Tragedy At Virginia Tech

As I watched with horror the events that unfolded this morning on the campus of Virginia Tech, my feelings can best be described in the words of one young lady who said, “My heart dropped to my toes.” How could such a tragedy happen on one of our university campuses? What possible motive could this killer have for taking the lives of 30+ innocent victims and then take his own life? What must the parents of Virginia Tech students be going through, worrying if their child could be among the wounded or dead? What an awful tragedy. It’s at moments like this that we start to wonder, “Where was God during this time? Why didn’t He stop this crazed mad man? Was He there at all to hear the prayers that must have been offered up by those affected?”
‘Where is God when things go wrong?’ People have been asking that question I guess since the beginning of time. The results of such questions often lead to the following conclusions:
1. Senseless Evil Is A Reality Of Our World.
2. If God is Truly All-powerful, He could prevent Evil.
3. And If He is All-loving, He Would Want to Prevent Evil.
4. If An All-powerful, All-loving God, Exists, There Would be no Evil in The World.
5. So Therefore, God is Either Powerless, Loveless or Non-existent.
It’s easy to come to these conclusions when you take things at face value, especially considering what the Bible says about God. If He truly is the ‘God of gods and Lord of lords’ and ‘mighty and awesome’ as He is described in Deuteronomy…
And if it’s true that He is ‘compassion and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in love’ the way David described Him in Psalms…
And if Paul was correct in his letter to the Roman church that ‘He works all things together for the good of those who love Him…’ why do these things happen?
It seems like a joke to believe these things when we see senseless shootings like the ones at Virginia Tech today as well as all the other evil, pain, suffering and disease that exists in our world. And so, the logical conclusion for some is to resolve to believe that there is no God… But is this a logical conclusion?
Sadly, this is a terrible place to arrive. I agree with John Blanchard who wrote, “Getting rid of God does not solve the problem of evil and suffering; it merely leaves us trapped in what someone has called ‘that hopeless encounter between human questioning and the silence of the universe’ Asking and answering these questions points us to what some will find the strangest of conclusions: the existence of evil points towards the existence of God, not away from it!”
When you read through the Bible, you find a great deal about pain and suffering, but there is no easy answer to all of our questions. The Apostle Paul probably best described our state when he said in 1 Corinthians 13:12, ‘now we see but a dimly lit reflection’. We don’t understand all there is to know. Some folks will surmise that’s just the Christian answer to slide around the issue, but that is not the case.
Don't misunderstand me to say that God caused this terrible event to happen, that's not my point at all... But why would He allow it to happen? There is no way we can understand the things of God if He truly is the transcendent God He claims to be. If we did, He would cease to be God. And if He is God, what right do we have to demand an explanation from Him for all that happens in the world? Besides, if God were to reveal to us everything that is going on in our world, we couldn’t understand it all. In Isaiah He said, “My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts”.
He has given us the Bible for encouragement, strength, understanding and a guide for living. And just because we may not be able to find suitable answers to everything we want to understand doesn’t mean it’s a worthless document, does it? Being left with doubts doesn’t mean we’re left alone to suffer in ignorance in the dark. For you see, ‘while the Bible may not tell us all we want to know, it does tell us all we need to know…’ And what it tells us is that the world is a fallen planet, filled with a people who have chosen a way separate from God. As a result, events of evil are allowed to exist on our earth. God gave us a choice and we chose against Him. Well, actually, the first choosers were Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. And like one writer said, “Like poison dumped at the source of a river, Adam’s polluted and depraved nature has flowed on to every succeeding generation.” We are sinners – both by birth and by choice.
The skeptic and critic will respond with “But why should God have taken such an obvious risk in giving man such moral freedom in the first place? Wouldn’t it have been better if Adam and Even would have never been given the choice in the Garden of Eden?”
But as John Blanchard says, “…it seems clear that not even an all-powerful God could give man freedom while guaranteeing that he would use it wisely. A person who is free and yet not free is a contradiction in terms... not even God could bestow and withhold freedom at one and the same time... How can we possibly prove that God was wrong to give man freedom of moral choice? Would creating robots have been wiser? Are we qualified to make this kind of judgment? How can we know God’s reasons and purposes unless we know everything he knows?"
Yet in His infinite mercy and grace, regardless of whatever calamity that might come our way, God offers us hope – hope beyond the turmoil and disaster of this life – hope that springs eternal from a relationship with Him through His Son Jesus Christ. Jesus came to earth, endured the most horrific evil, and gave His life so we would not have to suffer the evil of sin eternally.
So when we are faced with disasters like this shooting at Virginia Tech, or any other senseless tragedy, grieve, pray for those who are affected, offer help in any way you can. But at the same time know that you have cause to praise God in your suffering and grief for if you have a relationship with God through Jesus Christ, you have a hope beyond the reality of this present moment. One day God will exact perfect justice and all things will be right again. There will no longer be evil. The good will no longer suffer and the evil will no longer prosper. All things will be settled beyond doubt or dispute. When that time comes, we will understand all things for we will have come face to face with God. The Apostle Paul was blessed to be able to come to an understanding of that fact while still on earth. That’s why he was able to call the horrible suffering and tribulation he faced, “momentary, light afflictions”, and to write in Romans 8:18, “…the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us…” The existence of evil and suffering does not eliminate the possibility of God, but the existence of God does guarantee for his people that one day there will be an elimination of evil and suffering.”
So where was God during this tragedy? He was right there… in the midst of the horror… in the midst of the struggle… in the death and chaos. Reaching out to those who were reaching out to Him, receiving the souls of those who knew Him into His presence, there to be forevermore – free from evil and suffering. For as He promises in the Bible, "When we go through the fire and the flood, He will be with us." "He will never leave us nor forsake us but will be with us until the end."
Here's what we can do for the victims and their families as a family of faith: First of all, pray for the families of the victims and pray for healing of the wounded. You might even take the opportunity to donate blood at the Red Cross in honor of the victims. We can assist by encouraging one another with the hope we have in Jesus. And we can keep our faith and trust in the Lord, our Preserver, our Savior, our Deliverer, and our Lord.

Sources cited – “Where is God when things go wrong?” John Blanchard, UK ISBN - 0 85234 590 9

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