Francis Anderson, in his splendid little commentary on Job, compares how human beings view suffering with the biblical view: Men seek an explanation of suffering in cause and effect. They look backwards for a connection between prior sin and present…
Job: A Writer of Superlative Genius Has Erected a Monumental Work
With my October series on Job just around the bend, I’m studying the book of Job nearly every day. Francis Anderson’s commentary on Job begins with this splendid summary that our church may hear me quote in the fall. The…
When Suffering Avoid “I Hate Thee” and “I Hate Me”
Good theology will help us avoid blaming God (“I hate Thee”) or improperly blaming ourselves (“I hate me”) when we face great difficulty. I continue to prepare for my Fall series on the book of Job. As a part of…
“Job is a fireball book”
I continue to think about the family in our community who lost everything in a fire at the same time that their twelve year old’s son was broken in an accident. At the same time, I am preparing my fall…
Does the book of Job offer an explanation for why people suffer?
I am preparing to preach this coming fall on the book of Job. This week, I am studying with a group with Dr. John Walton of Wheaton College. One of the first questions that comes up when studying Job is…
Christian Books on Pain and Suffering
Christian books on pain and suffering shouldn’t give simplistic answers. Yancey is right, “Why?” is a question that doesn’t go away. I am preparing for a series on Job this fall at the Red Brick Church– – and I’m a…
Christians need not be intellectually troubled that they can’t exhaustively explain why God allows evil
A theodicy is “a defense of God’s goodness and omnipotence in view of the existence of evil.” A theodicy speaks to the question, “If God is good and all-powerful, how do we explain the existence of evil.” So how do…