In the Middle of the Storm

In 1981 a Rabbi by the name of Harold Kushner wrote and published what would become an all-time best-selling book. The story of his journey to writing this book began on November 19, 1966, in what he referred to as both the best and worst days of his life. It was on this day that he and his wife welcomed their second child, a daughter, into the world and celebrated the glory of God in their life’s blessing. It was, however, on this same day that their three-year-old son Aaron was diagnosed with a rare disease known as Progeria, an incurable illness that would cause his body to age rapidly, likely never living past his early teenage years. By the age of fourteen, their son’s body could no longer support itself, and they were left mourning his passing. Rabbi Kushner through is journey of grief and sorrow eventually wrote the aforementioned book titled When Bad Things Happen to Good People, which quickly climbed the charts and became an all-time best seller. Throughout the journey of this literary work, Rabbi Kushner wrestled with what C.S. Lewis referred to as the Problem of Pain, and what other theologians have dubbed, the problem of evil or sin. The problem, as it were, is often asked like this, “If God is all-loving and all-powerful, then why do bad things happen to good people"?” The title of Rabbi Kushner’s book suggested that he had come to some grand understanding or conclusion of the subject matter in his own personal, spiritual, and emotional journey through grief. Rabbi Kushner suggested in this work that he struggled with the problem of pain and came to a stunning conclusion on the matter: either God was unable to stop the evil and suffering of our world, or He simply did not care to. Rabbi Kushner stated that he could not accept a God who lacked the love of humanity to prevent such evil in our world, and therefore accepted that perhaps God was at one time all-powerful, but was clearly no longer so. A sad conclusion to end a sad story.

The problem of pain has long been debated by theologians and non-Christians alike, often using the language stated above to suggest similar conclusions that God is either limited in his love for humanity or limited in his power to stop evil and pain from occurring. The truth is all of us have experienced pain and suffering in our own lives at one time or another, and in it we must wrestle with the concept of pain and suffering under the sovereignty of an almighty God. Counseling, it has been said, has one specific purpose, to expose the lies that we tell ourselves and believe. It is in this understanding I would like to begin to untangle the lie of suffering, the lie of the problem of pain, the lie of evil, in order to bring some clarity to a difficult and messy topic. In doing so I would like to begin with the very first word in this problem of pain…if. The problem states if God is all-loving or all-powerful. That word if is designed to create confusion and mislead the questioner right out of the gate. Take for example the story of Jesus in Matthew chapter four, as he is led into the desert to be tempted by the devil. Three separate times the deceiver tempts Jesus with statements that begin with the word if. The first two state, “if you are the son of God” while the third states, “if you bow down and worship me”. That word if creates questions that hang entirely on that one word, it opens a doorway to then include any and every thought or word, no matter how illogical or unrealistic, all contingent on that one little word…if. The truth of the matter is I can add anything after the word if, impose any thought, create any doubt, instill any fear, and draw any conclusion. Let us, therefore, come to a simple conclusion here; if we are to begin a statement with doubt, we are unlikely to find certainty and truth. When we begin with if, chances are we will not land in the truth of the gospel, or in this case, the truth of the love of a God who sacrificed everything to bring his people salvation that we could not achieve ourselves. We can answer the problem of pain that questions if our God is all-loving or all-powerful with a simple and powerful truth, our God IS all-loving and all-powerful.

The second problem we find with the question of the problem of pain involves the language of Good and Bad. It asks why bad things happen to good people. So let us, for a moment, examine the language of Paul’s letter to the Romans. In Romans 3:23 Paul states honestly and boldly that, “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” and in Romans 6:23 he concludes that, “the wages of sin is death, but the gift of god is eternal life in Christ Jesus.” There is little argument theologically stemming from these passages but two important conclusions we can draw are 1. All human beings are sinners and 2. The price of our sin is death. If we want to point a finger to blame for this stark reality let us look then to Genesis chapter three when Adam and Eve sin against God through their disobedience and refusal to obey the rules set before them. The reason, the blame for sin, is pointed directly at the fall of mankind, and the reason for pain and suffering in our world the same. But to state that people are good creates a problem for us, in that Romans 3 clearly tells us we are not good, and in fact that our sin deserves the penalty of death (Romans 6). To state that bad things happen to good people is in itself an incorrect statement for two reasons. First, as we just examined, we are not good. Second, the decision to label things are good or bad is also a symptomatic problem that stems once again from Genesis three and the fall of man. Adam and Eve’s decision to disobey God created ripple effects through all of time, as they did not simply break one of God’s rules, they also created further problems for all humanity by obtaining the ability to discern good from evil. This ability, we are led to understand, was one which was meant to be left for God and God alone, as his omnipotence (infinite and almighty power) and omniscience (infinite and all-knowing) are better equipped to handle such judgments, whereas our finite insight, limited knowledge, and minor perspectives are simply not. For you and I to decide was is good and what is evil, we almost certainly misjudge and miscategorize with such black-and-white understanding, such childlike wisdom and insight, and such limited perspective as compared to our God who is omniperspectival and omniscient. The conclusion we can draw here is simple, you and I are not good, we are in fact sinful, and our sin deserves death. We then question death and suffering as bad or evil, yet our judgment is irrelevant as, simply put, we were not asked to sit upon the judgment seat and make eternally important distinctions for ourselves or others.

Consider, as a conclusion to this examination, the story of a man named Horatio Spafford. Horatio suffered tremendous loss as an attorney and real estate investor when the Chicago Fire of 1871 claimed much of his business ventures. That same year Horatio and his wife lost their four-year-old son to scarlet fever. Under the tremendous weight of loss, Horatio and his wife determined that a vacation might help the family grieve and move forward with their lives. Horatio sent his wife and four daughters on a ship to England while he stayed behind to manage some business affairs with the intent to join them upon completion. However, Horatio would instead receive word that the vessel carrying his family had collided at sea with another, and claimed the lives of his four daughters. A telegram arrived to Hortaio from his wife Anne stating, “Saved alone.” Horatio paid for travel to England, and as the ship passed over the site of the accident Hortaito reflected on his great losses and returned to his cabin to pen the following lyrics, “When peace like a river attendeth my way, when sorrow like seas billows roll. Whatever my lot, though has taught me to say, it is well, it is well, with my soul.” Pain and suffering are realities of our fallen world, ones of which any of us would not choose for ourselves or those we love. It is, yet, in these places, in the middle of the storms of life, where our countenance is often broken down and our attitudes may fall to doubt and fear. That doubt and fear may speak all kinds of lies and spew all sorts of inaccuracies. The problem of pain may try convincingly to deceive us with the lies that God is cruel or unjust, or perhaps unable to provide rescue. Yet we can rest in the truth of scripture that instructs otherwise; it is us who are evil, not God. It is us who are unable to prevent suffering, not God. Our God is deeply concerned with our affairs and walks with us through the darkest moments we experience. Romans 8 remains us that he uses such times for good, despite our inability to see such things. Whatever our lots may be, may we be a people whose faith in God is evident by our response, “it is well with my soul.”