'If God really loved humanity we would never have to suffer' Do you agree? Give reasons to support your answer and show that you have thought about different points of view.

Other Christians believe that suffering is a test from God to see if man will remain loyal to Him, and some believe that suffering is a part of God’s plan, which is beyond the human understanding.

Some Christians feel that all mankind have sinned against Him and so it would not be unjust for Him to cause us suffering. They believe that God allows us to live with painful consequences of our actions, but there is nowhere near the severity of the punishment we really deserve, and that we really deserve death and so suffering would not be so bad.

Atheists don’t believe in god and so suffering would be less of a problem for them and they would think that it is just a part of the world and that we should just accept it like everything else in the world.

The Bible contains many examples of human suffering, including: natural disasters, slavery, wars, refugee crises, persecution, plagues and murders. One whole book of the Old Testament, Job, is devoted to the problem of suffering. Job was a good man who suffers total disaster as his children are killed, he loses all his property and possessions and he is afflicted by a painful and disfiguring skin disease. It gives three explanations for Job’s suffering. One is that it was a test, second is that it was a punishment for sin, and thirdly it was a part of God’s plan which is beyond human understanding. Despite all of his suffering, Job accepted this and carried on with his life. Job 1:20-21: ‘Stood up and tore his clothes in grief. He shaved his head and threw himself face downwards on the ground. He said 'I was born with nothing, and I will die with nothing. The Lord gave, and now he has taken away. May his name be praised.”’ The attitude of Job sets an example to the rest of mankind, telling everyone to accept suffering and to obey God’s commands.

The problem of suffering in the world points to the problem of a broken relationship between man and God. Jesus offers us the solution to the suffering in our lives, as well as sympathising with our pain and offering us hope for the future. We are left with a decision on how we will react to our suffering and what our attitude towards God will be, and whether or not we will accept Jesus’ offer of forgiveness.