Bad Stuff Happens

One of the most difficult things to overcome when confronting those who object to faith in God is their misunderstanding concerning their concept of a loving God allowing bad stuff to happen. I call it a “misunderstanding,” and refer to it as “their concept,” not because those things are not real, but because those things are not reasons to reject faith in God. In fact, when one gains insight into God’s purposes behind allowing bad stuff, properly understood, it can actually bolster faith in Him.

Yes, bad stuff actually happens. At the same time, God is good and loving. “But,” the skeptic says, “how can a good and loving God allow bad stuff?” Human logic would say, “Either God is not loving, or He is not good, but He can’t be both, if He allows bad stuff.” And the longer God allows us to live, with each year that goes by, the more bad stuff such people can point to as corroboration for their logic. So, ironically, those who live according to this logic end up putting more faith in the ones (humans) whose ancestor got us into this mess in the first place—whose fallen, sinful nature they share—and whose god will never be good or loving.

So, could a good, loving God, by allowing bad stuff to happen, somehow bolster faith in Him? There’s a hint in the previous paragraph. Mankind is responsible for the mess we’re in, not God. Suffering, evil, terrorism, disease, death, disaster, pain, calamity, bad stuff in general, it can all be traced back to the garden and the fall of mankind; original sin. But, our good and loving God, through Christ, rather than simply rejecting us forever, entered into our pain, suffering and death, our human experience, all the bad stuff, on our behalf, so that we could be saved from all that bad stuff for eternity.

The skeptic might not be satisfied with that. “I think a loving God would wipe out evil now, why wait until ‘eternity’? Maybe He’s not powerful enough to do it?” he or she might say. Well, He is both loving and powerful. His love sent His Son to die for our sins, making payment for the bad stuff in our lives. Then His power raised Him from the grave so that we might be raised, showing through His love and power that we’re assured of not facing the consequences of our sin, or a sin-sick world forever. But, that’s not all.

God loved humankind enough that He didn’t make us like animals, who don’t—and can’t—make moral choices. Despite His power, He doesn’t force us to always do good, or vaporize people when they do bad. We live in a broken world. As long as Christ tarries, bad stuff will be a reality. We are no longer in the Garden and we are not in Heaven yet. We live in a place C.S. Lewis referred to as, Shadowlands. There are areas devoid of light we will never fully understand and not see or understand what is happening there, places requiring trust, until Christ brings us to a place where the shadows disappear. That’s for now.

In Matthew 13, Jesus tells the Parable of the Wheat and the Tares (the “Wheat and the Weeds”). The farmer allows the weeds to grow up among the wheat because to pull the weeds would destroy the wheat. It is not until the harvest that the weeds are pulled and put where they belong—bundled up and burned. One application is that God allows evil to exist for now, but the judgment is coming.

In the meantime, Christ reminds us that God is indeed powerful, loving and good, no matter what happens. A time is coming when, “…there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away” (Rev. 21:4). Because He is powerful, loving and good, He’ll take away all the bad stuff. Meanwhile, our powerful, loving good God postpones the best of the good stuff so as many as possible can be told what a good and loving God He is. Now, you have some good reasons to help people understand that they’re misunderstanding God if they’re objecting to faith because in this world, bad stuff happens.

“The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.”  -2 Peter 3:9