Although all suffering can glorify God, there are a few verses in the Bible that specifically highlight the glory of God in suffering. In John 9 Jesus and the disciples pass a man who is born blind. The disciples assume that the man is handicapped because of his own sin or that of his parents. However, Jesus states, "It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him" (v. 3). The suffering in this man's life was intended to bring glory to God.

A similar idea is seen in the Joseph narratives in Genesis. Having already been sold into slavery by his brothers, Joseph was falsely accused of a sex crime and thrown into prison. As painful as this was to Joseph, he knew that God would glorify Himself through this son of Israel: "As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today" (Gen. 50:20). God allowed pain in Joseph's life so that in the end He might have a measure of glory.

This is the comfort that we Christians enjoy. All of the suffering in this world is moving in the right direction; it will ultimately abound to God's honor and glory. There is not a single pain in our lives, a single tear, or a single sigh that God cannot and will not use to glorify Himself. Nowhere is this more evident than in the cross of Christ. The unspeakable pain that Jesus felt at the cross brought immeasurable glory to God. The Gospel ensures that ours will do the same.

The sixth purpose for suffering is Revelation. Probably unique to the prophets in the Bible, in this category, a person's suffering reveals something about God. Consider the story of Hosea. Through the trial of marital infidelity, Hosea remained faithful to his wife, Gomer. The pain in this man's life was intense. Time and time again his children were forced to watch their mother leave home. He was forced to bid on his wife as she sold herself into prostitution. Why did God allow this kind of pain in Hosea's life? It wasn't to grow him personally (though I'm sure it did) nor was it to teach Hosea a lesson. The suffering in the prophet's life served as a revelation from God. It was a picture of God's faithfulness to an unfaithful people. Through Hosea's grief, God was calling the nation of Israel to repent.

The ultimate expression of revelation suffering is seen in Jesus Christ. Romans 5:8 states, "God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." At the cross, the nature of God is revealed. His love, His justice, and goodness, His mercy, His faithfulness – all of His divine attributes are revealed in the cross and resurrection.

Thus far we have touched on six reasons for pain and suffering in this life. The next post will cover the final two; then we look at some of the implication of the complexity of suffering.