Why Do Good Things Happen to Bad People?

In some ways our world is backwards. You'd think that God would reward good people for doing good things and punish bad people for doing bad things. In fact, the opposite seems true.

Those who despise God and all that is good seem to be doing just fine, thank you very much. The rich get richer, and the evil seem to (almost) always get away with it and have a great time doing it.

It can almost be a stumbling block to those of us who have pledged our lives to Jesus Christ. We have recognized our faults, laid them down at the foot of the cross and asked for Jesus' sacrifice to cover and forgive our evil. Then we ask His Holy Spirit to come and in dwell in us, cleansing us and transforming us into His image.

In the meantime we suffer loss, run into hard times, get discouraged, lose our jobs and have money problems or health problems - or whatever. So what's going on?

Interestingly, Asaph, David's worship leader, had a similar experience. In Psalm 73 he wrote:

"My steps had nearly slipped. For I was envious of the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked."

He goes on to talk about how they are fat and sassy (my free translation) and aren't worried at all about death. In fact, they scoff at God's very existence.

Asaph then says "all in vain have I kept my heart clean and washed my hands in innocence."
It's almost like he is saying "was it really worth it?"

But a very interesting thing happens in verse 16:

"But when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task, until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I discerned their end."

The evil and those who reject God seem to do well because we are looking at them through the filter of the world's values. Money, security, possessions, pleasure - all are made to look good to us, but it is a special effect of the enemy.

We all have needs - for security, relationships, intimacy, etc. God knows this - but it is how we fulfill these needs that gets us into trouble. The world mistakenly thinks that by surrounding ourselves with money that we are secure - well, what if money were suddenly meaningless? People think that having power over people brings them worth, but what if your power simply vanished? People strive for pleasure in ungodly ways because it seems to fill this void for intimacy. But what if that and all other real needs are really met in God not in the world's values?

That's the secret truth of following God. There is also a secret folly - that is that following after the enemy's false answers to our needs leads not to life and happiness but death and sudden destruction.

":18 "Truly you set them in slippery places; you make them fall into ruin. "19 How they are destroyed in a moment, swept way utterly by terrors."

The truth is that one of these days soon the earth, all money, position, power, and worldly pleasure is going to be swept away forever. The only sure thing then is going to be your relationship with God - and the only way to get that is through God's own Son Jesus Christ.

So if you don't know him - get to know Him today. If you do know Him and are troubled by the unrighteous success - go into God's sanctuary - see His perspective - and realize in Him you have everything you need forever!