Where Does Evil & Suffering Come From?
Kyle Austin • July 7, 2020
The severity and depth of suffering that we see and experience all around us generates serious questions about life and God. One probing question is, “How can evil and suffering exist with a loving God?” This is a question that many people have asked and struggled with whether believer or unbeliever. We will begin to answer this question through our next few posts.
Genesis 1:31 says,
And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good.
And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.
In the beginning, God’s creation is morally good without sinful corruption. God placed Adam & Eve in this perfect world without sin, evil, and suffering. If that is the case then where did evil and suffering come form?
1. God created the possibility of evil.
In Genesis 2:16-17, God gave Adam & Eve clear instructions to enjoy everything in the garden except for one tree which was forbidden. God clearly gave the consequences for each choice. For obedience - physical immortality.
For disobedience - physical death. Up to this point, man was neither holy nor sinful but innocent. Man cannot be holy or sinful without the exercise of his will which was tested at this moment in time by God’s law. Now Adam and Eve have to choose what they will do.
2. Man produced evil’s potential.
The source of evil is not God but man’s freedom to choose or exercise his free-will. Adam & Eve exercised their free-will and chose to disobey God’s one command.
Genesis 3:6-8 says,
And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons. And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.
What was the result of this decision? This sin or breaking of God’s law produced all the evil, suffering, and death you and I experience.. It moved from potential to actuality.
Romans 5:12 says,
Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men,
for that all have sinned:
3. Free-will allows man to choose evil over God with suffering being the result.
We may be tempted to say, “Well God could have created a world without evil and suffering.” He did! But humans messed it up. We must remember that creating a world where there is free-will and no possibility of sin or evil is a self contradiction. You cannot have both. God created man with a free-will to love or hate Him, to obey or disobey His law.
What Is the Mission?
There are various ways to communicate the Gospel to people. There is not a set 1-2-3 method. We will walk through one method that has proven to be extremely effective and easy to remember. After we ask our spiritual discovery question of, "If you died today, where would you go?” typical responses will be something like: “I hope Heaven.” “I think Heaven.” “I’m not really sure.” “Can I really know?” “You can’t really be sure.” From there you can ask permission once again and follow with one of these questions: “Can I show you how you can know 100% for sure you can go to Heaven from the Bible?” “Do you mind if I show you what the Bible says about that?” “Do you have a few minutes for me to show you how to receive the gift of eternal life?” If they answer yes, they have given you permission to share the Gospel. Use the Bible and walk through the gospel. Allow the person to see and read the scriptures for themselves. It is helpful to mark your Bible with the following verses by highlighting the verse and then writing the next verse on the page somewhere so you know where to go next. Memorize and know these verses inside and out.
S tart a conversation
Engaging through conversations is a biblical method.
Lust and sin are two words commonly used in Christian communities. But I am willing to bet that if you went up to anybody on the street, on a college campus, at your local grocery store, they would be able to talk about lust and sin. This being that there has never been a person to ever exist, who has not dealt with lust and sin. Whether that is stealing, cheating, inappropriately looking, rudely speaking, or doing anything against the character of God. So often do people dance with sin. Attraction to Sin In Genesis 19, when Lot and his family are running away from Sodom, Lot’s wife disobeys the Lord and looks behind back at the city. Though she is running away from Sodom, her eyes were set back at a city filled sin. We, so often, can be like Lot’s wife; with our feet directed towards God, running toward Him, away from sin, but with our eyes and our hearts still set on sin. We can be internally dancing with sin, being no different than Lot’s wife. Implications of Sin Sin is not a light term, the definition of it being an immoral act against God, ”means that it is going directly against the most perfect, good, just, righteous, Creator of all things. He sets morality up for a purpose, not as a vain set of rules. So, we should listen when God says to do something, otherwise expect there to be consequences. We cannot hide sin, even the smallest of dances with it bleeds into every aspect of our lives. It will affect our relationships, energy, thoughts, and walk with God. The Devil rejoices in the aftermath of sin, how far he can take you away from God. This being the ideas of unbelief, struggle, worry, anxiety. Though the consequences of sin linger, the redemption, new creation, freedom, liberty, and victory found in Christ is forever! Victory over Sin Even the simplest dances with sin are dangerous, but in God there is complete victory! Stay on the straight and narrow path, focus on the Way, the Truth, and the Life, that is Jesus Christ. Be in the Word of God, seek to abide in Him and He will abide in you. Think back to Lot’s wife, she might’ve been doing the right things, trying to work her way back to safety, but her heart wasn’t in it. She was dancing with sin. So leave this dance, it doesn’t last. Eternal life is far greater than a fading moment in this world. Have your feet and eyes directed on Him, do not look back. Greater is He that is in you, than He that is in the world.
Many of us build five-year plans, but we forget that where we think we’ll end up may be vastly different than where the Lord has planned. Our eternal destination is Heaven, but our daily destination on Earth is uncertain. The only certainty as followers of Christ is the direction of the Way Who is Jesus. “By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise: For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.” Hebrews 11:8-10 Abraham stepped out in faith, not knowing the destination, only the direction. He went out and sojourned because he trusted the God Who called him. Abraham immediately stepped out in pure faith when God called him to a promised land, when God said He would provide Abraham with descendants, and when God called Abraham to sacrifice his only son. What would it take for us today to step out in pure faith? Would we be content with a direction and not a detailed destination? Many times, the Lord gave directions for Abraham to follow, without sight of a destination. But every step Abraham took with God was immediate and out of pure faith. Abraham should have questioned everything, but he didn’t. And because he didn’t, God provided. We overwhelm ourselves, we worry, we fall, because we misplace our eyes. Our eyes need to look to nothing more than each step led by Jesus. Abraham not only sojourned in a strange land, but this land was of a promise. We are, “heirs with him of the same promise.” Just as Abraham looked for the city “whose builder and maker is God,” let us stay with the Direction, not the destination, Who is Christ Jesus!
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