Story of Job: Why Does God Allow Suffering?

THAT’S IN THE BIBLE: 

The Story of Job: Why Does God Allow Suffering? 

BROTHER BOB PELLIEN: People sometimes ask, why would our Father in heaven allow people to suffer so much in this life? Why doesn’t God use His Almighty power to eliminate war, disease, even the personal loneliness and sorrow and all such pains experienced by so many in life? Why does God allow suffering at all?  

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The Bible: The basis of our faith in the Church Of Christ, which answers questions about proper worship, the right relationship with God and most importantly salvation. That’s in the Bible.  

BROTHER BOB PELLIEN: I’m Bob Pellien, and welcome to the program, That’s in the Bible. Yes, news broadcasts often present superpowers on the brink of war! New diseases are being found in this country or that country. Horrific acts of violence committed by one person against another, and on the personal level, many remain in the grips of sadness, loneliness, sorrow, and such pains continue to be experienced by many every single day. As people witness all of these, many are led to wonder why God, with all of His benevolent power, does not just step in and end all suffering? We have received the following question regarding this topic from Chris Panama in San Diego, California. He wrote: 

“If there is a God, then why do humans suffer”? 

– Chris Panama 

San Diego, California  

BROTHER BOB PELLIEN: Chris, thank you for your question. God does not remove mankind’s suffering, although He could. So to help us in our discussion on this topic, let’s learn from the experience of one of God’s servants named Job. Let’s break it down and answer these questions together today: 

1. What happened to Job, a person in the Bible who suffered very much? 
2. What lesson can we learn from the suffering of Job?   
3. Should we consider hardships and sufferings in life as a misfortune? 
4. How can we be like Job?  

So, let’s turn to the Bible for answers to all these questions. First, what happened to Job? And if you’re unfamiliar with this man’s life, it was recorded in the Book of Job, beginning in Job chapter one, let’s read verses 14 through 19 where the following is recorded:   

a messenger came to Job and said, “The oxen were plowing and the donkeys were grazing nearby, and the Sabeans attacked and made off with them. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!” While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, “The fire of God fell from the heavens and burned up the sheep and the servants, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!” While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, “The Chaldeans formed three raiding parties and swept down on your camels and made off with them. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!” While he was still speaking, yet another messenger came and said, “Your sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother’s house, when suddenly a mighty wind swept in from the desert and struck the four corners of the house. It collapsed on them and they are dead, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!” 

Job 1:14-19  New International Version  

BROTHER BOB PELLIEN: Job experienced great personal grief and sorrow. More than nearly anyone else, ever. How did Job respond to his horrific situation? Let’s continue reading in Job 2:9-10 it says:   

His wife said to him, “Are you still maintaining your integrity? Curse God and die!” He replied, “You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” In all this, Job did not sin in what he said. 

Job 2:9-10 New International Version 

BROTHER BOB PELLIEN: Job was brokenhearted, but it did not lead him to commit sin against God, even when urged by his wife to curse God. He remained loyal to God. That doesn’t mean to say he wasn’t in anguish at the state of his life. In fact, how did Job feel in the midst of all the things he was enduring and suffering? Well, let’s continue, this time let’s go ahead to chapter three verses 10 and 11, also here in the Book of Job:   

Curse that night for letting me be born, for exposing me to trouble and grief. I wish I had died in my mother’s womb or died the moment I was born. 

Job 3:10-11 Good News Translation  

BROTHER BOB PELLIEN: Dear friends, how deep was the grief felt by Job?  So much so that he wished he had not even been born! Job is a biblical example of how some people even feel today, and his story that we’re studying together today has so much to teach us. So, next, let’s see how else did Job describe his deep sorrow and grief that he experienced, encountered? Let’s continue, advance forward in the Book of Job and read chapter 3 verse 20 as well as 23-26:  

Why does God let me live when life is miserable and so bitter?…Why do I go on living when God has me surrounded, and I can’t see the road? Moaning and groaning are my food and drink, and my worst fears have all come true. I have no peace or rest—only troubles and worries. 

Job 3:20,23-26 Contemporary English Version 

BROTHER BOB PELLIEN: Do you sometimes feel, dear friends, that you are a modern day Job experiencing deep sorrow and grief that sometimes may seem almost impossible to bear? Have you wondered if there is a solution to your trouble? Did you wonder why such things were happening in your life? So we ask, does God explain to those like Job or many of us who may also be experiencing crisis or heavy burdens in this life, does He explain what the purpose for it all may be? The answer is yes! There is a lesson to be learned! 

What lesson can we learn from the suffering of Job? The lesson of the story of Job is a valuable one for everyone to learn. So let’s listen to Apostle Peter where he describe it this way, 1 Peter 4:12:  

And now dear friends of mine. I beg you not to be unduly alarmed at the fiery ordeals which come to test your faith, as though this were some abnormal experience. 

1 Peter 4:12 J. B. Philips The New Testament in Modern English 

BROTHER BOB PELLIEN: So yes dear viewers the first lesson is to not be unduly alarmed.  God does not remove fiery ordeals from our lives because they have a purpose. Job’s life of suffering is an example. Many may say they have faith, but God puts that faith to the test and the truly faithful will not give up in the midst of the hardships.  

So should we consider the hardships and sufferings in life as a misfortune then? That would be the natural conclusion right? That would be the natural conclusion. But consider what is also written here in the Book of Job. Let’s go back to Job 36 this time and ready together verse 15:  

But God teaches people through suffering and uses distress to open their eyes.  

Job 36:15 Good News Translation  

BROTHER BOB PELLIEN: Just like a parent with their own children, God wants to teach us, He wants to open our eyes, open our understanding, and that’s for our own good. 

Is there anything to be gained from understanding suffering? Yes dear friends, yes! That’s the point. Apostle Peter also explains it this way in 1 Peter 1:6-7:  

Be glad about this, even though it may now be necessary for you to be sad for a while because of the many kinds of trials you suffer. Their purpose is to prove that your faith is genuine. Even gold, which can be destroyed, is tested by fire; and so your faith, which is much more precious than gold, must also be tested, so that it may endure. Then you will receive praise and glory and honor on the Day when Jesus Christ is revealed.  

1 Peter 1:6-7 Good News Translation 

BROTHER BOB PELLIEN: So remaining faithful in spite of many trials in life has a great reward of honor, praise and glory to be received when Our Lord Jesus Christ returns. Also mentioned here by Apostle Peter, dear friends, is what the trials and hardships of life were compared to. Indeed, gold may be proven pure only if it is tested by fire. And the fire that tests it is scorching hot, right? For a person, who can feel pain, he does not enjoy being scorched by the heat. However, we should understand those fiery trials will prove whether or not our faith is genuine. They will also prove our faithfulness, our loyalty, to God.  

What is another reason that we are sure it is not unfortunate, as some would naturally, or might consider it, if God permits us to undergo hardships in life? Why? Another statement recorded here in the Book of Job, we return to 36, verses eight all the way through 11:  

But if people are bound in chains, suffering for what they have done, God shows them their sins and their pride. He makes them listen to his warning to turn away from evil. If they obey God and serve him, they live out their lives in peace and prosperity.  

Job 36:8-11 Good News Translation   

BROTHER BOB PELLIEN: God allows those who commit sin to experience suffering because it makes them listen to His warning to turn away from evil. And, as we read, if people respond to His warning, what will be that person’s gain? Let’s see what happened in the end, when Job passed his personal fiery trials and tests. And we can see what happened in the end, it’s recorded in Job 42:10, 12-13:   

And the Lord restored Job’s losses when he prayed for his friends. Indeed the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before. …Now the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning; for he had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, one thousand yoke of oxen, and one thousand female donkeys. He also had seven sons and three daughters. 

Job 42:10, 12-13 New King James Version  

BROTHER BOB PELLIEN: The story of Job teaches that those who do not give up in the midst of trials, even extremely difficult hardships, will live out their lives in peace and prosperity. And that is not unfortunate! Therefore, experiencing trials is not a misfortune; rather it is even for our benefit, as long as we learn the lesson that it teaches. And it is an opportunity to prove we are not like so many in life who as soon as the going gets tough, they refuse to serve God, then even blame God. Dear friends, if you obey and serve Him even in the midst of great sorrows, what will eventually replace these sufferings in life? The story of Job taught us, those sorrows will be replaced with peace and prosperity. 

But how can we be like Job? If God puts us through trials that can sometimes cause sorrow, is there a solution? Dear friends, is there something about Job and the lesson of Job that we should, and can, imitate, especially when we too are facing severe trials in our lives? Let’s return to the Book of Job one last time, and let’s ready together what’s recorded in Job 23:10-12:   

But he knows every step I take. When he has tested me, I’ll come out as pure as gold. My feet have closely followed his steps. I’ve stayed on his path without turning away.
I haven’t disobeyed his commands. I’ve treasured his words more than my daily bread. 

Job 23:10-12  New International Reader’s Version  

BROTHER BOB PELLIEN: Even after all the hardships that Job went through in his life, everything he experienced, what does he have to say? He said “My feet have closely followed his steps. I stayed on his path without turning away,” said Job. Therefore, the sufferings he faced did not cause him to give up obeying God nor did they stop him from serving God. That has to be dear friends, also what we do, all of us,  when facing challenges in life, we must stand our ground, obeying the Lord’s commands and leave behind the evil world and all of its ways.  

So, let’s review the questions that we began with and let’s see what the Bible has revealed to us:  

1. What happened to Job?  

We learned from the Bible, Job experienced great personal grief and sorrow.  More than nearly anyone else, ever. His livelihood, his cattle and sheep, even his children were taken from him.  

2. What lesson can we learn from the suffering of Job?   

We learned dear viewers, that God does not remove fiery ordeals from our lives because they have a purpose. God tests our faith to determine or prove that it is genuine.  The genuinely faithful are promised His help and the great reward. 

3. Should we consider the hardships and sufferings in life as a misfortune?  

That would be the natural conclusion right? But no, the story of Job teaches that those whose faith is proven genuine will live out their lives in peace and prosperity. Therefore, experiencing trials is not a misfortune; rather it is even for our benefit, as long as we learn the lesson that it teaches. 

4. How can we be like Job?  

When facing trials, the solution is to respond as God wills, and return to Him, worship Him again, listen to His instructions as relayed to us through His son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Dear friends, join with us here inside the Church Of Christ as we all live our lives to do precisely that.  

We’d like you to continue learning about the teachings of the Bible taught here inside  the Iglesia Ni Cristo, Church Of Christ, to do so please visit online and browse the different topics or set up an appointment to meet with a minister of the gospel. If you have any questions about the Bible or salvation, please email them to us. I’m Bob Pellien. Thanks for listening. See you next time on That’s in the Bible!