Suffering, Evil and a Good God

This week we went through chapter one of Lee Strobel's The Case For Faith, called Since Evil and Suffering Exist, A Good God Cannot. Here's a recap of our discussion:

- God is sovereignly in control over evil, both moral and natural evil
- God controls evil by withholding grace (goodness) and permitting sin to manifest itself in evil acts
- But humans are still responsible for their sin (James 1:13-15)
- The Cross of Christ is the best example of God willing evil to take place but still holding humans accountable for their sin (Acts 2:23, 4:27-28)
- The Cross is also an example of God's two-fold will --> He wills for us not to murder but also wills the murder of His Son
- God can see things from a wide-angle lens --> He sees the bigger picture of how evil is used for good, which one day He will share with His children
- Application: Luke 13:1-5 --> Jesus reminds us that the main point of every story of oppression or calamity or evil or suffering is to lead us to repentance. Those who suffer aren't suffering b/c they're worst sinners. We are all sinners just the same. So when we realize how Christ has spared us with his mercy, then we have to repent for having such a small view of God's mercy and repent for our tendency to blame God one day when we see suffering but fail to praise him for a thousand days free of suffering, disease, or calamity.

We closed with worship, listening to a wicked song by Andrew Peterson called After the Last Tear Falls. Click here for the lyrics.

John Piper's article on 9/11 and the topic of God and Suffering is also a good resource. Click here to read it!