The lesson is clear. If a Christian suffers, we must always remember that his righteousness in Christ infinitely exceeds that of Job. When we repent and trust in Jesus, God inputs the righteousness of the Savior to our account. We are morally perfect in the sight of God, because God sees us in Christ, clothed in the virtue of His Son. So we dare conclude that a Christian is suffering because of God’s hand. That may be the case, but we don’t know and therefore should never entertain such thoughts, let alone speak them. The fear of God should keep us from going there. In Luke 13:1-5 Jesus addresses this very subject. Scripture says,
“There were present at that season some who told Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things? I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish. Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.’”
It is human nature to want to solve the problem of suffering by saying that every tragedy, sickness, accident, etc., is some sort of divine retribution. It is karma. Suffering comes to us because we either did something evil in this or in a previous life. Problem solved. But notice how Jesus addressed it. In essence, He said, “So you have concluded that those who died, did so because they did something to deserve such a fate. But your sins also call for Heaven’s wrath. You are still alive only because of God’s mercy, so repent and have your sins forgiven before you are dealt with by justice instead of mercy.”
Continued tomorrow...
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