Job: Why Do Bad Things Happen to Good People?

Job 19:25-27

Laura was distraught when her husband died. Cancer took him in his mid-forties. She clung to her strong faith in the Lord, knowing there was little time to grieve. Life on a Kansas farm meant more work than hours in the day. Laura and her six children worked from sunup to sundown to provide for their family. It was a team effort.

One source of food and income for the family was their cattle. They didn’t own a bull but could increase the herd by borrowing one from a kind neighbor. While the bull was in their possession, a thunderstorm rolled across the Kansas plains, and lightning struck, killing the neighbor’s bull. They had to take out a loan to cover the loss, and there would be no calves that year. However, the wheat would soon be harvested, allowing them to make ends meet. Laura received devastating news again when the harvesters informed her that her crop was not worth cutting due to the lack of rain that season.

Laura was my wife’s grandmother. Lori heard many stories from her mom about their difficult times growing up on that Kansas farm. Although they were firm believers, the family faced challenge after challenge. So, why do bad things happen to good people?

Years ago, Rabbi Harold Kushner wrote a book titled “When Bad Things Happen to Good People.” In this wildly popular book, Kushner concluded that God is a loving God who wishes to prevent our suffering; however, he is not all-powerful and therefore cannot protect us. We know this is not the case. In our study of Job, we have encountered the all-powerful, sovereign God—the Creator who controls everything. This presents an even greater challenge to our faith; however, the book of Job addresses today’s question directly.

Who wouldn’t characterize Job as a good man? God described Job as “blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil” (Job 1:8). Yet, this good man endured unimaginable suffering. God allowed Job to be tested by Satan, and Job passed the test. He said of God, “Though he slay me, yet I will hope in him” (Job 13:15 NIV). In his intense suffering, he declared:

Job 19:25-27
For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. My heart faints within me!

Why do bad things happen to good people? Let me offer several thoughts.

1. If this life is it, if these few short years on earth are all there is to our existence, the apostle Paul said, “we are of all people most to be pitied” (1 Cor. 15:19). But because of Jesus and his resurrection, we know that we will be raised to life like him. For “in Christ shall all be made alive” (1 Cor. 15:22). Because of sin, we understand that this world is not as it should be. We were made for eternity. “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Cor. 4:16-18 NIV).

2. Paul considers the “bad things” that happen to us as “light and momentary troubles.” He does not diminish the severity of suffering but contrasts this temporary life with eternity. One day, all pain will be forgotten in a place devoid of pain, sadness, and tears. The eternal glory far outweighs anything we experience or have endured on earth.

3. Suffering does one of three things. For some people, it drives them away from God. They ask, “How could a loving God let this happen?” For others, pain is paralyzing. They don’t abandon their faith, but can’t move beyond their questions and disillusionment with God. They feel stuck. However, the purpose of pain is to deepen our faith and trust in God. James says that trials and tests produce completeness (James 1:2-4). The apostle Paul writes:

2 Corinthians 4:7-11
But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.

Don’t miss Paul’s point: The challenges in his life demonstrated God’s power. All the afflictions were met with God’s strength and comfort. The persecutions were intended to illustrate the “life of Jesus” through the life of Paul. This passage applies to Job as well. He was afflicted, perplexed, persecuted, and struck down; yet he was never crushed, forsaken, or destroyed.

4. Bad things prepare us for deeper ministry. God “comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God” (2 Cor. 1:3-5 NIV). When you have scars from the battlefield, you become the best counselor for those in the battle.

5. The only truly good person was Jesus. He was the sinless One who endured the most intense pain any human has experienced. Hebrews 5:8 says that Jesus “learned obedience through what he suffered. And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him.” Peter expresses it this way:

1 Peter 2:21-25
…Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

We may not know the “whys,” but we understand that this current sin-infected world is not as it should be. We can be assured that our suffering can sometimes result from living in a sinful world. Other times, our suffering is self-inflicted as we face the consequences of our sin. God may also allow suffering to deepen our love and trust and to demonstrate his power in our lives. Moreover, we know this: God works all things for good to those who love him and are called according to his purpose (Rom. 8:28). At the end of the day, we are called to trust him—even with our pain, hurt, and questions. And he will always meet us right where we are.

PERSONAL TIME WITH GOD
Read Job 19:25-27. Reflect on this brief passage and contemplate the faith and trust that Job exhibited, despite his questions and doubts.

Talking to God
Talk to God about helping you let challenges deepen your faith.

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