The Case for God’s Love
Job 40:1-9; Romans 8:18-21, 28-30
It is one of the foundational truths of the Bible that brings comfort to all who ponder its depths: “God is love” (1 John 4.8). Love is the very essence of His being. He loves because He is love. He calls His people, covenants with them, and sends His Son to dwell among them and His Spirit to dwell in them.
The present experiences of suffering can be viewed differently when related to eternity. In the account of Job’s tragic and profound loss, he repeatedly cries out to God, asking many questions, even questioning God’s justice (Job 24). Will God provide answers explaining Job’s loss and why the righteous suffer?
In Job 38-41, God neither answers Job’s questions nor explains His purposes. Instead, God issues His own list of questions to Job, and insightfully explains to Job that in the vast universe he can trust in God. In many ways the mere presence of God, rather than a list of tidy answers, is the answer to Job’s protesting questions. God is present, and that is enough.
In the New Testament book of Romans, Paul outlines the seriousness of God’s love for His people. God’s plan of salvation, says Paul, extends to eternity; we may not always find its purposes in the present, because its ultimate fulfillment is in the future. God desires His people to “to be conformed to the image of his Son.”
This is the purpose of His call on peoples’ lives (Romans 8.28), and we face many episodes in life that are used by God to shape us into this image. We can trust that His loving purposes will be fulfilled.
People face suffering differently. Some withstand the trials and keep the faith; tragically, others conclude that God must not exist, or He must not be in control. The Bible, however, assures us that even though circumstances may not show it immediately, God loves us even in the darkest hours. Present circumstances may seem overwhelming, but in the light of eternity they pale. We have power to face any circumstance because God is love.
Neal– Lessons by Ryan Neal, chair of undergraduate programs in Christian studies and assistant professor of Christian studies at Anderson University (www.auministry.com).