Where is God’s love in a world of suffering?

It’s a nagging question that most every thinking person asks. And many of our answers are either shallow or just plain wrong. I do not intend to offer an answer to this dilemma, but just a thought to help us process this obvious dilemma of reconciling a loving God with a suffering world. After all, how could a loving God allow random acts of violence?

I think back to a story in the New Testament from Jesus’ life (John 5). He is in the city of Jerusalem near the Temple. He is at a place called Bethesda, a porch-like structure that had a small pool. It says “Here a great number of disabled people used to lie—the blind, the lame, the paralyzed.” The reason they were there was because of a belief, perhaps legend, that the first person to get into the water after it was stirred would be healed. And so they came, day after day, just waiting & hoping it would be their day.

When Jesus arrived, he found many disabled people there. What did he do? He healed one of them. Think about that. He could have healed all of them, but He healed one of them. What is that all about? All of a sudden, what happened to “God loves everyone”? Surely if he loved everyone, Jesus would have healed everyone, right? Apparently not.

Is there a lesson about love here? Is it possible that what we, humanity, think is “love” really is not “love”? If God loved those disabled people at the Bethesda Pool, but did not heal them, then perhaps love does not always make life more convenient or comfortable. It appears that love will allow suffering to continue sometimes. Hmmmm? These kinds of dilemmas always bring me back to Romans 11:33, msg: Is there anyone around who can explain God? Anyone smart enough to tell him what to do?