Suffering and Sovereignty

I am currently preaching a series of sermons through the Book of Job. Not surprisingly the subject matter of Job--God's sovereignty in suffering--brings up heart-felt questions. I am going to try to deal with some of those questions here as I have opportunity to write. Of course, more significantly, I will be dealing with those questions as I preach through Job.

As a Teaching Elder in the PCA I hold to the confession of faith of my church: The Westminster Confession of Faith. Chapters Three, Five, and Six are particularly applicable to questions about God's sovereignty over suffering and evil.

If you would like to read more about the relationship between God's sovereignty, suffering, and human responsibility (and hope in the midst of it all!), the following books are quite helpful:

Suffering and the Sovereignty of God  edited by Piper & Taylor
Why Do I Suffer? by John Currid 
Is God Really In Control? by Jerry Bridges 
How Long O Lord? by D.A. Carson 
Big God by Orlando Saer 
Deserted By God? by Sinclair Ferguson
Holding On To Hope by Nancy Guthrie
Be Still My Soul by Nancy Guthrie
When God Weeps by Joni Earickson Tada & Steve Estes
A Place for Weakness by Michael Horton

A daughter lost

Over at Credo (one of my favorite online resources) Fred Zaspel offers a deeply moving reflection on the life and recent death of his beloved daughter. Please take time to read it and pass it along.

The outward proclamation and the inner scream

From God's Prophet, God's Servant by John Goldingay

I have heard many people whispering –
There is terror on all sides.
“Report him, let’s report Him!”
All my friends are watching for my downfall.
“Perhaps he can be persuaded and prevailed over,
then we can catch him and take vengeance on him.
- Jeremiah 20:10

Curse the day I was born!
May the day my mother bore me never be blessed!
Curse the man who brought the news to my father,
“It’s a boy! You have a son!”,
making him glad.
May that man be like the cities
that Yahweh overthrew without pity,
may he hear a cry in the morning and an alarm at noon,
because he did not kill me at birth,
so that my mother would have become my grave,
and her womb would have been enlarged forever.
Why did I come out of the womb,
to see trouble and affliction
and end my life in disgrace?
- Jeremiah 20:14-18

“Why is there recorded in Scripture the personal and private agonizing of the man of God with God? One reason may arise out of the fact that it is obviously not easy to be hard as a rock outside when you are being torn apart inside. The tension between the outward proclamation and the inner scream itself threatens to rend the man apart. The scream, indeed, cannot finally be stifled or repressed. It has to receive expression. So writing it down helps to give expression to it in the only way that is possible. It gets it out of the system. That may be the reason why Jeremiah put it in writing…

“I remember once noticing a poster on Nottingham Railway Station: ‘There is a religion which sees life as a challenge to be met, not as a cross to be born.’ If there is, then it is not the religion of Jeremiah, nor of Jesus. Nor is it a religion I am very interested in. Because a religion that is worth following has to be able to cope with the fact that life is not always a thrilling challenge; it is sometimes an experience of crucifixion. And being a prophet, or being any kind of faithful servant of God, is not always a thrilling challenge. Sometimes, the experience of the cost, in isolation and opposition, in the loss of any right to run one’s own life, in being torn apart even as one is as hard as a rock outside, is rather an experience of crucifixion.”

"The gentle kindness which bruises us"

We call those things mercies which please us, ease us, suit our wants, and fall in with our cravings. Truly they are so, but not less gracious are those benefits which cross us, pain us, and lay us low. The tender love which chastises us the gentle kindness which bruises us, the fond affection which crushes us to the ground -- these we do not so readily recount; yet is there as much of divine love in a smart as in a sweet, as great a depth of tenderness in buffeting as in consoling. We must count our crosses, diseases and pains if we would number up our blessings. Doubtless it is a mercy to be spared affliction, but he would be a wise man who should tell which of the two was the greater boon -- to be for the present without chastisement or to be chastened. We judge that in either case it is well with the righteous, but we will not have a word said to the disparagment of affliction. Granted that the cross is very bitter, we maintain with equal confidence that it is also very sweet.

Charles Spurgeon from The Full Harvest

The Necessity of Affliction

Scripture teaches us that afflictions and trials are a necessary part of the Christian Pilgrimage. In his letter to the Philippians, Paul encourages believers to stand firm for the Lord, reminding them, 'For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake' (1:29). He connects belief in Christ with suffering for Christ, seeing them both as gifts granted to the church. In the epistle to the Romans, Paul says we are adopted as children of God, making us coheirs with Christ, but our inheritance in glory is conditional on our suffering with Christ, but our inheritance in glory in conditional on our suffering with Christ in this life. He writes, 'The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: and if children, then heirs; heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together' (8:16-17)...

Suffering is to be expected, not only as part of our human experience, but also as part of our Christian pilgrimage heavenward. Our suffering, whether a direct result of our faith and defense of the cause of Christ, or something we bear as part of the fallen world, should not surprise us. However, because we are Christians, and therefore heirs of the promises of God, our trials and afflictions have a different purpose - they sanctify us within the grand scheme of God's redemption of our souls.

Afflictions are the instruments by which God, as Master Carpenter shapes and conforms us to Christ's image (Rom 8:28-29). They are the means by which God completes the good work He began in us (Phil 1:6-7). They are occasions for our faith to grow in steadfastness and maturity (James 1:2-4). They are the means by which God exposes our sin to lead us to repentance (Job 42:3b, 5-6) and to reveal our hearts (Gen 22:1, 12). And they are necessary goads sent to test the genuineness of our faith and prepare us for the return of Christ (1 Peter 1:6-7; Matt 10:22b).

It is thus foolish for us to think we can avoid trials, difficulties, and affliction as Christians. Why would we want to? If they serve such an important purpose within God's plan of redemption, we cannot afford to live without them. Indeed, we should prefer to live with them. That is what the apostle concluded when he realized how much his trials had benefited him. He says, 'Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then I am strong' (2 Cor 12:9b-10).

From Living By God's Promises by Joel Beeke & James A. LaBelle

Expect trouble Christian

Soldier of Christ, if thou enlisteth, thou wilt have to do hard battle. There is no bed of down for thee; there it no riding to heaven in a chariot; the rough way must be trodden; mountains must be climbed, rivers must be forded, dragons must be fought, giants must be slain, difficulties must be overcome, and great trials must be borne. It is not a smooth road to heaven, believe me; for those who have gone but a very few steps therein have found it to be a rough one. It is a pleasant one; it is the most delightful in all the world, but it is not easy in itself; it is only pleasant because of the company, because of the sweet promises on which we lean, because of our Beloved who walks with us through all the rough and thorny brakes of this vast wilderness. Christian, expect trouble: "Count it not strange concerning the fiery trial, and as though some strange thing had happened unto thee;" for as truly as thou art a child of God, thy Saviour hath left thee for his legacy,—"In the world, ye shall have tribulation; in me ye shall have peace." If I had no trouble I would not believe myself one of the family. If I never had a trial I would not think myself a heir of heaven. Children of God must not, shall not, escape the rod. Earthly parents may spoil their children but the heavenly Father never shall his. "Whom he loveth he chasteneth," and scourgeth every son whom he hath chosen. His people must suffer; therefore, expect it Christian; if thou art a child of God believe it, look for it, and when it comes, say, "Well suffering, I foresaw thee; thou art no stranger; I have looked for thee continually." You cannot tell how much it will lighten your trials, if you await them with resignation. In fact, make it a wonder if you get through a day easily. If you remain a week without persecution, think it a remarkable thing; and if you should, perchance, live a month without heaving a sigh from your inmost heart, think it a miracle of miracles. But when the trouble comes, say, "Ah! this is what I looked for; it is marked in the chart to heaven; the rock is put down; I will sail confidently by it; my Master has not deceived me."

Charles H. Spurgeon from his sermon "Consolation Proportionate to Spiritual Suffering"

"In the darkest of all human sorrows..."

I know that God's children are not long without tribulation. As long as the wheat is on the threshin-floor, it must expect to feel the flail. Perhaps you have had a bereavement, or you may have had losses in business, or crosses in your family, or you have been sorely afflicted in your own body, and now you are crying to God for deliverance out of your temporal trouble. That deliverance will surely come. "Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed." "I have been young," said David, "and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken." The Lord will yet light your candle, and surround your path with brightness. Only patiently hope and quietly wait, and you shall yet see the salvation of the Lord. "Many are the afflictions of the righteous." Hark that; you know that part of the verse is true, and so is the rest of it: "but the Lord delivereth him out of them all." Clutch at that, for it is equally true. "In the world ye shall have tribulation." You know that is true. "Be of good cheer," says Christ, "I have overcome the world." Therefore, expect that you also will overcome it through your conquering Lord. Yes, in the darkest of all human sorrows, there is the glad prospect that the day will break, and the shadows will flee away.

Charles H. Spurgeon from his sermon "Darkness Before the Dawn"

Drawing Near To The Man Of Sorrows

Hear the words of Jesus: “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” (Mark 14:34) and let them draw you closer to him.

Have you always wanted to be closer to Jesus? I know you wouldn’t have chosen this method to get there. We wish we could get closer to Jesus by saying a prayer, going to a Bible study, reading a book, or in some other convenient and controllable way. But the truth is, it’s uniquely through our own sorrow that we can draw close to the Man of Sorrows.

Nancy Guthrie, Hearing Jesus Speak into Your Sorrow (p. 5).

"Strengthen Your Weak Knees

In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons?
“My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord,
nor be weary when reproved by him.
For the Lord disciplines the one he loves,
and chastises every son whom he receives.”
It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. 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. Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees," (Heb 12:4-12).

In his outstanding book How Long O Lord? D.A. Carson comments on this passage:
1. The context shows that the discipline the author has in mind is designed to help Christians combat sin.
2. The author designates the cited passage from Proverbs as a "word of encouragement."
3. This discipline is for our good.
4. This is so much a part of God's way with his people that if any live without God's discipline in their lives their status as the children of God is called into question.
5. No discipline seems pleasant at the time but painful.

D.A. Carson on Suffering and Evil...

How can God allow suffering and evil in the world? from A Passion for Life on Vimeo.

God and Cancer

The AP has picked up on Matt Chandler's story. Chandler is the well known pastor of Village Church in Dallas. His recent diagnosis with brain cancer has given him a platform to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus and the sovereign goodness of God in all things.

His theology teaches that all men are wicked, that human beings have offended a loving and sovereign God, and that God saves through Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection — not because people do good deeds. In short, Chandler is a Calvinist, holding to a belief system growing more popular with young evangelicals…

Chandler says learning he had brain cancer was “kind of like getting punched in the gut. You take the shot, you try not to vomit, then you get back to doing what you do, believing what you believe.

“We never felt — still have not felt — betrayed by the Lord or abandoned by the Lord. I can honestly say, we haven’t asked the question, ‘Why?’ or wondered, ‘Why me, why not somebody else?’ We just haven’t gotten to that place. I’m not saying we won’t get there. I’m just saying it hasn’t happened yet.”

Check it out HERE.

Pastors, suffer well...

Village Church in Dallas, TX has released the news that their pastor, Matt Chandler, has a malignant brain tumor. So far in this process Matt has done a good job of suffering well before his congregation. Collin Hansen of Christianity Today reports on the story HERE. The latest report from the elders of Village Church reads as follows:

Dear church,

In the first chapter of Philippians, the Apostle Paul writes that whatever imprisonments, beatings and trials he may have suffered, they all “serve to advance the gospel” of Jesus Christ. We implore you to keep the gospel of Christ as the main focus as we walk with Matt and Lauren through this trial.

On Tuesday, Dr. Barnett informed Matt and Lauren that the findings of the pathology report revealed a malignant brain tumor that was not encapsulated. The surgery to remove the tumor, the doctor said, was an extremely positive first step; however, because of the nature of the tumor, he was not able to remove all of it.

Matt, who is being released from the hospital today, is meeting with a neuro-oncologist this week to outline the next steps of the recovery process. There is a range of treatment possibilities but the exact course of action has not yet been determined. He will continue outpatient rehab.

The Lord is calling Matt and Lauren and The Village Church body to endure this trial. It will be a challenging road for Matt, his family and our church body. The gospel is our hope and the Lord is our strength. Matt and Lauren continue to find solace and hope in Christ. They weep facing this trial, but not as those without hope and perspective. The gospel clarifies their suffering and promises more of Christ through it all.

You have done a wonderful job respecting the family, and we ask that you continue to do this. They are processing all of this together and need you to give them precious space. Please do not visit them at their house unless personally invited by the Chandlers. The best way to serve the family is to continue to be faithful in prayer. Specifically, pray for the following:

•Wisdom for all the coming decisions
•Strength and peace to endure
•The kids’ (Audrey, Reid and Norah) hearts; pray the Lord is merciful as they process and that their little hearts do not grow embittered
•The Chandlers and The Village would suffer well because of the gospel and for the sake of Christ’s name

By suffering well I do not mean denying the reality of pain. Some prominent preachers among neo-penticostal and word/faith set admonish their hearers to never use words like "cancer" because that constitutes a negative confession and will actually make one more likely to contrat c_____r. Of course we wouldn't give time to discussing such foolishness except for the fact that these groups represent a large percentage of American evangelicals.

So, suffering well does not mean denying pain. Cancer, heart disease, traffic accidents, and depression. are not natural parts of the "life cycle." They are unwelcome intruders into a world that was created without those things. What is more, they are simply preludes to the most unnatural of all our enemies: death. Everytime we experience pain, loss, and death we are being reminded of the tragedy of the fall. To suffer well we must not deny this. After all, Scripture reminds us that Christians do grieve. The difference is that we do not grieve as those without hope.

A pastor who suffers well, then, will be an example of one who hopes in his Saviour even while his life is visited with tears. He will rage against the sin that has visited such suffering upon the world but he will hope even more. His rest will outweigh his grief. He will give his congregation glimpses of hard won joy which is possible only for one who knows that it is better by far to depart and be with Jesus.

Michael Horton on Suffering

David Platt - The Glory of God in Suffering

If God is good...

Over at Between Two Worlds, Andy Naselli has posted an interesting interview with Randy Alcorn. Among the things discussed is Alcorn's new book, If God Is So Good... It's definitely worth the read. I highly recommend Alcorn's book Money, Possessions, and Eternity.

No Comfort Apart from a Sovereign God

From Tim Challies:

On September 28, 2008, I was shocked to read these words on the blog of Terry Stauffer, a man I had met at a couple of conferences and who has long been a reader and commenter at my blog: “Last night at about 4:45 our precious 14 year-old daughter Emily was attacked and killed as she was out for a walk. We don’t know a lot of details, but we know that two young men came upon the scene right away, but it was too late for Emily. I will write more as more details come available. Please pray for us, for our church family who are meeting without us right now, and for family that is travelling. We are realizing from the inside the value of good, Gospel theology right now. ”

Terry is pastor of Edson Baptist Church in the small town of Edson, Alberta. Emily’s murder shocked this small town of less than 10,000 people—the kind of town where this crime is unheard of. I continued to follow Terry’s blog as he dealt with the aftermath—Emily’s funeral, national media attention, the arrest of a suspect and life following the loss of a child. Through it all, Terry’s faith strengthened me from afar. I recently asked Terry if he would be kind enough to participate in an interview and I am grateful that he was willing and able to do so. I offer this interview in the hope that it encourages you in the Lord who promises (and delivers) strength as strength is needed.

Read Tim's moving interview with Emily's father HERE.

Our affliction and the afflictions of Christ

Over at Ref21 Joel Beeke has written an "open letter to true believers."

Dear believer,

I desire to write you about something with which you are well acquainted: affliction. Much has been written on affliction by our forebears. A good part of it you have known for a long time. For example, you know that all affliction is ultimately traceable to our tragic fall in Adam. You know, too, the grievousness of affliction. After all, who enjoys suffering?

Yet you also know that all affliction is sent by a wise, fatherly God. Perhaps you even know--as the whole book of Job and the Puritans never tire of teaching us--that the important thing is not the amount of affliction we receive, but how we respond to that affliction.

Isn't it just here that your deepest questions about affliction and trial lie? For you want to respond to affliction in a God-glorifying manner, but you feel you often fall inexcusably short. You desire that your entire life may serve God's praise (Isa. 43:21), but somehow when you enter the heat and heart of affliction you find yourself losing grip on your firm intention. To respond rightly to affliction before it comes is hard; to look back on it gratefully after it is over is harder; but to live Christianly in affliction is hardest. Hence you ask yourself again and again: how may I live through affliction more Christianly--in a way that is more like Christ? How may I grow in grace while--yes, while--suffering affliction?

Please take time to read the entire post HERE.

A Theology of Suffering

Rowan Williams gets God off the hook

Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of the Church of England was in New York on September 11, 2001 not far from the World Trade Center. This article tells of Williams' experience that fateful day and the days that followed. What is revealed is a man whose concept of God is quite small.

“When [Rowan] got to the rubric for the homily he was totally surprised; he hadn't expected to preach, so he preached off the cuff. He went back to an encounter that he had with an airline pilot on the streets at 7am that morning. The pilot said to him, “Where the hell was God?” Rowan's answer was that God is useless at times like this. Now that's pretty shocking, but actually what he then went on to unpack is that God didn't cause this and God [was not] going to stop it, because God has granted us free will, and therefore God has to suffer the consequences of this like we do. So in a sense he exonerated God...”

Is it any wonder why the Church of England is in such a state of chaos?

Any thoughts?

How would you have answered the pilot?

Phil Ryken: "The Suffering and the Glory..."

Check out this excellent message by Phil Ryken, pastor of Tenth Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia entitled "The Suffering and the Glory: Pastoral Ministry in Union with Christ":

VIDEO
AUDIO

Also, this interview with Dr. Ryken is well worth the time:

VIDEO
AUDIO