If God exists, why does he allow suffering in this world?

Question

I know all that stuff about free will, but that doesn't stop him averting famine, earthquakes, disease, volcanic eruptions, global warming ect. For God to exist and not be a sadist bastard then human beings must be the only cause of human misery. Or do you have a better scenario?

Answer 1

I completely agree with you....I know we are human beings and we must carry on with our lives on our own but there is so much going on in this world. Innocent people are dying, young children are born with cancer with short lives, war is in progress, etc. If God is so powerful and real, then why don't he help us just a little bit???

Answer 2

The Devil lied about the tree of the knowledge of good and bad. The prohibition on eating from that tree, he argued, was unjustified; it was an abuse of power. Adam and Eve, he said, could "be like God" in determining for themselves what was good and what was bad. Satan implied that as free moral agents, they should have complete self-determination. (Genesis 3:1-5) This attack on the rightness of God's way of ruling raised crucial issues.

---So God has allowed time for these issues to be settled.--

---God is allowing humans and Satan to rule!-----

This means that Satan has been allowed to continue living for a while. His limited time is now rapidly running out. (Revelation 12:12) Still, he continues to alienate mankind from God by lies and deceit, using people like the scribes and the Pharisees of Jesus' day to propagate his teachings.—Matthew 23:13, 15.

Jesus Christ believed that the Devil was real. Jesus was not tempted by some evil inside himself. He was attacked by a real person whom he later called "the ruler of the world." (John 14:30; Matthew 4:1-11) He also believed that other spirit creatures supported Satan in his wicked schemes. He cured "demon-possessed" people. (Matthew 12:22-28) When Jesus spoke about the Devil and his demons, he was not simply repeating superstitions; he knew that they really existed.

Answer 3

Human suffering has been caused by rejection of God's authority. Satan the devil asserted that man could rule himself without the aid of their creator. Adam and Eve followed him in rebellion. God, in his wisdom let them try to prove their case so that once this issue is settled, it will never again be brought up.
The time that God has allowed for humans to experiment with self-government is about to end. In fulfillment of Bible prophecy, his Kingdom was established in the heavens in 1914 with Jesus Christ as its King. Shortly, it will crush and put an end to all human governments.—Daniel 2:44

Answer 4

It really depends on how you interpret what is written about the abrahamic god. Some believe that the state of this world is merely the result of the god trying to disprove a challenge from the devil regarding the right of god to rule sovereign over mankind; he is allowing mankind to self-rule and prove the experiment in his favor as they fail catastrophically.

Others believe god allows the suffering to continue as sort of a "proving ground" to gain entrance to heaven.

I've heard others claim that good can't exist without evil; or in order to appreciate good, it must be presented in a frame of reference against evil.

Whatever your beliefs, this world is clearly being mismanaged if an all-powerful entity really exists.

Answer 5

This is Long...But, it is Worth the Read.

You could add right along w/ this Q...
Does God Really Care About Us?~
if so, why does He permit suffering?
Will it ever end?~ Yes, in a Big Way.
How can we know there is a God?~
What is made requires a maker.
Look around you, tables, desk, chairs,
even the bldg., you are in, requires a maker.
Since simple things require a maker,
is it not logical that complex things require an even more intelligent designer?
Our universe is Awesome.
Earth is uniquely designed~~ w/ it protective atmosphere,
proves this home was designed for us by a caring God.
The Amazing living cell.
Molecular biologist, Michael Denton says this regarding the living human DNA cell: "The capacity of DNA to store information vastly exceeds that of any other known system;
it is so efficient that all the information needed to specify an organism as complex as man weighs less than a few thousand millionths of a gram.....
Alongside the level of ingenuity and complexity exhibited by the molecular machinery of life, even our most advanced [products] appear clumsy. We feel humbled.
Our incredible brain.
The unique blood system.
And many, many other marvels.

God informs us of His purposes.
Where are the answers.~~
The Bible is God's written record for mankind,
For God's invisible qualities are clearly seen from the world's creation onward,
because they are perceived by the things God made.
Romans 1:20.
The fact that something is misused does not mean
it had no maker.
An airplane can be used for peaceful purposes,
as an airliner. But it can also be used for destruction,
as a bomber.
Its being used in a death-dealing way
does not mean it had no maker.
{ The book I am using as a referrence was printed in 1992;
the fact that we (mankind) now as of 9/11/01 have an even clearer understanding of this illustration, is by no means, meant to cause disrespect, nor pain, nor painful memories.
Nor meant in any sort of derogative manner.}
Almighty God, who inspired the Bible,
has seen to it that its textual integrity has been preserved in those manuscript copies. So our Bibles today are essentially the same as the original inspired writings.
It is God's gift.
Abraham Lincoln called the Bible
"the best gift God has ever given to mankind...
But for it we could not know right from wrong."
The Bible, inspired of God, is His communication
to the human family.
We had the best start; Freedom within Limits,
we were designed to follow God's laws.
"You are slaves of no one except God."
This does not mean an oppresive slavery, but, rather, it means that we were designed to be happiest when in subjection to God's laws.~~ Matt 22:35-40.
At the same time, God's laws allow for great freedom of choice w/in their boundaries.
For instance, if we ignore the law of gravity & jump off a high place, we will be injured or killed.
If we ignore the internal laws of our body & stop eating food, drinking water, or breathing air, we will die.
As surely as we were created w/ the need to submit to God's physical laws, we were created w/ the need to submit to God's moral & social laws. Matt 4:4

So what went wrong?
Adam & Eve misused their free will.
They decided to become independant God,
thinking that this would improve their lives.
So they stepped outside the God-ordained limits
of free will~~ Genesis chapter 3.

The Issue of Universal Sovereignty.
Why didn't God just start over w/ another pair of humans?
Bc His universal sovereignty, that is His inalienable right to rule had been challenged. The Q was: Who has the right to rule? His being the Creator of all creatures gives Him the right to rule over them. Since He is all-wise, His rule is best for His creatures. But, God's rule had now been challenged.
Also, was there something wrong w/ His creation?
By man's becoming independant another Q was implied:
Could humans do better if not ruled by God?
The Creator certainly knew the answer,
but a sure way for humans to find out was to allow them the total freedom they wanted.
They chose that course of their own free will,
so God permitted it.
By allowing humans enough time to experiment w/ total freedom, God would establish for all time whether humans are better off under God's rule or their own.
And the time permitted would have to be long enough to allow humans to come to what they consider the peak of their political, industrial, scientific, & medical achievements.
Therefore, God has allowed man a free rein clear down to our day to show beyond a doubt whether human rule independant of Him can succeed.
Thus man has been able to choose between
kindness / cruelty,and between love / hate and righteousness / unrighteousness.
But He has also been confronted w/ the consequences of his choice: goodness and peace or wickedness and suffering.

Answer 6

He doesn't exist. At least not in the context christians believe.
All the above mentioned is the Earth doing its own thing just like every other planet in the solar system. Catastrophes are not the hand of God. Just a natural process that we happen to be in the way of.

Answer 7

Oh boy, this is a question that simple cannot be answered by us. Many have asked it throughout the ages.

I have no idea why. Maybe it's free will, maybe God doesn't exist. Point is, humans won't solve this one until we can prove their IS a God of some kind. Which I know won't happen soon.

Answer 8

god is just testing us to see if we diserve to go to hell or heaven.He puts earthquakes,volcanic eruptions,and hurricanes because he wants to see who will help or w2ho wouldn't.who knows? i could be wrong.The only way we can truley find out is by waiting.waiting till the ressurection begins. then the true answer will br revealed

Answer 9

Why has God allowed humans to have their own way for so long? Why has he allowed suffering to exist all these many centuries? One vital reason is that a very important issue was raised: Who has the right to rule? Should God be the Ruler of humans, or can they rule themselves successfully apart from him?

Humans were created with free will, that is, with the ability to choose. They were not made like robots or like animals, who are guided mainly by instinct. So humans can choose whom they will serve. (Deuteronomy 30:19; 2 Corinthians 3:17) Thus, God’s Word counsels: “Be as free people, and yet holding your freedom, not as a blind for badness, but as slaves of God.” (1 Peter 2:16) However, while humans have the wonderful gift of free choice, they must accept the consequences of their choice of action.

Our first parents made the wrong choice. They chose the course of independence from God. True, God could have put the first rebellious pair to death immediately after they misused their free will. But that would not have settled the question regarding God’s right to rule over humans. Since the first pair wanted independence from God, the question must be answered: Could that course result in a happy, successful life? The only way to find out was to let our first parents and their offspring go their own way, since that was their choice. Time would demonstrate whether humans were created to be successful in ruling themselves independent of their Creator.

The Bible writer Jeremiah knew what the result would be. Directed by God’s powerful holy spirit, or active force, he truthfully wrote: “I well know, O Jehovah, that to earthling man his way does not belong. It does not belong to man who is walking even to direct his step. Correct me, O Jehovah.” (Jeremiah 10:23, 24) He knew that humans must have the guidance of God’s heavenly wisdom. Why? Simply because God did not create humans to be successful apart from his guidance.

The results of thousands of years of human rule show beyond any doubt that it is not in humans to direct their own affairs apart from their Creator. Having tried it, they have only themselves to blame for the catastrophic results. The Bible makes this clear: “The Rock [God], perfect is his activity, for all his ways are justice. A God of faithfulness, with whom there is no injustice; righteous and upright is he. They have acted ruinously on their own part; they are not his children, the defect is their own.”—Deuteronomy 32:4, 5.

Answer 10

all the stuff ... you have stated ... is Balancing act ..... try to understand the stuff .... rather than questioning it .....try to think of what might be the reason for all that to happen ?? and you might get a answer ......

the way there is no value for light without darkness ..... its an act of balance .....

having said that ..... its not the GOD somewhere .... there that is causing this ..... its the GODS on earth .... living so ignorant of their own GODHOOD ..... causing all this ..... ever heard of creaton through MASS Conciousness ??