Sermon Tone Analysis

OVERCOMING THE FEAR OF SUFFERING AS A BELIEVER

Some people believe the Bible does not address suffering.

SUFFERING WILL BE ENCOUNTERED BY EVERY PERSON.

Suffering is anything that a person or group experiences, over a prolonged period, that causes pain or discomfort.

Suffering as a biblical concept can include physical pain or sickness, emotional grief, or a sense of hopelessness.

NO ONE WILL ESCAPE SUFFERING BEFORE CHRIST BRINGS THE NEW CREATION.

Suffering: anything that a person or group experiences, over a prolonged period, that causes pain or discomfort.

Suffering as a biblical concept can include physical pain or sickness, emotional grief, or a sense of hopelessness.

Some people believe God should eliminate all suffering and pain, at least for His children.

We look to His own Son’s cry, Father, let this cup pass.

WHILE PERSONAL SIN MAY BE THE ROOT OF SOME SUFFERING, THAT IS NOT ALWAYS THE CASE.

1 Peter 2:

GOD ALWAYS OFFERS REDEMPTION.

GOD ALWAYS REWARDS THOSE WHO RELY ON HIM WITH FAVOR.

APPLICATION: 1. DON’T BEAT YOURSELF UP OVER SUFFERING (DON’T ADD TO YOUR ANGUISH).

DON’T LET YOUR PAST TRIP YOU UP WHEN JESUS IS HERE TO PICK YOU UP!

2. RECEIVE JESUS’ FORGIVENESS WHERE NEEDED.

3. RELY ON JESUS’ PRESENCE AND EXAMPLE TO CARRY YOU AND TO CARRY ON.

DON’T JUDGE OTHERS WHO SUFFER.

:

Man born blind.

He was not blinded by God.

This is the condition of the fallen world.

There are those who view that Life in the Garden would be conditional on the Tree of Life.

That faith and walking with God would depend on His regular provision sustaining our corporeal bodies.

When Adam fell, the world lost the renewing power and came under the curse.

That is why you will find a reference to the New Heaven and New Earth, Jesus will speak of the regeneration.

Just as

Sometimes our assumptions about God and suffering start with a view of God that is too rigidly aligned with our preferences.

SOMETIMES WE QUESTION GOD’S LOVE FOR US BECAUSE OF SUFFERING.

SOMETIMES WE QUESTION WHETHER GOD SIMPLY WANTS TO CONTINUE IN PAIN FOR NO REASON.

WE CRY OUT, “LORD, WHY DO THE RIGHTEOUS SUFFER?”

First, Plantinga pointed out that God, though omnipotent, could not be expected to do literally anything.

God could not, for example, create square circles, act contrary to his nature, or, more relevantly, create beings with free will that would never choose evil.[citation

needed] Taking this latter point further, Plantinga argued that the moral value of human free will is a credible offsetting justification that God could have as a morally justified reason for permitting the existence of evil.[5][page

needed] PLANTINGA, sought only to show that WHAT PEOPLE THOUGHT WAS A logical problem of evil WITH THE UNDERSTANDING OF THE LORD’S GOODNESS was unsound.

THE BIBLE PRESENTS THE PROBLEM OF SUFFERING AS A RESULT OF WALKING AWAY FROM GOD’S GOODNESS.

THE CONSEQUENCES WE ALL STRUGGLE WITH COME AS A RESULT.

LET ME ATTEMPT TO EXPLAIN THAT THE MORAL CHOICE THAT STARTED IN THE GARDEN CORRUPTED THE ENTIRE WORLD AS STATED IN ABOVE.

IN ORDER FOR THERE TO BE A MEANINGFUL LOVE, GOD WOULD HAVE TO CREATE A WORLD WHERE FREE CREATURES COULD CHOOSE TO LOVE.

ALVIN PLANTINGA EXPLAINS: IN ORDER FOR LOVE TO BE REAL AND MEANINGFUL A world containing creatures who are significantly free (and freely perform more good than evil actions) WILL BE more valuable, all else being equal, than a world containing no free creatures at all.

Now God can create free creatures, but IF THEY ARE TO BE FREE, He can't cause or determine them to do only what is right.

For if He does so, then they aren't significantly free after all; they do not do what is right freely.

To create creatures capable of moral good, therefore, He must create creatures capable of moral evil; and He can't give these creatures the freedom to perform evil and at the same time prevent them from doing so.

As it turned out, sadly enough, some of the free creatures God created went wrong in the exercise of their freedom; this is the source of moral evil.

NOW WHEN WE CONSIDER HOW SUFFERING OFTEN IS TIED DIRECTLY TO POOR MORAL CHOICES (THINK ABOUT POVERTY, IF A PERSON CHOOSES TO FINISH SCHOOL, GET A JOB, GET MARRIED, THEN HAVE KIDS, 90 PLUS PERCENT OF THE TIME THEY HIT MIDDLE CLASS BY THE 30S).

Think about crack babies and all the problems they face that are physical and emotional.

Think about the destructive forces on DNA because we chose to walk away from the Lord and the Tree of life.

Entropy has entered the world of people who sinfully choose.

The fact that free creatures sometimes go wrong, however, counts neither against God's omnipotence nor against His goodness; for He could have forestalled the occurrence of moral evil only by removing the possibility of moral good.

Plantinga's argument is that even though God is omnipotent, it is possible that it was not in his power to create a world containing moral good but no moral evil; therefore, there is no logical inconsistency involved when God, although wholly good, creates a world of free creatures who choose to do evil.[15]

The argument relies on the following propositions:

There are possible worlds that even an omnipotent being can not actualize.A world with morally free creatures producing only moral good is such a world.

The occurence of sin into the world bound us all into a pattern of corruption that will produce physical pain and suffering.

I FIND PLANTINGA’S PRESENTATION TO BE CONCISE, BIBLICAL, AND RELATED TO REALITY.

IN CHURCH WE NEED TO BEAR EACH OTHER’S BURDEN.

LISTEN.

HELP THE BEST WE CAN.

ENJOY LIFE TOGETHER.

My Bible Word Study

WHEN YOU FIND YOURSELF IN A LONG TERM STRAIN, LOOK TO THE LORD’S BLESSED RETURN AND RETURN BLESSINGS.

ALLOW OTHERS TO HELP.

ASSIST OTHERS BY BEING A MINISTER.

Roy Camponella

Roy Campanella was one of the first African Americans to play in the US Baseball major leagues.

In a distinguished career he won the Brooklyn Dodgers Most Valued Player award many times, and in 1955 was in the team that won the World Series.