Why do bad things happen to good people?

This is the question we have all asked quite a few times. “Why did my mother have to pass away at such a young age, she was such a good person, but bad people live long and happy lives.” “Why did this happen to me, I never hurt anybody?

These statements bring forward a very difficult question we all need to ask ourselves. Who exactly are these bad people we so easily refer too. Are we “bad” when we are different from the norm or are we considered a bad person when we commit sin? This again brings the next question. What sin do you have to commit to be considered a bad person?

We need to realize that every single person on this earth will and have sinned in their lifetime. 1 John 1:8: If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. When we look at what the bible says, we are all bad. Ecclesiastes 7:20: surely there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and never sins. We so often hear about horrible events that occur in the lives of those we love, those good people we all know. But over the last couple of months I have come to the conclusion that according to the human race, we are all “good people”. This becomes evident when we look at any funeral.

Have you ever been to a funeral where the deceased person was depicted for whom he really was? Have you ever heard the pastor say “Billy was a bad man, he spoke ill of those around him, stole money from innocent people, never set an example for his family and disregarded the way of Christ…?” I for one have never been to such a funeral. Everybody is “good” in our eyes once they pass on, and everybody goes to “a Better place” when they go.

This brings me back to the question I asked earlier; what sin do we have to commit to be considered a bad person? For us humans, someone is only bad if they murdered or raped your loved one, stole from you or hurt you, but God loves us all the same. For Him there is no distinction between someone who lied and someone who murdered. All sin is equal in the eyes of God. Romans 6: 23:  For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. James 2:10: For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it.

We need to understand that having good intentions does not make a good man. The sad part about this is none of us are good. Luke 18:19: “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good, except God alone. Romans 3:10: “As it is written, there is no one righteous, not even one. Ephesians 2:8: For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast.

This brings me to my actual point of this article. Why do bad things happen to good people – Because there are no good people. Romans 3:23: For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. As difficult as this is to except, no matter how “good” we try and be, we are still bad. We were all born into sin. 1 John 1:8: We have all sinned at some point, even on a daily basis. Even the quickest fleeting bad thought about your friend, family or stranger is sin in God’s eyes. That sin makes you just as guilty as the murderer on death row. God hates sin and there is no distinction between sin in God’s eyes. We serve a mighty God that is always fair. Psalm 7:11: “God is a judge who is perfectly fair”.

But this alone holds a problem for us, which we so eagerly overlook. God is not only fair towards us, but He is fair towards all. This includes angels, demons and satan. Our selfish nature (also sin in God’s eyes) wants us to believe that God is only fair towards us. We forget that when we sin we open doors in our lives, even if we are a born again Christian. The problem we have is that when we allow sin in our lives, we are in actual fact giving satan a rightful place in our lives, as we know nothing bad comes from God. All the bad things that happen in our lives (finances, marriages, work, family, etc.) comes from satan. But then we ask why God would allow satan to touch those parts of our lives and the answer is, God is fair!

When we open doors in our lives by committing sin, satan has a legal right in our lives. And he will petition God for it. As we serve a just God, he will allow satan his legal right. Only once we confess our sins to God, ask Him for forgiveness, will God deny Satan such a request. Those doors we open need to be closed and sealed by the blood of Christ in order for Satan not to have a legal right in our lives. We are so quick to say “we serve a God that is Just”, but we so eagerly forget that He is just in all he does. Hebrews 13:8: Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

This is also why sometimes we pray and pray for areas in our lives to change without success. We them become dismayed and ask if God can hear us and wonder why He has not answered our prayers. But here we need to take a step back and look at our lives. Ask God to show you which doors have been opened in your life that needs to be closed, confess your sins and ask God for forgiveness. 1 John 1:9: If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

We know that the bad things that happen to us are from Satan and not God, but this is why God allows it. Because we live a life of sin. We are taught that God forgives all, He is a loving God that knows our hearts, but we ignore that God hates sin. He spits out the lukewarm. Revelation 3:15-16: I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. In the above statement lies our biggest challenge, God knows our hearts, He knows every part of your heart, the good and the bad. Those secret parts that we hide from the world and think only we know are there. Jeremiah 17:9: The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?

When we commit our entire life to Him, we also need to realize that we have to stop doing sin, confess our sins when we do, and thank God as it is by Grace that we are saved. We do not deserve Gods love or forgiveness and yet we act as if we do when things don’t go our way. Ephesians 2:8: For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God. We are all born with a sinful nature. I ask that God help me every day to turn away from sin, confess my sins to our Almighty God, repent and ask Him to close the doors that I opened for satan.

Romans 5:12: Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned. Matthew 12:33-37: “Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, for the tree is known by its fruit. You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil. I tell you, on the Day of Judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”

Father God, I pray that You will open my eyes so that I can see the doors I leave wide open in my life, allowing Satan to steal and destroy. Holy Spirit please lead me in searching my heart. Give me ears willing to hear, a heart eager to find you. Eyes that want to see. Help me to close the doors in my life and to seal them with the blood of Jesus Christ, my Lord and Savior. Help me Lord to remember that it is by Your grace that I am saved. Keep my heart safe from pride, every day of my life. Thank you Lord for the love You shower me with each day. Thank You for being patient with me and continually giving me another chance. Help me to do the same to those around me, so that I can live a life in line with Your will for me. In Jesus Name. Amen.

Julene Bosman