Why has evil been allowed to continue to cause suffering and not been stopped
(Our experiences in this world, influenced by the immediacy and effects of the evil and suffering we see around us, make it hard to comprehend a Creator and God who is loving. It is natural to wonder if such a God cares or even exists. What we tend not to consider, however, is that God in his love has respect for our personhood and free-will in making choices, including those about how we will relate to him. From the bible we know that problems on this planet result from a separation between us and God that has occurred through the influence and activity of God’s enemy, Satan, who deceives and spoils at every opportunity. Significantly, he has exerted an influence on humanity about the desirability of deciding for ourselves about right and wrong and what we think is best for us, and this has allowed evil to gain an influence and a presence here on earth, with all its unintended and unforeseen consequences that impact upon us.
God has responded to this with an unfolding plan, gradually made known, to eventually usher in a completely new earth, filled with his presence, where there will be ‘no more suffering’ or evil. A consequence, however, is that everything not of him will remain separated from his presence and his sustaining life (i.e., what the bible describes as ‘death’). Thankfully, during this present age, there remains opportunity for us to be made right with God - by choosing to receive the forgiveness he offers through the sacrifice of his sinless son, Jesus.
We need to be reminded, therefore, that God’s apparent ‘delay’ in bringing all evil and suffering to an end, is because of his patience and compassion. He longs that none should miss having opportunity to hear and respond to his invitation for redemption and reconciliation.
God’s plan is to ultimately bring about a complete banishment of Satan’s influence from this earth and finally end his destructiveness and deceit. Meantime, everything that Jesus did and spoke about while on earth was to demonstrate, in response to our human trials and tribulations, our Father’s care and willingness to help and bring comfort, breakthrough and victory to all who seek out and put their hope in him. Through a release of faith, Jesus constantly demonstrated God’s opposition to all works of the enemy by bringing freedom and relief in response to many types of physical, emotional and circumstantial needs in people he met.
In the here and now, when we have sufferings, the desire of God’s heart is to be there for us and with us as the ‘God of all comfort’. He longs that we might reach out and receive the nearness and help that he offers because he is well aware of the pain and adversity that we can experience. For all those reaching out who put their hope in him, he promises that he sees, hears and moves on their behalf to be a ‘very present help in time of trouble’.
See also Why doesn’t God ‘do something’)
Below
Why does God ‘Delay’?
A God who Cares
God of all comfort
A Present Help in Time of Trouble
Work of the Enemy
Our Free-will Choice
What Jesus did for us
Promise of a New Heaven and a New Earth
Pain and Suffering ‘no more’
Judgement that Divides
Receiving Reconciliation
References:
Why does God ‘Delay’?
The Lord isn't really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed but wants everyone to repent. 2 Peter 3:9 NLT
God our Saviour, . . . wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. 1 Timothy 2: 3‑4 NIV
So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him. Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction. 2 Peter 3: 14‑16 NIV
Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared. “The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?’
‘An enemy has done this,’ he replied.
“The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’ “ ‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’”
Then he left the crowd and went into the house. His disciples came to him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.”
He answered, “The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the people of the kingdom. The weeds are the people of the evil one, and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.
“As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. Matthew 13: 24‑41 NIV
A God who Cares
Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Romans 8:34 NIV
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28 NIV
Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you. 1 Peter 4:7 NLT
For I, the LORD your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, “Fear not, I am the one who helps you.” Isaiah 41:13 ESV
When the righteous cry for help, the LORD hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The LORD is near to the broken-hearted and saves the crushed in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him out of them all. Psalm 34: 17‑19 ESV
This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 1 John 4: 9‑10 NIV
Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. Matthew 10: 29‑31 NIV
God of all comfort
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 ESV
A Present Help in Time of Trouble
God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in times of trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth is transformed and the mountains are toppled into the depths of the seas … Psalm 46: 1‑2 BSB
Work of the Enemy
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came so that they would have life, and have it abundantly. John 10:10 NASB
We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. 1 John 5:19 ESV
The serpent said to the woman, “You certainly will not die! For God knows that on the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will become like God, knowing good and evil.” When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took some of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband . . . Genesis 3: 4‑6 NASB
God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will. 2 Timothy 2: 25‑26 ESV
You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies. John 8:44 NASB
And you were dead in your offenses and sins, in which you previously walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all previously lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, . . . Ephesians 2: 1‑3 NASB
Our Free-will Choice
Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts. Let them turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will freely pardon. Isaiah 55: 6‑7 NIV
Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God —children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. John 1: 12‑13 NIV
“Therefore, you Israelites, I will judge each of you according to your own ways,” declares the Sovereign Lord. “Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall. Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, people of Israel? For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone,” declares the Sovereign Lord. “Repent and live!” Ezekiel 18: 30‑32 NIV
This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the Lord is your life . . . Deuteronomy 30: 19‑20 NIV
“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!” Matthew 23:37 ESV
Yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life. John 5:40 ESV
For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. Romans 8: 7‑8 ESV
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. Ephesians 2: 8‑9 ESV
What Jesus did for us
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16 ESV
For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:21 ESV
But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8 ESV
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, Ephesians 2:8 ESV
In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. 1 John 4:9 ESV
But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our wrongdoings, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the boundless riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; Ephesians 2: 4‑8 NASB
Promise of a New Heaven and a New Earth
Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life. Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children. Revelation 21: 1‑7 NIV
See, I will create new heavens and a new earth. The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind. But be glad and rejoice forever in what I will create, Isaiah 65: 17‑18 NIV
But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells. So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him. 2 Peter 3: 13‑14 NIV
Pain and Suffering ‘no more’
They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” Revelation 21: 3‑4 NIV
No longer will you have the sun for light by day, Nor will the moon give you light for brightness; But The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. The infant will play near the cobra’s den, and the young child will put its hand into the viper’s nest. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. Isaiah 11: 6‑9 NIV
. . . You will have the LORD as an everlasting light, And your God as your glory. Your sun will, no longer set, Nor will your moon wane; For you will have the LORD as an everlasting light, And the days of your mourning will be over. Then all your people will be righteous . . . Isaiah 60: 19‑21 NASB
I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendour into it. On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there. The glory and honour of the nations will be brought into it. Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life. Revelation 21: 22‑27 NIV
Judgement that Divides
When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’
They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life. Matthew 25: 31‑46 NIV
Receiving Reconciliation
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23 ESV
But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, John 1:12 ESV
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. Ephesians 2: 8‑9 ESV
Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. Romans 10:9 ESV
Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life. John 5:24 ESV
For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. Romans 5:10 ESV
For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit, 1 Peter 3:18 ESV
But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, John 1:12 ESV
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