Psalm

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NASB	Psalm 12:5 "Because of the devastation of the afflicted, because of the groaning of the needy, Now I will arise," says the LORD; "I will set him in the safety for which he longs."
AMPLIFIED 2015 2015	Psalm 12:5 "Because of the devastation of the afflicted, because of the groaning of the needy, Now I will arise," says the LORD; "I will place him in the safety for which he longs."

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Bible Question: How do you respond when someone says "why is there such misery and horror in the world?" and "how could God allow something so horrible to happen to me - I'm a Christian?!"
wpalmer

Bible Answer: Hi, wpalmer...

Nothing is new under the sun. When a Christian says something like "how could God allow something so horrible to happen to me" (sic) they are actually speaking out of ignorance about God and His Word. Not that it is their fault, really, rather the fault of their churches for failing to expose the truths from Scripture. Just think about it: They are faulting the holy Lord God almighty for an injustice -- in essence accusing Him of failing to alleviate their suffering. On top of that, they are asserting their own justification by saying "I'm a Christian?!" (sic) Where in the world do they get that kind of thinking? Where is it written that Christians will never suffer? Why would they think that they deserve less suffering than the Savior?

Everyone always wants to place the blame on anything and everything other than themselves; despite that the Lord Jesus places full responsibility smack-dab in ourselves (Matthew 15:16-19). The blame-game started in the Garden (Genesis 3:12-14). Israel repeatedly denied blame -- how often do we find that in the Prophets? The people in Jesus time tried pin blame on the evils in the world, on Rome, on poverty, or on disease. Anything but themselves... to the point that they sing "Hosana" and just a few days later cry, "Crucify Him!" Nowadays people say, "God bless America!" but they certainly don't want Him to tell them what to do. "Why do you call Me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say?" (Luke 6:46 NASB)... nothing new under the sun.

May God have mercy on the so-called pastors and teachers who actually help people to pin the blame outside of themselves. From what I can tell, reading Jude, those that promulgate that kind of thing are in deep trouble. Talk about ultimate misery and horror!

So how do you respond to the person who says "why me?" Take them back to the Word of God. Look up the word affliction in Psalm 119. Lead them through, verse by verse, Hebrews 12. Explain to them the attributes of God as He has revealed them in the Word. Explain to them that their smallest sin was a treason against a holy God (Isaiah 64:6) -- no one comes to before the Lord without humility (James 4:6, 10). Explain to them that the world believes that all suffering is bad, but the Christian recognizes that anything and everything that comes from the hand of God is good, proper, restorative, just, and right. Explain that God has every right to deal with people as He wishes (Romans 9:21). Explain that the very worst that they could suffer in this world will dim into nothingness compared to the suffering of the lost (Luke 13:28). Explain that the very worst that any of the redeemed will suffer will all be worth it when we see Him (Romans 8:18).

It is good that you come to the forum with this question. Study and prepare yourself to give answers worthy of our Lord. To that end we will all be praying for you.

In Him, Doc

"God has supreme power, knowledge, and goodness, and all of these underwrite His moral authority. He created us and this world and stamped us with His image, and has the power to hold us fully accountable for our actions. Since He has perfect knowledge of us, He understands perfectly what is good for us and our flourishing. Moreover, since He is perfectly good He desires our well-being and does everything short of overriding our freedom to promote it.

"In view of His nature as a perfect being, there are no good grounds for doubting His authority. There can be no blindsidedness, no bias, no imperfect understanding, no possibility of misuse of power, or having obtained it wrongly. If all rational withholdings are blocked, we ought to accept God as an authority. And part of what is involved in that is accepting His commands, unless we have good reason to do otherwise; but again, with a perfect being, there can't possibly be good reasons to do otherwise. In short, we think the issue of authority is a matter of power, knowledge, and character, all of which add up to moral authority." --Davis Baggett and Jerry Walls, from "Good God:The Theistic Foundations of Morality" (2011)

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