Does God hurt people?

This week the idea of God hurting people was laid before me in a group setting. Knowing the person who said it because of previous conversations with him/her I also know why it was said and the story is gut wrenching involving the death of a child. Even though my wife and I had a very close call with our own son and his near death experience and we shared how we cried out to God to have mercy on him and God did but not once did we blame God or was angry at God because of it happening but the story had no effect on this person. We were told if our son had died we would have been angry at God but this person was wrong because regardless of the outcome we know that God is good and this life’s conclusion is not the end but the beginning.

In the conversation that happened this week both my wife and I sat there without a response (it had such a great impact we still haven’t talked to each other about it) but others did speak out to say that’s not who God is, which made me glad. The comment was made that God hurts people and it’s not right. Our pastor has been teaching about the character of God and having relationship with Him and how good He is and this same person said they feel like screaming at the pastor when they hear him describe God that way. These words have haunted me ever since they were spoken, feeling like I should have had a quick response defending who God was and is but I know this person is hurting and in this case time is not healing wounds. My concern is if this person really knows who God is and what eternal impact that will have on any individual who is feeling this way? In this case does going to church make a difference if I am that angry at God? I am reminded of this scripture…

Matthew 7:21-27 MKJV  Not everyone who says to Me, Lord! Lord! shall enter the kingdom of Heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in Heaven.  (22)  Many will say to Me in that day, Lord! Lord! Did we not prophesy in Your name, and through Your name throw out demons, and through Your name do many wonderful works?  (23)  And then I will say to them I never knew you! Depart from Me, those working lawlessness!  (24)  Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on a rock.  (25)  And the rain came down, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house. And it did not fall, for it was founded on a rock.  (26)  And everyone who hears these sayings of Mine and does not do them shall be compared to a foolish man who built his house on the sand.  (27)  And the rain came down, and the floods came, and the wind blew and beat on that house. And it fell, and great was its fall.

In this group we went on from there to discuss people being sick and God not healing them, even though they do great things for God, implying how can God allow this and still be just? At that point I did speak up and said this, “I believe in the law of reaping and sowing, many times we do things in our youth that is bad for our body but as we grow up we turn towards God to serve Him and when we get older we blame God for poor health but in truth it is the result of decisions made in our youth.” I know this first hand to be true and yes I do believe God is gracious and merciful but His ultimate mercy will be made known when we pass from this life to the next. This is what I am experiencing now, God leads us (His true believers) by His spirit, we have a choice to either humble ourselves, listen, and obey or we can be completely oblivious to His call and do our own thing because we like being comfortable. It is not God who causes us to get sick but rather, in many cases, He warns us, if we will listen, to make healthy choices. Here is a simple example. Because of not eating right and lack of exercise I have had low energy for some time now as a result I started drinking coffee so that I was coherent at work. Unfortunately, that temporary boost of energy allowed me to make things even worse by not keeping a good schedule and going to bed on time! What was my answer? Start drinking two cups of coffee in the morning. It came to my attention that I was doing something wrong when I took the family to CoSi science museum in Columbus not too long ago and there was a machine that when you grabbed the handle it would cause a kick drum to beat according to your own heartbeat. My wife’s was nice and slow like it should be but when I grabbed it you would have thought I just got through running five miles but I had done nothing strenuous. You see God had been telling me for a long time to eat right and it was then I was reminded that I should pray before eating and ask that God bless the food and guide me so that what I do eat is good for me and that my portions are according to His will. You want a diet plan that has results, then start here.

I am happy to report that I am eating less red meat, regularly drinking veggie blends, and exercising more. I cut out drinking coffee all except once or twice a week I’ll have one small cup. You see it wasn’t about me doing more or drinking more or eating more but it’s about me stopping and listening to God’s quiet, still voice. Had I kept going I know it would have led to me to a hospital bed somewhere and if I were like many in the church today I would no doubt say, “God how could you have let this happen? I was serving you at church, I was tithing, I was providing for my family.” Yes I understand how the enemy will lie to people to get them to believe God hurts them but it’s not true. I also know it is easier to blame God than it is to change bad habits or to move out of our comfort zone but where will that lead us? Will that way of thinking be profitable for us in the end?

On judgement day those who have not had real relationship with God’s Son will have all of their excuses ready but when they see God’s face their defense they worked so hard on will have no ground on which to stand for all the sand beneath their feet will have washed away and for those who do trust God and have relationship with Him, even we will have questions. We will ask, “God why did you not heal?” and “Is healing no longer for today?” God will say, “Child I was ready to heal, why did you not listen and follow me? For my will to heal you was as strong in the last days as it ever had been but it required you to listen and obey.”  You see the law of reaping and sowing is not set up to punish but to remind us that God’s ways are higher than our own. The more sensitive we are to the leading of God’s Holy Spirit and the more determined we are to obey the higher the heights we experience on this path to righteousness in which God is leading us. Our determination to step exactly where He has stepped is in direct relationship with the things God has prepared to show us this side of heaven. And who are we to tell God what He does or does not do is right or wrong, for we are the ones that are strangers to righteousness! True heaven is being with the One who gave everything so that we might have relationship with Him, it is not a place! Are we going through a list of “Do’s and Don’ts” so that we can go to a final destination and why do we want to go there so bad? Is it to see those who have passed before us or is it to come face to face with the One who has led us on this journey, the One who allows us to feel the consequences of not following, putting us in a place of temporary discomfort so that the eternal is made secure? What kind of God would we serve if He made us comfortable now but we missed all that He’s planning on the other side? And should we get it wrong and this life end prematurely does that mean God does not love us or He gets pleasure from punishing us because He wants to hurt us? No, I tell you the truth, God’s grace and mercy is long suffering but you must understand these things must be experienced because this life is not the end of the adventure! Yes, we will celebrate and finally the earth will know peace and it will cease to moan for the coming of God’s Son because His glory will be revealed in that day but the purpose God has placed in us has not come to its final destination, even then but I tell you all of the things we have experienced in this life will be nothing more than preparation for what God has planned next, of which we cannot know now but one day it will be revealed and all our questions why will be answered!