Suffering Servants

Pastor Yuan is a leader in the Chinese unregistered church movement. He`s been tortured, suffered solitary confinement and spent over thirteen years in prison for his faith. Pastor Yuan has faced suffering, injustice, and evil eye ball to eye ball. The issue is not theoretical for him yet his faith remains vibrant and indomitable. This man has earned the right to address the problem of evil. Here`s what he said:
`We live in a time like the apostles. Christians here are persecuted, yes. But look at Hong Kong and Taiwan-they have prosperity, but they don’t seek God. I tell you, I came out of that prison with faith stronger than I went in with. Like Joseph, we don’t know why we go through hard times until later, looking back. Think of it: we in China may soon be the largest Christian community in the world, and in an atheistic state that tried to stamp us out.”
The problem of suffering and evil is like an obnoxious neighbour, you can’t escape it or him. Christians wrestle with reconciling an all-powerful, loving God with the reality of gross violence, suffering and evil. I for one have accepted the fact that there are no utterly satisfying explanations for suffering yet I believe with all my being that God is an all loving and all powerful. These poles of faith and reality must be held in tension.
The Christian story covers history in three parts: Creation, Fall Redemption. We live among the wreckage of the fall; suffering, degeneration, evil and death surround us. But we are on the way to eternal redemption.
Pastor Yuan discovered that suffering can sharpen faith. A large church in china had to plead with people to only attend church once on Sunday so there could be room for others. Just think about that!
Ted Boodle

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