Why God? How could you allow this?

Hinzugefügt: 2026-05-27

[00:00:00]I thought you was mighty. I thought you was able. DON'T WE SING THAT SONG? LIKE, I THOUGHT YOU WAS ABLE. THEN WHERE ARE YOU RIGHT NOW, GOD? WHY WON'T YOU MOVE ON MY BEHALF? DIDN'T THE PREACHER PROMISE ME THAT YOU WOULD DO EVERYTHING I ASKED YOU TO DO? IF GOD WAS ALL POWERFUL, THE ATHEIST WRITES, HE WOULD HAVE created an environment with no suffering. IF HE WAS SO WISE, IF HE WAS SO GREAT, why didn't he create an environment with no suffering? We shouldn't have to be inflicted with this right now. Who says? Because you could be doing well, financially well. You could be on a mountaintop and then life will rock you. And we think that God is mean because how could he allow something like this to happen to you?

[00:00:41]How could you allow this man I'm married to start doing all these things to me?

[00:00:44]How [music] could you allow that divorce? How could you allow this person to walk out? How could you allow my mother to abandon me? How could you allow my father to abandon me? How could you allow my parents to leave me and I never met them? How could you allow me to be raised in this kind of home armed to what? To protect myself. Protect what? My mind and to protect my heart.

[00:01:03]So you want me to protect MY MIND AND MY HEART with the attitude of Christ?

[00:01:11]What what do what do we do when your body is racked with pain and it doesn't leave? What do you do with the divorce that rocked your soul or the person that persecuted you? What do you do with betrayal? What do you do with loss? What do you do with a difficult marriage?

[00:01:28]What what do you do with the death of a loved one that you believe for? What do you do when your pastor and you're just a couple months out from starting your church called victory and your FATHER HIS BODY IS being ate up with cancer two doors down from you and and you're over there caring for him. You're changing HIS DIAPERS. YOU'RE BELIEVING GOD FOR HIM. YOU'RE SHEDDING TEARS every night.

[00:01:49]How do you SEE ONE THING DYING TWO DOORS DOWN WHILE YOU'RE TRYING TO BIRTH SOMETHING AT the same time? What do you do with that? AND WHAT DO YOU DO WITH THE FACT THAT YOU'VE DONE ALL YOU KNOW HOW TO DO AND HE STILL DIES? What what what do you do with that? LIKE WHAT PART OF OUR THEOLOGY IS IS WE supposed to put that in? What drawer do we put that in?

[00:02:08]Do we put that IN THE GOD THE BLESSING DRAWER? DO WHAT WHAT WHAT WHERE DO WE FILE AWAY ALL OF THE THE THE pain and the hardship and the issues and the problems and the sorrows and the difficulties, the real stories of suffering that is happening in this room, in our homes, around the world.

[00:02:30]Where are we supposed TO FILE ALL OF THAT in our theological framework? What do we do with the real stories of suffering? What do you do when your child is sick and God won't move? What do you do when you're crying over something at night and if you'll be honest, you're angry at God because he won't move? What do you do when you swing the seed to the television preacher who told you if you sold this $1,000, God will miraculously move on your behalf and it's been 5 years later and he still not has moved? Like, like what do you what do you what do you do with that? Because what do you do with all of the brokenness, hardship, pain, devastation, loss, and suffering that is happening right now in this room?

[00:03:11][music] Right now, as I'm speaking, this room is saturated with suffering. What what what do we do with with all of that? But just bless the Lord. And like what what do what do we do when the heart is sick?

[00:03:27]What do we do with depression? What do we do with chronic illness? What do we do with the marriage that is wearing us down? Like, what do what do we do with all of that suffering? And if if if [music] we're honest, and if I'm honest, you know what we have wrestled with?

[00:03:41]We've wrestled with why. We've wrestled with how.

[00:03:46]We've wrestled with when, God, will you lift this? Why, God, has you allowed this to happen to me? What? What? What did I do wrong to deserve what's happening to me right now? God, I thought you was good, right? I thought you was loving. I thought you was great.

[00:04:03]I thought you was mighty. I thought you was able. DON'T WE SING THAT SONG? LIKE I THOUGHT YOU WAS ABLE. THEN WHERE ARE YOU RIGHT NOW, GOD? WHY WON'T YOU MOVE ON MY BEHALF? DIDN'T THE PREACHER PROMISE ME THAT YOU WOULD DO EVERYTHING I ASKED YOU TO DO? RIGHT? SO WHY AREN'T YOU MOVING RIGHT NOW ON MY BEHALF? GOD, HAVEN'T SOME OF US BEEN ANGRY WITH THE LORD BECAUSE HE HAS NOT MOVED ON THEIR BEHALF? LIKE SO WHAT DO WE DO WITH all of that? Right? What are the arguments made against God as a result of that? I respect the views of other people. So, what does the atheist say about the suffering and the so-called existence of God? A very well-known atheist by the name of uh uh Richard Dawkins, he writes this, "The total amount of suffering for a year in the natural world is beyond all decent contemplation." That is, in my mind, I cannot fathom the amount of suffering I see in the world. This what he wrote. During the minute that it takes for me to compose this sentence, thousands of animals are being eaten alive. Many others are running for their lives, whimpering with fear. Others are slowly being devoured from within by rasping parasites. And thousands of all kinds are dying of starvation, thirst, and disease. It must be so. If there ever is a time of plenty, this very fact will automatically lead us to an increase in the population until the natural state of starvation and misery is restored. This atheist goes on to write, "In a universe of electrons and selfish genes, blind physical forces, and genetic replication, some people are going to get hurt, other people are going to get lucky, and you won't find any rhyme or reason in it." That is you can't make sense of all of the suffering in the world. This is what this atheist is. No one can make sense of all of the suffering in the world. No one. No justice. The universe that we observe has precisely the properties which we should expect if there is at the bottom no design. You know what no design means? No God, no purpose, no evil, no good, nothing but pitiles indifference, writes Richard Dawkins. I'm going to come back to this. An atheist said, "If God was all powerful, he would have created an environment with no suffering." If God was all powerful, HE WOULD HAVE CREATED an environment with no suffering. This is going to click for some people in a couple minutes. IF GOD WAS ALL POWERFUL, THE ATHEIST WRITES, HE WOULD HAVE CREATED an environment with no suffering. If he was so wise, IF HE WAS SO GREAT, WHY DIDN'T HE CREATE AN ENVIRONMENT with no suffering? IF HE WAS SO GOOD, IF HE WAS SO MIGHTY, IF HE WAS SO POWERFUL, THEN WHY DIDN'T THE GOD OF THE CHRISTIANS CREATE AN ENVIRONMENT WITH no suffering, no evil, but evil and suffering exists here? And I I think about modern preaching and I I I wept so bitterly in my office this week just studying, man, I gripped myself and my soul and put my face to THE WALL AND GRABBED IN TEARS WHEN I THOUGHT ABOUT MODERN CHRISTIANITY, RIGHT? CUZ THEY DON'T HELP THE ARGUMENTS OF THESE ATHEISTS, RIGHT? They teach people THAT IF YOU COME TO JESUS, YOU'LL HAVE A PERFECT TRIP WITH NO PAIN AND NO SUFFERING. IF YOU PUT YOUR FAITH IN CHRIST, HE PROMISES YOU A LIFE OF BLESSING WITH NO PAIN AND NO SUFFERING.

[00:07:29]COME TO HIM FOR THE HOUSE. COME TO HIM FOR THE CAR. COME TO HIM FOR THE JOB.

[00:07:34]COME TO HIM FOR THE MARRIAGE. COME TO HIM FOR THE BLESSING. COME TO HIM FOR THE BLANK. IF YOU COME TO THE LORD, HE PROMISES YOU A LIFE of blessing, a life of ease, a life of happiness, a life of no problems whatso, a perfect flight with no turbulence. AND PEOPLE BUY INTO THAT AT THE CONFERENCES. They read that garbage ON BLOGS. THEY BUY UP ALL THAT GARBAGE IN BOOKS AND then they get disappointed BECAUSE THEY BOUGHT INTO A Jesus that does not exist. Not the Jesus of THE BIBLE. NOT THE JESUS of scriptures. And then WHEN WE BUY INTO ALL OF THAT, WHETHER THE ARGUMENT OF THE ATHEISTS, and I respect their argument, or the false preaching of Christianity, it leaves the heart sick and wanting, right? It leaves the heart grieve. It causes people to believe that God is not loving, that God does not exist, that he is not all powerful, that he denies them. It breathes in us a deep sense of entitlement that because I'm saved, I have a right to what I want from God. I have a right to not have a problem. I have a right to not have an issue. I have a right to not deal with suffering.

[00:08:45]I have a right to not deal with praying.

[00:08:47]Watch. My wife and I should not be enduring this. Who says we shouldn't be going through this right now? Who says we shouldn't have to be inflicted with this right now? Who says? Because you COULD BE DOING WELL, financially well.

[00:08:59]You do could be on a mountaintop and then life will rock you. And we think that God IS MEAN BECAUSE HOW COULD HE ALLOW something like this to happen to me? How could he allow my heart to deal with such how could he allow me to preach and deal with insecurities at the same time? Jesus, >> how can you allow me to lead a ministry and deal with depressions at the end of every year? How could you allow me to lead a church CALLED VICTORY THAT YOU'RE BLESSING IN ALL THESE WAYS AND AT THE end of every year I'm battling with depression and battles IN MY MIND? HOW COULD GOD ALLOW THAT TO HAPPEN TO ME?

[00:09:29]HOW COULD YOU ALLOW THE ENEMY TO ATTACK ME LIKE THAT? WHY? HOW? WHEN? GOD, AM I THE ONLY ONE THAT HAS QUESTIONED HIM LIKE THAT? NO. NO. How could you allow that suffering, God? How could you allow this man I'm married to start doing all these things to me? How could you allow that divorce? How could you allow this person to walk out? How could you allow my mother to abandon me? How could you allow my father to abandon me? How could you allow my parents to leave me and I never met them? How could you allow me to be raised in this kind of home? How could you allow that person to touch me when I was this age? How did you allow them to walk into the room when they wasn't supposed to? Right, God? How do you allow me to carry [music] these scars and this baggage? Like, why was you? Where was you? When are you? How are we supposed to deal with all of that suffering? It warps our perspective about God. And then this kind of false preaching and even the arguments of the atheist, [music] it leaves no theology for suffering at all. There must be a theology of suffering. watch that is stronger than your emotions. And there must be a theology of suffering that is stronger than your experience. If there is no theology stronger than your experience and there is no theology for suffering stronger than your emotions, then the word of God fails us and we can't trust the Lord. So in the pages of his word, there must be a theology in the pages of his word THAT GIVES ME STRENGTH ABOVE WHAT I'm going through.

[00:10:54]Even if it does not change in the moment, there must be, listen to me, and I said this to someone else not that long ago. We must have a theology of suffering that [music] is greater than my emotions because my emotions will cause me to walk away from the Lord. My emotions will cause me to abandon the faith. My emotions will cause me to blaspheme the Lord. My emotions would sink me into a depression because the genie that I bought into from the conference I went to that that God has not answered my prayer according to the quote unquote famous preacher or the ones who make a HUGE FINANCIAL EMPIRE.

[00:11:33]PETER, he's watching brothers and sisters in the Christian church. They're being scattered all across Jerusalem.

[00:11:39]They're being scattered all across different cities. People are running for their lives. Families are in a disarray.

[00:11:45]societies in a different way. People are being snatched out of their homes. I mean, it is an awful situation. And Peter LOOKS OUT AT ALL OF THIS THAT'S GOING ON AND HE THOUGHT TO HIMSELF, MAN, I HAVE TO ENCOURAGE THESE PEOPLE. I GOT TO TELL THEM SOMETHING TO ENCOURAGE THEIR HEARTS BECAUSE HE'S WATCHING PEOPLE'S HEARTS FAIL FOR FEAR. They're scared. They're running. They're being brutally persecuted. And he thinks to himself, "Man, I have to say something to encourage these people. Man, I got to preach some sermon. I got to send them some email. I got to make some post. I got TO GET THEM SOME DOCUMENT that they can read and THAT IT WOULD LIFT THEIR HEARTS. WHAT DO YOU THINK HE WOULD WRITE? THE LORD IS GOING TO BLESS YOU.

[00:12:25]HOLD ON. Help is coming. Hold on. He didn't he didn't write that. He he took a pen parchment and he's looking over watch people dying and he sits down and he writes first Peter. He says in 1 Peter chapter 4 as says says this therefore since Christ suffered in his body arm yourselves also with the same attitude because he who suffered in his [music] body is done with sin. He oh you poor >> not not not blessings >> not not not the Lord is going to come through right now. THEY JUST KILLED MY WIFE IN NERO'S GARDEN. AND YOUR YOUR ENCOURAGEMENT TO ME IS ARM MYSELF for with the same attitude as Christ. Arm myself. Arm to watch to protect myself.

[00:13:16]Protect what? My mind and to protect my heart. So you want me to protect MY MIND AND MY HEART WITH THE ATTITUDE OF CHRIST. SO CHRIST'S ATTITUDE WILL BE MY COMFORT AND CHRIST'S ATTITUDE will be my strength. So whatever his attitude is, that's supposed to be the guard for my mind of. So right NOW AS YOU'RE SITTING IN this chair with your heaviness, your hurt, your brokenness, your sorrow, YOUR PAIN, YOUR COMFORT IS ARM YOURSELF WITH THE SAME ATTITUDE OF CHRIST. WELL, WHAT WAS HIS ATTITUDE? Blessed are you >> when men persecute you and revile you and say all MEN OF EVIL AGAINST you for my name's sake. Rejoice for great is your reward in heaven.

[00:14:02]>> JESUS, >> THE WORLD HATED ME, therefore they will hate you too.

[00:14:10]>> IF THE PROPHETS BEFORE ME WAS PERSECUTED, THEY WILL PERSECUTE you too.

[00:14:15]>> Jesus, >> IF ANYONE WOULD BE MY DISCIPLE, HE MUST DENY HIMSELF.

[00:14:21]>> Deny myself. THAT BRINGS SUFFERING.

[00:14:23][crying] IF ANYONE WOULD BE MY DISCIPLE, HE MUST TAKE UP HIS CROSS. His cross. If I'm going to FOLLOW YOU, JESUS, I GOT TO CARRY A CROSS. An instrument of death.

[00:14:34]You mean suffering in my Christianity is what YOU WANT ME TO CARRY FOR BEING YOUR DISCIPLE? Is that Is THAT WHAT YOU WANT me to carry? In just a LITTLE WHILE, YOU WILL SEE ME NO more because the son of MAN WILL BE PUT TO DEATH AND THEY WILL SPIT ON HIM AND SCOURGE HIM. IS THIS the Is that the man who said that? WAS HE THE MAN THAT says in this life you will have trouble? Was this the same man that looked the person writing this in his eyes and said to him, "Peter, you're going to be a great pastor, man. You're going to ball out. You're going to preach sermon. Thousands going. You're going to be the first pastor. You love me. You love me. Love me. Peter, do this. Do this. Do this." And the same man looked Peter in the eyes and said, "Hey, but but you know something? After you preach all them great messages, when you are old, they will come and get you and stretch out your hands. Was this the attitude of Jesus? They're going to come and get you and stretch out your hands and they're going to carry you to a place you do not want to go. Telling him that Peter, you know how you're going to die? You're not going to preach and have a great long life in ministry. And then they're not going to put you on Wikipedia and your children are not going to be HAPPY BECAUSE YOUR WIFE and children are going to know you as the man that was crucified. Peter died of crucifixion. in the first century AD.

[00:15:50]Arm yourself with that attitude and my suffering. And he goes on to say, as a result, he does not live the rest of his earthly life. Talking about those who are suffering before evil human desires.

[00:16:01]What? So if I if I change my desires from sinful desires to right desires, does that not BRING SUFFERING, BUT RATHER for the will of God? For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do, living in debauchery and lust and drunkenness and orgies and carousing and detestable idolatry. Hold on, God. So if I become a believer, you want me to turn away from my sin? ISN'T THAT GOING TO BRING MORE SUFFERING? IF I CAN'T BALL OUT THE WAY I USED TO BALL OUT, ISN'T THAT GOING TO BRING MORE SUFFERING? IF I CAN'T FOLLOW THE PASSIONS OF MY FLESH, ISN'T THAT GOING TO BRING MORE? DIDN'T YOU GIVE ME A BURNING FOR sex and you want me to hold that down? Doesn't that produce more suffering? This is your comfort for me, man. God, I'm following you. And now the people that used to love me, they don't love me no more cuz I don't do all the things I used to do with them. And watch, now I'm lonely cuz my friends [music] think I'm a super Christian. And they persecute me because of my post on Facebook and because the way I tweet now and because of my Instagram. People who used to love me persecute me. God, how could you allow this to happen to me? I THOUGHT THEY WERE MY FRIENDS.

[00:17:10]Isn't that not more suffering, Lord? Now I'm lonely. I feel like I'm the ONLY ONE OUT HERE GRINDING. AND THE PEOPLE THAT I USED TO RUN WITH, THEY DON'T EVEN WANT TO BE AROUND ME. Then he says these powerful words. [music] This is why I talked about eternity last week. The end of all things is near. Therefore, be clear, brothers. Be sober minded. Be clear. Be self-control so that you can pray. Jesus, >> have a clear mind. Understand right theology so that you can pray >> and because we are human beings who hurt one another. He says above all love each other deeply because what love covers a multitude of sins. Why? Because suffering comes through relationships too. So he SAYS LOVE ONE ANOTHER HOW DEEPLY FORGIVE QUICKLY. Give grace swiftly.

[00:18:06]Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each one should use. You want me to serve in the middle of my suffering? No, Lord. I'm going through much too much right now in this season of my life to help the church. But he says each one should use whatever gift he has received to watch serve others.

[00:18:23]Didn't we talk about that last week? A life of what? Pouring.