Articles
God the Merciful Conqueror of Suffering
What if suffering had a reason or purpose behind it? In the book of Ruth, Naomi, her husband, and their two sons moved from Judah to Moab due to a famine. Naomi’s husband and sons eventually passed away there. Having nothing but sorrow in Moab, she sought to return to Judah once she heard that the Lord ended the famine. After fleeing her home because of famine and losing her family, she was understandably upset and bitter. She blamed God and changed her name to reflect as much because Ruth 1:20-21 reads, ”’Don’t call me Naomi,’ she told them. ‘Call me Mara, because the Almighty has made my life very bitter. I went away full, but the Lord has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi? The Lord has afflicted me; the Almighty has brought misfortune upon me.’”
However, God wasn’t to blame because He wouldn’t tempt her to lose faith through grief. James 1:13 says, “Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am being tempted by God,’ for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one.” If anyone is to blame it would be Satan for bringing sin into the world which leads to death (Genesis 3, Romans 5:12). God was the person who led Ruth to be a part of Naomi’s family and gave her a heart of righteousness. So much so, when Naomi tried to send her daughters-in-law Ruth and Orpah back to Moab, Ruth replied, “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and me” (Ruth 1:16-17). God also created the situation that led to this moment because He was the one who ended the famine in Judah, causing Naomi to return (Ruth 1:6-7). After returning to Judah, Ruth took care of Naomi by working in the fields and this let Boaz take notice of Ruth. God gave Boaz a righteous heart as well because he protected Ruth as she worked and eventually redeemed Ruth and Naomi by taking Ruth as his wife.
God was not the harbinger of destruction that the bitter Naomi first saw Him as; He was the creator of Her salvation and the bringer of light. He will do the same for us through our moments. If our suffering is a result of sin, then He will be merciful if we repent. If we are suffering just by living in this world, then He will bring us salvation! We must trust Him and choose to heartfully breathe in His word, allowing it to renew our hearts and minds. Not so we can be positive about our suffering, but in order to see the blessings God sends our way so that we can overcome it.
