Suffering

Delivered in English - May 18th, 2025

Passage

Genesis 3:14–19 CSB

14 So the Lord God said to the serpent: Because you have done this, you are cursed more than any livestock and more than any wild animal. You will move on your belly and eat dust all the days of your life. 15 I will put hostility between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He will strike your head, and you will strike his heel. 16 He said to the woman: I will intensify your labor pains; you will bear children with painful effort. Your desire will be for your husband, yet he will rule over you. 17 And he said to the man, “Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘Do not eat from it’: The ground is cursed because of you. You will eat from it by means of painful labor all the days of your life. 18 It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. 19 You will eat bread by the sweat of your brow until you return to the ground, since you were taken from it. For you are dust, and you will return to dust.”

There Will Be Suffering

Some people expect not to suffer, but that’s not what the Bible says:

John 16:33

Acts 14:22

Christians may suffer more than unbelievers

2 Timothy 3:10–12 “10 But you have followed my teaching, conduct, purpose, faith, patience, love, and endurance, 11 along with the persecutions and sufferings that came to me in Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra. What persecutions I endured—and yet the Lord rescued me from them all. 12 In fact, all who want to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.”

Rev 2:10

The age old question: Why does God allow suffering? There are questions that we do not have the answer for.

Job also questioned why he had to endure such things, and God responded him.

Job was blameless and perfect.

His friends were blaming him for his downfall. God punishes them because it’s not “If you suffer, it’s because you’re bad; if you’re happy, it’s because you’re good”. Life is not that simple.

Job is commended for saying basically the truth about God, but he is rebuked, nevertheless, because he thinks that God owes him an explanation. One of the lessons that Job must learn is that sometimes God is more interested in our trust than in our ability to provide a theodicy, an explanation of why these things happen.

We sometimes want to “solve” God. He is not “Checkers”, or a Sudoku puzzle. He is not a genie in a lamp. He cannot be domesticated. There will be mystery.

The Causes of Suffering

Sinfulness

One cause of suffering is sin. Since the disobedience of Adam and Eve, mankind has been damned with sin.

Rom 6:23

Leading a sinful life can cause sickness, problems, life problems, family problems, etc.

Gal 6:7-8

Mark 2:4–5 “4 Since they were not able to bring him to Jesus because of the crowd, they removed the roof above him, and after digging through it, they lowered the mat on which the paralytic was lying. 5 Seeing their faith, Jesus told the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.””

Not all suffering is a direct result of sin

John 9:1–3 “1 As he was passing by, he saw a man blind from birth. 2 His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” 3 “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” Jesus answered. “This came about so that God’s works might be displayed in him.”

Suffering to Teach

Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary Suffering

A second reason is that God either sends or allows suffering to teach, discipline, and mature us. Suffering reminds us of our finitude and teaches us to trust patiently in God

Rom 5:3-5

1 Peter 5:10 “10 The God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, establish, strengthen, and support you after you have suffered a little while.”

One key note is that God does not tempt us to sin.

James 1:13–15 CSB

13 No one undergoing a trial should say, “I am being tempted by God,” since God is not tempted by evil, and he himself doesn’t tempt anyone. 14 But each person is tempted when he is drawn away and enticed by his own evil desire. 15 Then after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and when sin is fully grown, it gives birth to death.

Temptation comes from our own evil desires.

He tests us to:

Test our faith

Prove our faith

This is similar to what he did to Job. God wants us not only be hearers of the word, but doers. If we say we love God and have faith, be prepared to showcase it.

Humble us

Our ego and pride can be too large at times. God will humble the proud, and if he needs to remove any of that in our lives to be more humble, then he will do it.

Build endurance

Some tests are long. Take the one who is ill for a long time, for example. God is keeping us in faith by perhaps bringing a life-long illness in us, because the only one we can trust for strength and hope is God.

Some live in poorness because maybe even being moderately wealthy could lead to your downfall!

Help us Long for eternity

Some tests will last until death. Take someone who has a terminal illness. Perhaps that person never even thought about what comes after this life. Or was never prepared to live in eternity. A process like a terminal illness can help bring peace to your life, and want to finally be with Christ in heaven.

Hebrews 12:3–13 CSB

3 For consider him who endured such hostility from sinners against himself, so that you won’t grow weary and give up. 4 In struggling against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. 5 And you have forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons: My son, do not take the Lord’s discipline lightly or lose heart when you are reproved by him, 6 for the Lord disciplines the one he loves and punishes every son he receives. 7 Endure suffering as discipline: God is dealing with you as sons. For what son is there that a father does not discipline? 8 But if you are without discipline—which all receive—then you are illegitimate children and not sons. 9 Furthermore, we had human fathers discipline us, and we respected them. Shouldn’t we submit even more to the Father of spirits and live? 10 For they disciplined us for a short time based on what seemed good to them, but he does it for our benefit, so that we can share his holiness. 11 No discipline seems enjoyable at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. 12 Therefore, strengthen your tired hands and weakened knees, 13 and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated but healed instead.

Conclusion

Suffering may seem like such a negative things for others, but for the Child of God, we must not receive suffering with sadness or defeat, but rejoicing in it because it leads to maturity and godly character

James 1:2–12 CSB

2 Consider it a great joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you experience various trials, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance. 4 And let endurance have its full effect, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing. 5 Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God—who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly—and it will be given to him. 6 But let him ask in faith without doubting. For the doubter is like the surging sea, driven and tossed by the wind. 7 That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord, 8 being double-minded and unstable in all his ways. 9 Let the brother of humble circumstances boast in his exaltation, 10 but let the rich boast in his humiliation because he will pass away like a flower of the field. 11 For the sun rises and, together with the scorching wind, dries up the grass; its flower falls off, and its beautiful appearance perishes. In the same way, the rich person will wither away while pursuing his activities. 12 Blessed is the one who endures trials, because when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.