If God loves everyone equally, then why does he allow some individuals to live peacefully while he causes many troubles for others?
The premise of the inquiry is that God loves all people equally. As John 3:16 states, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son,” God does, in fact, demonstrate his broad love for all people. God loves everyone, including sinners, and his love is abundant and kind. He therefore longs for everyone to be saved and to learn the truth (1 Timothy 2:4). Nonetheless, the Bible contains evidence of God’s unique love for His people, a love predicated on a covenant made with them. John Piper’s piece offers an excellent discussion of this issue.
God longs to see Jesus in His every child
However, the question still stands: How can God permit great pain to occur in the lives of some individuals but not in others? [God has a special plan] for each person. Never forget that He is sovereign and that His wisdom is far greater than ours. “There is no search for His understanding” (Isaiah 40: 28). Paul tells us in Romans that God works for the good of those who love Him in all circumstances. What makes this nice, then? that everything that occurs in a person’s life causes us to resemble His Son (Romans 8:28–29).
Every child that God has is meant to reflect Jesus. “…so that among many brothers He may be the firstborn” (Romans 8:29). God will accomplish just that—bring out the image of His Son—in all that happens in the lives of His beloved. God is all-powerful and incredibly smart. It is He who determines what steps each believer must take in order to imitate Jesus in their lives.
God’s love is the answer to suffering
This implies that, if necessary, God may decide to permit some of His children to experience hardship in their lives. The famous quote from C.S. Lewis reads, “Suffering is God’s megaphone to this world.” Man often begins to call on the name of the Lord through hardship. Thank God, though, for nothing—not even the deepest suffering—can keep us from experiencing God’s love (Romans 8:31–40). This text makes it abundantly evident that God’s love is the primary solution to suffering and that suffering does not negate God’s love.
Circumstances
Indeed, God gives each person a special set of circumstances. However, He does not separate believers based on [race, social class, or sexual orientation]—salvation in Jesus Christ is the same regardless of these distinctions!
