The State of Suffering

“At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship.”

Job 1:20 (NIV)

Why do bad things happen to good people? This perennial question is continually employed, usually to discredit God’s holy existence, or downplay the Lord’s unfailing love. Scripture does not deny that humanity will find itself, at times, in tragic circumstances. In fact, the book of Job acknowledges it and wholly focuses its attention on the state of suffering.

The book of Job is great comfort to the suffering heart for it reveals that God is at work and in total, complete control - always. The God who allowed hardships to befall Job is the same God who blessed him as well. This seemingly paradoxical treatment causes many to criticize God’s leadership and character. After all, Job was a man of integrity. He honored God in all endeavors. And yet he was made to undergo devastatingly hard times. Why is that? Why do the upright endure calamities alongside the unprincipled? As the book of Job unfolds, we find that the natural human tendency to press God for answers is much less important than praising God for His divine love and greatness. God owes us nothing. We, however, owe Him everything.

What believers come to understand when we excavate the quarries of God’s biblical treasure is that God’s intent and purposes are beyond our personal comprehension. The Lord gives in some instances and He takes in others. The temptation in the moments that we find ourselves with less is to protest or demand that God fully clarify His rationale for our perceived injustice or misfortune. Realize that God is not beholden to us; we are beholden to Him. Therefore, the Lord is not required to address all of our concerns or issues, even though in His love He routinely responds to our aches and difficulties.

Humanity is a lot that longs for a pain-free existence. But God confirmed that this aspiration would not be possible after Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden. There would be consequences for personal and corporate transgressions, both short-term and long-term. The struggle we often grapple with is to respond to the emotional storms of life by bitterly complaining about the rain those storms pour down on us. Incredibly, even in the seemingly negative situations God proves Himself faithful. Just as showers are needed to help grass grow and thrive, God can utilize the storms of life to nourish our spirit and replenish it with holy encouragement, thus allowing our spirit to develop and mature. But we must choose to trust God in every season, especially the strenuous ones, as Job did.

In a day, nearly all that Job cherished was gone. His family. His fortune. Practically all that was left was his faith in God, which, truth be told, was all he ever needed. Job’s initial response to the loss of his family and fortune indicates the kind of reverence he held for God. Broken and despondent, Job bowed down, worshipped, and gave glory to the Lord. Job did not jettison his admiration for the Creator or discontinue holding God’s name in great esteem. He held onto it. In fact, he clung to it, even as his world shattered around him. We can learn a lot about how to suffer in righteous fashion through Job’s conduct. The suffering servant was a pillar of perseverance. Job’s immense resolve was not the result of his own inner strength, but the strength he wisely placed in the God of eternity. The Lord is the Healer of today and the Hope for tomorrow.