Why Does God Allow Bad Things To Happen To Good People?
Why does God allow bad things to happen to good people? Why does God allow suffering? Why does God allow evil?
These are difficult questions to grapple with for Christians because since God is omnipotent, He does have it within His power to make this a heaven on earth. Moreover, since God cares about us, why would He allow harm to come to us if He has it in his power to stop it? When God can change the world at His whim, why is His help usually so subtle?
Well, consider two things: faith and choice.
First of all, if God wanted to remove all doubt about his existence, He could do so — but, He doesn’t because the cornerstone of Christianity is faith.
Imagine what would happen if bad things DIDN’T happen to good people. What if when an airline crashed, only the non-Christians died while all the believers walked away unscathed? What if the moment someone became an atheist, he was immediately struck by lightning and killed? What if every rape, murder, robbery, and painful illness only happened to non-believers? If that were the case, then no faith would be required to be a Christian.
Additionally, if God wanted automatons who bowed to His will mechanically, He could have made us that way. Instead He chose to give us free will and the ability to choose our own path — but, without real options, there can’t be a real choice. Put another way, a “choice” isn’t much of a choice when you have a gun to your head. So again, if bad things DIDN’T happen to good people, there would be very little real choice. If you wanted to live and prosper, you’d have to be a Christian because non-Christians would spend their short, unhappy lives wandering from one disaster to the next.
Of course, knowing that God wants to allow us to have faith and a choice is often a cold comfort when something terrible happens in the world, to us, or someone we love — but, it’s worth remembering that we Christians believe, “Our days on earth are as transient as a shadow,” while what comes afterwards is eternal. Sometimes on this side of eternity, all we can do is realize that we are going to see our share of sorrow, accept that, “God moves in mysterious ways,” and keep on keeping on, secure in the knowledge that there is something better to come when this life is over.
John Hawkins is the editor of RightWingNews.com, where this article was originally published. Republished on MND by permission of the author.
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The choice is up to you- Whether to believe or not to believe. The concept of Jesus nailed on the cross is to show us how it is to sacrifice-and at the story, he won over evil. Jesus teach us to sacrifice and endure negatives things happening in our lives.
I think God likes to see people suffering and really never intended peace for this world. He created many good things but also created many evil things, like Satan the worst thing imaginable and let him loose all all nations to decieve people and make everything worse.
Even Adam and Eve, two dumb people who knew nothing from nothing. God let the most evil serpent to be alone with them in the garden …… thats just like putting Satan with two 4yr olds (or younger ) what do think will happen? the worst outcome.
Then punishment and suffering.
Even when Moses before he brought his people out, tried to get the pharoh to let the people free … and after different types of plagues, the pharoh was thinking about it but God hardend his heart so no peace could be brought forth … instead God killed all of them even the animals.
And the story of Job … being the only man in the world who was upright and perfect who walked with God … look at how God utterly destroyed him for a time (probably a long time) leting Satan the most evil thing created to touch him and kill his family and innocent animals.
I don’t believe He ever wanted peace, this whole world is evil with animals ripping and tearing each other apart …….little children starving and bugs and flys all over them, why wont God help them?
So many religions arguing and fighting against each other, even in the christian religions arguing who church is the true church with the truest teaching …. how com God does’nt mend it? but rather lets it go and it just keeps on getting worse and worse.
He hides the truth from many a nd people don’t understand and can’t see it … I remember I watched a story about this women who believed in God, there was a King who wanted that women but she would not go for him. So the King felt rejected and angery and told his men to cut off her breasts …. so they did, imagin the pain!!! none there to help her. Only when it was all over and she was weeping in the cell filled with pain and sorrow did angels appear to heal her.
The whole concept is very very cruel …even Jesus being nailed to a wooden cross to save the people … the concept created is like the worst horror show ever.
God is not real…….bad things happen to good people becouse god wants us to have free choice, if you have faith you go to heaven, if you ard bad you go to hell, what about us good willed non believers where do we go, if we go to hell becouse we dont believe then where is the free choice, there is none. Religon is a farce read the texts christianaty is says "Ask in my name and it shall be done" but i didnt see the small print "if it is my will" what a crock ..any group who asks for faith without proof is a CULT. Ask yourself this Why wont god help amputees??????????
Mr. Hawkins,
Given the population of the earth, it would be possible for Christians to have nothing bad happen to them, and still have it seem to be statistics and probability. For example, you happen to MISS the train or plan that derails / blows up…. you don't go work because you're sick, on Sept 11 2001…
Survival to old age is not a guarantee of God's existence. think of this, Caine was marked, and the suggestion is, he still walks among us today… IE, immortality is reserved for the greatest of sins. And "Only the good die young."
What a wonderful article! Soooooooo true.