Balancing Suffering, God's Wrath, and the Call to Love Others

Q: What is the purpose of a Christian's heart hurting for the suffering and afflicted when scripture makes clear that the majority of all suffering and afflicted are still "vessels of wrath" deservedly destined for an eternal torment far worse than any pain or sorrow they experience on earth? Don't the realities of the gospel, depravity and atonement suggest it counterproductive and counterintuitive for a Christian to have a strong emotional response to other's suffering, i.e. victims of the holocaust, the Nanjing massacre, or any person's horrific earthly fate when they're statistically likely to be doomed to hell anyway? To this effect, doesn't the Gospel effectively invalidate empathy?

A: Suffering is ultimately the consequence of sin in the world. Sometimes, people suffer as the direct result of their own poor choices, sinful actions, or willful irresponsibility; in those cases, we see the truth of Proverbs 13:15, “The way of the treacherous is their ruin” (ESV). Unfortunately, sometimes we suffer because of the sin of others.

Another way of putting it is to say that suffering, and death, are the wages of sin (Romans 6:23); they are the natural consequences of going against God's wrath.

It is not counterintuitive nor counterproductive for a Christian to have a strong emotional response to another's suffering. In fact, it can be argued that it is the mark of a true Christian to have empathy for others. First of all, we are commanded to love and care for others in the same way that we love ourselves (Matthew 22:35-40; Mark 12:31; Luke 10:25-37). We are commanded to do that because that is what God does (Romans 5:8); He loved us even when we were His enemies. Jesus had a very strong emotional response to the pain and hurt of others (John 11:1-44). The suffering that sin causes should anger Christians because it is directly opposed to the goodness, peace, and direct relationship with God that was part of humanity's original, pre-fall state in the Garden of Eden.

The fact that not everyone is saved does not negate the fact that we are called to love and empathize with others. God, Himself, takes no pleasure in the suffering and death of the wicked (Ezekiel 33:11). We read in Romans 1 that for those that desire to turn away from God, He simply gives them what they want (i.e., gave them over...) and allows them to suffer the consequences for their sinful choices. The fact that not everyone is saved does not invalidate the authenticate call and invitation of the Gospel message to ANYONE who would believe (John 3:16; Romans 10:13; 2 Peter 3:8-10, etc.)

Rather than invalidating empathy, the Gospel is the absolute, most perfect example of undeserved empathy. The Gospel tells us that God demonstrates an unbelievable amount of empathy and care toward human beings by sending Jesus (John 3:16; Romans 5:8; Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:4-8).

Again, genuine Christians HATE the suffering of others and the suffering that is inflicted on others. In the Holocaust, it was often Christians themselves who were willing to sacrifice their own safety and their own lives to hide Jews or attempt to overthrow Hitler (Corrie Ten Boom, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, etc.) During the Nanjing Massacre, Christian missionaries refused to leave and instead stayed behind and gave their lives in an effort to help save others and alleviate suffering where they could (https://www.globalministries.org/honoring_the_missionaries_of_the_1937_nanjing_massacre/; https://www.asianews.it/news-en/The-Party-thanks-Protestant-missionaries-who-saved-Chinese-lives-during-the-Nanjing-massacre-44455.html). There are countless examples throughout history of Christians who were following the call of Christ to love their neighbor and who, themselves, endured suffering in an effort to empathetically alleviate the suffering of others and bring them the good news of Jesus Christ.

Christians are not promised a suffering-free life, either. Jesus Christ suffered and anyone who desires to live a godly life like Him will suffer (2 Timothy 3:12). Suffering is just a natural by-product of sin and is not an argument against the love, care, and empathy of God displayed in the Gospel.

If anything, the Gospel, rather than invalidating empathy, actually compels us to go out and tell as others the truth of salvation through Jesus Christ in the hopes that they will believe and be saved from eternal suffering, even if they are called to endure temporary suffering while on earth.