Description
Exploring God’s Purpose in Suffering: A Reflection on John 9:3
In this episode, we delve into the age-old question of w… (visit YouTube for more)
Transcript
I think everyone wonders, not least Christians, why God allows suffering in this world of his. We have one of our answers in today’s verse for meditation. It’s John chapter nine, verse three. Jesus answered, "It was not that this man sinned or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him."
So this is the man born blind that Jesus has just healed, he’s restored his sight to him and he’s saying the reason why this man was born blind was so that God’s work, God’s glory, could be displayed. Well that seems a bit harsh, doesn’t it?
No. God’s purposes are so vast and infinite we can’t always understand them, but it is vitally important that God’s glory be displayed. He is the most glorious being there is and ever can be. And it’s appropriate for his glory to be displayed.
And he chooses for that glory to be displayed through us. Jesus uses him to show how God can heal and restore and put things right that we caused to go wrong when our father, our mother, Adam and Eve sinned and all Creation fell. God is about the business of restoring creation back to the way it was before the Fall, and even better, because we will be in constant fellowship with him.
Suffering is difficult. Jesus suffered too. He’s not asking anything of us that he wasn’t prepared to do himself. But sometimes, in that suffering, one of the purposes is for God’s glory to be revealed. That may not be a comfort to us while we are suffering, but it is a truth that we can cling on to.
May all glory go to God. And may God bless you, whatever you’re facing in your life.
