God Suffers, by Dennis Swick

The interesting thing about God is His love. But love sometimes involves suffering. Now God shows a person He really loves them by His actions. It says in 1 John 4:10, “This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins” (NIV). It also says in 1 John 4:8, “Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love” (niv). Love here is the Greek word “agape” and means “to choose to seek the best for others.” It is used as a reference to the self-sacrificing love of God for humanity. It is divine, volitional, unconditional, active, self-sacrificing, and thoughtful. In Matthew 22: 37 Jesus replied: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind ”(NIV). So we are to love God the same way He loves us. And God loves us because He cannot change. He is always the same! (Malachi 3:6)

An example of the love of God can be seen in the life of Moses. God loved Moses from the day he was born (Exodus 2:1) in Egypt till the day he died at 120 years of age in the wilderness, never entering into the Promised Land (Deuteronomy 34:5-7). The name Moses could mean “son of water” or “to pull out of water”. It is interesting that when he was a baby, he was set in a basket by his mother and drifted in the Nile River so that he would not be killed. His mother hoped that someone would find him and take care of him. The other interesting thing about Moses is that he is pivotal in the beliefs of Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Baha’i faith, Mormonism, Rastafarism, Raelism, and Chrislam.

God chose Moses to lead His people out of Egypt into the Promised Land (Hebrews 11:24-29; Exodus 2 – Deut. 34). Moses at first stated to God that he was not an eloquent speaker but God loved him and replied, “Who gave man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or dumb? Who gives him sight or makes him blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say” (Exodus 4:11). But Moses said to God, “O Lord, please send someone else to do it” (Ex. 4:13). Then God’s anger burned against Moses for saying this and not trusting God. And God chose his brother Aaron to speak. But God still loved Moses and He said to him, “…take this staff in your hand so you can perform miraculous signs with it” (Exodus 4:17). Some of the events that Moses was involved in were:

1. Moses and the bush that did not burn up. (Exodus 3).
2. Moses staff becomes a snake. (Exodus 7).
3. The 10 plagues that God sent on Pharaoh so that he would release the Israelites from Egypt.(Exodus 7-12).
4. God parting the Red Sea. The Israelites crossed on dry land while the Egyptian army drowned coming behind them. (Exodus 13–14).
5. God provided manna, quail, and water for the Israelites in the desert. (Exodus 15-17).
6. Moses received the 10 Commandments in oral form, Exodus 20-23, and in written form on two stone tablets in Exodus 34:1.
7. Moses and the elders of Israel got to see God (Exodus 24:9-11) but not His face (Genesis 43:3, 5: 44:23 Exodus 33:20).
8. Moses actually got to see the back parts of God (Exodus 33:23). God passed in front of Moses in Exodus 34:6-7 and said, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin.”
9. Moses and the brass serpent. (Numbers 21:4-9).
   

It is obvious that God performed many miracles for Moses because God loved him so much.

God suffers

But now let us turn our focus on suffering. Does God suffer? As it was said in the beginning, love sometime involves suffering. When one suffers, pain is usually felt. Pain itself is usually not considered a desired outcome of love. Here is an example of what suffering can be like with a woman that we will call Emily. She was a caring woman who experienced human emotions and loved very much the people around her. But one day she suffered severe pain due to a car accident she had. The accident caused so much damage to her car that it is was considered totaled. A large truck had hit the left side of her vehicle leaving the driver’s door not able to open. Emily staid in her seat not being able to move and was practically plastered to the steering wheel. Everything seemed to her like a night-mare. Some of the car windows were broken in pieces and she was experiencing severe pain due to the impact of the accident. Her muscles were screaming from the pain and her nerves ached with every move she made. The pain she continues to suffer is because of this accident which is impossible to describe in words. After the accident, she was taken by paramedics to a hospital where she was seen by a doctor. The doctor prescribed some pain medication. Emily took the medication for a while, but with no results. The medication did not take the pain away. The medication was very expensive but she kept on taking it hoping it would work. She hoped for some relief from the pain but there was no relief. The truth is that the pain was so strong, nothing helped. There was no remedy. Emily felt like she was living in a trap and the only way to escape was death. The best way to describe the sensation is like stating that she was living in a prison with no way of escape. In the meantime she had to work because she had to pay her food bills, medical bills and mortgage bill. But in the meantime, while she worked the pain increased. It was in effect, a vicious cycle. She had to deal with the excruciating pain but at the same time she had to work which caused the pain level to increase. In effect, she had to keep going no matter what life brought her way. From this story, we can see that Emily is human. She has emotions and feelings. She knows what it is like to feel anger towards the person that caused her so much pain and she would be very capable of explaining in her own words the meaning of pain and suffering.

In a way, God has also dealt with a situation similar to Emily’s. He has emotions just like Emily. He knows exactly what pain is like and He has suffered a lot over the generations dealing with pain but carrying on. We can see His emotions in these chapters of the Bible:

1. Deep pain - Genesis 6:5-6; Jeremiah 8:18-19; Ephesians 4:30.
2. Anger - Deuteronomy 29:19; 1 Samuel 16:14-23; Psalms 78:49.
3. Jealousy – James 4:5; Exodus 20:5; Deut. 4:24.
4. Love - 1 John 4:8.
5. Joy - Psalms 16:9, 11.
6. Compassion- Luke 15:20; Psalms 86:5, 15.
7. Friendliness- Jeremiah 9:24; Psalms 89:33; 107:8.
8. Rejoicing- Zephaniah 3:17.
9. Grace - Exodus 34:6; Psalms 86:5, 15.
10. Patience- Exodus 34:6; 2 Peter 3:9.
11. Laughter- Psalms 2:4, 37.
12. Gentleness- Psalms 86: 5, 15.
13. Mercy - Isaiah 60:10; 2 Chronicles 5:13; Psalms 100:5; 118:29; 135:3.

We also know that Jesus is 100% God and is 100% man. He too had feelings. These are some of the emotions He showed in the Bible:

1. Jesus experienced pain and bled: 1 Peter 3:18, John 18:1-34.
2. Jesus was tempted but did not sin: Hebrews 4:15.
3. Jesus cried tears of tenderness and pain: John 11:35, Isaiah 53:3.
4. Jesus was full of compassion: Matthew 9:36.
5. Jesus had a sense of humor: Luke 12:32; Mark 3:17.
6. Jesus could become angry: John 2:13-17; Matthew 21:12-13; Mark 11:15-18, Luke 19:45-46.
   
7. Jesus loved the people: 1 John 3:16.
   

The conclusion then is that these Biblical passages show that God has emotions.

The All Knowing God

Now the next point that we want to discuss is the Omniscience of God. Omniscience means, “There is nothing that God does not know”. We can see this in Jeremiah 17:10, "I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve." James 1:5 says, "If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him." And John 18:4 shows us that Jesus knew everything that would happen to Him before it took place.

Now, if God knew that Adam and Lucifer (Satan) would become rebellious and fall, why did he create them? To me, this situation does not make sense. Why would I want to go on with my plans if I knew that the end would be terrible? If it was me, I would have changed my plans. I think it would have been better for God to put an end to the plans he started and make a new set of plans. If I were in God's place and I knew that I could feel anger or feel pain about my creation sinning (doing what I didn’t want them to do), it would be better for me to do what God almost did in Genesis 6 and terminate mankind. In Genesis 6:6-8 we read, “The Lord was grieved that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with pain. So the Lord said, ‘I will wipe mankind, whom I have created, from the face of the earth…for I am grieved that I have made them.’ But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.” (NIV) In other words, if I had regretted creating man, I could have destroyed mankind and all creation. But that was not what God did. Even though God knows everything, He kept on going with His plans. It is obvious that God could have done whatever He pleased, but He did not. Even with the pain and suffering, God used Noah and allowed Satan to keep on going with his demons (as we see in Ephesians 6:12). God allowed man to follow his own course (as we see in 1 Timothy 5:24 and Revelation 3:20). By allowing this, He was able to demonstrate his patience plus we could see that God does suffer ---“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance”- 2 Peter 3:9. (NIV)

Satan’s plan

Satan is very intelligent according to Ezequiel 28:12. In fact, he is the most superior of all the angelic creatures (Ezekiel 28:12). Ezekiel 28:11-15 says of Satan, “You were the model of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty…. You were anointed as a guardian cherub….
You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created” (NIV). But then in Ezekiel 28:16-19 we see of Satan, “Through your widespread trade you were filled with violence, and you sinned…Your heart became proud on account of your beauty, and you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor” (NIV). But Satan’s downfall is found in Isaiah 14:13-14 where he says, “I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my thrown above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High” (NIV). Satan wanted to be God!

These are some of the things we see in Scripture about Satan:

1. He knows Scripture (Matthew 4:6, Luke 43)
2. He knows God's plans from the beginning as he was there in the Garden of Eden (Gen. 3:4).
3. He knows Genesis 3:15, Isaiah 52, and 53. In Isaiah 53:7 it talks about a lamb and in John 1:29 it says that Jesus is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. So Satan knows that Jesus had to shed his blood.
4. Satan knows all the prophecies regarding the Messiah like Psalm 16:10; Zechariah 12:10; Psalms 132:11; Isaiah 7:14; Micah 5:2; or Zachariah 9:9; 11:12,13; 13:7.
5. He deceives everyone (Revelation 12:9).
6. He is a slanderer (Job 1:6-11; Revelation 12:10).
7. He is an accuser (Job 1:6-11; Revelation 12:10).
8. He is full of pride (1 Timothy 3:6).
9. He hinders answers to prayer (Daniel 10:12-20).
10. He instigates jealousy (James 3:13-16).
11. He tempts one to sin (Matthew 4:1-11, 1 Corinthians 5:7).
12. He is a liar and murderer (John 8:44, Gen. 3:4).
13. He masquerades as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14).
14. He plants doubts in the minds of believers (Gen. 3:1-5).
15. He prowls around like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour (1 Peter 5:8).
16. But obviously Satan can’t know everything (Job 1:12). He isn’t God (1 John 3:20).
    

Now given that Satan was God’s highest created being (Ezekiel 28:12) and given that he decided he wanted to be like God (Isaiah 14:14), then it is to be concluded that we are dealing with a creation that far supersedes anything else in its class. In fact, Satan is so at the top of everything that even a third of God’s created angels decided to follow him. (Revelation 12:4).

But we should also take into account that God gave Satan a will to choose with and with this will he choose to be like God (Isaiah 14:14) instead of being a cherubim (Ezekiel 28:14). And with this will, Satan could only choose once. He could never go back and choose to be what he was before. So knowing he can’t go back, Satan can’t change. He will always be a liar, a murderer, an accuser, a tempter, etcetera, and etcetera. Given this then, it makes sense why God suffers. Here are the reasons:

We see that Satan's plan from the beginning was to kill the Son of God from the time he was born in Bethlehem (Matthew 2: 13-16). Satan must have thought that by doing this, God would loose the prize of reigning over all mankind and Satan would become the winner. But instead of being the winner in the end, Satan was the loser.

Some of the Scriptures that show Satan’s schemes during the time of Christ on this earth were:

1. Satan used King Herod to kill all the male children that were under two years old (Matthew 2:13-16).
2. Satan tempted Jesus in the wilderness hoping that He would fall into his trap (Matthew 4:1-11; Isaiah 14:12).
3. Satan used the Pharisees to kill Jesus (Matthew 12:14).
4. Satan used Jesus' own disciples to cause Him pain (Matthew 16:23).
5. Satan used religious people in order to put Jesus (and His authority) on trial (Matthew 21:23).
6. Satan wanted Jesus to disappear. We see this by Judas's acts with his kiss when he betrayed Jesus (Matthew 26:14-16, 49-50; John 18:1-9).
7. Satan was behind Jesus' arrest and crucifixion, but he wasn’t unaware of God's great plan for salvation (Matthew 17:50; 26:57; John 18:212; 19:17-37).
   

Satan’s plan was to win and he took a risk. He believed that by killing Jesus that he would ruin God's plans. The only thing is, the opposite result happened! Instead of Satan winning, he was actually helping God with His plans for our eternal salvation. We know that Jesus came to earth to pay the price of our sins with His blood (Hebrews 9:22-28). He paid for our sins and died on the cross (Matthew 26:2). Jesus was our living sacrifice all because he paid for our sins with his blood.

Romans 8:28 proves this to be true. And now there are just three things that Scripture teaches that are left for Satan:

1. He will be tied up for 1,000 years in a bottomless pit (Revelation 20:2-3).
2. He will be let loose from that prison for a little while (Revelation 20:10).
3. After all this he will be thrown in the lake of fire forever (Revelation 20:10; Romans 17:12).
   

So we see that according to Scripture, Satan wanted to be like God (Isaiah 14:14). He took a chance and believed that by killing the Son of God he could be "King over everything”, i.e. he could be like “God” which is exactly what he wanted (Isaiah 14:14). But that is not what happened. Satan was well aware that he lost the battle. He knew what Scripture said but he took a chance anyways. And the only thing Satan has left before going to the bottomless pit is to make God suffer. Why? Because Satan lost the battle for man’s salvation so the only thing left for him is to do is to make God suffer and cause God grief before he has to go to that lake of fire.

Satan knows that God has emotions and there are many ways to make God suffer and feel pain. As it was stated, Satan can’t change. The only thing he has left is to make God suffer (Revelation 20:3 and John 8:44). These are a few passages that prove this:

1. Not walking by the Holy Spirit makes God suffer: Ephesians 5: 13-15; 1 John 1:6.
2. Not accepting Christ as your personal savior makes God suffer: 1 John 5:11-16.
3. Associating ourselves with people that call themselves Christian, but aren't because they are involved in promiscuous sex or are idolaters, drunks and stealers makes God suffer: 1 Corinthians 5:11.
4. To live worldly lives. Not dying to ourselves and earthly possessions makes God suffer: 1 John 2:16; Romans 6:11-14; Romans 12:1.
5. Conforming to the things of this world, not transforming our minds with the word of God to do His will makes God suffer: Romans 12:2.
6. To have a proud atitude acting like I am the most important thing in this world makes God suffer: Romans 6:11; 12:3.
7. Sinning without giving it a second thought makes God suffer: 1 John 3:6.
8. Not loving anyone, not even our enemies makes God suffer: 1 John 3:10.
9. Following false prophets makes God suffer: 2 Peter 2:1-22.
10. Causing divisions and creating conflict. Not being united with other believers makes God suffer: Romans 16:17; John 17:11.
    

Conclusion

From the very beginning of time with the creation of God being so perfect (Gen. 1:31), we have clearly seen that despite God knowing everything (Jer. 17:10), He can still suffer (Gen. 6:6). Satan, with every scheme that he could devise, tried his best to stop the plans of God and be just like God (Isaiah 14:13-14). He was determined to stop Jesus Christ and whatever plans God had for sending Him here to earth (John 1:10-12) to pay the price for our sins (1 Peter 1:19-20). But after failing miserably (Romans 8:37 ), and knowing his reward would be going to hell forever (Rev. 20:10), the only thing left for him while he still has time is to make God suffer. That is why, without us really thinking about it, God suffers. May we not cause Him to suffer more pain but instead love and obey Him! (Mark 12:29-33; 2 John 1:6).