Many believers experience suffering and persecution on a daily basis – and often struggle to understand the reasons why. As a result, they question God. Sometimes, they question His character.
The Book of Job is perhaps the best book in Scripture regarding the nature of suffering.
Despite living a righteous life, Job suffered a series of calamities – he lost his wealth, family and health. Job questioned why God permitted this and claimed he had done nothing to deserve his afflictions. What Job didn’t know was that God had permitted Satan to test him to demonstrate Job’s faithfulness.
Job’s story reminds us we may never fully understand the reasons behind our sufferings and why God allows them. Glenn Penner observed, first, that suffering is often bewildering – and second, in their bewilderment and pain, suffering saints do not need God’s answers so much as they need His presence, and the presence of the community of faith:
When people are suffering, often the last thing they need is words of advice, even from friends and loved ones. They need our presence. The compulsion to find meaning in suffering is sometimes less a need for the sufferer than for the one witnessing it. In the face of affliction and seeing a friend or loved one in need, we often feel an overwhelming obligation to bring a word of encouragement or to provide a possible solution to the situation at hand. While often well-intentioned, such words can, without our meaning to, even serve to intensify the distress and pain that the recipient is already experiencing.
This observation suggests three important reminders:
- First, persecuted individuals need comfort and support. “Solutions” do not necessarily bring comfort. Instead, comfort can be found in community, both with God and with other people.
- Second, strength in persecution is not found in a cohesive intellectual framework. It is found in the strength and hope of God’s promises.
- Third, the New Testament’s teaching offers us better understanding of persecution than Job had – but it still does not remove persecution’s mystery. Some aspects of persecution and suffering remain inaccessible to our understanding during this life.
Job’s desire to understand the reason for his suffering was met, not with an explanation – but with a revelation of who God is. Penner writes:
By revealing who He is, in effect, God reminds Job that the primary quest for the believer in the face of unjust suffering is not an explanation for the question “Why?” but an answer to the question “Who?” Job is reminded of God’s power, His wisdom, and His control over creation. In effect, God’s answer to Job is, “This is the kind of God I am. I know what is going on and you do not. Your life is still under my control and care. Will you trust me?” And this answer is supposed to be good enough for Job.
Romanian pastor Richard Wurmbrand, who spent 14 years in prison for his faith, made a similar point when he observed that when one is sent to jail for his testimony, one’s commitment to a Bible verse isn’t helpful. Instead, only one’s commitment to the God about Whom that Bible verse speaks is helpful.
Job’s encouragement is that instead of trying to find answers for the suffering of persecution, it is more important that we view our lives and experiences as pieces of a jigsaw puzzle – and to rest in the confidence that the Master Puzzler will eventually fit each piece into a beautiful picture.
Meanwhile, though we do not have immediate answers, we have the comfort of God’s promises – and of His presence. Our faithfulness in leaning on God’s promises and on His presence strengthens us, and – like Job – provides a powerful witness to those around us.
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