Suffering is a reality in our world.

The Bible tells us in this world we will face trials large and small whether

were Christians or not. So why does God allow suffering? It's a tough question.

The kind that can cause many to shy away from sharing their faith. Today I'm

Truth for Life. Alistair Begg helps us think through the biblical response to

this and other difficult questions as we share our faith.

Unless the Holy Spirit illumines a person's mind to see the truth as truth,

unless he bends that person's proud will to submit to the authority of Jesus Christ,

no words of ours will penetrate. And thereby reminding us of our need for dependence upon God.

But the quote goes on to say in the hands of God an intelligent answer to a person's

question may well be the instrument God uses to open his heart and mind to the gospel.

So I have these two things in juxtaposition. One, the very fact of our dependence upon God

to open the minds and eyes of people's spiritual understanding. And then the responsibility

which falls to us as we are enabled to give intelligent answers to important questions which are

often difficult. I'd like also to say again what I said in introducing each of these, namely that

there's no way in the world that I can give some kind of exhaustive answer to these questions.

And so if there is a measure of frustration on your part as I move from one question to the next,

I have if you like that written into what I'm doing, I want that to be there in part

because any good teacher does not answer all the questions but essentially stimulates the

desire of the group to go and continue their study of the subject. And so I'd like at least to

fall within the orb of good teaching as it relates to that. If that is an actual fact an accurate

statement and the teachers perhaps can tell me afterwards. We dealt first of all then with a person

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