Review of Surprised by Suffering
Is suffering a vocation, a calling from God? Is death a vocation? What is the purpose of our suffering?
First published in 1988, Surprised by Suffering is a resource every Christian should read sometime in their lives. In this revised and expanded release, a new chapter on Sovereignty adds much to the original version.
Having some friends experiencing a great deal of suffering, I read this book in attempt to find some wisdom to share with them. R. C. Sproul does not disappoint. His teaching in this book is very straight forward and addressing the issue of suffering in the life of a Christian exceptionally well.
If you know anything of R. C. Sproul, you will know that he does not teach a pie-in-the-sky view of Christianity. What were my favorite parts and what new insights did I gain from reading this?
He first addresses Karl Marx comment that ?religion is the opiate of the masses? ? with this comment ?There is no scandal in the mercy of God to the afflicted.? I just loved that.
And to the ?positive thinking? preacher and their teaching, he says ?The zealous person who promises us a life free from suffering has found his message from a source other than Scripture.?
But what I was looking for in this book I found in this statement ?It is when we view our suffering as meaningless ? without purpose ? that we are tempted to despair.? The knowledge that suffering has a purpose is the focus of the entire book.
The Q&A section at the end of the book was also interesting. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I recommend it highly.
Reviewed by: Keiki Hendrix
Reviewed for: The Vessel Project
www.vesselproject.com