Pain & Suffering

People will often use the issue of pain and suffering as evidence against God, either to say that He doesn't exist or that He's horrible and doesn't deserve to be worshipped or acknowledged. These arguments are pretty stupid. The person making them is most likely approaching the world from a very self-centered point of view. Here are some discussion points to start breaking down these arguments.

Why would a loving God allow bad things to happen to good people?

-Free Will
Most of the damage that happens to us, we do to ourselves. 

-God does not go against His nature
There are things that God can't do, despite some people's thoughts. God cannot sin. He cannot be in the presence of sin in His Godly state. 

-We live in a fallen, imperfect world. Why should we expect perfection?

-Is God's definition of love the same as ours?

-Is there such thing as a "good" person?
When I discuss this question with people, the conversation usually goes something like this:
"No one is perfect, but people who mostly stay out of trouble and don't do anything too bad are good."
"What do you mean by "too bad?"
"Don't kill, cheat, hurt people, you know ..."
"How do you define that line between what's "good" and what's "bad?" 
"Well ... you just know ... some things are worse than others ..."
"So you're the judge of what's good and bad now?"

After you, as a Christian, accuse someone who probably sees himself as more "tolerant" than "those Christians" of being judgmental, look out. He's going to get all up in arms, but you've started to back him into a corner, so keep asking questions to get him to explain his personal justice system. 

Why do some people get a better deal than others? (A.K.A. I'm a better person than Paris Hilton, so why does she have all the money and I don't)

-Let's compare Job & Solomon

-Look at Jesus (God in the flesh). Describe His entrance, existence and exit to this world.

-Comparison is a killer. I don't recall a lot in the Bible about God being "fair" so much as I do about Him being "just." Here are 9 dictionary definitions of what justice is:

1. the quality of being just; righteousness, equitableness, or moral rightness: to uphold the justice of a cause.
2. rightfulness or lawfulness, as of a claim or title; justness of ground or reason: to complain with justice.
3. the moral principle determining just conduct.
4. conformity to this principle, as manifested in conduct; just conduct, dealing, or treatment.
5. the administering of deserved punishment or reward.
6. the maintenance or administration of what is just by law, as by judicial or other proceedings: a court of justice.
7. judgment of persons or causes by judicial process: to administer justice in a community.
8. a judicial officer; a judge or magistrate.
9. ( initial capital letter ) Also called Justice Department. the Department of Justice.

Justice says that the law will be upheld. It doesn't say much about circumstances if you were born with this disadvantage, you are exempt from having to follow particular laws. It doesn't say that all of us should be born with the same amount of wealth, into the same family situation or any of that stuff. Justice is the treatment received according to one's deeds. That's different than everyone being given the same things. 

It's obvious we are not all the same people, so why be treated the same?