A Bear, A Trap, A Hunter and God
“A bear got trapped in a trap and a hunter who, out of sympathy, wants to liberate him. He tries to win the bear’s confidence, but he can’t do it, so he has to shoot the bear full of drugs. The bear, however, thinks thus is an attack and that the hunter is trying to kill him. He doesn’t realize that this is being done out of compassion.
Then, in order to get the bear out of the trap, the hunter has to push him further into the trap to release the tension on the spring. If the bear were semiconscious at that point, he would be even more convinced that the hunter was his enemy who was out to cause him suffering and pain. But the bear would be wrong. He reaches this incorrect conclusion because he’s not a human being.”
How can a mere finite human be sure that infinite wisdom would not tolerate certain short range (suffering) in order for more long range goods that we couldn’t foresee?
God does the same to us sometimes, and we can’t comprehend why he does it anymore than the bear can understand the motivation of the hunter. As the bear could have trusted the hunter, so we can trust God (in our suffering).
From The Case For Faith by Lee Strobel
Objection #1 Since evil and suffering exist, a loving God cannot Page 43- 44 (from an interview with Peter Kreeft )
Application:
We are finite being with finite wisdom and vision. We should look at our suffering in two ways;
1) Is the suffering we are having, a result of our action (Sin)?
2) Is the suffering we are having, a result of something not of our own doing?
There are cause and effect, when we steal or cheat things that are not rightfully ours, this action lead to a jail sentence. But there are also suffering that are not of our action, it just happens to us (like the story of Job). Who are we to judge or say that temporary suffering would not lead to something good in our life?
A piece of ore has to go thru countless grinding, chipping and polishing (ouch) before the diamond that is inside shines.
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