Are Trials Punishment for Sin?
The Question Series
When we are suffering, our natural tendency is to think we did something wrong. You may be experiencing something physically painful or debilitating; you may have had a setback in business; or it may be that your relationships are in turmoil. If the source of your trouble is not immediately obvious, you may slip into the default, “I must have sinned.” This mindset leads into the next phase that wonders why God allowed this trial to happen to you. From there, we begin to question God’s goodness in allowing this trial.
Are trials punishment for sin? This is a very good question because we all suffer, and we all find our faith challenged in times of pain. We make assumptions about pain and suffering that border on the superstitious, on presumptions about God and his dealings with us, but what does the Bible say about trials?
A Great Misunderstanding about Suffering
This question is at the heart of the book of Job. While Job is in agony over the loss of his ten children and all his wealth, three of his friends come and sit silently with him for seven days. This is the best thing they could have done for Job. Then they opened their mouths. That was the worst thing. As Calvin said, they had one song and they sang it to death. That song was retribution. The friends’ assumption was that Job’s suffering was God’s punishment for sins.
The problem with this assumption is that Job is actually innocent. God himself testifies of Job, “Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil?” (1:8). Yet the three friends harass Job for nearly 40 chapters to get him to repent because he has obviously done wrong. Eliphaz fires the first shot: “Stop and think! Do the innocent die? When have the upright been destroyed?” (4:7). Job fights back and stands by his innocence throughout the book until God speaks. God rebukes Eliphaz and the two friends for saying that people only suffer when they have done something wrong (42:7).
Several centuries later, we find that humanity still misunderstood the nature of suffering. In John 9, the disciples encounter a man born blind, and they asked Jesus, “Who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” (2). Jesus replied, “Neither.” (3). The faulty logic of the disciples’ suggested that there was a correlation between sin and suffering. He’s blind – he must have sinned. Jesus says NO, it wasn’t his fault; it wasn’t his parents’ fault – but this was an opportunity for the works of God to be revealed.
The question arising from this situation begs to be heard: Did God cause this man to be born blind so Jesus could heal him, or did God allow the man to be born blind? Depending on your view of God’s sovereignty and goodness, you may be fine with either answer. I, myself, have a hard time believing that God would cause a baby to be born with disabilities. (More on this later).
The great misunderstanding persists in our generation. We continue to think that suffering and trials are abnormal and are a punishment for sin. Job and Jesus give us God’s perspective: just because you suffer doesn’t mean you did anything wrong. That’s not how life works. In fact, Peter wrote, “…do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you,” (1 Peter 4:12). Trials are part of this life. And through Jesus, we see that suffering is normalized. Jesus did not sin, yet he suffered the most of any of us.
Causes for Suffering and Trials
Getting to the core of the question and its answer, “Are trials punishment for sin?” we need to look at four general causes for the suffering we experience in life. Where does it come from? Can we appreciate the justice of these cause-effect scenarios?
1) We suffer in this life because we live in a fallen world. In Genesis 3 we read of Adam and Eve’s disobedience to God’s command not to eat the fruit. They did. They sinned. They fell. We call this a “fall” because they fell from God’s standard of holiness. The word “fallen” is used in the Bible to describe someone or something spiritually or morally degraded (Israel, angels, people).
To live in a fallen world means we struggle with sin on a daily basis. We experience heartache and pain. We witness natural disasters and loss. People treat each other unjustly, inhumanly, and with deceit. None of this was God’s plan for humanity. When God addressed Adam, he said, “…cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life,” (3:17b). All of creation was affected by the first sin which introduced suffering into the world. Are trials punishment for sin? No, but we should not be surprised that we experience trials in a fallen world. A person who never suffers is unusual.
I stood in the cemetery with a friend as we buried his 18-year-old brother. He died in a single-vehicle accident as the passenger. Trying to find meaning in the tragedy, I asked my friend why God took his brother. He replied that God did not take his brother, nor was there a reason for this loss. He simply said, “Stuff happens.” That’s not the word he used.
2) We suffer in this life because of our bad decisions. There are consequences to acting foolish. Paul used an agricultural metaphor to drive this point home. He said, “Do not be deceived; God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life,” (Gal. 6:7-8).
I heard Haddon Robinson speak at my seminary one time. He shared how as a pastor he went to visit a man dying of lung cancer in the hospital. The dying man cried and asked his pastor, “Why is God doing this to me?” Robinson wanted to remind the man how he had smoked several packs of cigarettes a day since he was twelve and that he was now paying the price. But he refrained. Trials like this are self-inflicted. And yet I would maintain that this is not punishment for sin. Consequences – yes; punishment – no.
3) We suffer in this life as a form of God’s discipline. There are several results from this discipline, but one reason. The writer of Hebrews tells us, “For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives,” (12:6). (He goes on to explain in v. 7-11).
The writer of Hebrews compares this discipline to the correction we received from our parents. As toddlers, when we ran into the street unthinkingly, they scolded us. As children, they grounded us. As teenagers, they took the car keys away. They did not delight in this but needed to take these actions to make some truth clear to us. It was hoped that we would see that certain actions and behaviors were inappropriate. They wanted us to “grow up” into good people. Most importantly, they did not do this to other people’s children, they discipline only you. Why? Because you were their responsibility.
We see these principles at work in Hebrews 12. God disciplines you because he loves you. He wants you to “grow up” in faith and life, so that we can share his holiness. God wants us to live a God-oriented life so that we can experience life as it was meant to be lived. Sometimes it is painful to be disciplined. We hate to be wrong. We don’t enjoy being humbled by our suffering. But God is good, and it is not punishment for sin.
4) We suffer in this life because we love Jesus. I don’t know how many of us have experienced this kind of suffering. Jesus often told his followers that the world hated him, so we should not be surprised if they hate the ones who follow Jesus. Paul told Timothy, “…all who desire to live a godly life in Christ will be persecuted,” (2 Ti 3:12).
Examining Ourselves
Are you going through a difficult time in your life? Remember, Peter wrote that we should not be surprised that we suffer in this life. Now that we know some of the general causes of suffering, we can ask ourselves three questions based on 1 Peter 4:15-18.
1) Is this trial due to some sin in my life? To clarify, this question does not mean to imply that trials and suffering are in any way God's punishment of sin. As mentioned above, we may be suffering the consequences of poor choices. This is the trial we face: trying to make sense of suffering in light of poor choices. Poor choices may also be directly connected to sin. However, if you cannot identify the sin, do not stress yourself about it. If it is not immediately obvious, you can ask the Holy Spirit to reveal the sin to you if there is one. We can also ask the Holy Spirit to give you the comfort of God’s love if you are feeling unnecessary guilt. Peter warned, “…let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler,” (15). In other words, make sure you are not suffering because of a readily identifiable sin. If you know you have sinned, confess it, and make every effort to turn away from it.
2) How can I glorify God in my trial? If there is no sin in your life and you are suffering through some difficulty, take the opportunity to shine the attitude of Jesus. Peter challenged, “Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name,” (16). No one gets cancer because they are a Christian, but how do we handle illness and loss as believers? I have gone into hospital rooms to encourage a patient with presence and prayers and have left those rooms encouraged myself. Can you smile in the storm? Can you trust in Jesus even though your pain is chronic? In Christ, I believe we can.
3) What is this trial in the perspective of eternity? In verses 17-18, Peter pulls out an OT concept and applies it to the church. When God did a work of purifying his people in the OT, he began with the temple and moved outward. Sin in the church must be addressed so that we are not found to be in judgment with the world. It is better to repent of sin now than on the last day when Christ returns.
But in terms of our personal suffering, what are our discomforts in the light of eternity? Paul told the Corinthians, “So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light and momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison,” (2 Cor. 4:16-17). I know it’s easy to say and harder to live. But we know that our present sufferings are for but a time.
Finally, you may have noticed that I repeatedly stated that suffering and trials are not punishment for sin. Why? I contend that you will not be punished for your sins if you are in Christ. Why? Didn’t Christ die for our sins? What greater punishment is there for sin than the death of the sinless Son of God? Paul underlines with emphasis this truth when he wrote, "There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ
No, trials are not punishment for sin.
AMEN
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