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Why Does God Allow Evil? - Email from a Skeptic
Koinonea House Online ^ | Dr Mark Eastman

Posted on 01/23/2004 5:41:11 PM PST by xzins

In my experience, it is the most commonly asked question by honest skeptics: "If God is real, if God is personal, if God loves us, why does God allow evil?" A proper understanding of this issue not only provides great insight into the nature of God, it ties together a comprehensive understanding to some of life's ultimate questions: the answers to my origin, meaning, morality and destiny!

Email from A Skeptic

The question of evil was brought into clearer focus in an email I recently received from a skeptic:

The Christian worldview is an impractical, even phony, view of the Cosmos because it embraces a God who is either incapable of stopping evil and suffering, and he is therefore not omnipotent, or is unwilling to do so and therefore a devil!

The skeptic's point is well taken because the Bible states that one of God's attributes is love. "He who does not love does not know God, for God is love." (I John 4:8) In the book of Romans, Paul the Apostle stated that the invisible attributes of God "are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead."1

However, what the skeptic is saying, in effect, is this: "If your God is love, I see no evidence of that attribute in creation. All the death, disease, pain and suffering seems to be out of place if this God of yours is love. Surely an all-powerful God could, and a loving God would, eliminate all evil. Since evil exists, then no such God exists."

To answer this objection we need to examine some principles of logic, the nature of God, the nature of man, the nature of love and the nature of evil.

Evil and Moral Law

When someone states that they do not believe in God because a good God would not allow evil, they make a fatal error in logic. First, the recognition of evil is the recognition that certain actions are "right" and certain actions are "wrong." But how do we determine what actions are morally right and morally wrong? We discern this on the basis of a moral law: a universal sense that certain states of affairs are right and others are wrong. Even most atheists will admit that certain actions are universally wrong and, conversely, universally right.

For example, no one could seriously argue with the statement that it is better to love a child than to torture it. The point is that there is an innate, universal sense of right and wrong within all of us. What is the basis of this moral sense? Some would argue that it is based on cultural customs or traditions. But can this be so?

The famous atheist Bertrand Russell once debated a Christian who asked him if he believed in right and wrong. Russell replied "of course." Then he asked him how he determined what is right and wrong. Russell replied that he determined right and wrong on the basis of his feelings. His opponent replied, "Well, in some cultures they feel it is okay to eat you, and in others they don't. Which do you prefer." The point is that social customs, attitudes, traditions or feelings cannot determine a universal sense of right and wrong.

A universal sense of moral right and wrong can only come from a source outside of ourselves: a transcendent source, a moral Lawgiver. So the recognition of moral law is by default the recognition of a moral Lawgiver. To argue that the existence of evil proves that there is no God is equivalent to stating that the existence of moral law proves that there is no Lawgiver! It's like declaring that the Chrysler automobile that I drive proves without a doubt that there is no Chrysler Motor Company!

Atheists often present the problem of evil to theists as if it is a fatal argument for the existence of God. Nothing could be further from the truth. In reality, it is an absolutely unsolvable problem for the atheist. How does the atheist explain evil-the sense of moral right and wrong-in the absence of a moral Lawgiver? They can't! If there is no moral Lawgiver, then there is no way to explain the sense of moral wrong and moral right we all possess. C.S. Lewis said that evil is God's megaphone to a non-believing world. Evil speaks of moral law. Moral law demands a moral Lawgiver, and it is He that we call God!

Evil Often Begets Good

A second principle of logic we need to consider is the fact that an apparently evil state of affairs will often bring about an even better state of affairs. The problem is that we often do not recognize this fact until we have the advantage of hindsight. In my own field of medicine I see this on a daily basis: the process of childbirth, surgical intervention, and many medical therapies often present physical pain (an evil state of affairs according to non-theists), and yet they bring about an even better state of affairs: improved health. Physical pain is often highly beneficial as well. When a child touches a hot stove, the nervous system sends a neurological signal to the brain which is perceived as pain (a form of evil). Yet without that sense of pain, an even worse state of affairs would arise: the destruction of the limb.

The skeptic might object that while this provides a partial answer to the problem of evil, it does not address some of the most disturbing forms of evil: war, murder, rape, incest and the senseless death of the innocent.

God, Freedom, and Evil

The problem of human evil is rooted in the nature of God and the nature of love and the nature of mankind. I argued in last month's Personal UPDATE that God is a personal being because an impersonal force is an insufficient agent to create personal beings.2 What is the greatest passion of personal beings? I would argue that, above all else, personal beings desire personal relationships with other personal beings. So it makes sense that God, as a personal being, would desire to create us in such a way that He could have a meaningful, personal, and loving relationship with us. But this has a severe price.

Let us consider the nature of love and its consequences. I cannot experience love from you unless you have the capacity to do otherwise. If you have the capacity to not love me, and you choose instead to love me, then that choice has validity. It has meaning. You cannot have a love relationship with a computer. It is pre-programmed to serve you. Love requires choice: unencumbered choice. And that's where the problem lies.

When God created mankind, He too had a choice. If He created us as beings that were pre-programmed to follow and serve Him, there could be no love. But, if He created us with the capacity of choice, the capacity to love and serve Him, and the capacity not to do so, then there is the possibility of relationship: the possibility of real love. As a personal being with the capability of creating us in the first place, it makes sense that He would want to create us as personal beings with the capability of choice (free will) and, thus, the capability of love. But where there is choice and the capability of love, there is also the capability to choose wrong and to do great evil.

But the skeptic says, "why did God do this when he knew in advance that the result of free will would be so disastrous? Did this God of love not care that war, murder, rape and so much senseless violence would be the result of his choice to give us free will?" A real life illustration will help us to understand.

The Love of a Mother

During my 15 years as a physician I have seen an enormous amount of physical suffering. During that time I have had five children in my practice die by disease and injury. All of these children came from Christian families. Several months after the death of one of these children, the child's mother was in my office and was very distraught over her loss. She asked me, "Why did God allow this? I love God. Why did this happen?"

What could I say in this situation? Rather than providing an answer I asked her this question. "You have three children. One of them has died. If you could go back to the time before you had any children, with the knowledge that one of them would die this horrible death, would you have children again?"

After a long pause, with many tears in her eyes and a broken heart she said, "Oh yes. Oh yes. yes I would. Because, you see, the love and the joy and the happiness I have received from my children far outweighs the pain, suffering and misery I experienced from the loss of that one child. Oh yes. Oh yes. I would have children again."

In this tragic story we see an incredible insight as to why God allows evil to exist. As discussed earlier, a loving God can allow an evil state of affairs to exist if, in allowing it to occur, it brings about an even better state of affairs. For this woman, the loss of her child was an unequalled and tragic evil. But, with the advantage of hindsight, she said she would do it all again because the love she received as a result of being a mother outweighed the evil state of affairs in the death of her child.

In the hypothetical scenario I presented to this woman, with the advantage of hindsight (foreknowledge in this case) she was in a position comparable to God's before He created humankind. Because He is outside time and knows all things, He knew that there would be tremendous pain and suffering as a result of His decision to create a people with the capacity of choice and, consequently, the capacity to sin (moral evil).

But God, like this mother, knew that the love He and his human creatures would experience would outweigh the pain and suffering that would result from His decision to create us as He did. But the consequences of God's decision were not unforeseen. They were foreknown!

The Incredible Answer

The skeptic that emailed me stated, in effect, that if an all-powerful God did not eliminate evil, then He was a devil! The implication is that the removal of all evil would permit a better, more loving world. A truly loving God, the skeptics assert, would have desired and created such a world because it is clearly superior to the one we have. Any God that did not follow this logic was not a God of love, but an evil tyrant.

As we have seen, this logic crumbles under its own weight. The existence of evil is the "side effect" of creating a world with love. But as we have seen, there are compelling arguments that a world possessing both evil and love is superior to a world where neither is possible. For God to eliminate evil, He would have to eliminate our capacity of choice and thus our capacity to do both evil and good. And such a world is inferior to the one we have: one where love is possible, despite its inherent evil. What kind of God would do this? Only one kind. A God of love.

Why does a God of love allow evil? Because He is a God of LOVE.

So Great a Salvation

So, how practical is Christianity? The Bible presents an infinite Creator with the very attributes we would expect when we examine the things that are made. And God, as a personal Being, in order that He might have a love relationship with us, gave us the capacity of choice. In order that we might have a practical revelation of His love, His wisdom, His power, His glory, He became one of us in the person of the Messiah, Jesus Christ.

In order that we might not suffer the penalty of our evil choices (sin), He, like a loving father, paid the penalty for our sins. He allowed his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to be murdered on a Roman cross (arguably the most evil act in the history of the universe, if He is indeed God's Son). But this act of great evil gave rise to an even better state of affairs, and the greatest act of love in the universe: paying the penalty for the wrong choices we make, which were the result of the way He created us in the first place! In the cross of Christ He has provided a full pardon from the consequences of the evil in our lives. Consequently, we cannot look to God and declare that He is unfair. Far from being a devil, in this examination of the problem of evil, God becomes the hero of the plot and the solution to the problem of evil. And it all hinges on LOVE. Indeed, God is love.3 What must we do to receive this pardon?

For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16
If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. Romans 10:9

* * *




This article was originally published in the
June 1999 Personal Update NewsJournal.


Notes:      

  1. Romans 1:18-20.
  2. Personal UPDATE, May 1999
  3. For those that would like an in-depth treatment of the problem of evil and a God of love, I highly recommend Alvin Plantinga's book, God, Freedom and Evil.


TOPICS: Theology
KEYWORDS: choice; evil; freewill; good; love
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To: Freemeorkillme
That was the New American Standard.
221 posted on 01/31/2004 7:42:22 PM PST by xzins (Retired Army and Proud of It!!)
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To: xzins
Yes. Thanks. right on.

Verse 6 in its entirety:

"He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it." NIV student bible.

All things do, indeed, serve Him!

FMOKM
222 posted on 01/31/2004 7:44:46 PM PST by Freemeorkillme
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To: Freemeorkillme
Galatians 5:1
It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.
223 posted on 01/31/2004 7:50:06 PM PST by xzins (Retired Army and Proud of It!!)
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To: Markofhumanfeet; betty boop
Indeed, Job 28 is a very interesting chapter to me also! IMHO, the whole book of Job is wonderfully instructive to the topic at hand.

My two cents…

Job began his trial with a humble and loving heart, he did not accuse God:

Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped, And said, Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD. In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly. – Job 1:20-22

But in the subsequent chapters, Job’s heart seems to change. Rather than humble submission to God’s will, he seems to be focused on his own suffering and righteousness. Chapter 28 has a different style though, in that Job waxes philosophic.

Whence then cometh wisdom? and where [is] the place of understanding? Seeing it is hid from the eyes of all living, and kept close from the fowls of the air. Destruction and death say, We have heard the fame thereof with our ears.

God understandeth the way thereof, and he knoweth the place thereof. For he looketh to the ends of the earth, [and] seeth under the whole heaven; To make the weight for the winds; and he weigheth the waters by measure. When he made a decree for the rain, and a way for the lightning of the thunder:

Then did he see it, and declare it; he prepared it, yea, and searched it out. And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that [is] wisdom; and to depart from evil [is] understanding.

By chapter 32, young Elihu finally had “enough” with Job and his other friends; Elihu was particularly upset with Job because he was trying to justify himself.

So these three men ceased to answer Job, because he [was] righteous in his own eyes. Then was kindled the wrath of Elihu the son of Barachel the Buzite, of the kindred of Ram: against Job was his wrath kindled, because he justified himself rather than God. Also against his three friends was his wrath kindled, because they had found no answer, and [yet] had condemned Job. Now Elihu had waited till Job had spoken, because they [were] elder than he. – chapter 32:1-5

Talk about “out of the mouth of babes”... Elihu ended with his long statement by pointing directly to the problem – and the issue we are discussing (emphasis mine):

[Touching] the Almighty, we cannot find him out: [he is] excellent in power, and in judgment, and in plenty of justice: he will not afflict. Men do therefore fear him: he respecteth not any [that are] wise of heart. - Job 37:23-24

Immediately after that, God addressed Job directly and brought him to his knees, beginning in chapter 38 with this:

Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said, Who [is] this that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge? Gird up now thy loins like a man; for I will demand of thee, and answer thou me. Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding.

Back in chapter 28 Job had asserted, saying that he was repeating what God had Himself said, that the fear of the Lord is wisdom and departing from evil is understanding. But God said that Job had words without knowledge and did not have understanding. After the Lord spoke to him, Job reacted by saying:

Then Job answered the LORD, and said, I know that thou canst do every [thing], and [that] no thought can be withholden from thee. Who [is] he that hideth counsel without knowledge? therefore have I uttered that I understood not; things too wonderful for me, which I knew not. Hear, I beseech thee, and I will speak: I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me. I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee. Wherefore I abhor [myself], and repent in dust and ashes. – Job 42:1-6

IOW, wisdom and understanding are gifts of God. 1 Corinthians 2:

And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching [was] not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.

Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought: But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, [even] the hidden [wisdom], which God ordained before the world unto our glory: Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known [it], they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed [them] unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.

For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.

But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know [them], because they are spiritually discerned. But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man. For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.


224 posted on 01/31/2004 10:44:46 PM PST by Alamo-Girl
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To: betty boop
Thank you so much for your reply and for your insights on Justin Martyr and Plato!

I agree with you that Plato got as far as he could humanly go before the Incarnation! Truly, I believe that he was gifted by God for that very purpose, to prepare the Greek-speaking world to be ready to receive and spread the Gospel.

Justin Martyr's writings seem to support this view, as he perceived references to the Cross and to Moses in Plato's work.

225 posted on 01/31/2004 10:51:40 PM PST by Alamo-Girl
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To: Freemeorkillme
Thank you so much for your reply!

or succintly put, "I am!" The concept of "the alpha and the omega" is truly humbling and supremely awe-inspiring.

So very, very true!!! "I am" is the most important meditation known to me.

226 posted on 01/31/2004 10:54:13 PM PST by Alamo-Girl
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To: Alamo-Girl
It is true that God's ways are higher than our ways, and his thoughts are higher than our thoughts as the heavens are to the earth. So, for people to criticize God for allowing evil is to assume the place of God, judging him, as if we had that capacity. We should hold our hand upon our mouths like Job, having spoken of things which we know not. If God did not allow evil, none of us would be posting here, for there is none who are without sin, even the innocent babe will bring it forth in time. However, God has decided to show forth his great mercy, inviting us to be joint-heirs with his own Son, pouring out his Spirit in the inner man, enabling us to know the deep things of God, calling us a holy nation, a royal priesthood. That is a staggering concept not yet grasped by the skeptic or unbeliever.
227 posted on 02/01/2004 7:50:03 AM PST by man of Yosemite ("When a man decides to do something everyday, that's about when he stops doing it.")
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To: man of Yosemite
Thank you so very much for sharing your beautiful insight!!!
228 posted on 02/01/2004 7:57:27 AM PST by Alamo-Girl
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To: Alamo-Girl
Concerning your post 210, that was an excellent read. Thanks for sharing that.
229 posted on 02/01/2004 8:02:41 AM PST by man of Yosemite ("When a man decides to do something everyday, that's about when he stops doing it.")
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To: man of Yosemite
I'm so very glad you enjoyed it! It was a remarkable find for me.
230 posted on 02/01/2004 8:10:13 AM PST by Alamo-Girl
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To: betty boop; Alamo-Girl; PatrickHenry
You guys have done a really good job of fighting the good fight, I have been watching from the sidelines, my access to a computer has been a little hit and miss...

The idea that the search for wisdom and understanding is somehow an affront to God, I think, tells us more about the person espousing it than it does about the nature of philosophy. The hunger for knowledge, the thirst to know and to understand is inherent in our nature. It is God-given, in other words.

That some who are of a philosophical bent are separated from God is not surprising; so are quite a number of auto mechanics and postmen. That fact does nothing to detract from repairing or delivery as a profession. The search for truth, pursued in all sincerity, cannot help but lead you toward God; truth itself is ultimately unified. The existence of sophists and atheists among us changes nothing.

This is similar to the question of liberty where some considered God as enemy of liberty, and liberty the enemy of God, whereas others consider God to be its source, that liberty is a gift from God, and that furthermore you cannot truly serve God in the absense of liberty.

Intellectual conformity is not obedience to God, it is obedience to our fellows, and usually it will be obedience to the lowest common denominator. You have to be prepared to question or you can never know, and what you know can never be yours in the absense of the active search. But an active search guarantees missteps and mistakes; if you are afraid to be wrong you can never move beyond the uniform thinking of your own set; if you insist on hiding in the crowd God really can't use you because he can't move you, because you do not dare.

I see the hostility to "wisdom" as an unhealthy fear of living. A healthy fear of God is probably in order but a life that is driven by a love of God, rather than fear, is the life he intended I believe. And if you love him you will shake off the fear of being occasionally wrong and pursue him; we can call it the pursuit of truth, which it is, but it is really the pursuit of God, and it is an act of love, really.
231 posted on 02/01/2004 5:49:58 PM PST by marron
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To: marron
Well said.
232 posted on 02/01/2004 6:02:25 PM PST by PatrickHenry
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To: marron; Alamo-Girl; Phaedrus; unspun; cornelis; PatrickHenry
Dear marron -- I have nothing to add to your last, except tears of joy and the most deeply-felt sense of personal gratitude.

Thank you, dear friend.

233 posted on 02/01/2004 8:57:34 PM PST by betty boop (God used beautiful mathematics in creating the world. -- Paul Dirac)
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To: marron; PatrickHenry; betty boop
Thank you oh so very much for your beautiful post and all your encouragements!

A healthy fear of God is probably in order but a life that is driven by a love of God, rather than fear, is the life he intended I believe. And if you love him you will shake off the fear of being occasionally wrong and pursue him; we can call it the pursuit of truth, which it is, but it is really the pursuit of God, and it is an act of love, really.

So very true, marron, the pursuit of truth is really the pursuit of God and it is an act of love!

But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God [is] a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship [him] in spirit and in truth. – John 4:23-24


234 posted on 02/01/2004 9:25:57 PM PST by Alamo-Girl
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To: marron; Alamo-Girl; Phaedrus; unspun; cornelis; PatrickHenry
Thumbs up on the observation that Christians have been the catalyst for advanced study (and actual learning) over the history of... Christians.

It's historical fact that should teach all of us (especialy Christians).

Our knowledge and our earthly means of gaining it have bounds however, and we disserve ourselves to be ignorant of that. Also, "of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh." ;-)
235 posted on 02/02/2004 10:04:02 AM PST by unspun (The uncontextualized life is not worth living. | I'm not "Unspun w/ AnnaZ" but I appreciate.)
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To: marron; Alamo-Girl; Phaedrus; unspun; cornelis; PatrickHenry; Heartlander; Kudsman; logos; ...
And the righteous search for knowledge is far different than vainglorious worship of it. In the pursuit of knowledge and the place we give ourselves to seek it, we are also better off worshiping the source of knowledge, than ourselves as knowledge seekers.
236 posted on 02/02/2004 10:08:39 AM PST by unspun (The uncontextualized life is not worth living. | I'm not "Unspun w/ AnnaZ" but I appreciate.)
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To: unspun
Indeed, unspun! And what an appropriate verse! Hugs!
237 posted on 02/02/2004 10:10:54 AM PST by Alamo-Girl
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To: unspun
"of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh."

You can say that again...

238 posted on 02/02/2004 5:07:30 PM PST by marron
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To: unspun
Hi bud,

It's the same question. It's my same answer. I believe there is no evil in the Kingdom of Heaven. I don't want to get too in to this thread. I'm sure there are many FReepers here much more able than I. I'm taking a little poetry these days. C-ya.
239 posted on 02/02/2004 7:46:46 PM PST by Kudsman (If Wal-Mart is lowering prices every day, how come nothing is free yet?)
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