Q: Why does it seem like people who are not Christians have cancer and live, and ones who are Christians get cancer and die? I’m confused. —Patricia
A: Some religions teach that the suffering we experience in this life is retribution for things we did in former lives. A big difference between Christianity and these other religions is that it doesn’t make suffering worse for people by blaming them for the suffering they experience.
On several occasions people asked Jesus if the reason a particular person was suffering was due to his/her sin. Jesus made it clear that it wasn’t (John 9:2-3; Luke 13:1-5). The Book of Job makes the same point. Job had to endure tremendous loss and suffering even though he was as blameless as a man can be.
Anyone with a sensitive spirit must grapple sooner or later with the problem of pain, sin, and evil. We all wonder why an all-powerful, loving God would create a world with disease, suffering, and tragedy. It’s especially hard to understand how a loving heavenly Father can permit suffering and evil to occur for some while He seems to intervene for others.
The mystery of evil and suffering in the world probably has something to do with God’s desire to share His love with free, self-aware creatures. The gospel tells us that when God became incarnated in Jesus Christ, He began undoing all the damage done by sin and evil. Jesus Christ experienced the agony of death and of hell to redeem us, prove His love, and give us the hope we need in a fallen world.
The place of suffering in a Christian’s life is illustrated by Paul’s condition as he described it in 2 Corinthians 12:1-10. We don’t know exactly what his “thorn in the flesh” was, but it was likely a physical malady. Perhaps it was an eye problem. He spoke of the large letters he used in writing to the Galatians (Galatians 6:11). He also declared that the Galatians would have plucked out their own eyes and given them to him (Galatians 4:13-15). Some have suggested that this may have been a chronic eye disease or an injury suffered when he was stoned in Lystra (Acts 14:19-20).
Perhaps the Bible doesn’t tell us exactly what Paul’s “thorn” was so that those of us with various kinds of physical and spiritual problems can identify with him and experience the grace he was promised (2 Corinthians 12:9).
If it were left up to us, most of us would rather not share the suffering of our Savior. However, as in the case of Paul, God will reward us with strength and grace far beyond our imagination if we’re willing to trust and rest in Him (Romans 8:17; 2 Corinthians 1:5,9; Galatians 6:17; Colossians 1:24; 1 Peter 4:13). —Dan VanderLugt
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mike wittmer on December 20, 2012 at 9:32 am
Patricia: I would add to this fine answer that everyone dies eventually, Christian and non-Christian. Jesus never promised us that we wouldn’t die–so getting cancer is not a sign that he has failed us. Jesus did promise that we will live again, and so we hope in the resurrection of our bodies–and that hope remains whether we die at 4 or 104.
weareanimals on March 30, 2017 at 7:20 pm
Very simple. We are animals, there is no “God”. We have made up “God” in order to deal with the things we don’t understand or don’t want to invest the time in understanding. It’s a lot easier to make “God”, a nebulous concept the reason for everything rather than actually fully understand it. It’s understandable, but that doesn’t make it true. If you want actual truth, then you must be willing to question your beliefs. Who taught you those beliefs? What was their motivation? Trace it all back to the beginning.
What you must realize is we are animals on a watery planet in space. Our planet has the ability to host life, so it does. Our particular species has evolved to this point. I will not go into the inevitable “well who created the planet” retort too deeply. But that’s the wrong question. Why should it be a “who” at all? The universe runs by a set of rules called physics and is made up of a set of elements. If you want to argue that was created by some deity, sure go ahead, you have no proof of that. If you choose to believe it, fine, that’s OK, but it doesn’t mean you’re correct. Again, and very importantly, if you actually are seeking the truth and not just emotional teflon, then you must open your mind up to questioning your own beliefs. You’re probably emotionally reacting to this post right now. You probably hate me, or feel sorry for me or whatever response you have been conditioned to have. Bust past that and consider what I’m saying for a second even if only hypothetically. You will open up your mind from a tiny pinhole of perspective to a vast universe of possibilities for finding actual truth.
If you wish to understand why “bad” stuff happens to “good” people, then you must realize that the words “bad” and “good” are relative. They are your perception as a human animal who has been conditioned by your environment to perceive things a certain way. Such as you believe certain things are moral while others somewhere in the world probably think the opposite, it’s relative.
So here’s the real point, remove “God” and remove “morality” from your analysis and what you’ve got left is objective truth, something that terrifies those who are conditioned otherwise. Objectively we are animals living in an environment surrounded by billions of parameters and some of those paths lead to cancer, whether it’s a combination of genetics, diet, exposure to chemicals, etc. Neil DeGrasse Tyson has a great quote: “The Universe is under no obligation to make sense to you.” If you cannot accept that because of your religious conditioning, so be it. But what I’m telling you here will lead you to finally understand the answer to the question you asked.
The universal rules that make up everything don’t care about you.