Most of people go through suffering during their lifetime. There are two types of suffering. First one is deserved suffering cause by our sin, and action. Second one is an underserved suffering, where we do not know why we have to go though all of this hardships even though we lived in a correct, righteous way. In the Bible, Job is the perfect example of one who went through underserving suffering in the Old Testament. Job was described as a righteous person, the best person and obedient to God. However, God allowed Satan to test Job’s faith through suffering. Job lost everything important to him in a short period. I am not a righteous person like Job but I always wrestle with this topic of underserved suffering from my own experience and other people’s suffering that in human mind cannot grasp. Sometimes, I do not understand why God had to allow suffering to “good” and righteous people. The book of Job addresses issue on why do righteous people suffer undeservedly? and to help me to understand this topic better.
First, we blame Satan or the devil for suffering the cause of suffering. Satan challenged Job in three areas: Job's righteousness, Job's fear of God, and Job's separation from sin (Job 1:8-11). Satan claimed that Job fears God only because God protects and prospers him. The prosperity issue and its resultant retribution/ theology become a major focus in understanding suffering throughout the book (1:9-10; 2:4; 5:19-26; 8:6-7; 11:17-19; 13:15-16; 17:5; 20:21-22; 22:21; 24:1-12; 34:9; 36:11, 16; 42:10). The presentation of this false theology is therefore found in Satan's statements before the throne of God (chaps. 1-2), Job's crying (chap. 3), and the three dialogue cycles involving Eliphaz and Job, Bildad and Job, ...
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...e, of- ten not immediately made clear to the sufferer, but still effective in advancing missio Dei. In the book of Job, knowledge of his suffering spread throughout the Near East, brought "wise men" to his side, drew curious onlookers to witness his debates with the three friends, and ultimately resulted in a witness of his relationship with the Lord (Waters 33). Therefore, we can use our suffering experiences as a means for drawing people to Christ.
In conclusion, the book of Job teaches that who handles the suffering well has the opportunity to make sense of the unexplainable and to demonstrate confidence and faith in God. As Job's experience with undeserved suffering brought the ultimate example of this to his world, suffering believers can do the same today. A proper relationship with God, based on grace through faith, is all that matters in life (Waters 35).
...ade to choose him for the spiritual task. Job realized he had to experience loss and suffering in the name of God to pass the test God bestowed upon him. God stated “Who is that darkens counsel by words without knowledge? Gird up your loins like a man, I will question you, and you shall declare to me... Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth” (p.667) God notified Job he was in no position to question the loss he must undertake in order to complete his mission. Job realized the meaning of his life, when he realized the magnitude God went to convince him of his calling. Job forgave himself for his sacrifices, because he realized it was instructed by God.
There is one significant difference that stands out between Job and Odysseus. That is the reason for their loss of agency and suffering. The reason in for Odysseus’ torment is obvious: he blinded Poseidon’s son. How anyone could not expect some form of vengeance, and sometimes I get the feeling Odysseus is caught unaware by Poseidon, is a mystery to me. The rationale behind Job’s reduction in agency is much less clear and is never addressed by God, who was an accessory to the whole affair by knowingly allowing it to take place. The comforters suggest possible explanations, unhidden sin or a lesson from God, but neither suggestions are confirmed or denied. The reason God accepted Satan’s wager remains a playground for speculation.
After reviewing the work of David Hume, the idea of a God existing in a world filled with so much pain and suffering is not so hard to understand. Humes’ work highlights some interesting points which allowed me to reach the conclusion that suffering is perhaps a part of God’s divine plan for humans. Our morals and values allow us to operate and live our daily lives in conjunction with a set of standards that help us to better understand our world around us and essentially allows us to better prepare for the potential life after life. For each and every day we get closer to our impending deaths and possibly closer to meeting the grand orchestrator of our universe.
It is easy to place the blame on fate or God when one is encumbered by suffering. It is much harder to find meaning in that pain, and harvest it into motivation to move forward and grow from the grief. It is imperative for one to understand one’s suffering as a gateway to new wisdom and development; for without suffering, people cannot find true value in happiness nor can they find actual meaning to their lives. In both Antigone and The Holy Bible there are a plethora of instances that give light to the quintessential role suffering plays in defining life across cultures. The Holy Bible and Sophocles’ Antigone both mirror the dichotomous reality in which society is situated, underlining the necessity of both joy and suffering in the world.
In the case of Joseph where his brother sold him into slavery, what was meant to be evil, God planned everything out to bless Joseph and his family in the long term (Genesis 37-47 Holman Christian Study Bible). We as Christian need to lean on Gods understands and not our own, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5). Joni could live out her faith by trusting in God and by not jumping to thoughts that she is useless. She could bring the living word to people around her. As a voice calling out of the wilderness like John the Baptist, Joni’s wilderness would be her situation. Christians all around this world are using the pain they have known to spread the message of God. It is her story now that only she can share and show how God have not forsaken her, but has delivered from the rock bottom and now has renewed her
In To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Atticus Finch says, "Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit em', but remember it's a sin To Kill a Mockingbird." This quote demonstrates Atticus's firm belioef in the Golden Rule. The Golden Rule is to treat others how you want to be treated. Atticus follows the Golden Rule throughout the novel, including while defending Tom Robinson, a local African American accused of raping Mayella Ewell. Due to Atticus's firm belief in the Golden Rule and the fact he must live with himself before others and tries to teach his children the right thing to do, it makes sense for him to defend Tom Robinson.
...n the world. Job questions what god is really doing for him. Then god talks to job in question form about the creation of the earth. This shows that jobs is very small compared to god, so small that he cannot even being to understand some of the the things god is telling him. Chapter 38 proves to job that humans are far below the power of god then in chapter 42 job quickly shames himself for the previous things he said.
Job was a man of the purest faith. When the world shunned God, Job's faith never declined. Job was a wealthy, handsome man with a beautiful wife and a vast amount of property. At some point in time, Satan made a bet with God that if Job situation was changed, his faith would quickly falter. On this note, God took Job's wealth, his property, his family, and his wife. When times were at their worst, God gave Job pus welts on Job's face, taking his looks. Job's faith, however, did not falter, instead it becamestronger. Job passed the test. God then healed Job, gave him more land, greater wealth , and a better wife. Job was baffled, he wondered the purpose behind his fall and rise. When he asked God this, God replied: "...Because I'm God." That was answer enough.
Why does God allow Satan to cause such tragedy in Job’s life, a man whom God has already acknowledged as “my servant Job, that there is none like on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil?”(1.8) From the beginning, it is known that Job is in no way deserving of his injustices, so a reason must be given. God gives Job an opportunity to prove that under any circumstances Job will still have faith. This simply a test for Job. The whole Book is a “double” journey for Job -- he shows God his faith and realizes the faith God has that Job will not stray from his path. Job knows deep down that God has not forsaken him.
The concept of suffering plays an important role in Christianity, regarding such matters as moral conduct, spiritual advancement and ultimate destiny. Indeed an emphasis on suffering pervades the Gospel of Mark where, it can be argued, we are shown how to "journey through suffering" (Ditzel 2001) in the image of the "Suffering Son of Man" (Mark 8:32), Jesus Christ. Although theologians have suggested that Mark was written to strengthen the resolve of the early Christian community (Halpern 2002, Mayerfeld 2005), the underlying moral is not lost on a modern reader grappling with multifarious challenges regarding faith in the face of suffering. In his article "A Christian Response to Suffering", William Marravee (1987) describes suffering as an "experience over which we men and women continue to stumble and fall". The way we view God is crucial to the way we view suffering according to Marravee, who delineates the disparity between a view of God as an ‘outsider’ and the biblical image of God – where God is an ‘insider’ who suffers with us in our struggle. This essay seeks to explain the Christian view of suffering and the purpose suffering can have in our lives.
The Suffering Servant and Its Rewards (52:13-53:12) In this section we will explore the nature of the task of the suffering servant and its rewards for the people. We also will eximne the beneficiaries of the ministry of the
He wants to find a way to justify God’s actions, but he cannot understand why there are evil people who “harm the childless woman, / and do no good to the widow,” only to be rewarded with long, successful lives (Job 24:21). Job’s friends, say that God distributes outcomes to each person as his or her actions deserve. As a result of this belief, they insist that Job has committed some wrongdoing to merit his punishment. God himself declines to present a rational explanation for the unfair distribution of blessings and curses. He still suggests that people should not discuss divine justice since God’s power is so great that humans cannot possibly justify his
The question of why bad things happen to good people has perplexed and angered humans throughout history. The most common remedy to ease the confusion is to discover the inflicter of the undeserved suffering and direct the anger at them: the horror felt about the Holocaust can be re-directed in the short term by transforming Adolf Hitler into Lucifer and vilifying him, and, in the long term, can be used as a healing device when it is turned into education to assure that such an atrocity is never repeated. What, however, can be done with the distasteful emotions felt about the victims of Hiroshima and Nagasaki? Surely the citizens of those two cities did not themselves directly provoke the government of the United States to deserve the horror of a nuclear attack. Can it be doubted that their sufferings were undeserved and should cause deep sorrow, regret, and anger? Yet for the citizens of the United States to confront these emotions they must also confront the failings of their own government. A similar problem is found in two works of literature, Aeschylus' Prometheus Bound and the book of Job found in the Tanakh. In each of these works a good man is seen to be suffering at the hand of his god; Prometheus is chained to a rock by Zeus who then sends an eagle to daily eat Prometheus' liver while Job is made destitute and brought to endure physical pain through an agreement between God~ and Satan. To examine the travails of these two men is to discover two vastly different concepts of the relationship between god and man.
In the General Epistles, we are shown how to follow Jesus in hard times and when it is essential to walk with Him. The General Epistles show us the difficulties of life when dealing with captivity, mistreatment by those of a higher social standing, and racism. Today we have many similar difficulties but they are in the form of working for human glorification, benefitting others who are not in need for our work, and maximizing profits for a company. These scenarios are not for Gods purpose but only for human purposes. The General Epistles also show us how to deal with these difficulties and overcome them in a way that we can be helpful working toward Gods purpose. Trusting that God will provide for us and that we must work to only benefit others
In The Book of Job, one of the main themes is desire, more specifically the desire to know the actuality. Job is a wealthy man living in a land of Uz with his family minding his own business. He is a very religious man and usually strives to do what he believes is morally right. Satan one day challenges God that Job will lose his faith in him if he allows Satan to torture Job. God accepts the challenge and Job greatly suffers. Job at the beginning of the story had no desires or intentions at all, but as his condition gets worse and worse. Job mindset about God and his belief begins to shift. At this point in the story desire starts to play a key role in Job’s life. Desire is shown in Job when he demands answers from God and why God is putting him through all of this. The idea of questioning God terrifies Job but his desire for an answer ultimately overshadows his fear of questioning God, “Here is my desire...