The Existence Of Evil
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Evil exists because God wanted beings to freely choose to love Him. Not forced or programmed. This free will led to 1/3 of the angels to rebel. This rebellion led to the temptation of Eve. The free will of Eve led to the temptation of Adam in which chose to eat from the tree of knowledge (good and evil). Sin then came forth through Adam and death both physically and spiritually now became a reality.
Sin produces evil.
Satan and his forces produce evil.
Nature due to the fall commits natural evil.
Now of course the testing of our faith can produce endurance.
James 1:3
knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.
Sin produces evil.
Satan and his forces produce evil.
Nature due to the fall commits natural evil.
Now of course the testing of our faith can produce endurance.
James 1:3
knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.
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God commissioned Adam and his descendants to deal with Satan. (Genesis 1:28). As you say, Satan corrupted Adam and Adam came under Satan's control. God will not allow His will to be subverted. Man was meant to deal with Satan. Since Adam failed, as did Israel, God sent Jesus to do the job. Lord Jesus came to be the Head of a new race of people, now called Christians. Lord Jesus, as the "Last Adam", did what the first Adam failed to do.
Satan remains on earth because the church has yet to enforce the victory won by the Lord Jesus. God permits Satan to trouble Christians so that they can see their needs and turn to God to be set free. This is the "fire" that refines our faith (1 Peter 1:7). Christians who keep on asking for the fire of God should be careful what they pray for. They might just get it and they may well regret it. The smarter Christian prays "Do not lead me into hard testing, but deliver me from evil".
Satan will be cast down and eventually incarcerated in the lake of fire. The sooner the better!
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Satan remains on earth because the church has yet to enforce the victory won by the Lord Jesus. God permits Satan to trouble Christians so that they can see their needs and turn to God to be set free. This is the "fire" that refines our faith (1 Peter 1:7). Christians who keep on asking for the fire of God should be careful what they pray for. They might just get it and they may well regret it. The smarter Christian prays "Do not lead me into hard testing, but deliver me from evil".
Satan will be cast down and eventually incarcerated in the lake of fire. The sooner the better!
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Whenever somebody talks about why evil exists, I think about what I read in a novel one time. One of the characters asked another, "What is evil?"
The friend said, "Whoa, you don't believe in asking the easy ones, do you? Well... This isn't the best answer, but it's the best I can do. To me evil is something that can't see anything beautiful without wanting to own it and control it himself. And if he can't own it, he'd rather destroy it than let somebody else have it."
That perfectly describes satan. He can't have God's creation, so he tries to destroy it. He can't NOT try to destroy it - this one last act of spite is all he has left.
And that is why we have evil in the world.
The friend said, "Whoa, you don't believe in asking the easy ones, do you? Well... This isn't the best answer, but it's the best I can do. To me evil is something that can't see anything beautiful without wanting to own it and control it himself. And if he can't own it, he'd rather destroy it than let somebody else have it."
That perfectly describes satan. He can't have God's creation, so he tries to destroy it. He can't NOT try to destroy it - this one last act of spite is all he has left.
And that is why we have evil in the world.
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Aye. It's like asking, "If thinkpads are such good computers, how come there are so many thinkpads with viruses on them?" or "If (insert car company here) is such a good brand, why are there so many broken down cars?" Some people don't take such good care of their laptops and vehicles. That's not the manufacturer's fault.
The more people that follow the user manual, the bible, the less evil there will be in the world.
Of course, even if everybody followed the Bible perfectly there would still be bad things happening, like tornadoes and earthquakes. We already broke the world so now it is not perfect. But each of us has a choice whether to follow the manual or go against it and add to the evil in the world.
The more people that follow the user manual, the bible, the less evil there will be in the world.
Of course, even if everybody followed the Bible perfectly there would still be bad things happening, like tornadoes and earthquakes. We already broke the world so now it is not perfect. But each of us has a choice whether to follow the manual or go against it and add to the evil in the world.
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"Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift each of you like wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that
your faith will not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.” Luke 22:31-32
For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh, the desires of the eyes,
and the pride of life—is not from the Father but from the world. 1 John 2:16
your faith will not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.” Luke 22:31-32
For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh, the desires of the eyes,
and the pride of life—is not from the Father but from the world. 1 John 2:16
K
I'll add this to the above solid points. Maybe we should ask the opposite question: if there is NO God, why is there good in the world? Why should there be? According to atheists, we are just animals. And ultimately, we are just blobs of chemicals with no purpose and no destiny. It's odd to imagine how a concept like love, which is difficult to even define, could emerge in these chemical blobs that are so otherwise focused on meeting their own basic needs and desires. If we are really without purpose and meaning, it is just weird that something WITH purpose and meaning like love could arise.
Also frequently overlooked in this discussion is man's role in this. Man brought, and continues to bring, sin and evil into the world. Man exploits and murders and rapes and steals and abandons and oppresses man. Mankind does evil, and then runs to God and demands He clean up the mess.
The only solution to evil is to either destroy creation or destroy free will (which is essentially the same thing). If man is not free to do evil, man is not free to love, either. Destroying love would be more evil, however, so it makes evil....well, a necessary evil.
This still leaves the issue of "natural" evils like cancer, earthquakes, famines, etc. On the one hand, man's fingerprints are often on these horrible things. For example, consider the famines that emerged in the Soviet Union thanks to the "genius" of central planners.
But to the extent that natural evils are truly natural, it is imperative to remember the imperfections introduced into the perfect world during the original fall of man. Mankind began to die the moment it began to sin. Longevity shortened and continued to shorten after the Flood. There is considerable reason to believe that genetic imperfections were also introduced into the human race, again resulting from man's free will. This gets back to what I mentioned earlier: we cannot overlook the role that man had in creating the world in which we now live.
Also frequently overlooked in this discussion is man's role in this. Man brought, and continues to bring, sin and evil into the world. Man exploits and murders and rapes and steals and abandons and oppresses man. Mankind does evil, and then runs to God and demands He clean up the mess.
The only solution to evil is to either destroy creation or destroy free will (which is essentially the same thing). If man is not free to do evil, man is not free to love, either. Destroying love would be more evil, however, so it makes evil....well, a necessary evil.
This still leaves the issue of "natural" evils like cancer, earthquakes, famines, etc. On the one hand, man's fingerprints are often on these horrible things. For example, consider the famines that emerged in the Soviet Union thanks to the "genius" of central planners.
But to the extent that natural evils are truly natural, it is imperative to remember the imperfections introduced into the perfect world during the original fall of man. Mankind began to die the moment it began to sin. Longevity shortened and continued to shorten after the Flood. There is considerable reason to believe that genetic imperfections were also introduced into the human race, again resulting from man's free will. This gets back to what I mentioned earlier: we cannot overlook the role that man had in creating the world in which we now live.
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A world of choice and consequence which has also been shaped by those things.
I think it was C.S.Lewis who wrote that animals have very little potential for either good or evil. Man - created in God's image and with free will - has a very great potential for both.
God decided it was worth the risk in order to accomplish what He is accomplishing in Creation. The Bible is clear that God is demonstrating His supreme wisdom before spiritual powers and principalities. Free will is built into the system, as is a necessity for faith in order to please God.
Part of that, I think, is faith that God knows what He is doing and that He - as the High Judge over all the Earth - will judge rightly. We may not like how He chooses to rule and what He permits, but He is God and we are not.
I think it was C.S.Lewis who wrote that animals have very little potential for either good or evil. Man - created in God's image and with free will - has a very great potential for both.
God decided it was worth the risk in order to accomplish what He is accomplishing in Creation. The Bible is clear that God is demonstrating His supreme wisdom before spiritual powers and principalities. Free will is built into the system, as is a necessity for faith in order to please God.
Part of that, I think, is faith that God knows what He is doing and that He - as the High Judge over all the Earth - will judge rightly. We may not like how He chooses to rule and what He permits, but He is God and we are not.
K
Pretty much any major organization or event that comes to your city will bring human trafficking with it. It doesn't matter what it is - sports, politics (both parties), some social or charitable cause, even Christian events. Big events = huge risk for trafficking.
Of course, there are ways to reduce the likelihood of trafficking. Legalized prostitution might be one way. As distasteful as it is, it could help.
Of course, there are ways to reduce the likelihood of trafficking. Legalized prostitution might be one way. As distasteful as it is, it could help.
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Baltimore, about 40 minutes from where I live, used to be the human trafficking capital of North America. Not sure if it still is.
Bottom line, human trafficking and slavery have been around for millennia and likely will be for the rest of human history. There are more chattel slaves right now than ever. (Chattel slavery means the slave is completely owned with no rights whatsoever.) And as Kris suggested, various forms of exploitation and sex slavery have become prevalent.
The Bible doesn't outright condemn slavery, but principles of treating others as you would want to be treated and providing for the needs of slaves are addressed. And every 7th year the Jews were required to free all their slaves, unless the slave actually wanted to continue in that capacity for life.
Personally I hate any form of exploitation or slavery... but it's so pervasive and ultimately hard to identify that eradicating it would be really hard, even in modern America.
Bottom line, human trafficking and slavery have been around for millennia and likely will be for the rest of human history. There are more chattel slaves right now than ever. (Chattel slavery means the slave is completely owned with no rights whatsoever.) And as Kris suggested, various forms of exploitation and sex slavery have become prevalent.
The Bible doesn't outright condemn slavery, but principles of treating others as you would want to be treated and providing for the needs of slaves are addressed. And every 7th year the Jews were required to free all their slaves, unless the slave actually wanted to continue in that capacity for life.
Personally I hate any form of exploitation or slavery... but it's so pervasive and ultimately hard to identify that eradicating it would be really hard, even in modern America.
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FREE WILL
Why, then, did God create human beings with free will?
In His infinite wisdom, God certainly knew that human beings will mess things up and destroy His divine creation. Why, then, did He create a world with people who are capable of making evil decisions?
C.S. Lewis, in his book, The Case for Christianity, put it this way:
If God is good, why does He allow evil in the world ...
Why, then, did God create human beings with free will?
In His infinite wisdom, God certainly knew that human beings will mess things up and destroy His divine creation. Why, then, did He create a world with people who are capable of making evil decisions?
C.S. Lewis, in his book, The Case for Christianity, put it this way:
God created things which had free will. That means creatures which can go wrong or right. Some people think they can imagine a creature which was free but had no possibility of going wrong, but I can’t. If a thing is free to be good, it’s also free to be bad. And free will is what has made evil possible. Why, then, did God give them free will? Because free will, though it makes evil possible, is also the only thing that makes possible any love or goodness or joy worth having.
God created us to have a loving relationship with Him, and love always involves a choice. It is an act of free will. No power in all of creation can ever control love. If love is borne out of force instead of one’s free will, it can never be considered love. God knows better than to force us to love HimIf God is good, why does He allow evil in the world ...
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