religious views on why people suffer?

God uses suffering for a greater good. Nothing else is so effective. It makes you to stop and question. Who hasn’t questioned, “Why suffering”? It is a call back to God from Whom we have gone, is it not?

Since Christ suffered the suffering due to each of us for our sin so that we might be spared there can be no good reason not to trust His wisdom and goodness in allowing and using suffering for our greater good. Since He suffered more than any, He is both touched by it and knows better than any how it may best be used.

Sadly few are willing to think and so many blindly use suffering as an excuse for their sin.

Sin has brought self to the throne instead of God, and sadly it is therefore suffering that is the antidote to self.

Here are some reasons for the use of suffering:

1. God uses suffering to alert and warn us that all is not well and that we are in eternal danger.
2. To prove the terrible extent and compass of sin. Does not everybody deny the extent of their sin?
3. Man’s fall into sin has placed self on the throne in the place of God. Suffering is the appropriate antidote to humble and oppose self to cease from sin.
4. To turn us from harm. As pain or fear of it makes us withdraw and reduces injury.
5. To show us the fragility and emptiness of this life.
6. He uses suffering to show His glory and demonstrate His power by His deliverance.
7. He also uses suffering to perfect and change us. As a mason shapes stone with his chisel.
8. He uses it as a sanction to teach us of moral consequences.
9. To teach us to depend upon Him.
10. To teach obedience. It is easy to obey when everything is easy and smooth.
11. To correct us.
12. To test and prove genuineness. Those not genuine will not persevere or overcome.
13. To cleanse from defilement. It exposes and cleanses the dross and self indulgent ways.
14. To bring humility and to keep humble. God is understandably far from the proud.
15. To unite us to Christ in His sufferings.
16. To obtain a better resurrection.
17. To earn for us an eternal weight of glory in exchanging temporal possession or advantage for eternal.
18. To evidence the truth of His word.
19. To separate us from and away from the influence of, those on the path away from God.
20. To bring us to enquire after Him and consider these points. Who ever seeks God from ease and wealth? He uses suffering to call us to Him.

We have all turned aside to our own ways therefore to return to God and His ways will cause us suffering. Better then to suffer for glory than to suffer for our own foolishness.


For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.

Now consider that Justice allows for no lessening of its requirements. Forgiveness and reduction of the sentence offends against Justice. Only if the full demands of Justice are met, neither more, neither less, can Justice be satisfied.

The full demands of Justice for each individual were met in the punishment of Christ on our behalf in His infinite Nature. Do you think you can calculate that?

If He was willing to suffer so as to give opportunity that any might be spared then who is any of us to complain of our suffering which can lead us to share in that salvation? And what does it say of His love and compassion?

And what does it say of us to ignore or trample upon that suffering?

Because humans are selfish and they don't put themselves out there to cure the suffering. God expects us to care for one another.

Here are common religious answers, shown from an atheist perspective:
*Devildidit
*Adam and Eve ate the bad fruit
*We brought it on ourselves with our sin!
*Everything happens for a reason.
*How dare you question the will of god, you atheist heathen!

Mainly because god is a total douche.

I have posted this "standard answer" over 100 times. And yet, people keep posting questions about why God allows bad things to happen. When will this answer sink in? Why does the same question keep getting asked? Are people really that confused?

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I assume you are aware of the sin rebellion that happened around 6,000 years ago. And as a result, God cursed this earth. The curse of sin follows us. And all the bad things that go with that curse of sin.

Everything bad that happens is the result of the curse of sin.

It is as if God is trying to teach us something about SIN and REBELLION. We are living in a giant object lesson. And we are the objects of this lesson. ARE YOU PAYING ATTENTION TO WHAT GOD IS TRYING TO TEACH YOU?

How much more "bad stuff" do you need to see and/or experience before the TRUTH sinks in?

We live on a cursed earth. We all have stories, sad stories, of bad things that have happened. Maybe to us, or maybe to people we know. Accidents, illness, cancer, birth defects, retardation, diseases, poverty, plane crashes, floods, fires, tornadoes, crimes, war . . . the list is endless.

Of course, someday the curse of sin will be removed, and then we will see the contrast between the two worlds. For those people who have accepted the FREE GIFT of God's redemption, there will be a very happy ending. (Except it doesn't end, and continues for an eternity.) For the others, well, not so good.

And that's why we are trying to spread the GOOD NEWS of Jesus Christ.

Everyone needs to repent, turn from their evil ways, and follow Jesus. And then we can be "saved." Saved from the consequences of our sins.

By the way, when we get "saved" the benefit is that we will not face the consequences of our sins, so someday we will end up on heaven. Christians still live on a "cursed earth," just like everyone else. Bad things will continue to happen, for now. And we still get sick, and eventually die.

(When Jesus returns during his 1,000 year reign, the curse of sin will be removed, if you happen to be living here at that time. But the curse will not be removed before that time.)



--- (A Yahoo! User)

Sin and the free will to sin. Sin brought about death and disease. When God created mankind, there was zero disease and zero death. But man disobeyed God, thus bringing sin, death, and disease into the picture (Romans 8:20-22). God was compelled to allow death because otherwise man would have lived forever in his sin. "Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned" (Romans 5:12). Given that we all die, what did God do to fix the "sin" problem? Answer: He gave His one and only Son, Jesus, to die as a sacrifice for our sins (John 3:16-18). "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved" (Acts 16:31). After death, the "believer" spends eternity with God in Heaven. Death and disease fade as distant memories or are simply lost and forgotten.

I lived a life as an abused child, so I am pretty familiar with the idea of suffering. As I grew up, I sort of brought on a whole new level of suffering by my own bad decisions. Eventually, I attempted suicide. Obviously, that failed.
But, in that failure, I learned some things. My suffering was not in vain. Some of it made me stronger, and more able to deal with the stupid side of life. It built my character. Some of it made me able to release the fear of the unknown, and of death. Some of it gave me a special empathy for others who are suffering today. God uses that empathy to help the suffering folks out there to heal. I give them hope, and I offer my own lessons to them free of charge so they can rise above all that they have endured. Maybe I am working to prepare them for work like I am doing, or maybe just releasing them from their fear, anger and hurt so they can live the life they were meant to live.

If you're looking for phrases to put on your poster I'll throw in: sin, greed, evil leaders

The main reason is because so many other people DON"T care whom they use or abuse!
Why are kids being beaten up? Because other kids decided to go evil!
Why has the 100% ALL Natural Cure of Cancers in the USA and Canada been made illegal in these countries ? Because drug combines canNOT make any money on Natural things! They force they Know better for Killing the person drugs in all they can Grab, Force, Con!

Karma....

Tragedies


Following are points we should keep in mind concerning the biblical perspective on tragedies, regardless of their scale or circumstances:

1. God has said in Bible prophecy that natural disasters would grow in frequency and intensity as the end of the age approaches—to shake people out of their complacency and lead them to seek Him (Matthew 24:7; Luke 21:25-26; Revelation 6:12; 11:13; 16:18).

2. In His design for the world, God allows many events to run their course according to "time and chance" (Ecclesiastes 9:11), so that many tragedies are, for those affected, accidental and unforeseeable.

3. Those who die in accidents or natural disasters are not necessarily greater sinners than those who survive (Luke 13:1-5).

4. Personal tragedies or calamities are not necessarily the result of one's sins (John 9:2-3).

5. Natural disasters or accidents should humble us, helping us to see our dependence on God to sustain and deliver us (Revelation 16:8-11).

6. Natural disasters have sometimes been the direct judgment of God on a rebellious humanity (Genesis 6:6-7, 11-13, 17; 18:20; 19:24-25).

7. Some natural disasters are made worse by man's poor judgments (Proverbs 14:12) and age-long rejection of God and His laws, resulting in worsening environmental and climatic conditions.

8. God is a truly loving God who is working out a great plan for all humanity (John 3:16; 2 Peter 3:9; 1 Timothy 2:4; 1 Corinthians 15:22-24).

9. Converted Christians who die in natural disasters will be resurrected to immortality in the first resurrection at the return of Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:51-52; 1 Thessalonians 4:16; Revelation 20:4-6).

10. Non-Christians who die in natural disasters, those who never had a genuine understanding of God or real opportunity for eternal salvation, will be raised in the second or general resurrection to live again in the flesh with their first real opportunity to learn God's way, repent and be saved (John 5:28-29; Matthew 12:41-42; Revelation 20:5).

11. The multitudes of humanity who are raised in the second or general resurrection will experience joyful and abundant life under the rule of the Kingdom of God (Ezekiel 37:12-14).

12. The sufferings experienced now in "this present evil age" (Galatians 1:4)—this era of man's self-rule under the influence of Satan the devil—are writing a lesson of experience about what it means to live in a world cut off from God and His ways.

13. We don't know all the reasons God brings or permits specific calamities or why particular people are made to suffer by them, but we should trust that in God's omniscience and ultimate wisdom He knows how to work out what is best for everyone in the end (Romans 8:28; 1 Timothy 2:4).

14. Jesus Christ will eventually return to usher in the rule of the Kingdom of God (Revelation 11:15; Daniel 7:14), under which natural disasters will no longer plague mankind.

15. When all humanity is at last glorified, there will be no more pain, suffering or sorrow (Revelation 21:4).

16. All the sufferings of this brief present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory we will ultimately experience for all eternity to come (Romans 8:18; 2 Corinthians 4:17-18).

17. Read in JOB 38, All about God and Science.

There is an abundance of good answers to this question and perhaps even more bad ones, but coming from a follower of Christ here are a few I'd like to offer: 1. A way of showing the lost their need for Jesus. 2. If you are out of alignment with God's will for your life, things are going to be more difficult *not saying that you will not be able to increase yourself in one way or another outside of His will, but essentially everybody's house of cards will fall. 3. Being a follower doesn't mean you are going to be immune to hardships: trials, temptations or even getting in your own way and causing yourself to stumble. A follower will be tested in the fires of adversity because, it will give them voice when speaking to others who are going through similar circumstances. Would anyone take a squeaky clean Christian seriously on anything? 4. Lack of knowing their identity in Christ. When followers are aware of who they are in relation to Jesus, they can command by His authority the sick to be healed, demons to be cast out, the adverse weather to be stopped or to bring essential weather and to raise the dead. (God desires nobody to go to hell, so if an unsaved dies...in order to get them saved and keep them from hell, this is one of the means of use by the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus said that His followers will not only do the same things He has done but greater. So many today, have no clue how to step into a circumstance and with authority set someone free from bondage, they don't have to be in.

The fall from grace.

The Bible tells us EXACTLY WHY. It is due to Satan's work of lying and death. Then when both Eve and Adam, our original human parents, who were humanly perfect creations, after their willfully committing sin. We all suffer for that down through the generations. Romans 5:12 is Chrystal Clear, "just as through one man sin entered into the world and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because they had all sinned". It is the cause of all our deaths.

Consider Jesus’ words to religious teachers of his day: “You are from your father the Devil, and you wish to do the desires of your father. That one was a manslayer when he began, and he did not stand fast in the truth, because truth is not in him. When he speaks the lie, he speaks according to his own disposition, because he is a liar and the father of the lie.”—John 8:44.

That does NOT MEAN all hope is lost. From the moment Adam and Eve lost perfection, Jehovah God began to get this corrected. He had already declared the punishment for breaking their one law was death. He can never go back on anything he says. It is LAW.

He did use 2 other laws to correct this. #1 was Leviticus 24:20, "Fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, the same sort of injury he inflicted should be inflicted on him." This was NEVER about revenge as many imagine today. No, it was all about EQUAL JUSTICE. However a criminal harmed his victim, he would be hurt the same but equal way. For this case, Adan was a perfect human when he sinned. So an equally perfect human is the only one who could be a balance for Justice. Imperfect human descendants could never measure up to one perfect human. Almighty God could never do that either by being OVER QUALIFIED, TOO PERFECT. Only a human born without a human Father, but with a human mother, could fill the bill by avoiding the trap of Romans 5:12. He also had to keep sinless until his death.

#2 Paul wrote: “Nearly all things are cleansed with blood according to the Law, and unless blood is poured out no forgiveness takes place.” (Hebrews 9:22) That is why Jesus had to become a perfect human sacrifice for imperfect humanity. By his being perfect, he had no sin nor needed any forgiveness.

Satan, Adam & Eve are why we all suffer. The sacrifice of Jesus and for Jehovah God his heavenly Father (twice) providing the circumstances, mankind could have available... forgiveness of Adam's sin and provision for forgiving other sins. It is the ONLY WAY OUT from under death.

Satan was not executed immediately. Jehovah wisely considered there would be others trying the same thing if Satan was instantly killed. He challenged God's RIGHT to rule his creations. Through Eve, a challenge man could rule themselves. At Job 2:4, Satan claimed no human ever had a single drop of integrity. Instead of staying on the subject of Job, he used the phrase "a MAN", indicating ALL humans. Satan did all this before EVERY spirit creature in heaven. No one could miss his ranting claims and boasts. No one would ever try AFTER Satan either. Yes, humans would suffer a short time, but not repeatedly.

The solution to all this will be Armageddon, when all of Satan's wicked system will be destroyed. Consisting of ALL the world's false religions. ALL human governments and materialism. Together with all demons and wicked human followers will be destroyed then.

The most IMPORTANT THING to remember is: There is absolutely NOTHING Satan can do that Jehovah God's Kingdom government cannot fix many times better than ever before! Among those are an end to famine, homelessness, sickness and death/ Rev. 21:4 will be true on this Earth. "And he (Almighty God) will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have passed away.”

People suffer because Satan and his angels were cast out of heaven, down to the vicinity of the earth having great anger knowing his time is short. God is also allowing man to rule himself since the rebellion in the garden of Eden to prove it does not belong to earthling man to rule himself thus vindicating God's sovereignty.