the one who started the suffering that God allows?” the larger question, “Why does a loving God allow suffering?” Parts 4 and 5 will be posted in the next two days.

Suffering Began Because of Satan

When God created the earth in Genesis 1 and 2, everything – man, animals and plants – was very good according to Him (Gen. 1:31). But where and how did this one animal, the serpent, who deceived Eve and instigated the fall, get into the Garden? Stephen Bramer wrote,

Continue reading

Suffering: Who is the one who started the suffering that God allows? Part 2

This is Part 2 of 5 parts answering the question, “Who is the one who started the suffering that God allows?” in the larger question, “Why does a loving God allow suffering?” Parts 3 through 5 will be posted on succeeding days.

The Beginning Began Before Man (cont.)

God asked them if they were around when He created the earth? Were they part of the architects or builders of the foundation? The answers were a resounding, “No!” And then God added verse seven, “When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?” The term “morning stars” (plural) is found only once in all of Scripture. The term “morning star” (singular) is only found three times. In two of the passages it refers to Jesus Christ (2 Pet. 1:19; Rev. 22:16) and in one other passage it is used as a reward for the believer in the church age who overcomes and keeps the Lord’s work until the end (Rev. 2:28). The term “morning stars” is set in parallelism with “sons of God.”

Continue reading

Suffering: Who is the one who started the suffering that God allows? Part 1

This is Part 1 of 5 parts answering the question, “Who is the one who started the suffering that God allows?” in the large question “Why does a loving God allow suffering?” Parts 2 through 5 will be posted in the next four days.

Whenever you deal with a situation, it’s often best to go back to the beginning to understand it. For example, if you want to understand why there are so many references to God carved into public buildings at our Nation’s Capitol, you don’t interview people on the street to find the answer. You go back to documents and paintings that were made at the time of the beginning of the United States of America. Any objective historian will see document after document written by our founding fathers who had the deepest respect for God and the Bible. That is why there are so many pictures in the United States Capital building of patriots who are holding a Bible, involved in prayer and even conducting a baptism. That is why our nation was richly blessed as a beacon of hope to the world in the first two hundred years, because God was at the center of this nation’s history.

Continue reading

Suffering: How great is the suffering that God allows? Part 3

This is Part 3 of 3 parts answering the question, “How great is the suffering that God allows?” in the larger question, “Why does a loving God allow suffering?”

Jesus’ Death On the Cross was the Ultimate Example of Suffering

By the time Jesus was on the cross, He had already suffered in many ways. He had endured six illegal civil and religious trials during the (sleepless) night before. He then went through the brutal persecution and torture from the Roman soldiers. They beat a crown of thorns into His skull (Mark 15: 16-22). They thrashed His body with a cat-o-nine-tails (which was a leather whip with many pieces of metal and bone woven into the leather straps). After mocking Him with a purple robe and bowing down to Him, he carried His cross part of the way to Golgotha, before He collapsed from exhaustion. But He never opened His mouth through this (Is. 53:7).

Continue reading

Suffering: How great is the suffering that God allows? Part 2

This is Part 2 of the question, “How great is the suffering that God allows?” as part of the larger question, “Why does a loving God allow suffering?” Part 3 will be posted tomorrow.

Paul’s Suffering Example

What about the suffering Paul endured. Did God allow his suffering? Paul understood from hindsight that God was always sovereign in every detail. Paul wrote,

Continue reading

Suffering: How great is the suffering that God allows? Part 1

This is Part 1 of 3 parts for the question, “How great is the suffering that God allows?” in the larger question, “Why does a loving God allow suffering?” Parts 2 and 3 will be posted over the next two days.

How great is the suffering in the world? It is off the charts! The reality that there is so much suffering seems absolutely ridiculous. You or many people close to you know of great, great, great suffering!

Continue reading

Suffering: What happens to those who dwell on the suffering that God allows? Part 3

This is Part 3 of 4 parts answering the question, “What happens to those who dwell on the suffering that God allows?” in the larger question, “Why does a loving God allow suffering?” Part 4 will be posted tomorrow.

The Seven Steps of the Unbeliever’s Downward Spiral

Continue reading

Suffering: What happens to those who dwell on the suffering that God allows? Part 2

This is Part 2 of 4 parts answering the question, “What happens to those who dwell on the suffering that God allows?” in the larger question “Why does a loving God allow suffering?” Parts 3 and 4 will be posted in the next two days.

The Downward Spiral

There are two passages of Scripture that describe this “Downward Spiral” – one applying to believers and the other to unbelievers. If either the unbeliever or the believer chooses man’s way rather than God’s way, he will slip further down this slippery slope. It is a process described regarding the sinful actions of individuals, even those who make these sinful choices as a response to suffering.

Continue reading