For my birthday Liese gave me Timothy Keller's new book "The Reason for God" and I've been reading it these last few weeks. You can download Keller's lectures/sermons on the topics he writes about in the books from his church's website.In his book Keller writes about different problems people have with Christianity such as "there can't be just one true religion", "science has disproved Christianity", "how can a good God send people to hell" etc. As I was reading the chapter on "how can a good God allow suffering" I was struck by a passage of Dostoevsky's "The Brothers Karamazov" that Keller quoted as he showed how Christianity has an answer to suffering. Here is what Dostoevsky wrote:
"I believe like a child that suffering will be healed and made up for, that all the humiliating absurdity of human contradictions will vanish like a pitiful mirage, like the despicable fabrication of the impotent and infinitely small Euclidean mind of man, that in the world's finale, at the moment of eternal harmony, something so precious will come to pass that it will suffice for all hearts, for the comforting of all resentments, for the atonement of all the crimes of humanity, of all the blood that they've shed; that it will make it not only possible to forgive but to justify all that has happened. "Dostoevsky doesn't condone evil but admits that there is something coming which will surpass all the suffering and evil we experience. The Apostle Paul believed the same thing when he wrote to the church in Rome that he does not consider the present sufferings worthy to be compared to the glory that will be revealed in us.
God allows suffering, evil, hardship, and pain on this earth not because He is evil or unjust but because there is something coming that is so great that the suffering of this world can not be compared to it. God allows it because He knows the greater good that we will receive because of it.
Those are something thoughts I've been having lately that I thought I would write down.
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Hey Guys, just preparing a msg for some ladies and been looking at stuff online, just had a thought to look at your blog and catch up on things - I forgot you were in the States. Anyway, really appreciated the comments on suffering, I want to touch on that when I speak. It's all for our good. God is good, even when it seems bad. Hope you guys are having a good time. We are. Sergei's in Brisbane working, we've got a little rental place there. I'm still at mum and dad's. Tanya.
Tanya,
Good to hear that you're doing well.
Hope your message goes well. I'm sure it will.
Miss ya,
L.
love the dostoevsky quote. i really have to get around to reading that book sometime (brothers karamazov). are you enjoying keller's book? meaning, is it really basic like reasoning to a non-christian or are there some deep thoughts in it? (i'd be suprised if there weren't, just curious).
Ben - yeah, I need to read that book too. I started it in college but never got around to finishing it.
Keller's book is not basic at all - think Schaeffer+CS Lewis+ scholarly researchers both secular and Christian. I think it is a must read for everyone in ministry these days even though there is nothing innately new in it. The thoughts are well organized, well thought out, and well written.
i enjoy keller (though i've only listen to 2 of his sermons so far), so now i've downloaded the "reason for God" sermons and hope to listen to them soon. i'm actually reading a schaeffer book right now called "true spirituality"... good stuff (though one chapter was a bit dry and redundant, but overall great thoughts... this is actually the first schaeffer i've read, though i've heard a lot about him.) maybe you'll let me borrow the book from you when you're done? :)
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