Why does god let terrible things happen..?

Question

I have never gotten a good answer for this.

Why would someone like god who has control over everything allow terrible things to happen..?

Little girls get raped and murdered, babys get cancer and die before they turn 1, thousands of soldiers have died in war

The world seems to be nothing but terrible things and crime

Wheres god? And why isnt he saving innocent little children?

I would appreciate an actual explanation instead of "God has A Reason For Everything"

Answer 1

Free will. Free will opens the door to evil, but it is not God's will for us to use our free will to do evil. He will make it up to us when we stay faithful. Eternity is a long time, and he can totally make it up to us if we have suffered here

Answer 2

"free will"

Now it doesnt make sense to me either, but they are delusional, so it doesnt have to make sense for them

Cancer is a good one though.  It is not a result of free will.  No one benefits from it.  It only creates needless suffereing.  Why oh why would a loving god allow something like cancer to exist?  The answer of course is because he is not loving and all powerful, or he does not exist

Answer 3

This is probably the most often asked question.

The Book of Job is written quite specifically to answer this question (well, it was written to explore it; it doesn't really answer it, and the rough part is, there really isn't any answer to the question on this side of eternity.

But it's not exactly a new question.

The reason you have ot gotten a good answer is because there isn't any.

The answer, God has a reason for everything, is the typical answer: Faith is not logical, is not rational. You just have to have faith that somehow things are working the way they are supposed to.

I wrestle with that answer. It doesn't really do it for me, but maybe that's because I place such a high premium on my incredible reasoning ability. Maybe I should submit to God's will, as I do every time I repeat the Lord's Prayer, when I say "may your will be done."

I have a little theory, and that, I promise, is all it is -- just a little theory, and it is this:

We were created free. Part of the reason we are here is so we can make decisions that only can count if we are free to make them without coercion. If we are to be free, then it follows that the universe in which we live must also be free, or else some aspect of it will prove God's existence and take away our freedom to choose. If we knew God was real, we could not choose not to worship, follow or obey Him.

Since the Universe must be free, it follows that things happen freely, and that means sometimes we get sick, or hurricanes come, or animals hurt us, or whatever.

Because the Universe is free, it is not constrained from hurting people.

Now you might say, what could possibly justify such things? I would say, you may not have all the facts. (getting back to a strain of that "You just have to have faith" bit) You are a creature. As such can you understand the will of the Creator? Can the pot understand the intent of the potter???

You mentioned many things, and they are indeed dreadful things, but I did not notice you mentioning the butterfly. Or the sunset. Or the tenderness of a kiss. Or the Warmth of a helping hand.

Please be fair. The universe has much in it.

I walked down a street and saw a naked child dying in her mother's arms for lack of food, and I cried out to God, "Why don't you do something?"

"But I did, my dear," said God. "I sent you."

Answer 4

Dear Seeking- God IS responsible for everything on this earth.

What about the starving masses? Can he not make grass grow, and rain fall?

People create evil. Most people think God created people.

I personally do not believe in the existence of an invisible planet maker, but you go right ahead on.

Answer 5

Read Greg Boyd's book, "Is God to blame?"

Answer 6

Karma carries over, lifetime after lifetime. Man is stubborn and often needs tough lessons to get it right. God is very fair. God believes in reincarnation, not damnation. We are In Truth Eternal Beings. If you have to hang here to learn how to Become One With God again and how to love again for a hundred lifetimes, it is but a hairs breath in the scheme of things. We fell from Heaven, now were climbing are way back. He has offered us a Better Way though, but most choose to find excuses as to why they should not love and forgive everyone, so they never find The Path. Plus the Path Is His Will, and man isn't really willing to sacrifice his will to God. And sorry Christians, saying, "Jesus Is Christ" doesn't automatically place you upon That Path. Those are the churches teachings, not His.

Answer 7

If the world was a nice place 2 live & no1 died from various causes no1 would realize how precious & short life is nor would they realize that every1 needs God. If this world was a type of paradise with little 2 no uncertainty of death or calamity. Even the way the world is few actually look 2 know God & what He is actually about, His true message. More likely than not most people dont turn 2 God unless they r faced with catastrophe or dangerous situation. Some may only take such action & not return 2 God thereafter but a few learn enough that they stay with Jesus or God actually touches their life in such a way that they realize that God will get them thu whatever happens in their life (building upon whatever faith they started with.

Without the world the way it is free will would b meaningless. If the world was a nice place most people would only turn 2 God if they were robots. Without free will it wouldnt b about choice. God is demonstrating what things r like without God being in charge of people's lives. Only by having a personal relationship with Jesus can 1 be changed 2 what is of the righteousness of God. Without this personal relationship with Jesus u cant know what is the real righteousness that comes from God. Sometimes a believer will still fail 2 rightly follow Jesus but its only those who desire in their hearts 2 b with Jesus can u have a chance of overcoming the wrongs in your life.

In the Bible it warns us that we rnt 2 trust humans, not even ourselves (Jer 10:2-5,23; Is 2:22; Job 12:11; Prov 14:12; Acts 17:11). So carefully think over what I say. Dont just believe or disregard what I write. It might save u from making the same mistakes many have made, getting caught up in religious beliefs that have nothing 2 do with finding & knowing God.

The problem is theres many religions & different varieties. 1 day I realized they cant all be right (i.e. theres 1 Bible, why so many interpretations? - II Pet 1:**19-21). Most religions came thru people who thought up things for a God they & others liked. Some realized religion could be good 2 control the masses & 4 other agendas. However, religion cant teach u much about God (they cant teach what they dont know). Who knows more about a house He who built it or he who moves in later?

Just b/c religions made many mistakes (many fatal) doesnt mean God doesnt know what He's doing. The main point thats not clear 2 many:  Jesus stated that no1 can find our real God except thru Jesus (Jn 14:6; 5:39; 10:1,7; Acts 4:11). This means "the" truth was complete & there4 finished thru what Jesus taught & did. So, any so-called new teaching & any other religious beliefs r null & void & cant lead u 2 God. The truth is either the whole truth or it isnt the truth. The truth is the absence of any lie. Either Jesus told the whole truth or He's a false prophet, among many, whom should be disregarded. This would also mean that God must not exist either (He either knows what He's doing or He cant be God).

But, heres evidence God knows what He is doing. Jesus couldntve done nor said what He did unless He had full understanding of the entire Old Testament (the New Testament didnt exist @ the time of Jesus - the only way Jesus couldve known the whole OT is if God was with Him). & the Apostles couldnt remember & write down the NT unless Jesus allowed them to remember & know what He was here 4 (Lk 24:25-27,45). None of this was possible unless an incredibly Intelligent Being caused it.

But God outsmarted man, b/c the Bible's the only 1 known 2 man that cant be properly understood without going thru Jesus (Jn 14:6; II Cor 3:14 - If the Jewish people cant pierce the veil over the OT without going thu Jesus then rest-assurd neither can all gentiles). This is why theres many interpretations & people thinking its all just fairytales.

A church thats very serious about finding the Biblical truth, understands what being Born Anew is about, might be able 2 help u but no1 can save u except Jesus (Jn 3:1-14 - note: Nicodemus was very religious but Jesus flatout told him he had missed the 1rst most important step, that he must be Born Anew or no matter how religious or good he thought he is he couldn't go 2 Heaven (Jn 3:3,5; Jn 14:6; Acts 4:12). No1 can live without breaking God's Law.

Whoever seeks Jesus Christ with all his heart & soul will find Him (u shall know the truth & it will set u free). But u can lead a horse 2 water but u cant make them drink. Why should God want u 2 live with Him forever if u dont want 2 know Him (reason 4 free will)? The truth of God remains forever while things of a man dies with him, including his religions & gods made in his image. Theres everlasting hope only in Jesus Christ.

voyc4rmwldrns

Answer 8

Are you saying he should intervene in everything or just the worst in your opinion.  Maybe He does limit the unimaginable, but we would never know.  We have to know the bad to appreciate the good.  If there is no heaven, then it doesn't matter.  If there is, it will all make sense some day.  

Answer 9

It's all because two people without knowledge of good nor evil somehow were still able to"sin" and ate the forbidden fruit.  Now all of mankind has to suffer for this.  I think god needs to grow up and learn forgiveness.  

Answer 10

It all has to do with Free will.

God allows us to make bad decisions. He doesn't want us to be robots who are forced to follow him. If someone decides to sin he allows that also.

So free will comes with consequences which is letting bad things happen to people. We  can't have it both ways-free will and no bad things happen.

It's kind of sad but they go hand and hand.

†

Answer 11

The Lord works in ways so mysterious, they're indistinquishable from chance.

Answer 12

Coz the Big Bad Daddy in the sky has as yet not reformed.

Answer 13

Simple answer to question of all generations is:

Law, as God = Horeb-bull

Grace, as God = Wonder-full

The GRACE of our Lord Jesus Christ with you all. Amen.

Answer 14

1. Time and chance happens to all (Ecclesiastes 9:11). My girl friend was hit by a hit-and-run driver7 years ago. She landed on her head, causing brain damage. She will have seizures for the rest of her life due to nothing caused by her. It was time and chance.

Sorry about your girlfriend, but that doesn't explain why God let it happen.  He is supposed to be omnipotent, right? So what the h**l does "time and chance" have to do with it?  It's a cop out, and you know it.

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2. If you are a child of God, He will chasten you and see if you endure (Hebrews 12:6). Love doesn't mean He will say "yes" to all requests.

Okay, I can agree with this one.

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3. Cause and effect will result in some suffering. Smoking will eventually cause throat or lung disease.

Couldn't God take the disease out of the tobacco?  I know, free will and all that.

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4. Sometimes God allows evil to occur to us to fine tune us in holy righteous character, as in the case of Job.

Uh, he's supposed to be perfect, right?  Doesn't that mean he can make no mistakes?  So why where we not finely tuned upon our creation?

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5. Sometimes we can receive a punishment for refusing to carry out a mission for God, such as what happened to Jonah.

So your girlfriend is being punished by God?  What mission did she fail to accomplish?

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6. Sin causes suffering. What is sin? Sin is the transgression of the law (1 John 3:4). Breaking the ten commandments causes suffering.

Oh, so your Girlfriend broke the law? But I thought Jesus died so aare sins were forgiven, or did I miss something in the translation?

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7. Freedom of choice gives us the ability to make wrong choices. Without suffering for the wrong choices, we would never repent and make the right choices.

More "free will" stuff there, huh?

Answer 15

I'm an atheist, but if I did believe in God this is what I'd say:

We have free will. We live a life apart, in many aspects, from God. We have ties with God, and these ties are with us since birth. We can choose to strenghten those ties, or distance ourselves from him. You don't have to go to church to find God. You can find God in whatever way you choose, even through science. If you're doing some good in the world, no matter how small, you are strengthening your ties to God. God drops children off in the world and the way I see it, if the world is broken, it was broken by mankind, not by God. Mankind made the world what it is today. Mankind shaped God in the image of Man. That can be seen in the Bible, that they based God off of mankind. Not the other way around. All we have to do is learn. And maybe make the world better in the process. If the world is broken, then maybe we can fix it. And maybe that's what God, if he's real and I couldn't say if he was or not, wants us to do.  

Answer 16

Well, God uses the bad to bring on good.  "Beauty from pain" by Superchick is a good song that talks about this.  

Yes, God does allow children to be raped.  He allows what we consider to be 'good people' to suffer terribly.  

But we must remember, life on earth isnt the only life we have.  there is another.  And if we turn to Him, His goodness will by far overcome all of our griefs and sorrows when we, if we do accept Jesus as our Savior, get into Heaven.

Also, God gave us free will.  He gives us a certain extent of free reign.  Humanity is the reason for all bad things that occur, our sin.  When Adam and Eve first sinned, even nature itself was affected.  This life is sure to have trials and tribulations, there is no going away from that, especially if you are a true Christian.  Life isnt fair.  And if life was fair, it would be h**l.  



When we truly understand the reality of God and Heaven and h**l, sin loses its power and death loses its sting.  As a human, we must understand that we will be tested.  Our sin has consequences, and not just on us.  

If you follow the world, you will greatly contribute to this.  Follow God, go through with His tests, and you will understand the phrase 'be a light unto the world'.  There is hope, and Christians should be beacons of hope, real hope, not the false political hope we see in campaigns, but lifechanging hope and truth.

Answer 17

An all powerfull god cannot lift a finger due to "free will".

Some "all powerfull" god.

Answer 18

god gave us free agency.  he cannot control us. he lets us choose how we want to be.  unfortunately, there are a lot of bad people that cause a lot of bad things to happen.  so there is your answer.

Answer 19

God doesn't let terrible things happen, it's Satan's doing, not God's

The Holy Scriptures say that Satan tried tempting Jesus with riches and power of the world, but Jesus rebutted him and stayed faithful to thy Father.

Those that sin and do terrible things are the ones that have let Satan take charge of their actions.

Man are the ones doing the terrible things, not God.

Matt 4:10-11

Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan, for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.

Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.

Answer 20

I love it when people try to attribute evil to God and use the most horrific examples. "Little girls get raped and murdered, babys get cancer and die before they turn 1."

Evil things happen. God is not responsible for it. WE are in charge of the earth because God gave it to us. It is our responsibility to purge many of the avoidable evils from this world.

What have YOU done recently to protect a little girl from being raped and comfort a baby with an incurable sickness?

Answer 21

God gave Man dominion over this Earth and we turned around and gave it to Satan. Satan is the god of this world and that is why bad things happen. But the good news is, not for long because Jesus is coming back soon.

Answer 22

Here is what God says about it:

Rom 1:16   For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes-Jews first and also Gentiles.  

Rom 1:17   This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, "It is through faith that a righteous person has life."  

Rom 1:18   But God shows his anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who push the truth away from themselves.

Rom 1:19   For the truth about God is known to them instinctively.God has put this knowledge in their hearts.  

Rom 1:20   From the time the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky and all that God made. They can clearly see his invisible qualities-his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse whatsoever for not knowing God.  

Rom 1:21   Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn't worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. The result was that their minds became dark and confused.  

Rom 1:22   Claiming to be wise, they became utter fools instead.  

Rom 1:23   And instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people, or birds and animals and snakes.  

Rom 1:24   So God let them go ahead and do whatever shameful things their hearts desired. As a result, they did vile and degrading things with each other's bodies.  

Rom 1:25   Instead of believing what they knew was the truth about God, they deliberately chose to believe lies. So they worshiped the things God made but not the Creator himself, who is to be praised forever. Amen.  

Rom 1:26   That is why God abandoned them to their shameful desires. Even the women turned against the natural way to have s*x and instead indulged in s*x with each other.  

Rom 1:27   And the men, instead of having normal sexual relationships with women, burned with lust for each other. Men did shameful things with other men and, as a result, suffered within themselves the penalty they so richly deserved.  

Rom 1:28   When they refused to acknowledge God, he abandoned them to their evil minds and let them do things that should never be done.  

Rom 1:29   Their lives became full of every kind of wickedness, sin, greed, hate, envy, murder, fighting, deception, malicious behavior, and gossip.  

Rom 1:30   They are backstabbers, haters of God, insolent, proud, and boastful. They are forever inventing new ways of sinning and are disobedient to their parents.  

Rom 1:31   They refuse to understand, break their promises, and are heartless and unforgiving.  

Rom 1:32   They are fully aware of God's death penalty for those who do these things, yet they go right ahead and do them anyway. And, worse yet, they encourage others to do them, too.

Answer 23

First,  understand that a good answer as to why evil exists in a world that is under the soveriegn domain of an Almighty God might not sit well with you.  it is a choice of accepting or rejecting what is recieved from someone who claims to know.

for this reason it is very important that you know how to discern truth, or find counselors who can do it for you and are trust worthy.

first:   man was created innocent, not righteous. he had the ability to chose right or wrong, but he sinned.

once that happened, all mankind was born with a natural desire to sin. since we are by nature sinners, there is a limited amount that God does for us.  Does he care? Yes. Will he lift a finger to save someone as you note, save the children.

Sometimes.

the fact is, we do not have a window to understand why some survive something like the recent plane crash in madrid and others die. Why some walk almost unscathed from the collapsed trade towers while others are ground out of existance in the events that september morning.

it is Isa. 51 or 53, where the prophet is inquiring about the LORD and realizes the power of God saying, in the distress and tragedy, you are in the midst of it.

the LORD did not created the thing, he let man play out what he was trying to do.  one king ruling over another, and one power rising over another on both the national level or on very personal terms as in violence between family members.

unlike the book of Job, we seldom have that window into the mind of God apart from the revelation of the bible there is nothing that really makes since sometimes in the madness.

i won't go into detail about watching people die in iraq, but i still ponder deep personal questions that i will not share with anyone.  I have looked into the faces of dying people without any compassion on them as their death was not my doing or could i change anything, yet i mourn the loss of their souls,

my bible tells me that someday Jesus will wipe away my tears, and to that day i long

Answer 24

Answer:  There are several reason why suffering exists in our lives.  

1.  Time and chance happens to all (Ecclesiastes 9:11).  My girl friend was hit by a hit-and-run driver7 years ago.  She landed on her head, causing brain damage.  She will have seizures for the rest of her life due to nothing caused by her.  It was time and chance.  

2.  If you are a child of God, He will chasten you and see if you endure (Hebrews 12:6).  Love doesn't mean He will say "yes" to all requests.  

3.  Cause and effect will result in some suffering.  Smoking will eventually cause throat or lung disease.  

4. Sometimes God allows evil to occur to us to fine tune us in holy righteous character, as in the case of Job.  

5.  Sometimes we can receive a punishment for refusing to carry out a mission for God, such as what happened to Jonah.  

6.  Sin causes suffering.  What is sin?  Sin is the transgression of the law (1 John 3:4).  Breaking the ten commandments causes suffering.  

7.  Freedom of choice gives us the ability to make wrong choices.  Without suffering for the wrong choices, we would never repent and make the right choices.  

In summary, all the suffering can accrue to our benefit if we eventually overcome and adopt God’s attribute of love and give of ourselves, in spite of the suffering and pain.  God loves us and like a loving Father wants us to mature.  Maturity does not ordinarily come from an easy life.  

Answer 25

God has no part with sinners.

And Jesus already gave an answer to this question...'Unless you repent, you shall all perish'.

Luke 13: 2 Jesus answered, "Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way? 3I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. 4Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? 5I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish."

6Then he told this parable: "A man had a fig tree, planted in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it, but did not find any. 7So he said to the man who took care of the vineyard, 'For three years now I've been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven't found any. Cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?'

8" 'Sir,' the man replied, 'leave it alone for one more year, and I'll dig around it and fertilize it. 9If it bears fruit next year, fine! If not, then cut it down.' "

The point is, don't ask WHY because we are all bounded by time to repent and believe.  If we don't there's no reason why we as sinners should not be reaping the same fate as the condemned.  Remember this, Adam was cast out for one single sin.  How much more has you or me sinned???

For all have sinned and fallen from the grace of God.  Without God, we are doomed to suffer.  NO difference between having more sins or less sins.  The moment you sin, you reap death.  That's why God says that lukewarm christians are worthless to the kingdom and will surely be spat out.

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Answer 26

"God works in mysterious ways" the christian says when they are faced with sorrow.

Answer 27

Because its bullcrap. Why the h**l didnt god intervene during the holocaust? Because hes imaginary

For Kilo. There is an answer for why is the sky blue. Look it up.

Answer 28

And all the starving children in Africa.  

Answer 29

Ever consider the fact he is not actually there? Ppl do these things, not god.  

Answer 30

There is no actual explanation for what youre asking. It's like asking "What is the meaning of life?" or "Why is the sky blue". There are some questions to which there are no answers, the faithful just believe that our Lord has a reasoning behind everything, and you just have to accept that. You're never gonna get a real answer, simply because it doesnt exist.