Why Did God.....?

Adam was mourning the death of his closest friend following an auto accident. He was at a loss trying to understand why God allowed this to happen. He sat with his pastor and asked him, “Why did God allow this to happen?” Adam attended church basically when he felt like getting up on Sunday morning and attending with his wife. Most Sundays, she attended by herself. Adam claimed he was saved as a teenager but had never shown any spiritual fruit as a result. Now, he was angry at God and told his wife that attending church was a waste of time and God wasn’t doing anything for him. And now, God had taken away his closest and best friend. Never mind that Adam’s best friend, Jerry, had been driving while extremely intoxicated. Jerry just missed involving another vehicle when he ran off of the road and down an embankment. The car rolled over multiple times killing Jerry in the process.

Does Adam have a right to be angry with God about this? Wasn’t Jerry at fault for this accident? Why would Adam think this was all God’s fault? Jerry was not a Christian and that’s the really sad part of this story. Adam thought he was a Christian himself because he said a prayer which he was told to repeat but it never took root in his heart. He thought he was a Christian because he attended church with his wife on occasion and was checking the box, so to speak. The truth is Adam was never saved and now he was living a phony religious life. He did not have a relationship with Jesus and therefore had no way of really understanding who God really is. And so, he doesn’t have a clue concerning the sovereignty of God.

As the pastor sat and listened to Adam’s complaints about God and the loss of his friend, he finally interrupted Adam and asked him, “Adam, are you saved? Do you know Jesus as your savior? Do you have a personal relationship with Him?” Adam was a little surprised by these questions and answered, “Well, I think so. I come to church with my wife. I know I’m not here ever Sunday, but I come when I can.” The pastor told Adam, “Attending a church service does not mean your saved. Unless you have confessed to Jesus your sin and ask Him for forgiveness, you’re not saved. You are simply attending church. Have you ever done this?” Adam told the pastor about his experience as a teenager and that he thought he had been saved. The pastor went into further detail concerning the price Christ had paid for our sin and explained thoroughly what we must do to be saved.

Adam was stunned. He had thought he was saved but had just been going through the motions. The pastor asked if he could pray with him and if he wanted to really be saved. Adam agreed and accepted Jesus that evening. When the pastor was finished praying with Adam and knew Adam had finally given his heart to Jesus, he began to explain the sovereignty of God concerning the death of his friend.

The pastor took him to Isaiah 55:8 and 1 Corinthians 2:16

“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord.
    “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.

“Who can know the Lord’s thoughts?
    Who knows enough to teach him?”

The pastor went on to explain to Adam that we are mere human beings who have had our minds contaminated with sin. But we could never have the mind of God anyway because He is God and our mind would never be able to know His thoughts. To question what or why God does anything is not for us to question. If God wants us to know anything, He will direct us to His word. He went on to explain God is the only giver of life and is the only taker of life. He knows all and we have no authority to question Him and demand an answer.

As the pastor explained this to Adam, he realized his anger toward God had gone away. He realized it had begun to subside when the pastor had finished praying with him. He listened intently to what the pastor was telling him and now it all made sense to him. Before this evening, Adam had just been playing at being a Christian but now he had a sense of understanding and seeing God totally different. He didn’t fully grasp everything concerning God’s sovereignty but now had the faith to believe and a desire to know more.

Adam had the benefit of talking to someone who was able to realize he was not saved and led him through that process. At the moment he was saved, the Holy Spirit came into his life and enabled him to know and understand the things of God. Of course, he still had a lot to learn and a lot of spiritual growth to accomplish. But God had taken the anger from him and allowed him to listen to what the pastor was telling him about God. He had an advantage now which he didn’t have before he was saved. Now, he was able to know by faith that God was in charge of all things in life. Before he was saved, he thought he was in charge of everything in his life. He now had the Holy Spirit to help him understand God’s word and things of God we are allowed to know.

The unbeliever does not know God. The unsaved person will be angry at a God they don’t really know. They will demand answers from Him concerning anything which they are dissatisfied about. “Why did God…” It’s a question many nonbelievers ask all the time. As long as they reject Jesus and salvation, they will never get an answer and will never know God personally. They rant and rave about God taking a loved one or not providing for their needs which just might only be their greed. They have to know that the first step in knowing why God did anything is to be saved and begin that personal relationship with God. If they refuse to do that, then they will never know or understand why God does anything. Even if they do get saved, God still doesn’t owe anyone of them an explanation for why He has done anything. As Christians, we learn to trust Him and believe by faith He is God, and we are not.

Is it only those who are not saved who become angry with God and demand answers? No. Many Christians become extremely distraught over the loss of a loved one or some other tragedy and ask God why and demand an answer. Is this alright to do? Well, they can do it but it doesn’t mean God will honor their demands. Many times, this could simply be a Christian who has not spent time in God’s word and prayer. A person can have a relationship with someone but if they spend very little time with them, they will know very little about them. It’s the same for the Christian who spends very little time with God. Time in God’s word and in prayer enhances our relationship with God and eventually we stop making demands of Him. It’s the advantage we have over the nonbeliever.

We can understand that God doesn’t have to answer any of our question put to Him in anger. But most of all, we learn not to become angry with God and realize and understand His sovereignty.

Why did God allow that to happen? Because He is God and He is sovereign. He calls the shots, we don’t. He knows what is best for us. He controls the things of this world and this life, and we only think we do. That is until we are saved and know God. The next time you hear a nonbeliever ask, “Why did God….” Seek the opportunity to help them understand and know Jesus as their savior. And explain to them that if and when they do accept Jesus into their life, they will then be able to understand that God is God, and we are not.

-Bill Petite