“Why do bad things happen to good people?”

For the last few months I have heard reports of friends and family experiencing a house burnt down, a serious car accident, a painful operation and a bad fall – the latter being myself. On a less serious note two people have had their cell phones stolen.

Not that any of us are good people. There is no such thing as a good person, but we could hardly be called bad. And all of us women! (Maybe just coincidence but August is women’s month).

The enemy of all mankind roams all around planet earth “seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8). However he never goes further than God allows. Sometimes God allows him to go to terrible lengths, like the holocaust and the Spanish Inquisition. Critics of Christianity have often pounced on this latter as proof that Christians are intent on evil. Then what about Nagasaki and Hiroshima, 9/11 and the war in Ukraine? All kinds of people were involved in the execution of these events, no doubt some Christians included.The list is endless. Will there ever be peace, we wonder.

In the Book of Revelation it is clear that many evils are still to come. A world war which leaves one third of humanity dead is unthinkable (Revelation 9:15). Some people have asked why God has to go to such extraordinary lengths. Why doesn’t Christ return right now and put a stop to all the evil. For that matter, why did He have to leave us alone in the first place? Think how effective His ministry would be if he dealt out harsh punishments to all those criminals and evildoers.

Well of course there will be peace. The Prince of Peace will have the final say. But only when we have tried everything, come to the end of our rope, will we understand that God’s way is the only way. Our own ways simply don’t work and lead to suffering and death. There’s clearly a build-up of every kind of evil in this 21^st century – all of which Jesus and the prophets foretold.

But no one will be able to say “Oh, I didn’t know.” Because… “then all mankind will know that I the Lord am your Saviour, your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob” (Isaiah 49:26).