Atheists have long pointed to the suffering in the world as “proof” that God cannot exist – claiming that if God were all powerful and all loving, he would not let suffering occur. But to find the very simple answer to this dilemma of why suffering exists, we need only take a step back from the question and ask why do humans exist?
The Scriptures make it clear that humanity exists because God wishes to share everything he has with his human children (Romans 8:32) – for all eternity (John 10:28). But as C.S. Lewis wisely pointed out, God will not give eternal life to anyone who will make themselves and others eternally unhappy. The only way this can be achieved is to have a physical world in which people are born but cannot live forever unless they choose to live in a way that would make them and others happy – and then those people are given eternal life by God (1 Corinthians 15:49–52).
Once we understand this great purpose of human life and see that a temporary physical existence is necessary before we can be trusted with an endless spiritual existence, it is not difficult to see that while we are physical beings, we have to be capable of experiencing pain. If we were not, we would unknowingly put our hands on burning hot objects, or injure and destroy ourselves in any of hundreds of other ways. We have to be able to experience pain – suffering – in order to live in a temporary physical world.
Some may ask, “Wouldn’t it be better if people were not born rather than being born into a life with the potential to experience pain or suffering?” But we should ask ourselves if a newborn baby that has to be slapped on the bottom by the delivering doctor – in order for the sudden pain to jolt it into breathing – would choose not to experience years and years of potentially happy and fulfilling life just to avoid that initial few seconds of hurting?
In exactly the same way, our experience of pain during the relatively brief years of our physical lifetime will be ultimately well worth enduring for the painless eternity we are offered in the life after this one. This is what the apostle Paul meant when he wrote, “I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us (Romans 8:18 ). Paul goes on to explain this in more detail:
“For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us” (Romans 8:22–24 NLT).
So suffering had to be for a short time if we are to live eternally without causing ourselves or others ongoing pain. But we must also realize that in this life we bring much suffering on ourselves – we all sin, and sin inevitably leads to suffering. Other suffering is accidental, or caused maliciously by others.
But God does not just allow us to suffer and ignore the fact that we do. He understands that suffering may try our faith. But he knows that if we trust him and endure, our faith is made stronger for being tested (James 1:2–4). He even uses our suffering to help us. God may allow pain to help us turn to him, to examine ourselves, and to become more like him. Also, we cannot really learn true empathy and kindness by simply deciding to have these qualities – they often come only by seeing how we need them ourselves when we suffer. Paul says this explicitly: “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God” (2 Corinthians 1:3–4). Even Jesus learned through what he suffered (Hebrews 5:8) and was able to become an understanding helper to us (Hebrews 4:15–16). When we experience suffering, we also learn more of the depth of the love of Christ who endured immeasurable suffering on our behalf.
And there is yet another, extremely important dimension to the suffering that the Christian may endure. From John the Baptist, who was beheaded (Matthew 14:1–12), to Jesus and the early apostles, the New Testament is full of examples of those who suffered righteously. But if we suffer as a result of our faith – through persecution of some kind – then, as Peter wrote, “you share the sufferings of Christ” (1 Peter 4:12). And as Paul reminds us, we will be rewarded for this: “we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory” (Romans 8:17).
Of course, even those who are spared persecution in this life encounter suffering in one form or another – we all do. And when we do, we can not only be confident that this is the only way God could make the world for our eventual benefit, but also that God will use the suffering we endure, if we ask him, to guide and grow us now, and to bless and reward us in that future time when he will end humanity’s temporary suffering, and he “will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain” (Revelation 21:4 NLT). Our present sufferings are, indeed, nothing compared with what God plans to give us as a result of them.
Jesus’ final words before his ascension – “You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8) – make it clear that his followers were commissioned to serve as witnesses of his life, death, and resurrection, and the significance of these events for all of humankind.
But while it is not wrong to share the gospel with others in whatever setting we may find ourselves, it is usually better that it is not done indiscriminately. The book of Ecclesiastes tells us there is a time to be silent and a time to speak (Ecclesiastes 3:7), and that certainly applies to Christian witness. Jesus talked about the principle of not giving sacred or spiritual things to those who are obviously going to reject them (Matthew 7:6), and it is clear that he often did not preach to people when he had opportunity to do so (Matthew 5:1; Luke 5:16; John 11:53–54; etc.). It is better to choose the time, place, and opportunity to share the gospel carefully rather than to feel that if we are simply around people, we should be witnessing to them.
A related principle to keep in mind is that it is preferable, whenever possible, to use a natural conversational opportunity to talk to others about Christ rather than to suddenly accost them with religious statements or questions. Extreme examples of this (such as “Repent or you will go to hell” or “Have you given your heart to the Lord?”) frequently arouse hostility in people and doom the effort to introduce them to the gospel. The apostle Peter doubtless had this fact in mind when he wrote: “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect” (1 Peter
3:15). Here, Peter places the emphasis on letting the unconverted person be the initiator of the discussion, and while that is not always necessary, it is certainly an ideal situation. And, of course, answering with respect – as Peter urges us – precludes berating people about sin or the kind of “in your face” presentation of the truth of salvation that many well-intentioned believers participate in.
Reading how Jesus guided his conversations with people such as the woman at the well in Samaria (John 4:4–26) can teach us a great deal about how we should present the truth to others. We can also lead conversations toward the point where others will ask questions. In any case, a great many natural opportunities arise in everyday conversation. For example, to a coworker offering condolences when they heard we had lost a relative, we can say “Thank you, but as a Christian I believe that just as Jesus was resurrected, so my relative will be – so I do not grieve as many people do who do not have this hope.” That kind of statement gives a totally natural opening for a conversation about the gospel if the other person seems interested. In the same way we can bring up some aspect of our beliefs when discussing books, activities, or in dozens of other ways.
Yet we should not feel under any kind of pressure to try to bring people to Christ quickly. The book of Acts gives us a good example of that fact when it records an important conversation between Paul and the Jewish king, Agrippa, who asked Paul:
“Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian?” Paul replied, “Short time or long—I pray to God that not only you but all who are listening to me today may become what I am” (Acts 26:28 –29)
In saying this, Paul showed that he felt no unreasonable urgency to bring Agrippa and others to Christ – just a desire for that outcome, however long it might take. Ultimately, we cannot convert people – only God can do that. In 2 Corinthians 4:4 Paul tells us:
“The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.”
Nevertheless, despite the pervasive spiritual blindness, God frequently chooses to empower our efforts when we desire to help others to come to the light. We are all called to share what we have been given, and the truth of the gospel is certainly the most valuable gift that we can ever share.
* This post is extracted from our free eBook Getting Christianity Right. Read the whole chapter and the book by downloading it here.
The New Testament has much to say about the importance of knowledge for the Christian (Philippians 1:9; etc.). But what exactly is “knowledge” – is it understanding of important Christian doctrines or of the Christian way of life? The second epistle of the apostle Peter answers this question for us.
Peter begins his letter with the greeting: “Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord” (2 Peter 1:1), and if we did not notice what the knowledge is that Peter had in mind, he continues by saying that through his divine power God “has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us” (2 Peter 1:2–3). In the same way, Peter closes his letter with the command: “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18).
So Peter bookends everything he has to say in his second letter to fellow believers by stressing the importance of knowledge, and between these two statements Peter repeatedly returns to the same point (2 Peter 2:20; etc.). In every instance he makes it clear that the knowledge we need and need to seek is not simply doctrinal or practical Christian knowledge, but knowledge about God and Jesus Christ.
What Peter means by this is that Christian growth is not somehow guaranteed by what we do. It does not automatically come as a result of attending church enough – any more than just sitting in a gym is going to make us stronger, or of studying our Bibles enough – any more than reading a book about cars is going to make us auto mechanics. It is only as we come to know God and Jesus Christ through a relationship with them that we really grow toward them and become more like them.
When Peter writes “Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18), the two are related – we grow in the grace of Christ by growing in the knowledge of Christ. This affects every aspect of our Christian lives. The more we grow in that kind of knowledge the more we grow in obedience and love (1 John 4:7–8). As Peter says: “For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith virtue; and to virtue, knowledge … For if you possess these qualities and continue to grow in them, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Peter1:5,8).
It is not just Peter who tells us these things. The Old Testament tells us that God desires “the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings” (Hosea 6:6), and Jesus himself prayed “this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent” (John 17:3). The apostle Paul frequently refers to this truth, telling the believers at Ephesus, for example: “I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, would give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him” (Ephesians 1:17 CSB), and those in Corinth “We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God” (Colossians 1:9–10).
As Christians we need to produce the fruit of good works in our lives (Matthew 7:16–20; Ephesians 2:10; Titus 2:7; Colossians 1:10; etc.), but we must never forget that the growth of those fruits comes not from study alone or from some kind of religious exercise, but from becoming more like God through the work of the Holy Spirit as we grow in our knowledge of the Father and the Son of God.
Most readers of the Bible are familiar with the list of armor that the apostle Paul tells us we should put on each day (Ephesians 6:10-18). It’s a much-loved and memorized list of qualities that is fundamental to our survival in everyday Christian life – but it is only half of the story that we need to know. Paul gives “the rest of the story” elsewhere in his writings and we will look at that further teaching in this article.
First, however, think for a moment about what the ‘armor of God’ is that we should put on. Paul’s analogy makes it clear that the various spiritual qualities he lists – the breastplate of righteousness, shield of faith, helmet of salvation, etc. – are defensive. “Put on the full armor of God” he writes, “so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes” (vs. 11). The qualities he describes don’t primarily affect our relationship with others; they are all necessary for our own personal spiritual survival – somewhat like the body armor police officers wear under their uniforms.
But just as a police officer would not go on-duty wearing only his or her body armor, so we need more than the armor of God to function as Christians. Paul tells us what else we need to wear each day in the less-known, but equally important, list of clothing he gives in his letter to the Colossians:
“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity” (Colossians 3:12–14).
If the armor of God Paul lists in Ephesians 6 consists of our protective under-armor, his list in Colossians 3 of qualities with which we should be clothed are our outer garments – the ‘clothing’ the world sees, and that we need in our interactions with others.
Lists of spiritual qualities, actions, and attitudes that the New Testament gives are rarely randomly arranged, but almost invariably proceed in a specific order – from the least to the greatest, or from the greatest to the least. For example, Paul’s short list of faith, hope, and love tells us “the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinthians 13:13); and we find the same progression in 2 Peter 1:5–7. But in Galatians 5:22–23 the order is reversed.
This helps us understand what Paul says in Colossians 3 regarding the qualities we should ‘wear’ each day. The seven qualities are: compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forgiveness, and love. The presence of love at the end of the list shows that although all the qualities are important, Paul was ranking them in increasing order of importance. He himself says “over all these virtues put on love.” Knowing the increasing value of the listed qualities helps us in reflecting on them, and perhaps in seeing the relative importance of them in our own lives.
But all the virtues Paul lists are important. The gospels show every one of them in the life of Jesus – for example, compassion, Luke 7:13; kindness, Luke 6:35; humility, Matthew 11:29; gentleness, Matthew 19:14; patience, John 14:9; forgiveness, Luke 23:34; love, John 13:34. Just as Paul reminds us to “clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 13:14), we can profit from studying these and the many other examples the gospels contain.
We can also profit from thinking deeply about how each one of the virtues that Paul lists is expressed in our own lives. It is possible to show kindness, yet not be humble; to have patience, but not forgiveness; and only we can examine our personal spiritual ‘wardrobe’ to see what shape each item of ‘clothing’ is in, and to make sure we have everything we need to properly appear before others and help them as much as possible. Even with the underlying spiritual ‘armor’ that we are given to protect us, we still need to be outwardly clothed with the qualities with which Christ himself was clothed, and that show us to be his followers. It is not so much the armor we wear that helps others see Christ, but what clothes us. What are you wearing today?
One of the most basic facts about the Christian faith is that it focuses on our interactions with others – both with people in general, and also with other believers. But it is sometimes all too easy to keep this fact in our minds under the heading of simply “love one another.” Of course, love in its fullest sense is the fulfilling of the law of God as Jesus himself stressed (Matthew 22:34-40) and as the apostle Paul confirmed – giving several of the ten commandments as examples (Romans 13:8-10). But if we are to really apply love in every aspect of life, it can be helpful to break down the principle into smaller areas – specific ways in which we can and should apply love.
The Scriptures actually do this for us in a way that we may sometimes miss or read over. One way they do this is in the New Testament’s frequent use of the Greek pronoun allelon (pronounced al-lay-lone) which means “one another.” The word is used about one hundred times in the New Testament and almost a full third of its occurrences are direct injunctions that are given to us to follow.
In fact, we can get a surprisingly full and clear view of much of what it means to be a Christian by simply looking at, remembering, and obeying (to the best of our ability, and with God’s help) these very commands. The principles themselves hardly need comment – they are all clear and speak for themselves – so here they are in order of their first appearance:
Be at peace with one another – Mark 9:50
Wash one another’s feet – John 13:14
Do not grumble with one another – John 6:43 BLB
Love one another – John 13:34
Comfort one another – 1 Thessalonians 4:18
Serve one another – Galatians 5:13
Encourage One Another – 2 Corinthians 13:11
Be patient with one another – Ephesians 4:2 NLT
Forgive one another – Colossians 3:13
Build up one another – Romans 14:19 NLT
Help one another – Galatians 6:2 CSB:
Be kind to one another – Ephesians 4:32 ESV
Be devoted to one another – Romans 12:10
Honor one another – Romans 12:10
Live in harmony with one another – Romans 12:16
Don’t judge one another – Romans 14:13
Accept one another – Romans 15:7
Greet one another – Romans 16:16
Don’t defraud one another – 1 Corinthians 7:5
Care for one another – 1 Corinthians 12:25
Wait for one another – 1 Corinthians 11:33
Don’t destroy one another – Galatians 5:15
Submit to one another – Ephesians 5:21
Do good to one another – Thessalonians 5:15
Don’t speak evil of one another – James 4:11
Confess to one another – James 5:16
Pray for one another – James 5:16
Show hospitality to one another – 1 Peter 4:9
That these are important injunctions is seen in the fact that many of them are repeated in the New Testament and sometimes by different writers (For example, “submit to one another” is found in Ephesians 5:21 and 1 Peter 5:5). Their importance is also seen even more directly in the way a number of the “one another” verses add a comment such as we find in Galatians 6:2 – “in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” As Christians, we owe it to each other to study, meditate on, and strive to keep every one of these principles because, as the apostle Paul stresses, we are “one body in Christ, and individually members of one another” (Romans 12:5 NKJV).
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