Why do good things happens to bad people

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Brigit

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Sometimes I look at immoral people, but their live goes well. They are rich and happy. What do you think?
Answer are appreciated.
 
As St. Paul says, the kindness of God is meant to bring them to repentance.
 
They may seem happy but wealth can’t make you happy since it’s a means to an end (you acquire wealth in order to do X with it or buy Y with it).
 
Brigit said:
Sometimes I look at immoral people, but their live goes well. They are rich and happy. What do you think?
Answer are appreciated.
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Luke 16 19 “There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. 20 And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, 21 who longed to satisfy his hunger with what fell from the rich man’s table; even the dogs would come and lick his sores. 22 The poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 In Hades, where he was being tormented, he looked up and saw Abraham far away with Lazarus by his side. 24 He called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am in agony in these flames.’ 25 But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that during your lifetime you received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner evil things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in agony. 26 Besides all this, between you and us a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who might want to pass from here to you cannot do so, and no one can cross from there to us.’ 27 He said, ‘Then, father, I beg you to send him to my father’s house— 28 for I have five brothers—that he may warn them, so that they will not also come into this place of torment.’ 29 Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; they should listen to them.’ 30 He said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ 31 He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”
 
Our wealth, lack of, suffering, health - all is temporal and will pass. We used to sing a song years ago: Only one life, and it will soon be passed. Only what is done for Jesus Christ will last.
 
You can’t know what people go through. That perfect woman with a rich husband could be dealing with a pain killer addiction, or suicidal child, or her husband could be an abusive jerk.

Or a person can have all great things, but at different times go through hardship.

I know a young lady who people sometimes are jealous of because she is strikingly beautiful and has a lot of money. Well, the money was from her parents’ will…they both died when she was in college in a car accident. She was an only child, so she has no family. She also has MS. Nobody who doesn’t know her well would know these things.

I know another woman who is stunning, educated, has a great husband and career. She also has been saddled with a mentally ill, often abusive mother with the maturity of a child.

Just remember you don’t know people fully.
 
I’ve struggled with this question—its hard to know why God seems to pour out blessings on people in open rebellion against Him or who openly mock Him.

But on the other hand, who am I to judge? Maybe He is meeting people where they are, in a mysterious way. Maybe they’re more in need of His mercies and earthly blessings.

And like other posters upthread have said, we don’t know the private pain some people are going through.
 
Nothing in this life is worth being called reward or punishment compared to the hereafter. A lifetime of misery or a lifetime of bliss is insignificant.

God can woo a person through pain or through good things. If a person is too spiritually immature to learn through pain they might learn through good things, but even this can fail to create a grateful heart and they just end up conceited, and then there may be nothing left to help them.

God also permits the wicked to enter positions of authority in order that his power can be made known through their downfall.
 
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‘Lord, how is it that some die when they are young, while others drag on to extreme old age? Why are there those who are poor and those who are rich? Why do wicked men prosper and why are the just in need? He heard a voice answering him: Anthony, keep your attention on yourself; these things are according to the judgment of God, and it is not to your advantage to know anything about them.’ - The sayings of St Anthony of the Desert
 
Brigit said:
Sometimes I look at immoral people, but their live goes well. They are rich and happy. What do you think?
Answer are appreciated.
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2 Corinthians 5:10​

10 For we must all be manifested before the judgement seat of Christ, that every one may receive the proper things of the body, according as he hath done, whether it be good or evil.
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Brigit said:
Sometimes I look at immoral people, but their live goes well. They are rich and happy. What do you think?
Answer are appreciated.
Click to expand...
Just keep in mind, verse 8 of Psalm 92:

“Though the wicked spring up like grass and all who do evil thrive, they are doomed to be eternally destroyed” – Psalm 92:8 (Revised Grail Psalter)
 
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We’re all sinners, and therefore we’re all “immoral people” to some degree. One shouldn’t be judging the morality of others, nor assuming that their life is going well just because it looks like that to the outside world. There are all kinds of people who appear to be doing very well in the public eye and then later it comes to light that they had all kinds of misery, family dysfunction, money problems, addiction, etc.

Furthermore, a person can be very good and moral in some aspects of his life and very bad and immoral in others. For example, he might be doing wonderful things as an activist or a leader and helping so many people out of poverty or oppression, but perhaps in his personal life he has affairs. Again, we really can’t judge.

Even if we somehow could know who’s “moral” and who’s “immoral”, no one’s life is without some sorrow and hardship. God may choose to give some people more sorrow or hardship than others for reasons that he knows, such as wanting to bring them closer to him. For example, my husband died suddenly and that was awful, but it has had the effect of bringing me closer to God, and I would hope that it also brought my husband closer to God in the afterlife. This doesn’t make it any less miserable but it helps me understand why God might let this happen.

Also, if God was striking people down with miserable lives when they were immoral, then sin would look very unattractive and people would avoid sin out of not wanting to suffer the earthly consequences, not because they truly loved God and wanted to please him. It is hard to reject sin and follow God when the people who appear to be committing sins are having good lives and a good time. God is testing us to see if we stay true to him or do we follow the easy path of sin.
 
I mean you just look at them?
Did you live with some of them for period of time? Or follow them around to see exactly what are they doing every day?
 
The other way to look at this as well Is from the perspective of the devil. Sometimes the devil tempts us with easy lives and worldly possessions to keep us from turning to God. With the comfort of worldly ease we get to the end of our lives without ever feeling a need or desire to find god.
 
Niblo said:
Money can’t buy you happiness but it does bring you a more pleasant form of misery.’ (Spike Milligan).
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Or else, money doesn’t buy happiness, but it does buy choices.
Think how different your life would be if you didn’t have to put up with nonsense at work, didn’t need the paycheck and could just walk away the first time somebody displeased you.
 
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