Hope in suffering

Without God,

• suffering is the battle for survival,
• objectively meaningless,
• subjective possibly meaningful.

With God,

• suffering is a riddle,
• due to the Biblical descriptions of God,
• as almighty, good and righteous.

Without God,

• the existence of compassion is a riddle,
• possibly existent for increasing the survival of the species,
• functional, but not meaningful

With God,

• the existence of compassion is evident,
• since God is compassion,
• and men is made in the image of God

Without God,

• suffering is a cruel experience,
• like a wasp in our pyjamas,
• which needs to be eliminated.

With God,

• suffering is meaningful,
• since suffering is a heavy force,
• to surrender to God

Without God,

• suffering cannot be fully understood,
• since we don’t understand the nature of consciousness,
• where suffering is experienced

With God,

• suffering can be understood,
• as the curse of God over mankind,
• as a result of our sin

Without God,

• suffering has no higher meaning,
• hence redemption from suffering,
• is an end in itself.

With God,

• suffering has a higher meaning,
• since Jesus suffered for our sin,
• and the road to heaven is to follow His footsteps.

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