Is God Sovereign, good, and just? (maybe meant to be in family forum. not sure?)

[Flufftronicus]

Since having kids, I've been contemplating this a lot. Before I had only myself and my wife to worry about, it was easy, relatively speaking, to see the evils of the world and see God's hand at work in the good, and lay the evil at the feet of evil men and women expressing the free will God gave us to use to truly choose him.

However, as much as i think, and know, that God's love for us is worth the sacrifice of all the evil in the world, it's an uneasy alliance in my mind.

Children are stolen and sold into the sex trade, or stolen and forced to become child soldiers, or killed just for being the wrong gender, or any number of harsh realities. God steps in often for the the powerless, i'm not denying his miracles, but why let the powerless be targetted by evil men and women at all? Isn't God's sovereignty all knowing and all powerful enough to rescue them in a way that doesn't impact on their free will? (if that's so important?)

My wife was molested for a decade growing up. I struggle with that because I've met the men who did it, and those who were complacent to it. She on the other hand is the most amazing person I've met and has forgiven and given it over to God. A miracle in and of itself. But if God is sovereign, and let anyone do that to either of my kids, I don't know if God and I could be friends anymore. Not for a very long time anyway, if ever.

I love the Lord with everything. He's saved me from myself and given me my beautiful wife and kids; but the evils of the world are a hard reality to face now that I have children to protect, and God seeming to permit it all, is an uneasy alliance I've had with my faith since having kids of my own.

Any thoughts on how to reconcile this theologically?

 

[blueluna5]

Basically why does God allow evil against the innocent?

I don't know that anyone has the answer to this on a deep level.

However in my opinion this is why sin makes God so angry. Essentially sin is not justice, so the consequences of sin often fall on the innocent.

Why does God allow criminals? The parable of the wheat and weeds. To pull one would be to pull another since we're intertwined in many ways.

A lot of Christians will say we're all sinful beings so there's no difference. But...I personally don't agree with that view. Yes we're all sinful, but normal people don't hurt children or murder, etc. God chose sinful people in the Bible too, but God knows the heart.

 

[2ndTimothyGroup]

Since having kids, I've been contemplating this a lot. Before I had only myself and my wife to worry about, it was easy, relatively speaking, to see the evils of the world and see God's hand at work in the good, and lay the evil at the feet of evil men and women expressing the free will God gave us to use to truly choose him.

However, as much as i think, and know, that God's love for us is worth the sacrifice of all the evil in the world, it's an uneasy alliance in my mind.

Children are stolen and sold into the sex trade, or stolen and forced to become child soldiers, or killed just for being the wrong gender, or any number of harsh realities. God steps in often for the powerless, I'm not denying his miracles, but why let the powerless be targetted by evil men and women at all? Isn't God's sovereignty all-knowing and all-powerful enough to rescue them in a way that doesn't impact on their free will? (if that's so important?)

My wife was molested for a decade growing up. I struggle with that because I've met the men who did it, and those who were complacent to it. She on the other hand is the most amazing person I've met and has forgiven and given it over to God. A miracle in and of itself. But if God is sovereign, and let anyone do that to either of my kids, I don't know if God and I could be friends anymore. Not for a very long time anyway, if ever.

I love the Lord with everything. He's saved me from myself and given me my beautiful wife and kids; but the evils of the world are a hard reality to face now that I have children to protect, and God seeming to permit it all, is an uneasy alliance I've had with my faith since having kids of my own.

Any thoughts on how to reconcile this theologically?

Hello,

I'm so sorry to hear of the struggles. Uggg. Having been through many significant issues myself, I imagine the pain and know that it was, at least at one time, incredibly real.

1 Corinthians 6:13 NIV - "You say, "Food for the stomach and the stomach for food, and God will destroy them both." The body, however, is not meant for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body."

The above passage transformed my thinking, and quickly I realized that this is one of the many keystone passages of the Bible. This passage gives us insight into all of the travesties that take place in Scripture, primarily the Old Testament. The all-night raping of the concubine by the Benjamites is incredible, no doubt. We must know that the acts of God and the things that He allows, these things all point to the Power and Glory of God. I know that seems insane to think of, but what if the test is that regardless of what could happen to our physical bodies while here on earth . . . do we Trust Jesus with it? And if we die, will we Trust Christ to raise us from the Dead?

One element of Heaven that we should think of is this: It won't matter one bit how we died. It won't matter if we were beaten to death, or chopped one inch at a time until we bled out. It simply does not matter how we die, for we WILL get through it. We will absolutely get through our deaths. Some are very scary; some are not. Some deaths are painful; some pass in their sleep. The moment that we experience the incredible Love and Peace from the God of this Universe, all of our pain will be forgotten. Anything could happen to us while we are here, but if we are Truly saved, our bodies belong to the Lord and He will lead us . . . and be with us in each horrific moment that we might experience. He feels our pain with us, but He also knows of our future Glory. And because the Lord views us in this way, He does not overly concern Himself with the manner in which we pass, as He knows that death itself is but a fleeting moment. And to be honest, for many of us, the process of death will be easier than living a life of emotional pain and suffering that can come with this physical world.

God loves those who are like Christ; those who suffer. So as difficult as it might seem, those who suffer are the ones who are Chosen. For those who suffer become like Christ. My great uncle spent seven years as a POW in the Vietnam War, and while he does not accept God to this day, who is to say that the Lord will not reveal Himself to my great uncle near the very end of his life? The torture that men endured . . . well, as he says, "I learned how to scream in Vietnam." Seven years of being beaten and tortured . . . I am convinced that the Lord will spare his soul. His service to America is beyond remarkable.

But . . . the body is for the Lord and the Lord is for the body. As children of God, Jesus purchased us with His Blood, telling us that we will suffer for Him and that many of us will die for His Holy Name. Paul was beheaded; Peter chose to be nailed to a cross upside down (so that he could suffer like Christ). Unbelievable. The simple Truth is that for those who belong to the Lord, their entire lives will be directed by Him so as to fulfill all things in accordance with His Will. Our pains and sufferings will teach us the things we need to know, and in many ways, they gives us advantages of wisdom and insight that others couldn't possibly have. And if we're lucky, perhaps we can look upon our experiences and separate our emotions from them . . . even referring to them as Holy Gifts by which we might be able to help others heal from their own experiences.

So much could be written on this topic. And I suppose the final thing that I could mention is to simply try to view all things from the perspective of God. It's ok . . . you won't offend Him if you try to think the way He thinks; trying to understand what He thinks and why is a most worthy thing to do. Rest assured . . . God is fair and just, and His rewards are far more than anything any human mind could possibly imagine.

Hang in there, everyone. It's worth it. This struggle of a life is worth it. Do not give up. Believe me . . . this pain and agony won't amount to one lousy thing once in heaven. It will be forgotten, so we would all do well to think of what is to come, considering our hardships to be Blessings.

 

[Lafftur]

Yes, God is sovereign.....Joseph knew this while he was sold into slavery by his brothers and in the dungeon of Pharoah....God is sovereign.....Joseph had a dream....a dream of destiny....circumstances are NOT destiny.....trials and tribulations are NOT destiny.....I believe in the sovereignty of God. My Father in Heaven knows best and I trust Him completely, amen.

People mean it for evil, yet God means it for GOOD!

 

[Lafftur]

Since having kids, I've been contemplating this a lot. Before I had only myself and my wife to worry about, it was easy, relatively speaking, to see the evils of the world and see God's hand at work in the good, and lay the evil at the feet of evil men and women expressing the free will God gave us to use to truly choose him.

However, as much as i think, and know, that God's love for us is worth the sacrifice of all the evil in the world, it's an uneasy alliance in my mind.

Children are stolen and sold into the sex trade, or stolen and forced to become child soldiers, or killed just for being the wrong gender, or any number of harsh realities. God steps in often for the the powerless, i'm not denying his miracles, but why let the powerless be targetted by evil men and women at all? Isn't God's sovereignty all knowing and all powerful enough to rescue them in a way that doesn't impact on their free will? (if that's so important?)

My wife was molested for a decade growing up. I struggle with that because I've met the men who did it, and those who were complacent to it. She on the other hand is the most amazing person I've met and has forgiven and given it over to God. A miracle in and of itself. But if God is sovereign, and let anyone do that to either of my kids, I don't know if God and I could be friends anymore. Not for a very long time anyway, if ever.

I love the Lord with everything. He's saved me from myself and given me my beautiful wife and kids; but the evils of the world are a hard reality to face now that I have children to protect, and God seeming to permit it all, is an uneasy alliance I've had with my faith since having kids of my own.

Any thoughts on how to reconcile this theologically?

You speak from the heart and mind and eyes of a father and a husband but, God speaks from the heart, mind and eyes of a Creator....all powerful....able to heal ANY and ALL hurt.....He can ERASE all the pain of evil, He can dry the tears and heal the brokenheart....a human father and husband CANNOT do so.

You limit God by comparing Him to you........open your eyes and see and know the ONE that created you....and loves you...He is sovereign.

 

[KingdomBrat]

Any thoughts on how to reconcile this theologically?

Children are a [Gift] from God. [Suffer not the little children for they are the Kingdom of God]!

A Gift here today, gone tomorrow, is still a Gift from God whether you're able to enjoy that Gift for a few years or for hopefully much much longer.

 

[John146]

Yes, God is sovereign.....Joseph knew this while he was sold into slavery by his brothers and in the dungeon of Pharoah....God is sovereign.....Joseph had a dream....a dream of destiny....circumstances are NOT destiny.....trials and tribulations are NOT destiny.....I believe in the sovereignty of God. My Father in Heaven knows best and I trust Him completely, amen.

People mean it for evil, yet God means it for GOOD!

Yes, but many people’s stories don’t end up like Joseph. Many die in pain and agony. That’s life in a fallen dark world ruled by Satan. The rain falls on the just and the unjust. The believer’s hope is not in this world, but to be with Christ.