ANNOUNCER: IN THE SPRING
OF EVERY YEAR THE STORY OF A
SUFFERING NATION OFFERS HOPE. AS THE PEOPLE OF ISRAEL
REMEMBER A PASSOVER RESCUE... THAT HAS GIVEN THEM
HOPE IN THE DARK NIGHTS
THAT WOULD FOLLOW, FOLLOWERS OF JESUS
REMEMBER ANOTHER PASSOVER... WHEN JESUS CRIED,
"MY GOD, MY GOD,
WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?" HOW A NATION SPEAKS TO
OUR PAIN, AND WHAT JESUS
SAID ABOUT SUFFERING, ON THIS DAY OF DISCOVERY. MART DEHAAN: IN SOME WAYS
THE PAIN AND SUFFERING OF
THIS ATLIT DETENTION CAMP... HAS STORIES ALL OVER THE WORLD. EVERY PEOPLE, EVERY NATION HAS
ITS SUFFERING, HAS ITS HISTORY, BOTH COLLECTIVELY
AND INDIVIDUALLY. BUT THERE'S SOMETHING DIFFERENT
ABOUT A DETENTION CAMP HERE. THIS IS ISRAEL,
THE LAND OF THE BIBLE,
THE LAND OF THE CHOSEN PEOPLE. AND IN SOME WAYS WHAT...
WHAT MADE THIS SUFFERING, THIS
DETENTION, SO HUMILIATING... WAS THAT IT WASN'T EXPECTED. FOLLOWING WORLD WAR II, THESE
IMMIGRANTS, JEWISH IMMIGRANTS, CAME HERE LOOKING FOR A HOME, THEIR ANCESTRAL HOMELAND. IN MANY WAYS THEY THOUGHT
THEY WERE JUST ABOUT HOME. THEN THEY WERE DETAINED AT SEA,
BROUGHT HERE AS ILLEGALS AND
PUT BEHIND BARBED WIRE. IT'S TRUE THAT THIS CAMP DOES
NOT REFLECT THE DARKEST MOMENTS
OF ISRAEL'S FAMILY HISTORY. NOR WAS THE HOLOCAUST THAT
THEY WERE RUNNING FROM
THE ONLY EXAMPLE... OF THE TERRIBLE THINGS
THAT WE DO TO ONE ANOTHER. BUT THE PICTURES OF
THE CHILDREN AND FAMILIES
WHO WERE INTERRED HERE... REMIND US OF THE WAY THE BIBLE SHOWCASES THE JEWISH PEOPLE, THEIR SUFFERING,
AND THE SUFFERING OF
A LONG-AWAITED MESSIAH. LONG AGO, IT WAS KING DAVID
WHO FIRST EXPRESSED THE WORDS,
IN HIS OWN SUFFERING, "MY GOD, MY GOD,
WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?" MANY YEARS LATER,
A SON OF DAVID, A DESCENDANT
IN THE LINE OF JUDAH, ECHOED THOSE SAME WORDS
IN THE DARKEST HOUR
OF HIS OWN LIFE. WITH THE AGONY
OF THAT QUESTION, JESUS ECHOED NOT ONLY THE
GROAN OF ISRAEL'S KING DAVID, BUT THE HEART CRY OF ALL
WHO SUFFER AND WONDER WHY. CERTAINLY, ANYONE WHO'S FACED
A REALLY SERIOUS CRISIS... HAS TO WRESTLE WITH THE QUESTION
OF WHY DOES GOD ALLOW SUFFERING? OR CAN GOD BE GOOD
IF HE ALLOWS SUFFERING? AND... OR COULD GOD REALLY
LOVE ME IF HE ALLOWS SUFFERING? IS HE REALLY ON
MY SIDE IF HE ALLOWED THIS
TERRIBLE THING TO HAPPEN? IT'S VERY IMPORTANT TO SAY
THAT ALL SUFFERING IS UNIQUE. IN OTHER WORDS,
YOU CAN'T GENERALIZE IN ONE WAY, AND NEVER PUT PEOPLE IN
CATEGORIES AND STEREOTYPES. BUT HAVING SAID THAT,
WHEN EITHER PAIN OR SUFFERING
OR EVIL HIT PEOPLE, THERE ARE THREE QUESTIONS THAT
BUBBLE UP ALMOST INSTINCTIVELY
AND IRREPRESSIBLY. THE FIRST IS, WHY ME?
THE SECOND, WHERE'S GOD? AND THE THIRD,
HOW CAN I STAND IT? OBVIOUSLY, THEY OVERLAP TO A
CERTAIN EXTENT, BUT THEY'RE ALL
VERY, VERY DIFFERENT QUESTIONS. AND THEY'RE THE QUESTIONS
THAT NEED TO BE ANSWERED... WHEN ONE LOOKS AT THE MEANING
OF EVIL AND SUFFERING. PEOPLE WHO ARE LOOKING FOR GOD
AND YET BUMP INTO THE... THE BIG PROBLEM OF EVIL,
PAIN, AND SUFFERING... USUALLY ARE LOOKING AT
A PERSONAL ENCOUNTER WITH PAIN. THEY MIGHT SEE THE EARTHQUAKE
IN HAITI. THEY MAY... MIGHT SEE
A TSUNAMI IN INDONESIA. THEY MIGHT SEE THAT ON THE...
ON THE NEWS AT NIGHT, BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY,
IT'S WHEN A CHILD DOWN
THE STREET OR IN THEIR... IN THEIR LOCAL SCHOOL HAS
LEUKEMIA AND IS SUFFERING
SO DRAMATICALLY. THAT NATURALLY CAUSES A PERSON
TO CALL INTO QUESTION WHETHER
GOD EXISTS AND IF HE EXISTS, IF HE ACTUALLY LOVES US OR HAS
THE POWER TO ACTUALLY HELP US. THOSE ARE VITAL
AND IMPORTANT QUESTIONS, AND NO ONE WOULD
BLAME A PERSON ENCOUNTERING
THAT KIND OF PERSONAL PAIN... AND PERSONAL SUFFERING
FOR ASKING THOSE QUESTIONS. THERE WAS A BARNA POLL
THAT INDICATED THAT
THE NUMBER ONE QUESTION... THAT PEOPLE WOULD ASK
IF THEY HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO
ASK A QUESTION OF GOD WOULD BE, "WHY DID YOU PERMIT ALL OF
THIS EVIL AND SUFFERING?" AND IT'S NOT JUST A QUESTION
THAT SKEPTICS ASK, IT'S A
QUESTION THE CHRISTIANS ASK, AND IT'S ACTUALLY
A QUESTION THAT'S ASKED
IN THE BIBLE, REPEATEDLY, WHERE DAVID, FOR INSTANCE,
IN... IN THE PSALMS IS SAYING, "LORD, WHY DO
THE RIGHTEOUS SUFFER?
AND WHY DO THE WICKED PROSPER? "WHY DON'T YOU BRING
IMMEDIATE JUSTICE?" AND THEN IN SCRIPTURE YOU ALSO HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE CRYING OUT, "HOW LONG, OH LORD?
HOW LONG WILL ALL THIS
EVIL AND SUFFERING GO ON?" MART: WHEN SUCH
QUESTIONS ARE ASKED ABOUT
WHY SO MUCH SUFFERING... SEEMS TO BE SO RANDOM
AND SO UNFAIR, OUR THOUGHTS MAY FIRST GO TO
UNEXPLAINABLE PERSONAL LOSSES. BUT THE STORY THAT CLAIMS
TO SPEAK FOR ALL OF US IS
THE STORY OF THE JEWISH PEOPLE. EVEN THOUGH OTHER NATIONS
HAVE ENDURED EQUAL OR
GREATER TRAGEDIES, NO OTHER PEOPLE HAVE GIVEN US A
HISTORY THAT SO CHALLENGES OUR
SENSE OF FAIRNESS AND JUSTICE, WHILE AT THE SAME TIME
INSPIRING US WITH EXAMPLES
OF COURAGE AND HOPE. FOR SOME, RECALLING THE
SUFFERINGS OF THIS NATION... HAS LED TO A SHARED RESOLVE
THAT SAYS, "NEVER AGAIN." WE MUST DETERMINE TOGETHER
TO NEVER AGAIN... LET SUCH MINDLESS PERSECUTION AND GENOCIDE HAPPEN. FOR OTHERS, RECALLING
THE BIBLICAL HISTORY OF THIS
NATION HAS LED THEM TO SAY, "NEVER AGAIN."
NEVER AGAIN WILL WE SEE
A SON OF SUCH CHARACTER... RESOLVE TO SUFFER
SO THOUGHTFULLY AND
SO VOLUNTARILY... FOR THE NATION
AND WORLD HE LOVED. WITH THESE AGONIZING
WORDS OF SURRENDER, AND BY
THE SUFFERING THAT FOLLOWED, JESUS LEFT MANY OF HIS OWN COUNTRYMEN CONVINCED... THAT HE WAS NOT THE KING
THAT HE CLAIMED TO BE. THE COMMON EXPECTATION IN THE
FIRST CENTURY FOR MANY PEOPLE... WAS THAT A DAVIDIC
MESSIAH WOULD COME, ONE WHO WOULD SIT
ON THE THRONE OF DAVID... AND WOULD BRING IN A REIGN
OF PEACE AND PROSPERITY, A TIME OF... WHERE THERE IS NO
MORE SUFFERING, NO MORE TEARS. AND THAT'S WHAT PEOPLE
WANT FROM LIFE. WELL, I THINK SUFFERING
AND EVIL IS IN SOME WAYS... THE MOST DIFFICULT
TOPIC TO THINK ABOUT IN
RELATIONSHIP TO JESUS, BECAUSE ON THE ONE HAND
HE CLEARLY MINISTERED IN SUCH
A WAY THAT HE SAW PEOPLE SUFFER, THAT HE SAW PEOPLE DID
HARMFUL THINGS TO ONE ANOTHER. HE EVEN GIVES YOU A SENSE
THAT THE CREATION GROANS... FOR THIS REDEMPTION
THAT HE'S TALKING ABOUT, AND HE SHOWS HOW TO LIVE
IN THE MIDST OF IT, RATHER THAN, IF YOU WILL,
AVOIDING IT. MART: SUCH ACCEPTANCE
OF SUFFERING, HOWEVER, IS WHAT MANY HAVE FOUND
SO IMPOSSIBLE TO ACCEPT. JESUS NOT ONLY SURRENDERED TO
SUFFERING, BUT WHILE CLAIMING
TO BE THE SON OF GOD, HIS VISION FOR THE FUTURE
SHOWED THAT HE WAS READY TO LET
EVIL AND SUFFERING CONTINUE. IT'S ALSO NO SECRET THAT MANY
FIND IT HARD TO ACCEPT... THE WAY JESUS ANSWERED SPECIFIC EXAMPLES OF PERSONAL TRAGEDY. AT ONE POINT HE'S ASKED
ABOUT TWO EVENTS. ONE IS A NATURAL
EVENT IN WHICH... IN WHICH PILATE HAS PEOPLE
SLAIN IN THE TEMPLE AREA WHILE
THEY'RE OFFERING SACRIFICES. IT'S KIND OF AN INHUMANE
TREATMENT OF HUMANITY. AND THEN THE SECOND TIME IT'S
A... IT'S A NATURAL ACCIDENT, WHAT WE WOULD CALL
A NATURAL CATASTROPHE
OR A NATURAL TRAGEDY, WHERE A TOWER OF SOME KIND
FALLS AND KILLS 18 PEOPLE,
JUST BOOM, OUT OF THE BLUE. HE GIVES THE SAME ANSWER
TO BOTH SITUATIONS. HE SAYS, "UNLESS YOU REPENT,
YOU LIKEWISE WILL PERISH." JESUS' POINT IS THE OPPOSITE
OF WHAT THEY THOUGHT. THEY SAID WHY DID THIS TERRIBLE
THING, EITHER HUMAN EVIL: PILATE MIXING THE...
THE BLOOD OF THE SACRIFICES
WITH THESE PEOPLE... AT THEIR ALTAR AND KILLING THEM, OR NATURAL EVIL:
A TOWER FALLING OVER, WHY DID THESE TERRIBLE THINGS HAPPEN TO GOOD PEOPLE? AND JESUS SAYS, "NO,
THAT'S REALLY NOT THE RIGHT
PERSPECTIVE TO HAVE." JESUS ISN'T SO INTERESTED
IN ANALYZING AND BREAKING
DOWN FOR US WHY IT EXISTS. JESUS IS MUCH MORE INTERESTED
IN HAVING US DEAL WITH IT, AND TO DEAL WITH IT
IN A WAY THAT IS... THAT IS... THAT IS HEALTHY AND
THAT IS CONSTRUCTIVE,
BY FACING IT AND... AND KNOWING HOW TO WORK
THROUGH IT AND OVERCOME IT
AND TRANSCEND IT, VERSUS TRYING TO FIGURE IT OUT. THE RIGHT PERSPECTIVE TO HAVE
IS THAT WE ARE ALL EVIL. WE HAVE ALL REBELLED
AGAINST GOD AND WHAT... WHAT SHOULD BE EXPECTED
IS THAT BAD THINGS WOULD HAPPEN
TO ALL OF US IMMEDIATELY, THAT WE WOULD BE STRUCK DOWN. BUT ONE OF THE TEACHINGS OF
THE HEBREW BIBLE WAS THAT... WERE IT NOT FOR THE LORD'S
MERCY, WE WOULD ALL BE CONSUMED. MART: AND THAT'S HOW JESUS
ALSO RESPONDED TO A SECOND,
SPECIFIC TRAGIC EVENT. IT'S BECAUSE OF WORDS LIKE
THIS THAT SOME RESENT JESUS, AND DON'T FIND HIM TO
BE THE KIND OF COMFORTER
THAT THEY'RE LOOKING FOR. OTHERS, HOWEVER, ARE CONVINCED,
NOT JUST BY WHAT JESUS SAID, BUT BY WHAT HE DID, BY THE
SUFFERING THAT HE ENDURED, THAT HE DOES KNOW HOW
TO GIVE US THE COMFORT
THAT WE ALL NEED. A PERSPECTIVE THAT JESUS
BRINGS TO SUFFERING... IS THAT HE WANTS TO COMFORT
PEOPLE IN THEIR SUFFERING. HE INVITED PEOPLE TO
COME TO HIM WITH ALL THEIR
BURDENS AND ALL THEIR WEARINESS, AND HE PROMISED TO GIVE
THEM REST, AND THE REASON
IS THAT HIS YOKE IS EASY. THE... THE CONTROL THAT HE WANTS
TO BRING TO THEIR LIFE IS EASY
AND HIS BURDEN IS LIGHT, AND THAT HE'S GENTLE
AND HUMBLE OF HEART. THE REASON THAT JESUS
CAN BRING COMFORT, THAT THOSE THINGS
THAT WE GET BURDENED WITH, THE SUFFERING THAT WE FACE
IN LIFE AND THAT TIRE US OUT, HE SAYS, "YOU KNOW,
BRING IT TO ME." BECAUSE THE SCRIPTURES SAY
THAT HE TOOK THE PUNISHMENT, THE SUFFERING THAT WE DESERVED, HE TOOK UPON HIMSELF, AND NOW HE CAN BRING US
COMFORT IN OUR SUFFERING, AND LIFT THE BURDEN
OF SUFFERING FROM US. HERE AT THE ATLIT DETENTION
CAMP, AS AT YAD VASHEM, THE
HOLOCAUST MUSEUM IN JERUSALEM, A NATION FINDS REASON
NEVER TO FORGET. AND HERE FOLLOWERS
OF JESUS ALSO COME TO...
TO CONTEMPLATE A NATION... THE SUFFERINGS OF A NATION HAS
GIVEN THEM THEIR SCRIPTURES, A MESSIAH AND A HOPE THAT IS
SUPPOSED TO PROVIDE STRENGTH IN
THE FACE OF PAIN AND SUFFERING. HERE IN THE...
THE EXHIBITS OF ATLIT, MEN AND WOMEN FROM ALL
OVER THE WORLD CONTEMPLATE
A PICTURE OF HORROR, HORROR THAT... THAT CAUSES
PEOPLE NOT ONLY TO... TO THINK ABOUT
THE CAPACITY FOR HUMAN EVIL, BUT RAISES DISTURBING
QUESTIONS ABOUT A GOD
WHO WOULD ALLOW SUCH SUFFERING. THE FIRST THING TO SAY
ABOUT SUFFERING AND EVIL
IS IT'S AWFUL. IT'S TERRIBLE IN THIS
WORLD AND ONE WANTS TO BE
STRAIGHTFORWARD ABOUT THAT. WE'RE NOT TRYING TO SAY, THOUGH SOME PEOPLE DO, YOU KNOW, SOME FORMS OF RESPONSE TO EVIL
IS TO DENY THAT IT EXISTS AND
SAY IT'S AN ILLUSION. AND ACTUALLY THOSE ARE VERY
POPULAR IN WORLD RELIGIONS
AND... AND EVEN IN... IN THE UNITED STATES YOU
HAVE WHOLE GROUPS ASSOCIATED
WITH CHRISTIANITY, MORE OR LESS CLOSELY,
WHO SIMPLY SAY IT DOESN'T EXIST. I THINK WE DON'T... I DON'T
THINK YOU CAN GO THAT WAY... EXCEPT WITH A HUGE AMOUNT
OF DELUSION, SELF-DELUSION,
REALLY, ABOUT IT. BUT THE ORDINARY PERSON,
LIKE IN MY CLASSES THERE
ARE TWO GROUPS OF PEOPLE, THE STUDENTS,
THAT REALLY DO BELIEVE
IN EVIL: ARMENIANS AND JEWS. AND THEY BELIEVE THAT BECAUSE
THEY HAVE A CULTURAL HISTORY... OF INCREDIBLE EVIL AND
SUFFERING DONE TO THEM. SO THEY WOULD ALMOST FEEL
LIKE THEY WERE BEING UNFAITHFUL
TO THEIR OWN HISTORY... AND THEIR PAST AND TO
THEMSELVES IF THEY DIDN'T. EVEN SUFFERING MAY NOT CAUSE YOU
TO DENY GOD'S EXISTENCE. IT JUST CAUSES YOU TO THINK
THAT GOD IS INDIFFERENT. GOD HAS... HAS LEFT THE ROOM. I THINK IT'S
ESPECIALLY DIFFICULT... IT'S PROBABLY THE MAIN REASON
THAT PEOPLE LEAVE THE FAITH. IT'S NOT SO MUCH A QUESTION
PEOPLE HAVE AHEAD OF TIME, SO MUCH AS PEOPLE WHO ARE ALREADY CHRISTIANS, I THINK. CERTAINLY, IT IS A MAJOR
REASON THAT PEOPLE FEEL ALIENATED FROM CHRISTIANITY, FROM GOD HIMSELF
EVENTUALLY, IS BECAUSE, "HOW CAN GOD ALLOW THIS
TO HAPPEN? HE MUST NOT
REALLY LOVE ME." EVEN IF THEY DON'T
STOP BELIEVING IN GOD, THEY STOP BELIEVING THAT
HE'S GOOD OR THAT HE LOVES THEM. PART OF THE PROBLEM IS,
IS IN ONE SENSE WE'RE IN
THE MIDDLE OF THE DRAMA. WE ARE NOT AT THE END
OF THE DRAMA. WE DON'T SEE THE END
OF HOW THIS ALL WORKS ITSELF
OUT AND SORTS ITSELF OUT, AND SO WE... SO IT'S LIKE... IT'S LIKE EVALUATING
A STORY BEFORE YOU GET
TO THE FINAL CHAPTERS. THE ISSUE IS WHAT WOULD YOU
REALLY LIKE THE UNIVERSE
TO BE DIFFERENT... WITH RESPECT TO
SUFFERING AND EVIL? AND THAT CAN BE THE TOTAL
ELIMINATION OF IT, OR THE ELIMINATION OF THE DEGREE TO WHICH IT IS PRESENT. AND THE BURDEN THAT
IS UPON THE PERSON... WHO THINKS IT WOULD BE
BETTER TO HAVE A DIFFERENT
KIND OF UNIVERSE... IS TO SHOW WHAT
THAT WOULD BE LIKE. WHAT WOULD IT BE LIKE IF,
FOR EXAMPLE, THERE WERE A GOD WHO SIMPLY
STOPPED IN AND ELIMINATED
SUFFERING AND EVIL? HOW BETTER THEN TO BE PRESENT
TO US AS GOD THAN TO BE PRESENT
IN HIS ABSENCE WHEN WE SUFFER. THAT'S STRANGE TALK
BUT WHAT IT MEANS IS... THAT WE CAN KNOW HE'S THERE IN
THE WAY THAT GOD CAN BE THERE, THAT HE COULDN'T BE THERE
ANY OTHER WAY IF HE JUST WIPED
OUT ALL OF OUR SUFFERING, WIPED OUT EVERYTHING
THAT IS PUZZLING AND
A PARADOX IN OUR LIVES. YOU NEED ONE MORE THING, AND
THIS IS REALLY IMPORTANT. YOU NEED A GOD
WHO IS BIG ENOUGH TO MAKE
THE VALUE OF ANY PERSON, NO MATTER HOW MUCH THEY SUFFER, TO MAKE THAT PERSON COME TO
THE POINT WHERE THEY WILL SAY,
"MY LIFE WAS A GOOD THING." I THINK AGAIN,
IN THE MODERN WORLD WE TEND
TO WANT TO AVOID PAIN. WE SHY AWAY FROM IT.
WE WALK AWAY FROM IT. WE DO ANYTHING TO AVOID IT,
THAT KIND OF THING. JESUS WALKS RIGHT
IN THE MIDDLE OF IT. YOU MAY KNOW HOW
DOSTOYEVSKY CAME TO FAITH. HE CAME OUT OF HIS ATHEIST
BACKGROUND AND SO ON, BUT THERE WAS A TIME IN
SWITZERLAND, HE LOOKED
AT THE PAINTING... OF THE DESCENT OF JESUS
FROM THE CROSS, THAT BROKEN, EMACIATED BODY, DEAD. HE LOOKED AT IT FOR FOUR HOURS
AND AT THE END OF IT HE SAID, "I DON'T KNOW THE ANSWER
TO THE PROBLEM OF EVIL
BUT I DO KNOW LOVE." AND THAT'S OUR GOD. WHEN WE
LOOK AT JESUS AND THE CROSS, HOWEVER DEEP
WE GO IN SUFFERING, OUR LORD HAS GONE DEEPER TO SHOW
US THAT HE LOVES US AND CARES. AND IT'S OVER A PERIOD OF
TIME WHEN YOU LIVE THROUGH
EXPERIENCES LIKE THAT, AS WELL AS EXPERIENCES
WHERE GOD IS VERY REAL, WHERE YOU FEEL
MORE CONFIDENT THAT GOD IS
WALKING WITH YOU AND IN YOUR, YOU KNOW,
PRESENT IN YOUR EXPERIENCES, THAT YOU MATURE SPIRITUALLY
AND YOUR RELATIONSHIP GROWS, AND YOU CAN BE MORE CONFIDENT OF
HIS PRESENCE IN HIS ABSENCE... DURING THOSE
PERIODS OF SUFFERING. IF WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A GOD,
HE'D BETTER BE BIG. HE'D BETTER BE REALLY BIG. AND FOR FOLLOWERS OF JESUS
THERE'S TWO BIG QUESTIONS: IS HE THERE? GOD'S EXISTENCE,
AND IS HE GOOD? HIS CHARACTER. AND BOTH THOSE QUESTIONS
ARE ANSWERED IN JESUS. THROUGH JESUS I BELIEVE ABSOLUTELY HE'S THERE, AND I BELIEVE
ABSOLUTELY HE'S GOOD. NOW, WHAT HE'S DOING ALL
THE TIME NOW, I DON'T KNOW, BUT I KNOW WHY
I TRUST HIM WHO KNOWS. NOW, THIS IS DIFFERENT
THAN THE WAY WE WANT
TO TALK ABOUT COMFORT. USUALLY WHEN PEOPLE
WANT TO THINK ABOUT COMFORT
THEY WANT TO THINK ABOUT, "HOW DO I FEEL BETTER?"
OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. AND I'M TRYING TO CONTRAST
WHAT I THINK JESUS IS AFTER... AT THIS RELATIONAL,
KIND OF CORE DIMENSION... IN CONTRAST TO JUST TALKING
ABOUT THE WAY I MIGHT FEEL ABOUT
WHAT'S GOING ON, OR WHATEVER. IT'S WHAT I'M ALIGNING MYSELF
TO THAT REALLY IS THE COMFORT, AND THE COMFORT IS
I'M ALIGNED TO THE LIVING GOD, AND I'M LIVING
AS GOD DESIGNED ME TO LIVE. MART: AND IF IT WOULD
BE HELPFUL TO TAKE ANOTHER LOOK
AT THE KIND OF COMFORT WE NEED, THEN MAYBE THE BEST PLACE TO
START IS TO ALSO THINK AGAIN... ABOUT WHAT JESUS' OWN ACTIONS
AND EMOTIONS SAY ABOUT... HOW COMPLETELY HE IS
WITH US, AND FOR US,
IN OUR OWN SUFFERING. I LOVE THE FACT,
IF YOU READ JOHN 11, WHICH IS FAMOUS TO MANY PEOPLE
'CAUSE IT HAS THE SHORTEST VERSE
IN THE BIBLE, "JESUS WEPT." IT ACTUALLY SAYS THREE TIMES,
AND IT'S THE STORY OF JESUS... FACE TO FACE PREMATURELY
WITH THE DEATH OF HIS
GOOD FRIEND LAZARUS, AND THERE HE IS
AT THE TOMB. THREE TIMES
IT SAYS HE WAS FURIOUS. TWO OF THE WORDS ARE
THE STRONGEST GREEK WORD FOR
OUTRAGE, FIERCE INDIGNATION. JESUS MADE THE WORLD GOOD,
VERY GOOD AS IT SAYS IN GENESIS. HE COMES INTO THIS WORLD,
IT'S BROKEN, MARRED, RUINED, INJUSTICE, OPPRESSION, TEARS,
AND HERE WITH HIS FRIEND CUT OFF
IN THE MIDDLE OF LIFE, HE DOESN'T THANK GOD FOR IT,
HE IS LIVID. AND OF COURSE HE ADDRESSES
AND DOES SOMETHING. WELL, I THINK
THE IDEA OF JESUS SAYING THAT
HE HAS OVERCOME THE WORLD... DESPITE THE FACT THAT
THERE IS TROUBLE IN THE WORLD... IS COMMUNICATING
THIS IDEA OF HOW THIS
RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD... HELPS YOU TO MAKE SENSE
OUT OF WHAT YOU SEE AROUND YOU, AND GIVES YOU THE ABILITY TO
ENGAGE WITH THE WORLD AS IT IS, THE FALLEN WORLD AS IT IS. WE CAN BE SHOCKED BY EVIL. WE
CAN BE GRIEVING OVER SUFFERING, AND THANK GOD, WE LOOK
AT JOHN 11, YOU CAN SEE JES...
GOD'S FACE WET WITH TEARS. YOU CAN SEE GOD'S FACE
FLUSHED WITH ANGER. AND THAT'S THE WAY WE SHOULD
RESPOND TO EVIL, TOO. IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN OTHERWISE. THE SECOND LITTLE REASSURANCE IN
THE SCRIPTURE: IS GOD ALL GOOD? YES. NO OTHER GOD
HAS WOUNDS. THE GOD OF THE SCRIPTURES,
OLD TESTAMENT, NEW TESTAMENT,
HE CARES, HE COMES, HE ACTS. TAKE SAY,
THE LORD SPEAKING TO MOSES, "I'VE HEARD THE CRIES
OF THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL,"
AND THEIR MISERY AND SO ON. "I'VE COME DOWN
AND I WANT TO SEND YOU." OR SUPREMELY, IN THE OLD
TESTAMENT, THE SUFFERING
SERVANT IN ISAIAH 53. HE COMES TO DO THE WILL OF GOD,
TO HELP THE PEOPLE OF GOD, AND HE'S TORTURED, SO HIDEOUSLY
DEFIGUR... DISFIGURED, HE'S
UNRECOGNIZABLE, ON OUR BEHALF. AND OF COURSE,
FOR US WHO FOLLOW JESUS,
THAT'S JESUS ON THE CROSS. AND THEN THE HOPE THAT HE OFFERS
ON THE OTHER END IS, OF COURSE, ONE DAY ALL THIS WILL
BE REMOVED. AND I... AND
I THINK IN THE REMOVAL OF... OF THE PAIN THAT
COMES IN THE FUTURE OF
THE CHRISTIAN HOPE IS... IS PART OF
THE RESOLUTION OF WHY DOES
IT EXIST TO BEGIN WITH, AND WHY SHOULD WE
ALLOW IT TO EXIST? AND I THINK, AGAIN, THIS
ILLUSTRATES THE IMPORTANCE
OF UNDERSTANDING... THAT WE LIVE IN A...
IN A FALLEN AND CHAOTIC
CREATION THAT HAS BEEN... KNOCKED OFF BALANCE BY...
BY THE PRESENCE OF EVIL. SOME WOULD SAY
THAT IT'S WRONG TO MIX
THE SUFFERING OF A NATION... THAT'S REMEMBERED HERE AT
THIS DETENTION CAMP WITH
THE SUFFERING OF JESUS, BUT WHEN YOU...
WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT IT,
BOTH SHARED A COMMON ANCESTRY. BOTH THE NATION AND JESUS
SUFFERED IN A WAY THAT
CAUSES PEOPLE TO SAY, "SOMETHING...
SOMETHING'S WRONG. SOMETHING'S
NOT RIGHT WITH THE WORLD." WELL, AS WE'VE HEARD TODAY,
THE DISCUSSION IS A PROFOUND
ONE. IT'S A DIFFICULT ONE. AND IT LEAVES ALL OF US WITH
THE QUESTION OF WHETHER OR NOT
WHAT JESUS SAID ABOUT SUFFERING, AND WHETHER WHAT
HE SUFFERED, DOES PROVIDE REAL
HOPE FOR ANY NATION OR... OR ANY INDIVIDUAL THAT
PUTS THEIR TRUST IN HIM.
