How Could a Good God Allow Pain and Suffering - John 16:33

In this inspiring episode of Weekly Wisdom with Jeff Schreve from Pray.com, we delve into the age-old question, "How could a good God allow pain and suffering?" Amid the struggles we face, Jeff reminds us that Jesus has overcome the world and God uses our hardships to strengthen our faith. By addressing the complexities of life and the existence of evil, this podcast provides hope and comfort in knowing that through trust in Jesus, we are never alone in our tribulations. Don't miss this heartfelt discussion that will leave you feeling empowered and spiritually enriched.

Welcome to Weekly Wisdom, an inspirational series hosted by Pastor Jeff Schreve. Each week, Pastor Jeff illuminates different sections of the Holy Bible, meticulously extracting pivotal themes and life lessons that can enrich and uplift your daily life. 

This series invites you to delve deeper into understanding the scripture, offering a transformative platform for spiritual growth. As you navigate through this journey, you will be offered an opportunity to fortify your relationship with God, accompanied by Pastor Jeff's insightful guidance. 

Join us weekly as we engage in heartfelt prayer and foster a stronger connection to God, under the expert guidance of Pastor Jeff Schreve. Experience a profound transformation as you embrace the wisdom of the Bible, distilled for you, each week.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
John chapter sixteen, Verse thirty three. Jesus said these things
I have spoken unto you that in me you might
have peace. In the world. You shall have tribulation, but
be of good cheer. I have overcome the world. Let's
pray together, Father in heaven. We thank you for your
love for us. We thank you for your grace. We

(00:21):
thank you for the Word of God that is so
rich and powerful. We thank you that it's living and
active and sharper than any two edged sword. And Lord,
you have told us that we're going to have difficulties
in this life. But we can be of good courage
and we can rejoice because you have overcome the world
and you are with us. You live inside of us

(00:42):
by your spirit. The moment we put our faith and
trust in Jesus. And so Lord, we look at the
difficulties of life and we thank you for them. We
know that You're going to use them, and we look
to you to give us strength in Jesus' name. Amen.
Hi friend, welcome to this episode of the Weekly Wisdom
podcast from pray dot Com. I'm Pastor Jeff Shreed from Texarcanada, Texas,

(01:07):
and this week I want to talk to you about
one of life's biggest questions. How can a good God
allow evil and suffering to prevail in our lives and
in our world? The existence of evil, pain, and suffering
is a question that many people struggle to understand and explain.

(01:28):
It's often used as an argument against the existence of God,
and the reasoning goes like this. If God is all
powerful and all loving, then why does evil exist? If
God really cared for people, he would rescue them from suffering,
and so many people suffer needlessly. So the thought is

(01:49):
there is not a good God, he must not exist. Well,
think about it this way. Suppose Bill says there's too
much evil in the world to allow him to believe
in God. Now, to make that statement regarding evil, Bill
is assuming there is a moral law, some understood code
of ethics that tells him how to differentiate between what

(02:12):
is good and what is evil. There can be no
good or evil without a moral law, a moral standard.
And if there is a moral law, it had to
come from some moral lawgiver. Now that moral lawgiver is God,
the very God this man Bill says, does not exist.

(02:33):
Here's the thing. The presence of good and evil does
not prove that God doesn't exist. It proves that God
definitely does exist. Now, the mystery surrounding evil is something
that we will never fully understand this side of heaven. However,
we can take comfort in the fact that God is
good and he is in control. We may not always

(02:55):
see his hand at work, but we can trust that
He is always working for our good and for his glory.
Even in the midst of suffering and pain. We can
cling to the hope that God will one day make
all things right, and we can take comfort in the
words of Psalm thirty four, verse eighteen. The Lord is

(03:16):
near to the broken hearted and saves those who are
crushed in spirit. The problem of evil has been one
of the greatest challenges to faith for so many people.
Why does an all powerful God allow such atrocities and
suffering in the world. If God is good, if God
is loved, why does he allow that to exist? Now?
We often forget a crucial aspect of God's nature, his wisdom.

(03:40):
God is not only all loving and all powerful, but
he is also all wise, and his wisdom is unfathomable.
We can't even begin to comprehend. Therefore, we should trust
that God knows what he's doing. Even in the face
of evil. We also need to remember that evil exists
in time time, not in eternity. God is eternal, and

(04:04):
He will do away with evil in due time. Now
it may seem like evil is winning right now, but
we're only halfway through the story. At the end of
the story of man, evil will be vanquished and God
will wipe away every tear from our eyes. We'll no
longer experience death and mourning and crying and pain. This

(04:26):
is the God that we serve, and we can praise
him for his faithfulness and his goodness. And remember too,
God uses suffering to teach us and to grow us.
As the Old song says, through it all, through it all,
I've learned to trust in Jesus. I've learned to trust
in God. If I never had a problem, I wouldn't
know that God could solve them. I wouldn't know what

(04:48):
faith in God could do. Now we may wonder why
we have to go through so much heartache and pain.
We might think that life would be so much better
if we had no suffering and no pain. That's not
a good thing when living in a fallen world. Think
about physical pain. God uses pain in our bodies to
reveal situations and dangers and problems that are occurring within us.

(05:11):
People who don't feel physical pain end up destroying themselves
simply due to ignorance. They get cut or burned or hurt,
and they never know it because there are no pain receptors,
and they inadvertently put themselves in harm's way simply because
they don't feel pain. Are you hurting today? Is your

(05:33):
heart broken over some difficult situation, some suffering that has
come into your life? Praise God for the difficulty. He
is at work even in the pain, and he promises
to work all things together for good to those who
love him. So let's pray. Dear God, thank you that
you are the moral lawgiver. You tell me what is

(05:53):
good and what is evil, and you tell me that
you love me, Lord, and that you're at work in
my life. Help me to trust you regardless of the
heartaches and pains and difficulties. Help me to remember that
you are over it all, and you can make sense
of all the suffering and will make sense of all
the suffering in the end. Lord, I cast my burdens

(06:15):
and my questions and my cares upon you. Thank you
for the promise that you will never leave me or
forsake me. The moment I put my faith and trust
in you, and we pray this all in Jesus's name. Amen. Well,
thank you for listening to this episode of Weekly Wisdom.
I'm Pastor Jeff Shreeve and I would love to connect
with you. Visit my ministry website at fromisheart dot org

(06:38):
for resources and materials to help you grow in your faith.
Now for more wisdom to last a lifetime, and to
make prayer a priority in your life, download Theprey dot
com app, and if you enjoyed this podcast, please share
it with someone else in your life who might also
benefit from it. Thanks again for listening, make it a
great week, and may God bleame Hue