“Then Job took a piece of broken pottery to scrape himself while he sat among the ashes…Throughout all this Job did not sin in what he said.” Job 2:8-10, CSB

“I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. You will have suffering in this world. Be courageous! I have conquered the world.” -John 16:33, CSB

The Reality of Suffering

If you’ve been a Christian for any length, you will likely see pastors or church leaders reference Job when talking about tragedy and suffering. There is every good reason to do so. In the Job narrative, we are faced with the question that the author is guiding us to ask: Where is God in our suffering? We look at Job’s story and find it easy to relate to Job if you’ve experienced loss or tragedy. I think it’s reasonable for anyone going through suffering to ask that question. Suffering reveals to us an important characteristic of the world we live in: the world is deeply broken. The Bible is filled with evidence pointing to the fact that the world is not as it should be and actually tells us why that is. It also provides a clear message that God is working to restore all things. I want to help us work through the question by examining what the Bible says about God’s character, who He is and what He’s like, and our fallen condition. I also want to offer some biblical reasons for you to have hope if you are enduring suffering on any scale.

The Way the World Is

I’ll start by walking through why the world is this way. Genesis 1-3 tells the story of how God created and ordered the universe and the beings he entrusted with its care and growth. The pinnacle of God’s creative design is Humanity. God created humanity to serve as regents to oversee, administer His will, and govern all of creation. But soon after being given this position of authority, Humanity chooses their own way instead of God’s way. You’ve heard the saying: “my way or the highway” and Genesis 3 is all about the consequences of humans choosing their own way instead of trusting in God’s wisdom. Since that time fear, death, and chaos entered into the world. Human relationships were distorted. Their relationship with God had gone from close fellowship to distant and fractured. This is the world in which we find ourselves today.

What is God Like?

On the reverse side, in Genesis 1-3 we catch a glimpse into who God is. We see that He is immeasurably powerful (Gen. 1:1), He is wise to create a worker to tend the Garden in Eden (Gen. 2:15), and He is merciful in withholding justice from those deserving and gracious to cover their shame (Gen. 3:21). We can also see that God is not sitting idly by watching His good world implode. “I will put hostility between you and the woman, and between her offspring and your offspring. He will strike your head and you will strike His heel (Gen. 3:15). Instead, we see God laying the seeds (pun intended) for restoring humanity and all of creation. God cares enough about His world to not simply cast it off but work to restore it. But know that it is okay to feel the hurt. It is okay to show your emotions because God is not put off

So Where is God in Our Suffering?

I think we get the answer to the question of God’s perceived absence in what Job’s friends do when they first meet him. “When they looked from a distance, they could barely recognize him. They wept aloud, and each man tore his robe and threw dust into the air and on his head. Then they sat on the ground with him seven days and nights, but no one spoke a word to him because they saw that his suffering was very intense” (Job 2:12-13). I want to point out a few ways that Job’s friends demonsgrate how God is with us and how He responds in our grief:

• They Could Barely Recognize Him (v.11): God can recognize us in our Even when our faces are tear-stained, our eyes are red-rimmed, and we look like we haven’t eaten or seen sunlight in days. We are never unrecognizable to God in our grief.
• They wept aloud and genuinely mourned (v.12): God’s heart can be grieved. Isaiah tells us that the suffering servant in his prophecy, fulfilled in Jesus, is a man of sorrow who is quite familiar with grief (Isaiah 53)
• They sat with him in silence (v.13a): God does not always speak to us audibly or through great big signs. There are times when God does not speak to us and I think that includes when we grieve, but not for the reasons you might think. Like Job’s friends, sometimes God is sitting there with us in the dirt, ashes, and silence. Not silent maliciously or indifferently, but in a way that shows His presence is comfort enough until the right time comes for Him to speak, comfort, and strengthen you.
• They saw his suffering was very intense (v.13b): There is no instance in which God does not see how deep our grief goes. Like Job’s friends, He sees just how intense your suffering and anguish is; He is the only one who truly understands your grief.

CONCLUSION

The Psalms are filled with prayers from broken and hurting hearts. In my Bible, there is a small description of Psalm 102 which says “A prayer of a suffering person who is weak and pours out his lament before the Lord.” I believe verse 4 shows us just how bad our grief can become: “My heart is suffering like withering grass; I even forget to eat my food.” (Ps. 102:4, CSB). Suffering and grief can cause us to forget to take care of ourselves. For the one who suffers, this may hit close to home. Yet, at the end, the psalmist can still say, “Your servants’ children will dwell securely, and their offspring will be established before you” (Ps. 102:28).

My encouragement to anyone walking through suffering or grief is this: The God of the universe, who although He governs the entire universe and holds it together by His power, is radically concerned with your suffering. You are seen, known, and loved by God Almighty. And even if your suffering is prolonged and you don’t see an end in sight, I remind you of Christ’s final encouragement to his followers that it might be your own, “And remember I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20b).