The Challenge of Evil and Suffering

Follow Along with the Message

Since before recorded history, humans have struggled to reconcile three important truths: (1) God is good, (2) God is all-powerful, and (3) evil and suffering are real.

Walter Brueggemann said, “At the outset of the twenty-first century, as things become unglued on a large scale, the artistry of the book of Job invites faith to face the dangers of a connection to a Creator God who is immense in glory but who offers no easy comfort.”

When we are faced with suffering, we are challenged to….

1.   in the   of God.

In his book Ruthless Trust, Brennan Manning writes, “Unwavering trust is a rare and precious thing because it often demands a degree of courage that borders on the heroic.”

It’s easy to feel abandoned by grace in moments of desperation or when God doesn’t show up as we had hoped He would.

When we do battle against evil, we are challenged to…

2.   in the   of God.

To destroy evil, God would need to destroy us. At the end of the flood story, human wickedness convinces God to never destroy all of life. His compassion trumps our evil.

As we wait for God’s plan to come to fruition, we have God’s goodness to sustain us in hope and faith.