Why Do the Good Die and the Bad Keep Going?

[Writesinme]

My husband's boss is a colossal jerk. I'm being nice to call him that--if I wasn't a Christian and a lady, I'd tell you what he really is! Besides being a slave driver, he's as cold-hearted as they come. His latest:

Today, he told my husband and another director to get rid of a guy on their team and move him to another group. He was adamant that they do it first thing tomorrow. DH and the other director said, "Can we wait a day or so? His fiance' is going in the hospital tomorrow to have tumors removed to see if they're cancer. He's dealing with a lot right now."

The boss replied: "So? Who cares? Okay, next topic..."

This is typical behavior for this man.

Why does God allow these creeps to go about their lives, enjoying success? I know some really wonderful people who died young, yet people who don't deserve the good lives they've got just breeze along and everything goes their way.

I know God is patient and gives people every opportunity to turn to Him--but what if they never will? God knows who will spend eternity with Him. If some really awful person is never going to repent, why does God allow them to continue on, hurting others?

What are your thoughts?

[Morningstarlet]

I've known two children that died of cancer at the age of seven. And I've also known people that were truly messed up and gave nothing back to society, but continued on and on. One day I'll ask God why, but until then I haven't a clue. :sigh

[Daddys_girl]

Those who die in Christ hit the lottery! They're home!

The rotten ones left here are gonna party now, but even their day is coming, and they don't have the awesome "retirement pan" that we have. Have pity on them. They're already dead and don't even know it.

I used to be so jealous of my brother who seemed to have it all......but I'm the one going to heaven as it stands right now.

[The Sower]

Those who die in Christ hit the lottery! They're home!

The rotten ones left here are gonna party now, but even their day is coming, and they don't have the awesome "retirement pan" that we have. Have pity on them. They're already dead and don't even know it.

I used to be so jealous of my brother who seemed to have it all......but I'm the one going to heaven as it stands right now.
:whoo :whoo :whoo :whoo

[barb43]

I have often wondered this question . . . and have not found any concrete answers, but i do hang onto Matt. 5:45b: "He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and unrighteous." Y'know, God could have made us perfect, or He could have made us free (by giving us the gift of free will). He chose to make us free. So, some live long and unrighteously, while others who are righteous die young -- and vice versa.

[Daddys_girl]

There's always the truth that, for some of us, myself included I'm sure, would not have to rely on Jesus if our lives were perfect.

Then again, I think my life now IS perfect in all the ways that matter most.

[Heavensent]

I believe that God gives us trials to make us stronger. I know He's put difficult people in my life before to teach me something. Sometimes it's patience or to keep me from opening my big fat mouth and getting myself in more trouble. ;):

[Josiah]

Solomon had the same question in Proverbs

[Waitin]

I had this same question recently, and the Lord showed me Psalm 37:35- "I have seen a wicked and ruthless man flourishing like a green tree in it's native soil." So, we christians are not living in our native soil here on earth
( that's my interpertation).

[lookup]

WritesInMe,

As others have pointed out, you are certainly not the first to wonder about this. It might encourage you to read Psalm 73, which I've posted below. Note how the psalmist (in this case, Asaph) was troubled by how it seemed that the wicked have no troubles compared to the righteous. But when Asaph got alone before God, he began to get a clearer perspective on the true reality of things.


1A psalm of Asaph.
Surely God is good to Israel,
to those who are pure in heart.

2 But as for me, my feet had almost slipped;
I had nearly lost my foothold.

3 For I envied the arrogant
when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.

4 They have no struggles;
their bodies are healthy and strong.

5 They are free from the burdens common to man;
they are not plagued by human ills.

6 Therefore pride is their necklace;
they clothe themselves with violence.

7 From their callous hearts comes iniquity;
the evil conceits of their minds know no limits.

8 They scoff, and speak with malice;
in their arrogance they threaten oppression.

9 Their mouths lay claim to heaven,
and their tongues take possession of the earth.

10 Therefore their people turn to them
and drink up waters in abundance.

11 They say, "How can God know?
Does the Most High have knowledge?"

12 This is what the wicked are like—
always carefree, they increase in wealth.

13 Surely in vain have I kept my heart pure;
in vain have I washed my hands in innocence.

14 All day long I have been plagued;
I have been punished every morning.

15 If I had said, "I will speak thus,"
I would have betrayed your children.

16 When I tried to understand all this,
it was oppressive to me

17 till I entered the sanctuary of God;
then I understood their final destiny.

18 Surely you place them on slippery ground;
you cast them down to ruin.

19 How suddenly are they destroyed,
completely swept away by terrors!

20 As a dream when one awakes,
so when you arise, O Lord,
you will despise them as fantasies.

21 When my heart was grieved
and my spirit embittered,

22 I was senseless and ignorant;
I was a brute beast before you.

23 Yet I am always with you;
you hold me by my right hand.

24 You guide me with your counsel,
and afterward you will take me into glory.

25 Whom have I in heaven but you?
And earth has nothing I desire besides you.

26 My flesh and my heart may fail,
but God is the strength of my heart
and my portion forever.

27 Those who are far from you will perish;
you destroy all who are unfaithful to you.

28 But as for me, it is good to be near God.
I have made the Sovereign LORD my refuge;
I will tell of all your deeds.

[AWorker4Jesus]

Waitin - that's a great interpretation!

[Maria]

Yep, I think other prophets and writers in the Bible wrestled with the same quesitons....

[Apollo]

This is really a question we shouldn't bother ourselves with. It's like fighting over how the world was created when the real question is why.

We see the world in very limited terms. We process everything through out own world view, process things according to what we've been taught. Label people and events so they fall into our perceptions of reality. God doesn't do any of that.

God sees the world with perfect clarity. He can see each individual thread as well as he can see the entire tapestry. We can't do that. We don't see the world as he does, therefore we can never understand decisions like this.

The question isn't why do some people we think are bad live longer. The question is what can we do while we're still here?

[alabama35565]

my father , Baptist minister, died at the age of 54 , from cancer.
my husband died at the age of 47 from heart trouble, which he had been battling for almost 11 yrs., about a week before he died, he finally gave his life to God............

i can't wait to see both of them again , !!!!:clap :nod

[4everHis]

I look inward and realize that I too dislike jerks and people who seemingly have not sense of moral right and wrong. They seem heartless and cruel.

I don't ponder on why God allows them to live. I think he allows them to live as much as he allows any of us to live. We ALL deserve to die. It's only by the grace of a loving God that we are saved.

Rather than bemoaning the fact that this guy is a jerk, perhaps we should pray for all the "jerks" in our lives.
I think the Lord would want us to be kind to these people as difficult as it is to do, we should go out of our way to kill them with kindness and christian love.
Not sure it's always possible but we should try.

[retire2006]

I like to keep this scripture in mind when dealing with the wicked:
1Cor 6:9 Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God?
Then I get a mental picture of hot coals being poured over their heads. Not very nice, but gets me through the moment.

[Moza]

Unfortunately the successes these guys are having now are as good as it's going to get for them and it's usually very short-lived but they're clueless to that fact. We, on the other hand, have something to look forward to that is beyond compare. We have nowhere to go but up! :clap

[Writesinme]

Thanks for all the thoughts and scripture references! I read, too, that Jeremiah questioned God on the same thing...so this question has been pondered by many people for a very long time.

DH's boss has been this way since we've known him--I'm used to hearing about his lack of compassion and his interest in NOTHING except getting ahead. It's all about him. I just blew last night when DH told me the latest, though.

[Franklin]

I'm sorry, you're going to have elaborate why someone cannot be moved to "another team" the day his fiance is going to get testing done on tumors to see if they're cancerous. You call this slave driving and cold-hearted?

I could understand if a SPOUSE was having surgery for actual cancer or a child was getting tests. By all means that would certainly be a situation in which the boss might allow the employee some lattitude.

My question is, How can you possibly ask why God would "allow these creeps to go about their lives, enjoying success?" Perhaps if you were talking about Hitler or Stalin I could understand your frustration.

Question: If it was so adamant for this guy to be at the test with his fiance, why didn't your husband move him to the new group that evening and not wait until the next day?

[Writesinme]

I'm sorry, you're going to have elaborate why someone cannot be moved to "another team" the day his fiance is going to get testing done on tumors to see if they're cancerous. You call this slave driving and cold-hearted?

I could understand if a SPOUSE was having surgery for actual cancer or a child was getting tests. By all means that would certainly be a situation in which the boss might allow the employee some lattitude.

My question is, How can you possibly ask why God would "allow these creeps to go about their lives, enjoying success?" Perhaps if you were talking about Hitler or Stalin I could understand your frustration.

Question: If it was so adamant for this guy to be at the test with his fiance, why didn't your husband move him to the new group that evening and not wait until the next day?

I didn't say this was an isolated situation that made the man cold hearted and a slave driver. That 's a most accuarte description of him, and as I said in the post, this was "his latest". He has a long history of being a creep who cares nothing about anyone except himself and abuses his power terribly. I should have elaborated, tho--in this case, getting moved to the other group was a demotion involving a pay cut.

My husband, who has earned his own power within this company, has managed to remain human in his rise to the top--as a Chrisitian, as a fellow human being, he "felt" for the guy, and didn't want to dump it on him when he was facing another really stressful situation. He and the other director just wanted to give it another day or so...let the guy deal with one thing at a time.

Yes, she's his fiance', not his spouse...but I imagine he LOVES the woman, views her as the person he wants to spend the rest of his life with, the mother of his future children, whatever. I'd be pretty concerned if that person was, as I said in the post, going in the hospital to have surgery to remove tumors to find out if they were cancerous. This was no simple "test." Also, If I was the person with the tumors, I'd certainly appreciate my future spouse being there for support--would have some concerns if he wasn't.

The boss's response, "So? Who cares?" is what put everyone's teeth on edge. Totally uncalled for. Sadly, pretty typical of his normal attitude, though.

And I'm not saying God should drop a piano on his head. I've just seen plenty of people like him breeze through life, while others with kinder hearts and attitudes--and a lot more professionalism-- have much more difficult times.

[PaulStGermain]

Evil thrives in an evil world..

[Heavensent]

I'm sorry, you're going to have elaborate why someone cannot be moved to "another team" the day his fiance is going to get testing done on tumors to see if they're cancerous. You call this slave driving and cold-hearted?

I could understand if a SPOUSE was having surgery for actual cancer or a child was getting tests. By all means that would certainly be a situation in which the boss might allow the employee some lattitude.

My question is, How can you possibly ask why God would "allow these creeps to go about their lives, enjoying success?" Perhaps if you were talking about Hitler or Stalin I could understand your frustration.

Question: If it was so adamant for this guy to be at the test with his fiance, why didn't your husband move him to the new group that evening and not wait until the next day?

I have had many operations in the past. For some of them I wasn't married yet. There were times I was there at the hospital alone. My bf would drop me off at the hospital and go on to work. Do you know how that feels? I do! I don't have family in this city or state. I was totally alone and scared.

I'll tell you one thing....if I even had the possibility of cancer and my fiance wasn't at the hospital with me I'd question whether or not I should marry him.

[deafchristian]

i guess God want to them to live as long as they can until they have a change of heart..

But some doctors thinks they don't bottle up their frustration which could cause stress in your body.

[bopeep1909]

Sin

[StarVoyager]

Isaiah 57:1 "The righteous perisheth, and no man layeth it to heart: and merciful men are taken away, none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come".

This has always been my answer to the original question in this thread.
Whenever I think on the passing of my own son at an early age (15 is pretty early to me) and the many passings and deaths I have seen and heard of since, I always "default" to this answer.

Evil men and women will account themselves to God in due time. How we deal with them and their persecution is an example of our own relationship with Jesus Christ, and doing so as an example of a child of God will be accounted to us as righteousness.

Some ask why an evil person does what she/he does.

Why does a rattlesnake bite someone? Because thats what rattlesnakes do.

Why does a tornado or flood destroy a home or a city? Because that's what happens when man and storms meet.

Why do children die from cancer, or from a mommy roling over on it in her sleep, or a car wreck, or a heart condition?

Default to quote.



Isaiah 57:1 "The righteous perisheth, and no man layeth it to heart: and merciful men are taken away, none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come".



Does that mean those of us who are not children are all evil? Or does this mean that there is a work for us to do, or we are given more time to come to Jesus Christ, or influence someone else to seek Him?

I don't know.

I quit trying to figure these things out a long time ago. The definition of God's Sovereignty is what helps me also, and here is that definition:

"GOD is GOD, and I am not. He does as He will, when He wants, and for His own reasons and purposes. He does nothing to harm me for His own pleasure, but His works are to help me reach the goal He has set for me, because He has adopted me as His child through my faith in His Son, The Lord Jesus Christ. His ways are farther and higher above mine as mine are above an amoeba, yet I am precious in His sight. Even though I am His child and He loves me, His will is above all and I yield to it, even though I don't understand it, and it often hurts. He doesn't have to explain anything to me, and I have resolved that many things which happen to me will have no explanation, I only trust that He is doing what is right, and I know that He is always right. He never promised a smooth trip.. only a safe harbor at the end."

Those are my convictions.

Peace - Patrick ><>

[Writesinme]

Patrick--I like the scripture reference you gave and the definition of God's sovereignty. His ways are not our ways, His thoughts are not our thoughts. He sees the whole picture and knows what is best.

I am sorry about your son--yes, 15 is way, way young. One of the reasons I've had this question is because my brother passed away a year ago. He was only 35 and was one of those people---well, to know him was to be blessed. He was a believer, and a really cool guy who touched people, made a difference in such a positive way. He was a strong, athletic young man who fell very sick, though (unknown heart condition) and his quality of life diminished to nothing but pain and illness. I've always known that God was so merciful to take him, to spare him anymore of life's sufferings and limitations.

I struggled for awhile, though--why him? Ah, but our human minds don't know the differences between Heaven and earth...once we do, we'll see that those believers who died young were the lucky ones!

[Franklin]

Heavensent, I had testing done for cancer on a "mysterious" lump on my head when I was young. (Fortuantely I was in the army and didn't have to pay for it.) Anyway, I didn't tell anyone about it because I didn't want them to worry. And the thought of them taking time off from work to be with me seemed pointless since I would not get the test results for days if not weeks later. In fact, I think my First Sergeant would have killed me himself had I requested someone else accompany me.

[Writesinme]

In fact, I think my First Sergeant would have killed me himself had I requested someone else accompany me.[/QUOTE[/QUOTE]


Just shows the vast difference in people. My dad was career army, 31 years, and he would have been royally ticked if one of his men HADN'T asked for support. My dad treated his guys like sons, though.

[Heavensent]

Heavensent, I had testing done for cancer on a "mysterious" lump on my head when I was young. (Fortuantely I was in the army and didn't have to pay for it.) Anyway, I didn't tell anyone about it because I didn't want them to worry. And the thought of them taking time off from work to be with me seemed pointless since I would not get the test results for days if not weeks later. In fact, I think my First Sergeant would have killed me himself had I requested someone else accompany me.

It's king of hard to hide surgery. Especially when you're going to be out of work for 6 weeks. Besides I wasn't in the military and neither was my bf. He was self employeed and could take off any time he wanted; since he had no one to answer to.

[Franklin]

Heaven,
I apologize. I thought you had mentioned you went in for a test. I didn't realize you actually had cancer. Certainly if it came to a cancer treatment I would expect an employer to release from work a family member or close personal friend (for the simple reason the patient needs a ride home but more importantly for the support).

I was basing my argument on the possibility of having cancer and going in to have a biopsy or something (an event that basically takes only a few minutes).

Next time I'll read the post a little more closely.

[Heavensent]

Franklin,

No need for an apology, but I was starting to think you had a heart of stone. ;): It wasn't cancer thank God and I didn't want you to feel bad. I get extremely ill afterwards and need someone there with me because :puke starts as soon as I wake up. This can be dangerous for someone who is under anesthesia (sp) and I need to be watched.

Let's just say I've had problems with the plumbing since I was a young girl. I've been through many surgeries which ultimately resulted in the inability to have children. You know that little question they ask you at the doctors office? The one where they tell you to list all the surgery you've had? My response is always "too numerous to mention". :D: There's not enough room on that form for me to list them all.

Just remember that you don't know what someone else's situation is. Just because tests or surgeries are easy for you that doesn't mean it is for everyone else.