What do you tell yourself when life gets hard, too hard? Some
evil has landed in your lap, and you hurt. What do you say then? This is when
Gospel truths become really practical. Truths like Immanuel, God with us. You
do not face these hard times alone. God is with you and has promised never to
abandon you. His presence is a sure thing. And with that presence comes His compassion. You have a Savior who knows - by
experience! - that life can be very hard. He
understands and is very sympathetic toward you in your plight. That sense of
Immanuel is so important in times like these. There is great promise in holding
these Gospel truths when life gets hard.
Except that it isn't enough.
You need more than just knowing God is near. And I fear that
there are too many Christians who have only this. Knowing that God is near
isn't nearly enough so that you can deal well with the hard parts of life. That
alone doesn't tell you what to do when evil strikes. And you need to do
something.
What you need to do is tied to what you need to know. Why did
evil land in your lap? Isn't that one of the big questions: 'Why is this
happening to me?' You can have an answer to that question, not a complete
answer, but one that is good enough so that you can deal with the evil and live
well.
And the answer to that question is tied to the answer to this
one. Who sends the evil? Who is it that causes me to hurt in the way that I do?
And here's the answer: God. It's God who sends the evil. He's the one who makes
us hurt. I realize that there are many who have a very hard time with that
idea. God sending evil? But I find it a very
comforting one. It gives me hope.
So, why do I think it is God who sends us the evil that we
experience? I think that because it's in the Bible. Here's a little question
and answer on the topic.
Who creates evil?
I am the Lord, and there is no other.
I form light and create darkness, I make well-being and create calamity, I am the Lord, who does all these things. Isaiah 45:6-7
The word 'calamity' is literally 'evil'. Either way, the bad
stuff that happens is created by the Lord.
Who was the one who sent evil to Job?
And they showed him sympathy and
comforted him for all the evil that the Lord had brought upon him. Job 42:11
Satan had a role
to play but only as a tool in God's hand, a means to bring about the evil.
Whose plan was it for Jesus to suffer on the Cross?
… this
Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God,
you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. Acts 2:23
And if this verse isn't clear enough that the Cross was God's
idea try John 3.16.
Who was it that caused the psalmist all those severe
troubles?
The Lord has disciplined me severely,
but he has not given me over to death. Psalms 118:18
When you suffer some evil you can know where it's coming
from. Whatever the immediate source, ultimately it comes from God. He is the
one who sends it your way.
And there is a reason why God sends you the evil that He
does. The first part of Hebrews 12 explains the suffering, the evil, that the recipients of this letter were dealing with.
It was from God as His training. The last verse of this section explains the
goal.
For the moment all discipline seems
painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of
righteousness to those who have been trained by it. Hebrews 12:11
God's intention in sending you evil is your good. He wants
you to enjoy things like 'the peaceful fruit of righteousness'. Let's go back
and consider Job again. After all his suffering, this is what he said to God.
I had heard of you by the hearing of
the ear, but now my eye sees you; Job 42:5
The intended good of Job's suffering was coming to know his
God better with all the joys associated with that.
Now, none of this means that you are supposed to like the
evil that comes your way. Jesus didn't. Listen in on His prayer in the garden
of Gethsemane. But seeing evil in this way helps you to understand, to some
extent, what is going on. Our loving Father is doing something that will result
in your good. The evil is an expression of His love for His children. Isn't
there a better, less painful way for Him to do this? Well, if there were,
wouldn't He do it that way?
Seeing life, including the hard parts, (especially the hard
parts!) in this way gives hope. The evil coming at me hurts, but there is a
purpose for the pain, a good purpose. My Father's purpose.
Now, knowing these things, you can act. You can do something.
And what you do is work with God in His plan to do you good by that evil. And
at the heart of that is this: trust. 'Father, I trust You
as You send this evil for my good.' You may have to say that with loud cries
and tears, like Jesus did (Hebrews 5.7). Suffering evil isn't fun. But it is
one of God's ways of making you into a mature disciple of Jesus, someone who is
useful to Him. And that, it seems to me, is worth the pain.