If there is a God, why does he allow such things to happen?

When there is a tragedy people normally ask the question if there is a God, why does he allow such things to happen?  They actually blame God for the tragedy, so He usually gets the blame, yet it doesn’t come from God, and he feels the pain along with those who have been hurt as he is in broken hearts. What father doesn’t suffer when his children suffer!  Well, more so with God who is the perfect Father!

God loved us so much that He sent His only son to die on the Cross for us.  A parent would know just how that is exceedingly difficult, yet God did it, therefore that is proof that God truly loves us.  We must not forget that on the earth there is a battle going on between good and evil.  God made a wonderful planet and everything was very good until sin came into the world.

We have caused our own problems with pollution causing a hole in the ozone layer which causes havoc and calamities.  It wasn’t there when God created it as seen in Genesis 1:31 (KJV)31 And God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.  We therefore can’t blame God for the disasters that now occur when we are responsible for not looking after our planet.

What is good has a good influence, but what is sinful and evil has a bad influence. So many people have rejected God, so is it surprising that the planet is in such a terrible state with so much violence and so many wars?  We are in a world where there is a mixture of good and evil because it is an imperfect world, and when there is a tragedy it comes from the devil, and certainly not God.  There will only be perfection and true happiness in Paradise where there will be no more pain and suffering.

Jesus suffered more than any of us through His Passion and Death on the Cross, and no matter what any of us go through, it cannot be compared to His suffering.  God showed His love for us by sending His only Son to die on the Cross for us.  No sacrifice can be greater than that!  First of all Jesus was completely innocent as He was the only one without sin.  During the Last Supper He knew that the Disciple called Judas Iscariot who Jesus called a friend would betray Him. In the Garden of Gethsemane Jesus knew what would happen to Him and He knew that if He didn’t go ahead with dying on the cross, none of us would be saved, yet He could have called His angels anytime to help him, but He didn’t do so.  That knowledge must have made it a lot harder for Him knowing that He had that power, and not using it. He saw the sins of the world that He would carry, and He sweated so much blood that He nearly died in the Garden of Gethsemane.  He had spent His life helping others and healing them, yet when He wanted companionship his Disciples fell asleep instead of comforting Him, and when He was arrested the crowd turned against Him and they wanted to free Barabbas instead of Him.  Not only was He betrayed by Judas His Disciple, but He was also betrayed by Peter who denied that he knew Jesus three times. Jesus was flogged 49 times and then they put a crown of thorns on His head and they blindfolded Him, and hit Him and spat on His face.  Jesus had to carry the Cross which was the instrument of His torture leading to his death.  The worst thing of all was that not only did He have physical pain, but the mental and emotional anguish of being a perfect being and at the same time completely innocent, yet being tainted by carrying all our sins in His body for our salvation.  It made Jesus Christ feel like a worm and not even a man and He felt cut off from His Father, and He cried out in a loud voice saying « My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me ».  Jesus’s heart was melted like wax, and He was completely brokenhearted.  He took all our punishment and blame on the cross, and the sins of the world from the beginning of time till the end of time, and also He bore all our sufferings and sicknesses.  Jesus conquered death on the Cross and rose again on the third day. See the passages on the Lord’s Passion in Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53 and Luke 22-24.53.

It is so comforting to know that whatever hardship we go through in life, we are not alone because Jesus is now the living Jesus Christ who shares continuously in all the pain and sufferings we endure. His sufferings were far longer than three hours hung on a cross because He suffers non-stop because each time one of us suffers, He shares in our suffering.  This life is only temporary, but Eternity goes on forever.  The Saints and the martyrs who suffered for Jesus are now in Heaven for eternity with Him, for salvation is only through Jesus Christ, and not by any other route.

See how God is full of compassion and love and he always give good gifts to his children and never bad gifts. See Matthew 7:9-11 King James Version (KJV) 9 Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? 10 Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent?11 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?

See how God never forgets his children even if a mother forgets her child.

Isaiah 49:15-16(KJV)15 Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. 16 Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me and Isaiah 45:21-2

In the story of the Prodigal Son Jesus Christ shows us that the father in the story was so loving that He wanted his son to be free, and he didn’t even stop his son from taking his inheritance and leading a bad life.  He didn’t even punish his son, but the son punished himself by his dreadful behavior which led to his own downfall. What the father wanted was repentance from the son, and so when the son repented and came back to him, the father didn’t reproach him, but instead ran to meet him, hugged him, had him dressed up in a robe and gave him a ring and shoes, and had a fatted calf killed to have a feast and celebrate because he was overjoyed that his son had realized his mistakes, repented and come home.  Jesus illustrated for us the picture of a real merciful and loving God as seen in Luke 15:11-32.

When we have a personal intimate relationship with God, we know that He is so full of love and compassion, and so we know what He is like, and that he hates sin and evil.  We therefore have no doubt that what is evil doesn’t come from God, but only what is good.  Therefore no matter what tragedies you have in life, never doubt God’s love for you but instead abandon yourself completely to Jesus Christ and let him wrap his arms of love around you and comfort you as seen in Matthew 11:28-30King James Version (KJV) 28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

Remember that the Lord always looks after his children, and always wants the best for them.

Written by Marie-Helene and Dominic Bradshaw