Sermon Guide

CONTROVERSIAL FAITH | HOW CAN A GOOD GOD ALLOW EVIL AND SUFFERING?

Teaching Text

John 16:33

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

Sermon Recap

This Sunday Pastor Suzy continued our Controversial Faith series by asking the question: How can a good God allow evil and suffering in the world? The tension between the sovereignty of God and the realities of suffering often hold people back from experiencing and accepting the person of Jesus, or eventually drive people away from Him. In an effort to address this problem of pain, Pastor Suzy laid out five reasons not to turn away from Jesus when faced with evil and suffering.

Pastor Suzy began by acknowledging the failings of the American Church in spaces of suffering. The propensity towards false prosperity gospel and a shallow, needs based prayer culture have created an expectation that following Jesus will equal health, wealth, and happiness, when Jesus actually calls us to join Him in suffering. These beliefs have also created an illusion of perfection within the church at large, leaving the suffering and marginalized feeling isolated and unwelcome. Finally, the church has played a part in perpetuating evil through the abuse of power, financial and sexual scandal, and atrocities committed against children. The American Church does not look like Jesus or respond to pain in the way that He did, and this has done immense damage to those who are suffering in our midst.

As Christians, we have a holistic and reasoned explanation for why there is evil and suffering in our world. The Bible gives us a framework the moral evils of antagonistic, demonic forces that desire to both twist our hearts and cause terrible atrocities in the world, and the reality of humanity’s sin nature that alienates us from God and each other as we fight for wealth, recognition, and security, and take part in creating systems of injustice in the world. Sin also pollutes the world around us, and we experience the natural evils of death, decay, and destruction through natural disasters. The Bible displays God’s just response to evil, and that sin not only has consequences, but requires punishment and discipline from the Lord.

However, God also promises there will come a day where all evil and suffering would cease, and humanity could be fully reconciled to Himself and each other. This became possible through Jesus, the Suffering Servant, who took all the punishment we were due, defeated sin forever, and made a way for us to receive grace and join Him in freedom. Holding onto this hope, Christians are called to die to themselves like Jesus did, and be His hands and feet towards those who are suffering in the world. Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to be our strength until He returns to wipe away every tear and usher in the new heaven and new earth.

If you missed this talk, you can watch it here today.

Discussion Questions

Connect

1. Share a memory of time where you were well cared for by a friend or family member.

Character

Ask someone to read the teaching text (John 16:33) aloud. Then ask the following questions:

1. What words, phrases, or images stand out to you in the passage?

2. What do you learn about the heart of Jesus through this verse?

Consider

1. Pastor Suzy shared four key areas in which the American Church has created false theologies around God and suffering including, prosperity, shallow prayer, perfection, and perpetrating evil. What lies have you believed about God relating to your own pain and suffering and the pain and suffering of others?

2. Read 1 Peter 4:12-14. We learn through this Scripture that joy is promised even within suffering. What does it look like to hold on to the promise of joy within suffering?

3. The goal of life is to be like Jesus and to be His body. As Christians, what are ways we can show up for others in their suffering and reflect the hope of Jesus to them?

Cover

Spend time praying for anyone suffering in your group. Then, spend time praying for anyone your group members know who are experiencing suffering.