to suffer injustice

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Since the fall of our ancestors in the Garden of Eden, human life has been filled with many bad and undesirable events and occurrences (cf. Ecclesiastes 3:11; 7:29). This was primarily evident in the fact that humanity suffered a spiritual death and is now subject to physical death. Furthermore, the frailty of our bodies in this limited earthly time allotted to us by God means that we must struggle for our lives, to work by the sweat of our brow for our food, and to bear our children in pain and suffering.

Furthermore, due to the loss of unity with their Creator, humanity became divided among themselves, having lost not only the glory of God bestowed upon them during creation, but also love for one another. This love was replaced by selfishness, greed, hatred, envy, and hostility towards their fellow human beings. In turn, humanity developed a desire to dominate and exploit its neighbors. Instead of love and a willingness to do good to others, there arose the craving to constantly receive or demand something, often resorting to malice against neighboring brothers and sisters (cf. Genesis 10:8-12).

This in turn “awakened” various sinful tendencies in the smarter, stronger and more powerful people to want to dominate the less intelligent, successful and wealthy people as well as the weaker ones, and to often treat them not only domineeringly but also unjustly (cf. Ecclesiastes 4:1-4).

The result of original sin

Furthermore, because of the tragedy that occurred in the Garden of Eden at the beginning of creation, the forces of evil in heaven gained access to God's creation and now carry out godless and destructive works within it. Thus, suffering can befall us not only through the wickedness and lies of people, but also as a result of natural disasters, various illnesses and epidemics, or life circumstances that bring sorrow, misfortune, uncertainty, or other hardships (cf. Isaiah 11:1-10; Romans 8:18-23).

However one may view it, the result of the Fall is the constant presence of suffering in various forms in the life of every human being (cf. Job 14:1-2).

A special place among all the suffering and hardship that can befall a person in the course of their life is occupied by that which they must endure unjustly. This suffering can be connected to our own life or to the lives of our loved ones, whom we hold dear. Among all the possible cases, the pain of such suffering seems many times greater because what happened appears unbelievable and random. And we think or talk about God's omnipotence and love for us (though not often and deeply, as we should in this time of grace) as if it were something self-evident. And it seems as if, for some reason, God does nothing to prevent the misfortune that befalls us or our loved ones.

The entire history of humankind, and the numerous examples of people whose lives the Bible recounts, shows us that there is no answer to these people's questions about their unjustified suffering. A person can only receive the answer when they begin to understand the essence and meaning of their life, the purpose of creation and existence, and how our Lord leads each of us toward these goals. Furthermore, we can only approach the answers to these questions by remaining steadfast in our faith in God and learning to grow in unconditional trust in our Creator and Redeemer.

To understand all of this lies beyond the human story of creation and can only be grasped through faith. In the last book of the Bible, chapter 13, which recounts the so-called Apocalypse, it is written of Jesus Christ that He is the sacrificial Lamb from the foundation of the world (cf. Revelation 13:8). This means that perhaps our Creator created all life and placed upon it a creation that resembles Him in His image and also resembles humankind.

This, in turn, means—and only in this way does it make sense—that even before the beginning of the world, the Son of God, through His immeasurable love for His creation and especially for us, was prepared to take all our burdens and sins upon Himself and to live on this earth as a "man of suffering" in order to destroy the works of the devil (cf. 1 John 3:7-9). He led a gentle and humble ministry so that we might learn from Him what life with God alone and His truth can be. Through His humiliating death on the cross at Golgotha and His glorious resurrection from the dead, He has forever freed all who believe in Him from the power of the devil and the force of sin.

Victory through the Passion of Christ

Thanks to the undeserved and, according to human understanding, unjustified sufferings of Jesus Christ, it is possible for us to grasp the love of God for us humans, which lies "beyond human understanding" and allows us to recognize the core, the meaning and the purpose of His sufferings – especially when these sufferings also befall us and we feel that it is undeserved and unjust.

In the Epistle to the Romans by the Apostle Paul it is written: “But now the righteousness of God has been manifested outside of the law, which is attested to by the Law and the Prophets—the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ—to all who believe. For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. God presented him as an atoning sacrifice, through faith in his blood, to demonstrate his righteousness” (Romans 3:21-25) .

We suffer for Christ as His followers, knowing that participating in His way also involves much suffering.

We see that God's justice is expressed not only in the just punishment of man for his sins, but also in the Creator's benevolent attitude toward sinners. His holy desire is "that all people may be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth" (1 Timothy 2:4) . However, God is just—this is one of His perfections, which states that the mercy a repentant sinner receives comes only because someone without sin "drinks" the cup of God's wrath for him by "taking his place," thus fulfilling the holy requirements of divine justice to open the doors to the wellsprings of God's grace for the sinner before his Lord.

This is precisely what Jesus Christ did when, through His sacrifice in our place on the cross of Golgotha, He redeemed us from the power of sin, death, the world, and the devil, as well as from eternal destruction and a future without hope. There is no doubt that the Son of God Himself is the greatest gift God has sent us. But Jesus Christ is not only life for us, but also the way and the truth. Therefore, the New Testament tells us that the love of Christ moves us, as it is written: “If one died for all, then all died. He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for him who for their sake died and rose again. [...] Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come” (2 Corinthians 5:14-17).

As His creation (cf. Eph 2:1-10) and the sheep of His flock (cf. Ps 100:3), we listen to His voice and follow His steps (cf. Jn 10:1-11; 1 Pet 2:13-21; Rom 8:14-18). We suffer with Him as His children and followers, knowing that participating in His way involves much, including misunderstandings from unbelievers, ridicule for faith in Christ, persecution for preaching His holy name, and insults for following the gospel. This is the beginning of the future glory that awaits His people when Christ comes to earth for those who wait for Him to be saved.

Just as Christ endured the cross and neglected the shame for the sake of future joy, so too do we, who believe in Him, learn to suffer with Him in order to be glorified with Him. Furthermore, the word of faith strengthens and comforts us in the sufferings we endure. This comfort has an effect that brings us benefit and blessing, both in this earthly life and in eternity. For example, King David also walked the path with all the pains God had allotted him, connected with the wickedness and persecution of Saul. He had to suffer these things. However, in doing so, he also demonstrated his good nature and his hope, which led to his rule over Israel being blessed by God and his character being firmly in God's hands (cf. 1 Samuel 24:8-21).

In his second letter to the Thessalonians, the Apostle Paul writes about the blessed fruit that grows in eternity after patiently and devoutly enduring the suffering of mortality: “We ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers and sisters, as is fitting, because your faith is growing immeasurably, and each of you is increasing in love for everyone. So we ourselves boast about you in the churches of God because of your perseverance and faithfulness in all the persecutions and afflictions you have been enduring. These are a sign of God’s righteous judgment, so that you may be considered worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. For it is just in God’s sight to repay those who afflict you with affliction, but to you who are afflicted with rest together with us, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels” (2 Thessalonians 1:12). 1,3-7).

First and foremost, we need to move away from the question "Why?". The much more important question is how we can derive the greatest benefit from this experience.

Rich in Leiden

Then every Christian living by faith begins to understand what reaction the Lord wants to see from us when we encounter suffering and injustice in our lives, and what He wants to teach us through them, even though the reasons, meaning, and intentions of God are not always immediately clear to us. Ultimately, we only grow spiritually when we follow our Lord Jesus Christ in our lives.

The Apostle Peter wrote about this as follows: “For it is a grace if, out of conscience toward God, one endures afflictions unjustly. For what credit is it if you patiently endure being beaten because you have sinned? But if you suffer for doing good and endure it patiently, this is a grace in the sight of God. For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow in his steps” (1 Peter 2:19-21).

And the lives of almost all biblical heroes of faith demonstrate this. Consider Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Job, David, or the prophets – none of them walked their path in life, attained perfection, and ascended into the presence of God without having become "rich" in suffering. They experienced hostility and envy from others, as well as many injustices, throughout their lives.

“Therefore, brothers and sisters, wait patiently for the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth and waits patiently for it, until it receives its early and late rains. So you also must wait patiently; strengthen your hearts, because the coming of the Lord is near. Do not grumble against one another, brothers and sisters, or you will be condemned. Behold, the Judge is standing at the door. My brothers and sisters, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord as an example of suffering and patience. Behold, we consider blessed those who persevere. You have heard of Job’s perseverance and have seen the end the Lord has prepared for him, for the Lord is full of compassion and mercy” (James 5:7-11) , writes the Apostle James.

And it is also said of our Lord Jesus Christ: “Although he was a son, he learned obedience by what he suffered; and having reached his perfection, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him” (Hebrews 5:8-9). When we encounter many inexplicable and unjust sufferings in our lives, we must learn to view them from a biblical and spiritual perspective. For if we start from the wrong premise, we will respond incorrectly to our anxieties.

First and foremost, we must let go of the question "Why?" which often arises in these moments. This question is irrelevant at such times, and God will not provide us with any explanations. Job only understood why this had happened to him after he had experienced everything. The far more important question is how we can derive the greatest benefit from this experience.

Perhaps the most important question we must ask ourselves in such a situation is: "What can I learn from this?" We must learn to see in every injustice we experience a God-given opportunity to learn something valuable. For example, Augustine of Hippo said that anyone who asks God for humility must know that they are also asking God to send them someone who will offend them!

In other words, God desires that each of us learns to know and trust Him in all trials. He wants us to learn to understand ourselves and others, to grow spiritually, and to develop further. Through His grace, we are to learn to endure evil and to be comforted and strengthened by Him—in anticipation of help from above. In this way, we will be able to help our neighbors in similar situations (cf. 2 Tim 2:24-26).

The Lord can help us by allowing suffering in our lives:

• to a very deep understanding of His word (cf. Ps 119:67), to lead us to Himself or to His ways (cf. Job 42:1-5),
• to free from sins that hold fast (cf. 1 Pet 4:1) and to bring the heart to deep repentance (cf. 2 Cor 7:8-10),
• to help achieve His goals, although we often cannot understand them in our daily lives (cf. Romans 8:28-29),
• to educate spiritually (cf. Ps 119:71),
• to teach them to have compassion for the suffering and worries of our fellow human beings (cf. 2 Cor 1:3-6) and to better understand other people, but also to make them aware of the fact that our habits can be incomprehensible or even unpleasant for other people (cf. Mt 7:12),
• to teach to understand that not all things that are unpleasant for us personally are necessarily bad, and that we do not have the right to be angry about them or to react to them with displeasure (cf. Ecclesiastes 7:20-21; Proverbs 17:9; 20:11).
• teach us to love our enemies and persecutors, to repay evil with good, and to respond to hatred with love (cf. Mt 5:39-48; Rom 12:17-21).

Suffering helps us grow

The next challenge we absolutely must consider when we suffer injustice is how we can grow spiritually in such situations. We must embrace our suffering as an opportunity for spiritual growth. This becomes a reality only through the grace of Jesus Christ, through which the Lord leads us to the greatest spiritual possibilities, even though at first it may seem as if they will destroy and annihilate us, bringing our lives to a tragic end (cf. Ps 109:25-28). Therefore, it is essential to learn to transform negative experiences in our lives into positive ones (cf. Rom 5:3-5; 8:28-30).

The third important question that every suffering Christian faces is the need to understand how and in what way they can continue to work and serve the Lord in this situation of their life. Very often, people become closed off in their suffering, which paralyzes them in their work for the Lord and renders their efforts fruitless. Such experiences are, of course, almost always very difficult to overcome. However, the word of grace teaches us: “We put no stumbling block in anyone, so that the ministry will not be discredited. On the contrary, we commend ourselves as servants of God in everything: in much patience, in afflictions, hardships, distresses, beatings, imprisonments, disturbances, toils, sleepless nights, and fasts” (2 Corinthians 6:3-5). And just as our Redeemer equipped the Apostle Paul, so too can He teach us in His immeasurable grace.

We must learn to see in every injustice we experience a God-given opportunity to learn something valuable.

Finally, there is one last question we must never forget: “How can God be glorified through our suffering?” Only the Lord allows suffering and temptation to come upon us. Nothing can be accomplished on our path without His will (see Genesis 45:1-5). God has two purposes for us: to glorify Him and to bless us, so that we are able to gain victory over all our suffering and temptation. With the help of our Lord and Savior, our way of dealing with such situations will also change radically.

The result, sooner or later, will also be victory over the suffering we have endured and the solution to our problems. In this way, we who believe in Jesus Christ meet unbelievers on equal terms. These unbelievers walk this earth in injustice, which dates back to that distant time when our ancestors, through their deliberate godless actions, allowed a terrible and ruthless power called sin into their lives. Thus, the devil gained a foothold, coming ever since to steal, kill, and torment all of God's creation.

But precisely for this reason the Son of God appeared, to destroy the plans of the devil (cf. 1 John 3:8) and also to give birth anew to those who believe in Him through water and the Spirit, so that they may receive the power to gain victory over the devil and his realm of the dead, over this earth and all its carnal lusts, and over evil and all imaginable sufferings with which present life is filled (cf. 1 John 5:3-6).

We who believe in God and our Savior Jesus Christ (cf. Rom 8:28-39) will achieve victory when we draw ourselves to Him with all our hearts, when we deny ourselves and carry our cross to follow Him (Mk 8:34-38), place our hope in His promises (cf. 1 Pet 2:4-6; Rom 8:32), and fear nothing (cf. Ps 112:5-9; 1 Jn 4:17-18)!

Richard Zimmermann
Municipality of Bremen