Suffering and the Sovereignty of God

by John Piper and Justin Taylor

Book Overview

In the last few years, 9/11, a tsunami, Hurricane Katrina, and many other tragedies have shown us that the vision of God in today's churches in relation to evil and suffering is often frivolous. Against the overwhelming weight and seriousness of the Bible, many Christians are choosing to become more shallow, more entertainment-oriented, and therefore irrelevant in the face of massive suffering.

In Suffering and the Sovereignty of God, contributors...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1581348096
• ISBN13: 9781581348095
• Release Date: September 2006
• Publisher: Crossway
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.74 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.4" x 8.4"

Customer Reviews

Humbling Essays

This book has some great essays. It provides a great mix of theology, and personal testimony, and narratives of how God uses suffering to progress the gospel. The question of suffering is very complex so having a variety of writers from diverse backgrounds attacking the issue from slightly different perspectives helps the reader to understand how God uses suffering to glorify Himself, to mature us in Christ, and to progress the gospel. Suffering can not always be explained, but we have a God who has suffered through his Son and that should bring great comfort to us. The most poignant essays were by Piper and Joni. Another good essay was Suffering and Missionaries. The book starts off with essays by Piper and Taylor putting suffering within the framework of God's sovereignty. I haven't suffered much. I was humbled by stories of suffering in this book. The book was very encouraging because the authors of these essays were very honest in their struggles, but yet praised God for the suffering. Their endurance was not their effort, but God's strength working through them.

Suffering and yet Sovereignty

In Piper's book, Suffering and the Sovereignty of God, he makes a clear distinction at the very beginning of Chapter 1 that the reasoning behind his book stems from the ultimate reality that God is the supreme value in and above the universe. I found that comforting, knowing that this book was going to focus on suffering without giving God the easy way out. After reading through it, I realized that this is exactly the focus that Piper intended to convey in his writing. It gives a very heartfelt and sincere, yet firm message that the Lord allows all things according to His will and purpose. Throughout scripture we are reminded of God's purposes in suffering and the vital role that it plays in strengthening our faith and dependency on God. I had not yet come to grasp however, (until reading this book) that many times suffering is the cost of obedience. I think too often we are told that obedience leads to greater fulfillment and contentment in Christ. Ultimately, yes, but there is definitely something to be said for individuals that choose to be obedient, knowing full well that the road is paved with suffering. I also found it interesting that this type of suffering leads not only to greater obedience but also to greater compassion. This wouldn't have been my natural inclination. I don't usually think about the Apostle Paul, Jeremiah the Prophet, or King David as being very compassionate. Perhaps this is due to their human perspective in relation to their sufferings and the call on their lives. However, you can not read the words of Christ and not sense the compassion that he has for us. I would and have been recommending this book to a number of my friends. Excellent read!

Excellent Book!

When the condition of suffering is brought up in today's society, relatively few people can identify with. The modern world, more specifically Western society in all its affluence, is populated with denizens that spend most of their brief lives attempting to avoid suffering. People look to various techniques or goods in their quest to minimize any type of suffering for a mere hint of such a condition is undesirable. From drugs, money, sex, food, entertainment, religion and so on are being utilized for escapism as the reality of suffering becomes too much. As Christians, how are we to endure suffering or even explain it? All too often I hear Christians ask the question of why bad things happen to good people? The recently released book Suffering and the Sovereignty of God edited by John Piper and Justin Taylor aim to answer the question of suffering from a biblical basis. Based on the 2005 Desiring God National Conference of the same name, the editors have assembled the speakers from that event to put to paper the content of their sessions. If you attended the conference, the book's editors have arranged the various essays by themes instead of the actual order of each session and included additional material outside the conference relating to suffering. The heart of the book is divided into three parts: 1. The Sovereignty of God in Suffering 2. The Purposes of God in Suffering 3. The Grace of God in Suffering Part one contains two essays - one written by Pastor Piper and the other by Mark R Talbot. - that tackle the role of God's sovereignty in our suffering. Part two considers the "why" of suffering in four essays - two by Piper, one by Steve Saint, and one by Carl Ellis Jr. Part three closes out the book looking at grace in suffering with writings by David Powlison, Dustin Shramek, and Joni Eareckson Tada. The last part of the book contains appendices of Don't Waste Your Cancer by John Piper and David Powlison as well as a transcript of the Q & A session with Piper and Justin Taylor from the conference. The arrangement of the chapters is purposeful, attempting to let each chapter build upon themes and concepts addressed. Even so, the chapters do not have to be read in order to benefit from the writings. In part one Piper shows how God is sovereign over the various methods Satan uses to cause suffering. As humans we all too easily attribute suffering to the Enemy and leave God out of the picture. Mark Talbot, in his essay, reiterates God's sovereignty and goodness through suffering and simultaneously engages the errant view of open theism. Then in part two the book covers the reason of "why" suffering exists. Here in this section Piper explains the ultimate reason for suffering is to "display the greatness of the glory of the grace of God." The second essay is based on a chapter from another of Piper's books Let the Nations Be Glad and works out some reasons how suffering affects a Christian. Steve Saint then further extends this line of

Intensely Personal, Thoroughly Biblical Wisdom

There are dozens of books on the topic of God and human suffering, both in the popular press and from the halls of academia. Suffering and the Sovereignty of God, however, is different from all of them. Born out of the 2005 Desiring God National Conference, this is an anthology from seven different authors. All of the authors and their essays are deeply rooted in two things: suffering and the sovereignty of God. All of the authors have personally experienced suffering: two are paralyzed, two are suffering from prostate cancer, two have tragically lost loved ones on the mission field. And all of the authors share an unshakeable conviction in the absolute sovereignty of God, and how standing on this firm foundation makes human suffering both bearable and indeed meaningful as part of our salvation and God's glorification. Piper starts with a theological overview of why God has ordained suffering in this world, as well as chapters on the role of Satan and the particular role of suffering in the lives of saints. Stephen Saint, son of the murdered missionary to the Aucas Nate Saint, reflects on the role of suffering in missions. Carl Ellis discusses ethnic suffering, while psychologist David Powlison opens up the grace of God in suffering. David Schramek gives an intensely personal essay on the pain of waiting for God during suffering, and Joni Eareckson Tada closes with an essay on our real hope. Intensely personal and thoroughly Biblical, this book gives true insight and comfort for the hurting and those striving to help them. Highly recommended.

Excellent!

It was an interesting experience reading Suffering and the Sovereignty of God (edited by John Piper and Justin Taylor), for only a year before its release I had been present at the Desiring God National Conference where the contents of the book were first presented as keynote addresses. With only a couple of exceptions, each chapter of this book is drawn from one of those speeches (those exceptions being Dustin Shramek's chapter and an appendix entitled "Don't Waste Your Cancer" which was initially written by John Piper when he learned of his prostate cancer and was subsequently added to by David Powlison when he was diagnosed with the same disease). I had, then, some familiarity with the material before I began to read it. I knew which authors would provide a theological framework for suffering and which would focus instead on their first-hand experiences of suffering. I even knew what most of the authors would say. Still, I enjoyed reading the chapters as much as I enjoyed hearing the speeches one year ago. I am sure I learned as much from them the second time around. This is not a book that deals with suffering as an abstract principle. In the introduction Justin Taylor writes, "The authors do not write as mere theoreticians, waxing eloquent about abstract themes. No, this is a book of applied theology. Its theology has been forged in the furnace of affliction." Of the contributors, two are paralyzed, two lost parents when they were only young, two have recently suffered the death of a child and two are even now battling prostate cancer. "The point of mentioning this is not to portray them as victims or to elicit your sympathy, but rather to reiterate that they are fellow soldiers in the battle, fellow pilgrims on the journey." They are equipped to speak about suffering because they have suffered. While it is by no means a requirement that the book's chapters be read in order, those who do so will first find theology and then the practical outworking of that theology. The first part of the book looks primarily at God's sovereignty in suffering. John Piper writes the first chapter, expounding "Ten Aspects of God's Sovereignty Over Suffering and Satan's Hand in it." The impetus for this book and this chapter, he writes, "comes from the ultimate reality of God as the supreme value in and above the universe." Over against a breed of evangelicalism that is increasingly shallow and inequipped to deal with difficult subjects such as suffering, Piper presents the absolute sovereignty of God, even in this. Following Piper is Mark Talbot who seeks out the gracious hand of God in the hurts others do to us. He answers the claims of Open Theists and others who seek to diminish God's sovereignty, showing that, while God never does evil, He does ordain evil. He is sure not to let God off the hook for His role in suffering, for God does not want to be let off the hook. To begin the second part of the book, which focuses on God's purposes in suffering, John