How do we define evil? Is evil merely the absence of good? Many people today would define pain and suffering as evil. They would say that physical pain and death are the worst things that humans can experience, and that to be good is merely to be pain-free.

In reality, pain and suffering are not evil things in and of themselves. The Bible teaches us that true evil can be defined by broken, sinful relationships. Mankind suffers from a broken relationship with God, and from broken relationships with one another. All of the pain and suffering we experience is a result of losing that original harmony and unity that we once shared with God and his creation.

This doesn’t trivialize the suffering we experience. On the contrary, it is very difficult to deal with the pain of life, especially the physical pain, sickness and death that we all experience. It is extremely painful, by definition, and occupies the majority of our lives here on earth.

What then can make pain and suffering easier to endure? What can we learn from the fact that pain and suffering are not evil? Is there any value to be found in suffering? There are two things that we can learn when we look at pain and suffering from the proper spiritual perspective.

First, I believe that pain is necessary within a fallen universe because it gives us the desire and motivation to restore our relationship with God. In our daily struggle with the painful, physical side of life, mankind is developing the spiritual muscle that will enable us to have a proper relationship with God in the future.

This is especially true when we learn to follow Christ and deal with pain, learning to act as he did:- “Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude” I Peter 4:1 He was willing to endure pain and suffering, because he looked at the big picture and saw the benefit of enduring. By following the specific examples he gave us, we learn to build good relationships and fight against the root cause of suffering.

The second idea we can draw from this, is that physical pain and suffering are temporary. We can look forward to a time when once again we share a perfect relationship with God. As followers of Christ, we will be born again with new resurrection bodies, that do not suffer from physical pain and weakness.

“The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; it is sown in dishonour, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power.” 1 Corinthians 15:42