Why Does God Let Bad Things Happen To Good People?

This question always bothers me, because it shows what a selfish perspective we have on life. Now, most Christians answer this question about the same. They will say it is not God’s fault that bad things happen; it is our fault, as sinful man. Though this is true, the problem with this argument is that it would imply that somehow the victim is also the cause. You wouldn’t tell a child that is their fault they were beaten, or a rape victim that they somehow deserved it. We all know better. It’s never the victim’s fault. Yet, we find it so hard to answer this question without making either the victim look guilty…or God, for not stopping it.

This is a problem.

But the real problem, you see, is not the answer, but rather the question. By asking, “Why do bad things happen to good people?” you are making two very big assumptions. The first, is the classification of “bad.”

How do you decide, what is or is not bad? Such a term is entirely relative. Of course, there are some circumstance which most would agree are unquestionably bad, such as the aforementioned rape and child abuse. But what about other situations? Is losing ones job bad? Sometimes, perhaps. But always? Is sickness or injury or being cheated or lied to always a bad thing? What I mean by this, is that there are obstacles put in our lives that are there for the sole purpose of building us up and making us stronger. Someone once said “God gives us mountains, so we can learn how to climb.” Indeed, without challenges and chances to grow, we would all be as fundamentally weak, naive, and innocent as children with a very small sense of what makes us who we are.

So yes, not everything that seems to us as being “bad” truly is. It is not until all is said and done, and you can see the bigger picture, that you would truly know for sure. That was the first assumption, but the second is just as important and has even bigger holes, and that is, the assumption that there exists such a thing as, “good people.”

Are there such things as “good people?” Somehow, I doubt it. Is it not Romans 3:23 that starts by saying “For all have sinned…”

Every one of us is made of sin, fleshed in sin, birthed in sin. We can not go a day without it. It is fundamentally a part of who and what we are. We are sinners. We can try to fool ourselves. We can say that we are a good person. But as 1 John 1:8 clearly reads, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” So it’s time you cast aside your foolish notions of goodness. It does not exist in our mortal realm. No matter how much good you do in life, it will never cover up or outweigh the bad. Isaiah 64:6a states, “But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags.” You are not good. I am not good. And no one you will ever see or meet, will ever fit that description.

And so the question is fundamentally erred. The question should not be, “Why do bad things happen to good people?” but rather “Why do good things happen to bad people?” And this one can only be answered by the grace of God. As sinners, none of us deserve any sort of protection from God, and yet, every so often, he gives it to us, with countless other blessings that we could never hope to repay.

“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. ” Romans 6:23

As sinners, the only thing that we truly deserve is death itself, but instead the Lord grants us the option of eternal life, with other blessings to boot. Why he does this, is a question that I do not know the answer to and never will.