Where in the world is God…when there is suffering?

My dear friends in Christ,

 

Throughout our Lenten worship we’ve focused on the question, “Where is God?” Where is he when only money counts? God is here—he provides everything we need and helps us fight greed. Where is he when we’re all alone? He walks with us so that we’re not alone. Where is he when the world only wants entertainment? He offers something better than entertainment—eternal life. Tonight we ask the question, “Where in the world is God when there is suffering?”

 

The Apostle’s Creed uses the word “suffering” to describe the last 24 hours of Jesus’ life. The word “agony” would also fit—intense physical pain and mental anguish. I brought along some thorns from home—the raspberry bushes in our back yard. I tried to turn them into a little crown. Would you like to wear this for the rest of the day? How about all day tomorrow? What would happen if someone pushed this down on your head? Jesus willingly wore it.

 

"I offered my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard; I did not hide my face from mocking and spitting." (Isaiah 50:6).

 

See what else I have. It’s a staff. Most of the time it helps a person walk, especially if the ground is uneven and rough. That’s not how the soldiers around Jesus used it. They used it as a baseball bat. They aimed for Jesus’ head and that thorny crown. “Again and again they struck him on the head with a staff.”

 

"Just as there were many who were appalled at him— his appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any man and his form marred beyond human likeness—" (Isaiah 52:14).

 

Don’t forget the bite of the scourge on Jesus’ back, the beatings administered as Jesus stumbled under the weight of the cross, the spikes pounded through his flesh, the struggle to get a breath.

 

Agony—intense physical pain; bruises, torn flesh, blood.

 

"He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth" (Isaiah 53:3,7).

 

Jesus endured intense mental anguish. The soldiers taunted him—dressing him like a king. They bowed before him, laughing and mocking the whole time. They spit in his face, a disgusting form of contempt. The insults continued even as Jesus hung on the cross.

 

"But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by men and despised by the people. All who see me mock me; they hurl insults, shaking their heads" (Psalm 22:6-7).

 

Where was God when his own Son suffered? Was he busy doing something else? Was he on vacation? Had he forgotten about Jesus? The answer is simple, yet profound. God was right there. Jesus, true God, accepted the suffering. He welcomed the agony. He willingly endured it. Jesus knew it was coming. He knew the Old Testament prophecies. He had even warned his followers, "We are going up to Jerusalem and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles, who will mock him and spit on him, flog him and kill him" (Mark 10:33-34).

 

How could God, who is loving, better yet, who is defined as love, allow such a thing to happen? He did it to spare us from experiencing agony that lasts much longer. Do you remember the story of the rich man and poor Lazarus? When Lazarus died, he went to heaven. The rich man died and was buried. Then Jesus said, "In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’" (Luke 16:23-24).

 

Hell is agony—intense physical pain from the fire that never goes out. Hell is agony—intense mental anguish because we have no relationship with God or anyone else forever. Jesus didn’t want us to experience that agony, so he went through it in our place.

 

"Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed" (Isaiah 53:4-5).

 

Where was God when Jesus was suffering? Right there, wearing a crown of thorns and a purple robe, beaten with a staff, scourged, and crucified. He suffered to pay for our sins. He suffered to restore a peaceful relationship with him. He suffered to heal the injuries sin inflicts on us every day.

 

We still have to answer the question for ourselves, don’t we? Where is God when we are suffering? Where is God when…my car breaks down…my marriage is at a rocky spot…when chemotherapy makes everything taste like a piece of metal…when my grades are in the tank…when I can’t find my favorite stuffed animal? Where is he?

 

I’d like to share the story of a young woman who could have asked, “Where is God when I’m suffering.” Let’s watch.

 

God was with Erin during her mysterious illness. God is with us, and he knows what we are suffering. His memory of agony is just as new as it was early on that first Good Friday. He hasn’t forgotten what he endured for us. How does our suffering compare? Does it equal the agony Jesus’ experienced? It can’t. He took the wrath of God that our sins deserved. It can’t be more agonizing than that. Here’s God’s advice for us when we wonder where he is while we’re suffering.

 

"Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart." (Hebrews 12:2-3).

 

Jesus did it all for us, even the agony and suffering that we deserved. Don’t let the suffering you’re experiencing suck the life out of you! Don’t give up on God. He will never give up on us! Amen.

 

To God alone the glory!          Pastor Jon Brohn