By Nick Bibile
Natural disasters: A 6.9 magnitude earthquake in the Philippines killed more than 70.
Persecution: Over 7,000 Nigerian Christians were slaughtered in 2025, villages burned, churches destroyed.
Missionaries martyred: In 1956, Jim Elliot (28) and four others were killed by the Waorani people in Ecuador. Later, through love and forgiveness, even some of their killers came to Christ.
Biblical examples: Job, a righteous man, suffered deeply. The apostles endured persecution and martyrdom.
Clearly, suffering is a reality for both the “good” and the “bad.”
Psalm 14:3 — “There is none who does good, not even one.”
Romans
3:12 — All have
turned away from God.
In God’s eyes, no human is completely
good. Only Jesus was truly without sin.
Luke 13:1–5: Some asked Jesus why Galileans were killed and why a tower collapsed, killing 18.
Was it because they were more sinful?
Jesus said No — they were not worse sinners.
His
warning: “Unless
you repent, you too will perish.”
Jesus
shifts the focus from their
guilt to our
need for repentance.
Jesus, the one truly innocent person, chose to suffer and die for the sins of the world.
His sacrifice shows that suffering is not always punishment—it can be God’s way to bring salvation, redemption, and glory.
Nothing is accidental: Even tragedies fall within God’s will.
Romans 8:28 — “For those who love God, all things work together for good.”
God uses suffering to:
Display His glory (John 9:3 — the blind man’s healing).
Refine faith (1 Peter 1:6–7 — trials prove our faith like gold).
Conform us to Christ (Philippians 3:10 — sharing in Christ’s sufferings).
To bring repentance — reminding us that life is short and uncertain.
To strengthen faith — trials shape believers into Christlikeness.
To give hope — pointing us toward the new heaven and new earth, where suffering will end (Revelation 21:4).
No one is truly good: Apart from Jesus, we all fall short.
Jesus is the exception: The only innocent one willingly suffered for us.
Bad things happen because of sin: We live in a broken world.
God uses suffering for good: Even when reasons are unclear, He is sovereign and working for His glory and our growth.
Our response: Instead of asking “Why them?” Jesus tells us to ask, “Am I ready if tragedy comes to me? Have I repented and trusted in Him?”
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