September 11, 2005

Four Years and Thirteen Days

John 9:1-9

Opening Words: The word is theodicy. Webster defines it as, “a defense of God’s goodness and omnipresence in view of the existence of evil and suffering in the world.”  It was first coined by the German philosopher Leibniz in 1797. His world was facing suffering and evil too! There was an outbreak of illness spreading throughout Europe. The philosopher asked, “How can a good God let such bad things happen? You can distill that question down to one word, “Why?” In the last four years and thirteen days have you asked the question, “Why?”

In this morning’s scripture lesson the disciples are asking why. The disciples are walking along and find this poor fellow, who had been blind from birth. In Jesus’ day they tried to answer the why question by connecting sin with suffering. The poor blind fellow was suffering, so who sinned? Did his parents sin or did he sin? They believed in prenatal sin. In other words, they believed you could sin in your mother’s womb. That is how they answered the why question. This is my question for you today: Why does God let bad things happen?

Introduction

It was four years ago today that our view of the world changed. It was four years ago today that terrorism came to America. It was four years ago today that jets flew into the World Trade Center in New York City. It was four years ago today that a jet flew into the Pentagon. It was four years ago today that a jet crashed in western Pennsylvania, missing its intended target. How much has our world changed in four years? Why does God let bad things happen?

It was thirteen days ago that hurricane Katrina left the Gulf of Mexico and came to America. It has been thirteen days and the city of New Orleans is still under water. It has been thirteen days and the people of Biloxi, Mississippi can’t believe their city and homes have changed forever. Satellite shots tell us the coastline, itself, has changed. It has been thirteen days and people are still missing. It has been thirteen days and the economic impact is still being counted. It has been thirteen days and victims still haven’t left. It has been thirteen days and I am still trying to recover from compassion overload. Why does God let bad things happen?

Terrorism and the hurricane have grabbed the headlines but there are mountains of bad things that will never make the evening news. In the past four years and thirteen days how many bad things have happened to you or a friend? How many traffic accidents? How many diseases have been diagnosed? How many loved ones have died? How many divorces have been granted or bankruptcies have been filed? Do you feel safer today than you did four years ago? This is today’s question. Why does God let bad things happen? Why does a good and omnipresent God let such things happen? Why didn’t God make those jets stall on the runway? Why didn’t God unplug Katrina when she was just a little disturbance off the coast of Africa? This sermon is designed to help you get a handle on those bad things that happen in our world.

Body

Today I want to talk about three realities. The first one is the reality of evil. The second one is the reality of suffering. The third one is the reality of hope.  Each one is illustrated in the ninth chapter of John and 24/7 news. Each one will help you have a better handle on the bad things that happen in our world. I believe they will help you deal with the bad things that happen in our world. Why does God let bad things happen? So if you are ready to look at these three realities say, “Amen!” Why does God let bad things happen?

As you watch your television from your favorite chair have you seen any evil? In the Bible story the disciples saw evil. The disciples connected suffering and evil. The gentleman was blind because he or his parents had sinned. The rabbis taught that if sin could be eliminated, then suffering would be eliminated. There are many in our society that hold to that philosophy.

One of the things that amazes me about this area is local talk radio. People love to call in and give their opinions. When Hurricane Katrina hit and the reports came about all the damage, people called and gave their opinions. Instead of talking about the human suffering, they tried to justify the storm by theology. One group said that the storm wiped out New Orleans because of the sins of New Orleans, the drinking, gambling and sexuality. One local resident said, “It was God’s way of getting their attention.”

We live in a time of bad theology. Many believe God has blessed America because we are good people. Many believe as long as we continue being good that God will continue to bless us. But if you fail to do good then God will curse us. That is what they say at the coffee shop. Do you know what the Bible says? The Bible says in Romans 3:23, “All have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God.” That means that the sin is not just over there in a far off land in people that are different from us. It means that sin exists within your heart and mine; all have sinned.

During the heart of the Civil War Abraham Lincoln was deeply concerned. An Aid said to him, “Mr. President, are you worried that God is not on our side?” Lincoln responded, “God does not take sides. I am concerned we are not on God’s side.” The first step in developing your theology of suffering is to admit that you are a sinner. If you will admit that you are a sinner then say, “Amen!” Why does God let bad things happen?

The Reality of Suffering

As you have watched your television from your favorite chair have you seen any suffering? As the disciples walked along with Jesus they saw suffering. It was common to see the crippled lined up on the road headed to the temple or the synagogue. This blind fellow was just one of a multitude of suffers. Where is God when people suffer? Where is God when people try to make sense out of terrorism or try to find loved ones after a hurricane? God is right there with them!

Elie Wiesel was in a Nazi prison camp. One day a fourteen-year-old boy was executed for a minor infraction. The entire camp was forced to watch. Wiesel recalls walking away from the execution with tears in his eyes. A Nazi Guard saw him and said, “Where is your God now?” He responded by saying, “Right now he is suffering with a fourteen year boy.” Where is God right now? I believe God is in the Houston Astrodome with the homeless. I believe God is with the widow and widower four years later. God is in nursing homes and orphanages. God is in hospitals and mental institutions.

Listen to me carefully! God does not cause evil. God does not cause suffering. But both evil and suffering are under God’s sovereignty. Out of both evil and suffering God can bring good. How do I know? The cross is empty! Verse 3 says, “Neither this man or his parents sinned. But this happened so the work of God may be displayed in his life.” And Jesus spit on the ground. He made some mud and rubbed it into the blind man’s eyes. And when the Master was done the man saw for the first time. This is a story of hope!

The Reality of Hope

As you have watched your television from your favorite chair have you seen any signs of hope? Have you seen all the organizations that are collecting money? Have you seen all the volunteers that are coming to the rescue? Have you seen the stories of loved ones being reunited? Those are stories of hope. In this church we believe in hope.

The cross in any Roman Catholic Church has Christ hanging on it. He is there because they want to emphasize the suffering Messiah. That is not all bad. It is true. In the Protestant Church we use an empty cross because we want to emphasize a resurrected Messiah. The cross could not hold him! Jesus took absolute defeat and turned it into complete victory. That means that no matter how hopeless your situation, there is hope. If Jesus can defeat death then Jesus can defeat terrorism, hurricanes or your problem. God can use those situations to bring glory to his name. Why does God let bad things happen?

Conclusion

So as you sit there in your favorite chair watching 24/7 news you are going to see some bad things. You are going to see evil. You are going to see some suffering. You are going to see some hope, because Jesus is alive and well.  How do you answer the question of why to a non-believing world? But I don’t want to end this message with a human question of why. I want to end with a divine question of why.

I believe if God came into our world today, He would ask us why. Why does it take a tragedy for people to turn to God? Why does it take a crisis for each of us to reach to one another and to treat one another with dignity? Why are we blind to the evil that exists within all of us? Why we are more upset about lost dogs and cats in New Orleans then we are death of God’s only son. It is been four years and thirteen days, why does it take a disaster for us to care about someone else?