Is life fair? Depends how you frame the question and in what context you make the inquiry. Is it fair that a child is born into poverty in a 3rd world country? In a life of perpetual hunger, poverty and disease? In this case, you can logically assume that life is indeed not fair, especially when considering that one does not choose where or when he or she is born. In this scenario, how do Christians need to respond? The Bible is clear that when the supplicant makes a petition, the Christian is responsible to offer justice and charity to those seeking aid (Micah 6:8 & Matt 5:42). Anything less that charity and mercy falls short of the mark of love Christians are called to live. What if those who appear to suffer (ie. in the eyes of the wealthy) do not ask for help? What is the Christian’s stance now? A careful reading of the Bible illustrates that the suffering individual needs to ask for help first (Matt 7:7). An obvious example is the story of Blind Bartimaeus. He made a commotion while Jesus was walking by with his disciples, looking to get Jesus’s attention. The disciples rebuked him and commanded that he be quiet; but Jesus heard his cry and asked they bring Bartimaeus to him. Then Jesus puts the onus on the supplicant to make his petition known: “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked him (Mark 10: 51). For healing to take place, one must ask, and then “ye shall receive.” Charity is not given if not desired. The heart’s movement to satisfy an urgent need is necessary for the powerful hand of God to burst into action. Jesus then heard from Bartimaeus himself that he desired to see, and Jesus healed him. Is that considered a fair and equitable law of life that God has woven into the fabric of human life? I believe so. This law of seeking, asking and finding which is interwoven with the power and habit of personal prayer, works effectively to build a personal relationship between people and Jesus Christ. Christ wants to be personally in our lives, in our daily grind to assist us and help us be our personal best. Ultimately, his law of living shows the genuine fairness of life in the aspect that one’s inner choices & desires invariably affects the outcomes and consequences of our lives and not some arbitrary & capricious God. God has designed life to give preeminence to our freedom of choice. In that freedom, God wants us to love and avoid sin so that we obtain the best consequences for our lives, the fruit of love and obedience to His laws.
Is Life Fair?
