Why Bad Things Happen To bad People

Background: Brother Job

• Using the book of Job as a background, there are three things all of us would like to believe:

1. God is all-powerful and causes everything that happens.
2. God is just and fair, giving everyone what they deserve.
3. Job is a good person.

• As long as Job is healthy and happy one can believe in all three of these
• But in view of Job’s righteous suffering concludes we cannot hold both to 1 and 2.
• For no good person should be subjected to such terrible misfortunes as was Job.

Text: Ecc.8:14

• There is a vanity which is done upon the earth; that there be just men, unto whom it happeneth according to the work of the wicked; again, there be wicked men, to whom it happeneth according to the work of the righteous: I said that this also is vanity. KJV
•  There is something being done on earth that is pointless. Righteous people suffer for what the wicked do, and wicked people get what the righteous deserve. I say that even this is pointless. GOD’S WORD
• There is something else that happens on earth that does not seem fair. Bad things should happen to bad people, and good things should happen to good people. But sometimes bad things happen to good people, and good things happen to bad people. This is not fair. ERV

Introduction: Questions of the Heart

• If our God is so great and so powerful, and we are faithful to him and we are living the way he wants us to, why does he abandon us in times of trouble or why does bad things happen to GOOD PEOPLE?
• The amount of pain and suffering represented by people in church today would be almost overwhelming if we were to catalogue it all.

Great Thoughts About Life on Earth

• At the beginning, God made the earth perfect
• God made the earth for man and he made all things on earth for man to use. Gen.1:1; Ps.115:16
• When man fell, the earth and all things on it was affected Rm.8:20 - 22
• There are 4 Major factors on earth
  • God – The creator
  • Man – The Sub-creator and original owner of the earth
  • devil – he took over the rulership of the earth from man and in the fall, the earth was subjected to evil
  • Sacrifice of Jesus – His death has redeemed man’s spirit, affected his soul and body. His sacrifice dethroned the devil.
• God can control all things but he is not in control of all things
• The devil is not powerful but he is “wisdomful” Eph.6:
• Christians are bornagain but the activities of their soul – MIND, WILL and EMOTIONS are not regenerated.
  • It takes the WORD to save the SOUL James.1:21
• The events on earth hails from the HEART of MEN but it can be influenced by spirits. Prov.4:23

Why Do Bad Things Happen to Good People?

• Ignorance of Principles
  • The earth is govern by LAWS and LAWS don’t respect your righteousness. They only obey applications Gen.8:26
• Ignorance of Responsibility
  • God will not do for you what he asked you to do
  • God will not do for you what he has already done for you
• They don’t know the difference between: TEST, TRIAL AND TEMPTATION
  • Test is from God and He tests us to create TESTIMONIES
  • Trial is from Life because of the fall and it increase your natural wisdom
  • Temptation is from the devil and he wants to make you fall
• Good people don’t know the God they serve
  • Good is GOOD but He is not NICE i.e. always appearing good
  • He is not a MAGICIAN…..God lives above TIME but HE works within TIME
  • He is BUSINESS MINDED – What you sow, you will reap Ps.18:24 – 26, Gal.6:7
• Wrong Expectations
  • God never said it will be easy
  • Rather, He said He will be with us and deliver us.
    • Ps.34: 19: Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivereth him out of them all.
    • Isa 43:2  When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee. Isa 43:3  For I am the LORD thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour: I gave Egypt for thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for thee.

• Wrong Belief System due to Biblical Illiteracy
  • Some believe that
    • God uses sickness to teach them a lesson hence they don’t believe in healing and miracle
    • Suffering is synonymous to Holiness / Wealth is evil
    • After every good thing, evil must happen
    • Good things are not for this side of eternity. It is for bye and bye (1 Tim.4:8)
    • Every thing on earth is spiritual by nature. Hence they don’t regard natural things and principles.

Conclusion: Deu.9:3-6

• Understand therefore this day, that the LORD thy God is he which goeth over before thee; as a consuming fire he shall destroy them, and he shall bring them down before thy face: so shalt thou drive them out, and destroy them quickly, as the LORD hath said unto thee.
• Speak not thou in thine heart, after that the LORD thy God hath cast them out from before thee, saying, For my righteousness the LORD hath brought me in to possess this land: but for the wickedness of these nations the LORD doth drive them out from before thee.
• Not for thy righteousness, or for the uprightness of thine heart, dost thou go to possess their land: but for the wickedness of these nations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee, and that he may perform the word which the LORD sware unto thy fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
• Understand therefore, that the LORD thy God giveth thee not this good land to possess it for thy righteousness; for thou art a stiffnecked people.

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