December 5, 2007

• Why does evil exist?

  I am still listening to John MacArthur - can't seem to get enough.  He did a couple of sermons on the topic "Why does Evil Dominate the World?"  The answer to the question was an interesting one to think about!  Here is a condensed version of the study.

  First, evil exists.There is natural evil in the form of disease and disaster, moral evil in the form of personal spiritual wickedness, supernatural evil perpetrated by demons and eternal evil which is hell. 

  Second, God exists.  He is the only God that exists and He is just as His revelation, the Bible describes Him.  He is all knowing, all powerful, loving and absolutely holy.  The Bible tells us that all was created and ordained by God and that God is in control of it all.  He knows all that can be known and can do all that can be done.  This means that God is behind everything, all that we would classify as good or evil.  God ordains everything.  Does this make God the source of evil?  Where did evil come from, Adam and Eve or the tempter Satan?  How did Satan become evil?  By rebelling against God in Heaven.  Does this mean that evil began in Heaven?  Apparently so.  Is this a cause for panic?  Is God then the source of evil?

  We cannot answer this question from a man centered viewpoint.  We cannot prevent God from violating what we think are proper rules of conduct.  God has both perfect knowledge and power, and if evil exists, it means that even though He is not the source of evil, that He must have ordained and allowed it in order to serve His will and accomplish His purposes. 

  Third, God has a purpose for evil, and that is for the praise of His glory.  Is God more or less glorious because of the existence of sin?  Will God receive more or less glory from His creatures because evil existed?  The glory of God is all that really matters.  Romans 3 says that our unrighteousness demonstrated the righteousness of God.  There is certainly something to be gained from the contrast.  Would we really understand God's righteousness if we did not understand unrighteousness?  In the Old Testament we read of Israel's unfaithfulness to God, but this unrighteousness only put God's love and mercy on display.  Israel broke the covenant that it had with God, but God's faithfulness to Israel never changed.  They may have been chastened, but never abandoned. 

  If we did not understand our own sin, we would not understand God's love.  Christ's death on the cross is a massive display of God's love for us.  Had there been no sin, there would have been no display of God's holiness, righteousness or love.  God allows evil to exist for the sake of His glory, so that we can offer worship with a fuller understanding of His person.  The greatest good is the glory of God.  Is this God centered view things unfair?  Who are we to debate with God about what He will or will not do?  We cannot pretend that we have any ability whatsoever to impose our thinking on the Creator.  God is God and has every right to put His glory on display, and the existence of evil makes that happen.  God is not the source of evil, but He allows it to exist and amazingly turns it around to make it serve His good and glorious purposes.  The existence of evil is temporary.  God will eventually judge and destroy it, and His creatures will worship Him forever with a better understanding of the infinite dimensions of His glorious person.

  My two cents:  God uses everything to put His glory on display, and by His infinite wisdom, power, righteousness and love turns every plan of Satan upside down to serve Himself.  Satan is no more than a foolish tool who can do nothing but end up reluctantly serving the very God against which he is rebelling.  Romans 8:28 also tells us that God promises that this will be true for us, too.   He will work all things together for our good.  God puts His glory on display in his faithfulness and lovingkindness to those who know and love Him.

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