God Is His Own Interpreter

As we face trials of various kinds in this world, Scripture gives us a wealth of reassurance, helping us understand both God’s general purposes in our suffering, as some specific truths we can hold onto when we don’t understand what’s going on. James tells us that we should consider it pure joy whenever we face trials of any kind, because trials are essential to our growth in Christ.

Without trials, we would remain immature, incomplete, lacking some vital elements necessary to complete our Christian journey. (James 1:2-4) Paul assures us that our sufferings are light and momentary and are working in us to prepare us for a glory that far outweighs and outlasts them all (2 Corinthians 4:17). He also teaches that walking well through suffering proves the reality of our conversion and gives us a basis for Chistian hope. (Romans 5:3-5) Paul speaks as well of the fellowship of sharing in Christ’s suffering, becoming conformed to him in his death so that we might share in his resurrection glory. (Philippians 3:10)

Why, Lord?

All of these insights and many others from God’s Word strengthen us to remain steadfast in suffering. But one thing Scripture does not give us is specific information about our own unique situation and why God has chosen to bring specific trials to us at this particular time and in this particular way.

All suffering believers at some point look up to heaven with anguish and confusion and cry out, “Why?!” And often the silence that comes back can be the most crushing aspect of the trial. God seems distant, aloof, unconcerned, and we may hear no prophetic word addressing his specific purposes for such a time as this. The Scripture says, “The secret things belong to the Lord” (Deuteronomy 29:29). And often God’s reasons for allowing his children to walk through profound and deep pain he keeps to himself.

At some point in our pilgrimage through this world of pain and sorrow, we become mindful of God’s infinitely high position in the universe and his absolute independence from all human wisdom, counsel, or opinion. Nebuchadnezzar, the pagan king of Babylon, said it better than almost anyone else in history: “God does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth. No one can hold back his hand or say to him, ‘What have you done?’” (Daniel 4:35). God’s transcendent independence is alarming to some people, for we all naturally want our leaders accountable to the people they serve. When we elect people to their positions of power, they must answer to us for their decisions. Not so with God. He is not an elected leader but the Creator and Ruler over all time and place. God does not have to explain his decisions to his creatures. He does not owe anyone an explanation.

Seeing God’s Kindness

Yet in his kindness, God has revealed his mind and heart to us in his perfect Word. Essential to eternal life itself is knowing the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the One God sent to save us (John 17:3). Knowing God means knowing his character and purposes. Jesus said it plainly when he said, “I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything I have heard from my Father, I have made known to you” (John 15:15).

That is what his revelation is all about. God wants to draw us, his sons and daughters, very close—into his heart. He wants us to understand his way of thinking, his ultimate purposes for everything. And God is an intensely purposeful being. There are no random molecules or superfluous moments. Everything has a purpose and a time. If this is true for the death of sparrows, how much more must it be true of the most painful moments in the lives of his children (Matthew 6:26)? We cannot imagine getting to heaven, asking God for the reasons why we have suffered, and him answering, “I have no idea! There really was no reason for that at all!” Inconceivable!

Learning from Job’s Story

But it is clear that God does not think it wise to give us chapter and verse on our own particular sufferings while the story is still unfolding. In the book of Job, we read that God allowed Satan to assault Job’s life and everything that he held precious, and as a result, all ten of Job’s children died in a single tragic instant. Though this book is quite lengthy, and though God himself speaks at the end, he never gives Job an explanation or defense for that level of grief any parent dreads the most. Not one single word. By this silence, he demonstrates to all of us that he does not owe us an explanation for what he brings into our lives.

But I believe with all my heart that the full explanation will come eventually. In 1773, English hymnwriter William Cowper wrote a poem entitled, “Conflict: Light Shining Out of Darkness.” Cowper battled deep depression most of his life, often struggling with thoughts of suicide despite his Christian faith. In that rich poem, Cowper expressed a level of spiritual perception that few of us ever attain in this world, no doubt forged by the pressures of the darkness he often felt in his soul.

The poem became a hymn we know as “God Moves in a Mysterious Way.” I urge you to read every stanza, because it is rich with hope in the midst of every storm. But it is the final stanza that captivates me most when I want to ask God, “Why?!” This is what Cowper wrote: “Blind unbelief is sure to err and scan his work in vain. God is his own interpreter, and he will make it plain.”

What an amazing insight! Our unbelief is a kind of blindness that causes us to grope about trying to find our way. This is especially acute when we are suffering greatly, and our pain causes us to forget what Scripture has plainly taught us about God: his compassion, his goodness, his drastic measures to rescue us from sin and death. Cowper asserts confidently that God knows what he is doing in our lives, and especially in our suffering. God has his reasons for every moment of sorrow we have walked through. And Scripture teaches us that God wants us to know his mind completely. (See John 15:15; Genesis 18:17) Though he is not accountable to us and owes us nothing, he will in the future make all of his purposes plain. He will be his own interpreter.

The Glory to Come

But when? When will we hear the explanation God gives for our tailor-made trials? I believe the answer is obvious: only in heaven, when we are safely beyond this present age of death, mourning, crying, and pain. Only when our journey to Christlikeness has been perfected. Only when our minds and hearts will at last be totally conformed to his. Only when Jesus will no longer need to say to us, “I have much to say to you, more than you can now bear” (John 16:12).

And the story will be deep, rich, complex, and marvelous. As Paul wrote in another place, “O the depth of the riches of the wisdom and the knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments and his paths beyond tracing out!” (Romans 11:33). In other words, God’s interpretation of his decisions will take a long time to understand fully. And it won’t just be our own sufferings that God will interpret. Paul taught the solidarity of the Christian body with these unforgettable words: “If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.” (1 Corinthians 12:26) In our glorification, we will perfectly love our neighbor as ourselves and will be just as interested in why this or that happened to every other Christian in history. The grand scope of God’s purpose in the sufferings and glories of his people will be unfolded to us in heaven, and it will result in wave upon wave of worship.

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