God and Suffering
1. the earth as paradise
2. the origin of the evil
3. the fall of man
4. Satan
5. the devil's target
6. the consequences of apostasy
7. the death
8. the bondage of sin
9. the redemption
10. victory over satan
11. the end of all suffering
12. back to God
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1. the earth as paradise
"Then God saw everything
that He had made, and indeed
it was very good."
The Bible: Genesis chapter 1, verse 31
For many people, the fact that there is so much suffering and injustice in the world is incompatible with a good and just God. In particular, painful personal experiences such as a serious illness or the loss of a loved one cause many to doubt God's love and good nature. Some blame God for the injustices on this earth without questioning their own responsibility.
The Bible testifies that the world was very good when God created it. In this once flawless world, described as paradise, the first humans lived in peace and harmony with their Creator and his creation, enjoying the carefree life they had in the beginning. However, if we look at our world today, which is characterized by illness, death and violence, we realize that it is anything but paradisiacal. Now the question arises, how can all the suffering we see every day be explained in light of an originally perfect creation? God's Word gives us the answer.
2. the origin of evil
"For with You is the fountain of life;
In Your light wesee light."
The Bible: Psalm 36, verse 10
The connection to God, our Creator, is the light that gives meaning and direction to our lives. Through God our lives have meaning. Through HIM we humans have an identity. At the same time, the relationship with God is the basis for a fulfilling life of peace, security and prosperity. Some people believe that God is the one who created evil. But the truth is different. To better understand where evil comes from, the following two comparisons should be used: Everyone knows that if you take light out of a room, darkness remains. If you remove heat from it, what is left is cold. If you remove God from life, nothing remains but darkness and emptiness.
So evil is not something that God created, but merely the absence of good. In other words, evil is the result of being separated from God. Just as a cut flower without a root that supplies it with vital water from the earth dries up after a short time, so too does a human being without the life-giving relationship with God, both physically and mentally, decline over time. Or to put it another way: Where the connection between creator and creature is missing, neither peace, nor joy, nor life are permanently possible (See: Who is God?).
Without our relationship with God, our existence remains meaningless. Most people feel this deficiency, even if they are often not aware of the reason. This deficiency affects all areas of our lives. The consequences are fear, addiction, loneliness, depression as well as discord, selfishness as well as malice and meanness of all kinds. People try to compensate for this deficiency in various ways; for example, through work and hobbies, through pleasure and entertainment, through joining a group, or through alcohol and other intoxicating substances. In truth, however, there is nothing and no one in the world who can permanently fill this inner emptiness in us, except God. Interpersonal relationships cannot in any way replace the natural bond between a person and his Creator. And so most people live in darkness, without meaning and without perspective, because they lack the light of life - namely God....
3. the fall of man
"And the Lord God commanded the man, saying,
"Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat;
but of the tree the knowledge of good and evil
you shall not eat, for in the day that you
eat of it you shall surely die."
The Bible: Genesis chapter 2, verses 16-17
After God created man, he initially gave him only one commandment. This commandment was intended to show whether man trusts God and is willing to submit to the will of his Creator. God knew that without His commandments, humanity would end in suffering and chaos. The course of history and the current state of our world confirm exactly this.
For this reason, God announced that disobeying His command would bring death to people. But despite explicit warnings, the people violated God's commandment. The Bible describes this event as man's fall from grace. The Fall marks the beginning of man's rebellion against his Creator. God's Word tells us how man's betrayal came about.
4. S a t a n
"Did God indeed said....?"
The Bible: Genesis chapter 3, verse 1
The Bible mentions a being called "Satan" (= "enemy" or "adversary"), also called the "devil" (= "troublemaker"). The Holy Scripture describes him as the author of sin. Even though many people think of the devil as a fantasy figure, Satan is a real being. The Bible describes Satan as a fallen angel. Angels are heavenly beings with supernatural powers that God created to serve Him and us humans. Satan the devil also once served God. He was of a particularly beautiful figure and had one of the highest positions among all the angels.
But Satan's heart was lifted up. His glory and beauty made him proud and led him to seek his own glory rather than that of his Creator. Eventually, Satan's pride led him to become equal to God. His increasing greed for honor and power drove him to incite all the other angels to rebel against God and thus win them over to his side. To do this, Satan used a lie by claiming that God's rule was unjust and that he (Satan) was the better ruler. In this way, Satan managed to deceive many angels so that about a third of them joined Satan's rebellion. So a battle arose in heaven, in the invisible world, which later continued on earth. After destroying the peace between God and the angels, man also became a target of Satan. Although God could have destroyed Satan and his allies instantly because of their rebellion, God allowed them to do so for a time so that it would be clear to all that Satan's accusations against God were false and that his intentions were actually evil and self-serving.
Satan's deception also brought disaster to the first humans. Instead of trusting God and listening to his warning, they let Satan deceive them into disobeying God with a lie. By breaking God's commandment, people realized evil. The personal experience of being guilty led to a separation of man from his Creator. So the earth became the new battleground for Satan's turmoil. This war, which continues to this day, is solely about the question of who we want to serve: God, our Father, who loves us and wants the best for all people? Or Satan, whose rule has brought nothing but injustice and death to the earth?
By ignoring God's commandments and regulations, people automatically recognize Satan as ruler. Because that is what Satan wants. That's why the Bible calls him the "god of this world." To this day, most people follow Satan's example in striving to be independent of their Creator. In doing so, they consciously or unconsciously make themselves a willing tool of Satan and his evil agenda...
5. the devil's target
"Then the serpent (Satan) said to the woman,
“You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
The Bible: Genesis chapter 3, verses 4-5
Satan's goal is to divide people with God so that they will do his will. To achieve his goal, Satan uses every means possible. Above all, Satan takes advantage of people's pride by causing them to trust in themselves instead of in God. If a person violates God's commandment, Satan can hypocritically accuse him before God. In this way, Satan has already sealed the fate of millions upon millions of people. For this reason the Bible calls him the “human murderer.” The destruction of God's order of creation is also part of Satan's agenda: This includes, among other things, the abolition of marriage as a sacred covenant between man and woman, the destruction of the traditional family consisting of father, mother and children, and the elimination of all God-given moral boundaries, especially in the area of sexuality....
In order to put his devilish plans into action, Satan uses, among other things, politics, the media, industry and science. Fun and entertainment are meant to distract people from God. Certain types of music and films, which have a strong influence on many people, serve as a means for Satan to manipulate people's minds and subtly indoctrinate them with his anti-godly agenda. All religions in which false gods (=idols) are worshiped are also an invention of Satan.
On the one hand, Satan tells people that God doesn't exist and that it doesn't matter how we live. On the other hand, Satan sows doubt and distrust of God by questioning God's good intentions. To do this, Satan cleverly uses lies to mislead people while hiding his true goals. It is not for nothing that the Bible calls him the “father of lies.”
The Bible also says that Satan disguises himself as an “angel of light.” People should believe that the evil that Satan wants is good and right and that the good that God wants is actually evil and unjust and that it would be better if every person could decide their own life. Although Satan claims that his intentions are for the good of humanity, in reality, unlike God, he is completely indifferent to our well-being. After all, for Satan, people are nothing more than a means to an end. At the same time, anyone who opposes the devil and his agenda will be fought with all means possible. Satan also uses political and religious persecution to silence his enemies (see: true and false church).
6. The consequences of apostasy
"although they knew God, they did not
glorify Him as God, nor were thankful,
but became futile in their thoughts,
and their foolish hearts were darkened."
The Bible: Romans chapter 1, verses 18-32
The further man moved away from God, the more the greed for power and prestige came to the fore. Instead of honoring our Creator, most seek to be worshiped and idolized by other people. Separated from God and his love, pride and egoism as well as greed and envy determine people's thoughts and actions. The apostate people rose one above the other, so that eventually the strong ruled over the weak. So this paradisiacal world became more and more filled with hatred and violence. A few also claimed all of the earth's goods and raw materials for themselves. While some people were able to live in abundance, the number of those affected by poverty and material hardship steadily increased. The invention of money has further exacerbated this problem. For many people, almost everything revolves around business. Social inequality among people is now greater than ever before. Many rich and powerful people use their wealth as a means to exert power and control over other people and influence events in the world to their own advantage....
Since most people were unwilling to listen to God and return to their Creator, God abandoned them to their own will and the corrupt desires of their hearts. Instead of submitting to God's righteous rule, humanity seeks to rule on its own. The result is war, poverty, injustice, disease, terror, moral decay and a destroyed planet. The Fall also had a massive impact on the animal and plant world (see: scientific myths).
7. the death
"And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life."
The Bible: Genesis chapter 3, verses 17-19
Because of their disobedience, God expelled the people from paradise. In addition, God pronounced a curse on the earth, with the result that the climatic conditions on the planet changed and the plants no longer produced as abundantly as before. In this way, on the one hand, people should remain aware of their dependence on God. On the other hand, this should prompt people to seek closeness to God in order not to finally lose the connection to their Creator. Furthermore, this measure should make it clear to people that an unlimited life in paradise, as man had in the beginning, is only possible with God.
Although humans became mortal through sin, they were still supposed to enjoy life, produce offspring, and populate the earth. Furthermore, God announced that one day a Savior would come who would defeat Satan and thereby bring salvation from death to humanity. At the same time, the earth's paradisiacal state should be restored forever (See: The way to redemption).
With the expulsion from paradise, man's physical and mental deterioration began, which would sooner or later end in his death. Disregard for God's commandments and orders, especially with regard to sexuality, led to the emergence and increasing spread of various diseases.
Since the beginning of industrialization, man's boundless greed for profit has led to the mass extinction of tens of thousands of animal and plant species that once enriched this earth with their diversity. This is accompanied by the ruthless exploitation of people and animals, which is particularly visible in intensive livestock farming. Globalization and mass production have accelerated this development many times over.
Many people who reject God often also show a low appreciation for nature. This is reflected in people's reckless treatment of our unique environment. As a result, people not only destroy their own livelihood, but at the same time disregard the responsibility that God has given them to protect and preserve nature. But as in everything else, people's selfish actions are taking revenge in the form of increasing natural disasters worldwide Epidemics that claim dozens of human victims every year...
8. the bondage of sin
Jesus Christ says:
"Whoever commits sin
is a slave of sin."
The Bible: John chap. 8, verse 34
As a result of the separation from God, man became more and more a slave to his own instincts. At the same time, his conscience and his sense of what was good and evil or natural and unnatural became more and more dull. To this day, humanity remains under the influence of Satan, trapped under the bondage of sin, the consequence of which is death. Sin destroyed people morally and healthally over generations and robbed them more and more of their dignity as a creature created by God in His image. Sin has dehumanized man in the truest sense.
Man's pride blinds him to the truth and prevents him from knowing God. Driven by his self-destructive desires, man constantly desires more; but his soul finds no rest and his desire is never satisfied. Man's selfishness ultimately brought all the indescribable misery to this earth that humanity laments to this day. But instead of understanding the real reasons, many blame God for the distress in the world that we ourselves cause through our rebellion against God and disregard for His commandments....
Man has risen to the measure of all things and has fallen deeply in the process. If God didn't constantly intervene, humanity would have wiped itself out long ago in its megalomania. It is not God who is to blame for the state of the world, but man who places himself above God and thus follows the path of Satan. This fact is the true cause of illness and suffering. All the evil that humanity suffers from is nothing other than the effect of sin in a world that wants nothing to do with God and in which love grows ever colder. And so, in its defiance, deluded humanity continues unwaveringly on the path to its destruction....