180 likes | 192 Views
WHEN CHRISTIANS GET IT WRONG When Bad Things Happen. Sometimes a Christian ’ s faith is challenged trying to reconcile a loving God with the suffering they experience as well as see in the world around them.
E N D
WHEN CHRISTIANS GET IT WRONG When Bad Things Happen
Sometimes a Christian’s faith is challenged trying to reconcile a loving God with the suffering they experience as well as see in the world around them.
The author says that Christians really get it wrong when they begin to diagnose the suffering of others as acts of God’s judgment.
Sometimes when people are going through a bad time in their lives, well meaning Christians say things to offer comfort but actually have the opposite effect. Some of what is said is based on assumptions about how God works in our world. Many people accept these assumptions without question.
CHRISTIANS WHO EVALUATE THE SUFFERING OF OTHERS AND PRONUNCE THAT IT IS A RESULT OF THE OTHER’S SIN ARE GETTING IT WRONG!!!
We may need to rethink some of our assumptions about God such as God is a micro manager of the world and everything happens because God wills it. What we see so often in the Bible is that much of what happens is not God’s will. Human beings are repeatedly guilty of doing the opposite of what God commands.
One assumption is that God micromanages the universe and controls everything that takes place. When people think that God controls every dimension of creation. This is often referred to as determinism.
If God controls every cell in the body, determinism would imply that He determines when that cell becomes cancerous. Another assumption often heard is that history unfolds according to God’s predetermined plan.
If this assumption is true, then we only have the illusion of making our own choices. We really don’t have that choice since God has already predetermined what will happen and we can’t change it. Any choice you make, right or wrong, good or evil must be the choice God wants you to make.
Do you give God the credit for the good things that happen in life. But don’t blame Him for the bad things that happen?
How do you feel about a football player points to heaven when he makes a touchdown? Would you be OK if the football player was just thanking and not saying God was responsible for him making a touchdown?
Some people say blessed them with a parking place, do you think God helps provide parking places while thousands of others die each day in accidents? Would you be OK if this person was just saying that the parking spot was simply a sign of God’s goodness?
An earthquake levels a building, one man dies and another man lives. Do you think God miraculously intervened to save the one man? How much do you think God intervenes in this type of thing and how would you explain why He saves one person and not another? Do you know anyone who believes that God intervened to save their life? What is their explanation?
Do you believe that God predetermines that some people should live and others desire in a tragedy? Do you believe that God has a plan for your life, but not one written in stone that you must follow? How does God’s plan work in your life?
God’s plan for our lives is simple and easy to understand. Read and follow the teachings of Jesus. In every situation and every relationship, every decision, seek to express the love of God and love of neighbors.
Each of us has unique gifts and talents we are to use in service to God. Sometimes we feel a special call or have a special opportunity to serve and we have to pay attention when those come up. What kind of special calls have you had and how did you respond?
We need to reconcile a loving God with the bad things that happen in life. Where do we find God in those times. Christians get it wrong when they attribute tragedy to the will, plan, and hand of God. So how have you found God during the bad times of life?
When Christians walk with those undergoing suffering, and when they selflessly server their neighbors in need THEY GET IT RIGHT!!! Christians become the hands, feet, and voice of God, caring for God’s children in their moment of need. The suffering see God in us.