The Oldest Question
By: Michael Murray
Tags: Devotional, Christianity, Spiritual Growth, Religion, Spirituality

The Oldest Question

If God is so good, then why is there so much suffering in this world?

Photo by Emily Morter on Unsplash

A Devotional on John 9:1–5

If God is so good, then why is there so much suffering in this world?

At some point in our lives, I’m sure we’ve all asked that question. Some people use the question as an excuse to not believe in God. They pose it as a “Gotcha!” and are not really interested in finding an answer.

Other people ask the question with all sincerity. They want to believe in God, but they have experienced so much heartbreak in life. They can’t understand why a loving God would allow his children to suffer.

This question, while important, is not a new one. In the Old Testament, the prophet Habakkuk (which, by the way, is an awesome name!) gets into an argument with God about all the suffering he sees in the world. He cries out:

“How long, Lord, must I call for help, but you do not listen? Or cry out to you, ‘Violence!’ but you do not save?” (Habakkuk 1:1–2)

When Jesus comes across the man born blind, his disciples come up with their own theory to answer the question: somebody did something wrong.

As he went along, [Jesus] saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” (John 9:1–2)

I always thought it was weird that the disciples blamed the man. After all, if the man was born blind, then when would he have sinned to deserve this punishment? As I’ve researched this story, I came across a few possibilities.

Some people at that time believed in a form of reincarnation. Maybe the man sinned in a previous life.

Others thought that a baby could sin while still in the womb.

A third option is that the man was being punished for a future sin he would commit.

Whatever their reasoning, the disciples had it all figured out. It was either the blind man’s fault or his parents’.

A Paradigm Shift

Whenever people asked Jesus an “either/or” question, he usually widened their view of the situation. Instead of blaming someone, Jesus challenged his disciples to look for God amid the suffering. The Message version of the Bible puts Jesus’ answer this way:

Jesus said, “You’re asking the wrong question. You’re looking for someone to blame. There is no such cause-effect here. Look instead for what God can do.”

Years ago, I was at Wal-Mart rummaging through some CDs. A woman approached me and asked if she could pray for me. I said yes. I will always accept prayer!

As the woman prayed, she asked God to heal me of my disability. Her prayer grew louder and louder, and when she finished, she said, “Now you have to believe!”

In her view, the greatest good was that I become healed of my cerebral palsy. And if God chose to do that, I would happily accept! But I’ve seen God do amazing things in my life. And I’ve watched other people go through terrible times and come out with a renewed sense of purpose.

God can be found in life’s darkest moments.

Even if we fully understood the “why” of suffering, we still wouldn’t like it. But we have a God who chose to leave his perfect home, put on human flesh, and experience human suffering with us.

Questions to Ponder:

Have you ever asked some form of the “Oldest Question”?

If you are a follower of Jesus, where have you seen God show up in your suffering?

If you’re not a follower of Jesus, what do you think of the concept of God (as Jesus) experiencing suffering alongside us?