God is at Work
Where is God in the midst of evil? Where is God when the whole world seems to be falling apart? Where is God when we most need Him?
On September 21, 2013, terrorists seized Westgate mall in Nairobi, Kenya in what would become a multi-day siege leaving scores of people wounded and dead. My wife and I were shaken. Were it not for a weekend trip, we may well have been among the victims since this was a place we went regularly. More recently, attacks against the Asian community in the US along with tragic shootings leave us wondering how to grapple with the evil of violence and hate.
Struggling with evil
After these kinds of events, the first question we often ask is why? Why me? Why us? Why them? There is no emotionally satisfying answer to the reality of evil especially amidst its immediate effects. Usually, we are just angry and in pain.
This anger arises from two deeply human instincts. First, the injustice. When terrorists assault unarmed civilians, anger overwhelms us. When an elderly citizen gets attacked by a young man out of hate, anger wells up within us. Second, we are angry because of our powerlessness. This anger often gives way to fear - of the sense that this injustice and powerlessness might find our way to our lives, if it has not already.
Sometimes, our anger is directed at God. For people of faith who look to a just, all-powerful God, the immediacy and reality of evil seems to imply that this all-powerful God is also powerless against evil. In our own moment of powerlessness, grappling against injustice, crying out to a good and powerful God to stop the evil only to see it continue challenges our faith at its most fundamental level. Where is God when evil strikes? How are we to love a God who seems absent in the middle of evil?
God in the middle of evil
In the aftermath of Westgate, survivors told stories of feeling God’s presence with them as they evaded the terrorists. They recounted miraculous encounters of God’s protection in the chaos. One answer to where God is when evil strikes is right in the middle of it. Even in the worst moments, God is right there with us.
Another group of people spoke of the almost serendipitous way they avoided the attack. They normally went to the mall, but something averted them from going that day – maybe they forgot something at home or had an alternate appointment. God’s sovereignty does work to also keep us from experiencing the worst effects of evil.
But how about the victims? Where was God for them? For their families? I struggled with this question when I found out that an acquaintance of mine had lost his life in the Westgate attack. I was grieved when I found out the news, recalling the last meeting I had with him. He was a wonderful, kind, and incredibly smart person whose life had tragically been cut short.
In those moments, the most comforting thing to remember about God is the victory that Jesus has over death. Wrongfully accused and brutally tortured, Jesus experienced evil in the worst way. Isolated and alone on the cross, Jesus would cry out before He died:
My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?1
Jesus, the King of the universe, felt intense loneliness and separation from God as He endured death. Jesus knows our pain because He Himself has felt the injustice of evil. If the story ended here, Jesus’s followers would have no hope. But after a gruesome and violent death on the cross, Jesus rose again, claiming victory over death.
When we feel crushed by evil’s devastating impact on our lives or when we experience the loss of our loved ones, followers of Jesus derive the most comfort from knowing death is not the final chapter of life on earth. Jesus continues to write our story even after death. Beyond the end of our time on earth, wrongs will be righted and Jesus will have the final word over evil. Knowing this truth has powerful implications for us today.
Living in an evil world
How should this knowledge shape how we live in a world where evil seems to reign unfettered?
First, we should place our emotions in all their messy forms at the feet of Jesus in worshipful surrender. God is big enough for our emotions and questions - even our sorrow and our anger. The psalmists regularly did this:
For you are the God in whom I take refuge;
Why have you rejected me?
Why do I go about mourning
because of the oppression of the enemy?2
Still, even as the psalmists cried out, they also exalted God. They understood He still reigned over the world even when they did not see the full picture:
Send out your light and your truth; let them lead me…
Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.3
God’s goodness is always at work. Because He is in control and reigns over death, we can surrender our emotions and lack of understanding to Him. God’s light and His truth grounds our hope releasing our hearts to praise His goodness even when we do not see it in the moment.
Second, we should endeavor to radiate the love and compassion of Christ to those impacted by evil. Practically, this might mean being a shoulder to cry on or supporting a loved one struggling under the weight of grief. Maybe it means providing financial support where it is needed or using our voice to combat evil. If we are open, God will lead us to be His instruments of healing equipping us with kindness, grace, and compassion for those around us who need it the most.
Third, but certainly not last, we should place our eternal hope in Jesus. Followers of Jesus place their hope in the goodness of Christ and His return. In this Easter season, Jesus’s followers know that because of His victory over death, God is at work today and they keenly anticipate God’s eventual triumph over evil. This is the world followers of Jesus look forward to:
He will wipe away every tear from their eyes.
Death will no longer exist;
grief, crying, and pain will exist no longer,
because the previous things have passed away.4
God cares about injustice. He cares deeply about eradicating evil. He is still in control with a plan we do not fully see or understand. Knowing this truth, we can rest assured that God is always at work in the middle of our pain, over the circumstances of our lives and in the world around us. One day, Jesus will come back and make all things right.
Matthew 27:46
Psalm 43:2
Psalm 43:3,5
Revelation 21:4