The Problem of Perspective: What Skeptics Overlook About God’s Plan

What we can’t see is important. 

In hardship, our minds are flooded with questions: Where are You, God? Why did You let this happen? If You had only… 
These questions are understandable—and welcome. God allows us to bring our emotions to Him honestly. But if those questions become accusations, there’s something we must remember: we do not see all things, and what we can’t see is important. 

The problem of perspective is real for finite beings. We don’t possess the knowledge necessary to judge what God should or should not have done. 

Recently, apologist Dan Paterson helped me think about this in a new way. Skeptics often mock God’s plan by saying that if Jesus really existed, He should have come in the 21st century so that technology could document His miracles and resurrection. If God wanted us to believe, He should have done things differently. 

But as Dan pointed out, that objection assumes something profound: Would the world we live in today even exist if Jesus hadn’t come when He did? 

The world owes much to Christianity. Science, medicine, art, and ethics have all been profoundly shaped by the Christian worldview. Even secular historians acknowledge this. It’s entirely possible that the very smartphone we think could have “proven” the resurrection wouldn’t exist at all if Christ had not come when He came and if His followers had not spread the gospel through the centuries. 

So, when we face hardship, perhaps we should pause and consider how much God has already done—things we could never know. Instead of asking, “Why did You do it this way?” or “Why did You let this happen to me?”—we might reflect on what God has likely done that we’ll never see. What tragedies has He prevented? What mercies has He hidden? What good is He preparing that we’ll only understand in eternity? 

In the end, judging God for what He should have done is folly. As Peter wrote, “Let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good” (1 Peter 4:19). 

Because though we may not see everything God is doing, we can trust the One who sees everything—and who never stops working for the good of those who love Him.