Posted on 02/09/2019 3:36:17 PM PST by pcottraux
Jesus Walking on Water and the Problem of Suffering
By Philip Cottraux
Job lost everything. His livestock was destroyed, his children all died, and he was smitten with painful boils from head to toe. His friends rebuked him and his wife urged him to curse God and die. Job cried out not so much for an end to his suffering, but an explanation. In the last four chapters, God finally appears in a whirlwind, first chastising his friends, then turning to him with an intriguing answer: Gird up now thy loins like a man; for I will demand of thee, and answer thou me. Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? Declare, if thou hast understanding (Job 38:3-4). Job never got the answer he was looking for. The Lord never explained the cosmic chess game with Satan, but showed up in an unexpected way to demonstrate who He is, then questioning Job why he should question how the universe is run. And that’s it.
Being the oldest book in the Bible, Job sets the foundation for a central tenet of Judeo-Christian doctrine; life is filled with pain and suffering and God seems to abandon us. But even if He doesn’t answer our prayers right away, we should still trust his sovereignty that in the end, things will be alright.
The question of suffering throughout the Bible doesn’t stop with Job. The Old Testament is filled with prophets who suffered for speaking the truth. Jeremiah plead with the Jews to stop idolatry and was rewarded with being thrown in a dungeon. Contrary to critics’ claims that Christianity describes a perfect God but ignores the terrible reality of life, the Bible is actually rife with brutally honest reflections of despair. So many authors of Psalms or prophetic books and grappled with a silent God. This is why prosperity preachers who make millions teaching that God wants us to “live our best life” are so sickening, contradicting one of Bible’s fundamental themes: Many are the afflictions of the righteous: (Psalm 34:19).
Yet Job contains a vital clue in how the question of suffering will later be answered, as it describes God as Which alone spreadeth out the heavens, and treadeth upon the waves of the sea (Job 9:8). Christians sometimes refer to Noah’s ark as a type of Christ, calling Him our “ark of safety” when tribulation comes. The important detail is that the ark floated on top the water, keeping Noah’s family safe while the rest of the world drowned. Likewise, Jesus walked on water and demonstrated the safety in trusting in Him.
In Matthew 14, Jesus instructed his disciples to get into a ship, and to go before him unto the other side, while he sent the multitudes away (verse 22). Being Lord of all, Jesus certainly knew the storm was coming and that they would be trapped by the raging seas. To understand His reasoning, we need to hearken back to a previous story in Matthew 8. Jesus had been asleep in the boat during a storm on the Sea of Galilee when the disciples awoke Him and pleaded carest thou not that we perish (fill in blank)?
This time, Jesus they would on their own. I can’t help but recall Job, unwittingly at the center of a controversy between God and the devil. Matthew 14:24: But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind as contrary. All hope seemed lost. They didn’t realize they were there for a divine purpose, set up for an unexpected revelation.
In our worst storms, God seems to have abandoned us. We pray and pray, sometimes for years, our words bouncing off the ceiling. The Psalmist said How long wilt thou forget me, O LORD? For ever? How long wilt thou hide they face from me (Psalm 13:1)? Then suddenly, the Lord appears in a way we never imagined. Job was no doubt stunned at the whirlwind. We might not even recognize Him. Christ walking on the water was the last thing the disciples expected to see. They didn’t even realize who He was. And the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit: and they cried out for fear (Matthew 14:26).
It is worth noting that most English versions of the Bible slightly mistranslate Jesus’ response in verse 27: Be of good cheer; It is I; be not afraid. The original Greek passage literally said “Be not afraid: I AM.” Jesus invoked the sacred name of God given to Moses on Mount Sinai: And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you (Exodus 3:14).
A common criticism against Christianity (and all religion) is that its followers aren’t allowed to question it, that asking reasonable questions and demanding proof is akin to blasphemy. This means denouncing questioners is an obvious manipulative attempt to control people’s lives. But it’s not Biblical. I have never found a single scripture that says we are not allowed to question God. In fact, time and time again, some of the greatest men in the Bible fell down and pleaded with the Lord to prove Himself.
Peter didn’t take Christ at His Word. Matthew 24:28: And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water. This story flips the question around on the asker. We sit back like armchair critics and demand God prove Himself, then are a bit taken aback when He answers “You prove me.” God never violates our free will. Rather than a forceful being snapping His fingers and making all humanity’s problems go away, the image is Christ standing in an unexpected place, beckoning with one word. And he said, Come (verse 29).
And that one word may be all we get. In the four gospels, Christ rarely gave invitations more than once. Some professed they would go wherever He led them. But it was all talk. And another of his disciples said unto him, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father (Matthew 8:22). If this seems like a reasonable request, remember that in ancient Judah, funerals could last for weeks. The man was asking Jesus to wait for Him. “Just give me a few more weeks, and I’ll follow you” people still say to Christ. Verse 23: But Jesus said unto him, Follow me: and let the dead bury their dead. Don’t put it off. Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and sup with him, and he with me (Revelation 3:20). You could find yourself like the Shulamite woman, who heard her beloved knocking but waited too late to open the door. I opened to my beloved; but my beloved had withdrawn himself, and was gone: my soul failed when he spake: I sought him, but I could not find him; I called him, but he gave me no answer (Song of Solomon 5:6).
What are the armchair critics doing to help God solve the world’s problems? Have they fasted? Since they care so much about suffering children, do you find them at hospitals praying for the sick?
Matthew 14:32: And when they were come into the ship, the wind ceased. The church today is barely surviving the storms this world is throwing at us; but all it takes is getting Jesus back in. We may have pictures and statues of Jesus. Every Sunday morning we sing about Him. But do we truly have Him in our hearts? Do we pray more than just a ritual prayer, but an awesome, raw emotional repentance expecting an answer? Once we do, He will be back in the boat with us and will say to the world, “Peace, be still.” Then they that were in the ship came and worshipped him, saying, Of a truth thou art the Son of God (verse 33).
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Why do bad things happen to good people?
There is no real answer to this question, because it is a flawed question! The question assumes we are good. There really are no “good” people, so how in the world could any of us tell “bad” things from “good” things? The question we actually need to ask is: “Why would a good God let those trying to do His will suffer?” This question has real answers.
First, we need to review where we stand. We are fallen creatures, inclined to do wrong, and wrong thoughts and acts have bad consequences – sometimes for us – sometimes for others. And if God removed the bad consequences, we would never learn anything. Free will without consequences would just be a game, and God does not play games with our eternal souls. God is pretty firm on this – He did not make an exception even to relieve the suffering of His Son! The real wonder is that a world full of fallen creatures, making bad choices, doesn’t have more suffering in it than it does.
Secondly, who says suffering is bad? Not God. When a child is being punished, both he and his parents suffer: is that good or bad? And when he fails in school or in a play or in sports; works harder, then succeeds; we call that character building – but did the child suffer? Of course! A child’s frame of reference is today, ours is limited to this life – but God’s time frame is eternity. His training – His discipline – His focus – is eternal. Thus, we, like the child, are in a very poor position to weight the relative merits of temporal suffering.
And thirdly, what kind of a world would this really be if God’s people never suffered? Not one I would choose to live in. Just think: people would flock to be “God’s people” just to avoid suffering. They would all, of course, be very sincere! And if someone were suffering, it would be their own fault. Who would help? Who would care? All this sufferer has to do is join “God’s people”, and He will fix it! True love – real compassion – all empathy – would cease to exist. It is only as God’s people share in the lot of the world’s suffering that we can share His compassion and His empathy and His love with the world. It is a pity, but no other way will work.
But there is even a better reason we are sometimes tested in uncomfortable ways. God knows the strength of our faith, but we never will until it is used, or tested. This is the same principle as a runner or weight lifter working out before the competition – we will not be strong enough to rely on God when we really need Him if we have never had to trust upon Him along the way.
Finally, it really is through our weakness that God’s strength is revealed. For He will always provide the added measure when our reservoir is empty, and fills us with His grace and strength. Suffering, like death, holds great promise of God’s divine intervention into our lives – but never such that I would seek it. His future for us is far better than the life we have built here on earth. But for those enlisted to endure, there is a great and abiding promise that He will hold, nurture, and comfort us; and through it build us up and prepare us for eternal blessings.
So what are we left with? How do we respond when it is our turn to suffer? First, praise God that He cares and is in charge! That gets our mind and spirit started in the right direction. Then, give Him the problem and find others to support you in prayer. And be prepared to accept whatever He offers. Finally, share your hurts and blessing with others in the same boat. And who knows, you may be building your eternal character in God’s image, strengthening your faith muscles, and bringing a stranger to learn of His love.
Not bad. Not bad at all!
I know the Job experience. Far too well.
I must admit I don’t understand all of it. Not even a little bit.
I’ve also experienced Job’s friends. They’ve got all the answers, LOL.
I know some of you out there are also sharing such experiences.
Hang in there friends.
Why do bad things happen to good people?
;)
I know the Job experience. Far too well.
Job 42:5 I had only heard about You before, but now I have seen You with my own eyes.
So did you come to the same conclusion as Job? Knowing Him personally, is better than knowing about him?
I wish I had this event on film or even a picture of it but, true story.
My friends and I had been discussing Mormonism and Christianity all day, while slalom water skiing.
At one my friend, Mormon dude, is jumping wakes behind on the boat when he takes a gnarly head over heels fall.
He’s laying on his back as we begin to circle back when he decides to pull his ski off, then he miraculously began to walk on water toward us.
Literally
He was actually walking on a sandbar in the middle of the lake but, what a sight!
It was the sandbar that took him down and we are lucky not to have plowed the boat over it.
So, he points to where the sandbar drops off, we gently drifted the boat next to him and he walked right into the boat...
We laugh about to this day...
It’s not as linear as the Job thing. Quite different in a lot of ways but similar, also, in many ways.
But I’ve definitely survived many things that didn’t look like I would. ouch
ouch
Hehe. Like I say, there are always Job’s friends.
Why do bad things happen to good people?1.) Free will.
2.) Dynamic environment.
We are studying Revelation in church. We just started, and the first 4 or 5 chapters show God and Jesus being worshipped on the thrones, and being in control of EVERYTHING. Good, Evil, Etc. BUT - it is all good. And ALL tribes and nations of the earth and all of the creatures are worshiping God and Jesus.
John is pointing this out before he starts to describe the trials and tribulations to come.
The pastor said that when hardships come, as they surely will - some that will last a lifetime, run it through the filter of Jesus.
When people say “Why would God let you suffer like that? There is no God. You are a sinner and need to change your ways. Etc.”
Well, running it through the “Jesus filter” - Jesus also suffered a huge amount on the cross. And his whole ministry to some extent as the Jewish leaders were out to get him. If God allowed Jesus to suffer for His purpose, and he was without sin - then perhaps we will also suffer for His purpose.
But yeah - it isn’t fun, and I still don’t like it. But I know that I have grown through suffering, and that is the only way that I would have grown. And I hope that some of it will serve God’s purpose in my life and in others.
One thing that I am still learning is that I can’t fix a lot of things - and have to leave them up to God.
The other point is God has promised all things work to the good for those that love Him. We may not see the good He brings out of our troubles this side of eternity but we can take Him at His word... He will bring us good out of even the worst most hopeless appearing situation.
Jonah’s story is another
Fantastic study.
His encounter with the
Living God took him
Below the waters.
Shadrack,
Meshack and
Abednago had a bit of trouble as well.
Character studies are
Fascinating!
I’ve hoped to meet them.
[ I’ve hoped to meet them. ]
Don’t worry. We will.
Good stuff. Thanks for posting. When I look at a crucifix, I know God understands our suffering.
You’re welcome! Thanks for reading!
There is no real answer to this question, because it is a flawed question! The question assumes we are good. There really are no “good” people, so how in the world could any of us tell “bad” things from “good” things? The question we actually need to ask is: “Why would a good God let those trying to do His will suffer?” This question has real answers.
I believe that was a point CS Lewis made...when people demand God get rid of evil in the world, they're probably not thinking about their own evil, and what will happen to them. Even if they're not murderers, where should the line of evil be drawn? Be careful what you wish for.
I might have to rethink my opinions of Mormonism, lol...
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