IF LEFT, THEN RIGHT
Introduction
When it comes to evangelism, Christians can take the offensive on almost every issue related to the condition of man and the state of creation. This is to be expected though because your average person cannot lucidly explain the beginning of space and time nor the specific processes by which man came about. People have come to know that there are differences in life. There is man and woman. There is straight and crooked. Left and right. True and false. Right and wrong. Good and evil. The interesting thing about all of these things is that one only knows what one of these is by knowing what the other is. That is the interesting thing about life though: truth never lies, wrong is never right, well is never bad, and good is never evil.
These things are absolutes. They are objective statements. This world has gone mad though. Intelligent, yet mad. This paper will address the issue of evil in the world, in mankind, and how it relates to God, if at all.
Why is this issue important? It is important because the problem of evil is the only issue that the unsaved populace can take the offensive on when it comes to Christianity. Good theologians must be able to defend the character of God in this tricky issue. If the problem of evil cannot be adequately explained, then at worst God becomes the author of evil, or at best nonexistent.[1] What is Evil?
C.S. Lewis states, "The lost enjoy the horrible freedom they have demanded and are forever enslaved."[1] What is evil? This is truly an age-old question. Is evil something that is only evil for one man but not evil for another? Example, this author sees poor sportsmanship as evil. Others see this as sports savvy and laud it. Which is it? This author asks the question, is evil only that which is the absence of good? Or is evil that which is not wholly good? The trouble with truth is that it is never a lie, and the trouble with wrong is that it is never right.
First John 5:19 references Satan as “the evil one.” On a base of interpretation of the passage we can assume that Satan is the embodiment of evil in his will and actions. He cannot be evil inherently because then whatever God created was not good. This conclusion comes from the fact that if all is created good, and God created all, then God is the Father of all that is good. The Bible states in John 8:44 “You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own present nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” Satan is the father of evil. The Pharisees in this passage were referred to as being of their father the devil. Satan is not just called a liar in this passage, but also a murderer. John 17:15 refers to Satan as the “evil one.” This author will conclude that if acts of righteousness are those that perform the will of God, then acts of evil are those that follow the will of Satan. For the sake of this paper, this author will write with the assumption that evil, or those actions that coincide with Satan’s will, is sin. The Greek word Parabasis refers to an overstepping, or a transgression.1 Sin is the lack of conformity to the moral law of God.2 This is an accurate statement for the actions that the angel Lucifer did according to Isaiah 14.
The Relationship of Good and Evil
To consider another quote, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow once said, “Evil is only good perverted.”[2] This author finds this quote to be a fascinating idea and very accurate. All things were created good according to Genesis 1 and were created out of nothing according to Hebrews 11:3. This tells mankind that something came from Something(intentionally capitalized). This also, by logical process, tells man that nothing cannot create something.
This also brings about another point. Because everything created was good, this becomes an exclusive statement. Good can exist without evil. But evil cannot exist without good. Just as there can be holiness without evil, but there can’t be evil without holiness. Good is an objective statement. God does not use the term “good” flippantly. He used the same word to point out in Matthew 19:17 which says, “…there is only One who is good.” There also exists two different definitions of the word good now. Everything that God created was good, the stars, the planets, all celestial bodies, the seas, the birds, the trees, the animals, and of course man. All these things were created good. But mankind fell. Mankind’s creaturely goodness faded and entered into a state of curse. Some questions must now be asked: If Jesus is the only One who is good, and His adversary is Satan who is evil and was created by God, then did God create evil? or did evil catch God by surprise? or is there a third option?
The Source of Evil
Jesus has now established a dichotomy: only One who is good, and the one who is evil is Satan. Jesus ascribed not just the actions of the Pharisees as evil, but they were evil because they were the deeds of their father, the devil. Isaiah 14 speaks very clearly that Lucifer wished to do one of two things depending on the reader’s interpretation: he lusted for God’s position as sovereign, and/or in his pride and self-exultation tried to stage a coup. Lucifer was the single greatest creation of God. This author has established that everything was created good. The difficult question must then be asked: How did evil come about?
This author has established that something cannot come from nothing. James 3:16 states that “wherever there is selfish ambition…there is every evil thing.” Isaiah 14 states that Satan exulted himself. This pride may have been similar to the pride shown by a new convert trying to take the glory for himself in his conversion in ignorance.[3] There are some who think that Lucifer did not believe that his purpose on earth was too trivial for his status as potential mediator of the angels.[4] It is also entirely possible that Lucifer did not fully understand or comprehend what God’s plan was for the earth as far His own glorification through it. Perhaps Lucifer felt as though a people created to bring glory to God was tautologous. However this does not mean that God is at fault for not coddling His prime angel. Lucifer’s sin was, as stated by Charles Ryrie, an “internal combustion.” Ezekiel 28 states that unrighteousness was found inside of Lucifer. Where did this unrighteousness come from? This author does not believe that God had His hand on anything that is evil. What God did is create the means for evil to exist. This is not to say that God created evil in parts, but that the pre-fall abilities of Lucifer and man in their freewill distorted their need of dependence on God as they sought autonomy.
J.O. Buswell states, “According to the Bible, then, sin originated in an act of free will in which the creature deliberately, responsibly, and with adequate understanding of the issues chose to corrupt the holy character of godliness with which God had endowed His creation.”[5] Lucifer doubted God’s plan and succeeded in convincing man that he could provide a better plan than that of God’s.[6] Sin accordingly exploded in Lucifer’s heart.
Was Evil Part of the Plan?
Augustine said, “God judged it better to bring good out of evil than to suffer no evil to exist.”[7] This author shall deal with this from two perspectives: man, and God. This quote bodes a question: Why did God not destroy evil immediately when it came into existence? This is a very important question to ask because, through it, a great deal about God’s character can be learned. Is a world without sin possible if God is omnipotent? Yes it is. God already created it back in Genesis 1 and 2. Evil’s source then is not God’s power, but creaturely freedom. One may ask why God did not simply create a world without freedom then. That would have simply been a world without humans or angels. That is like asking why God never made water that was not wet or heat that is not warm. Mankind would be no different from animals. Animals can only like. They can neither love nor hate as humans do. The possibility for sin places its blame squarely on mankind since a world without sin and with freewill is an oxymoron.[8] For many people, this is a difficult thing to accept. For some it walks a dangerous line of God creating evil. This author hopes to shed adequate light and clarity on the issue.
When Lucifer fell God had the chance to eradicate evil once and for all before it could infect the rest of humanity and one-third of the angels.
This author believes that God’s sovereignty is shown even more by the fact that He allowed evil to exist. God is Lord over all. God’s sovereignty is demonstrated all the more through it all because evil has been granted a chance to fire back at God with everything it can, and it will fail. This is the same reason why God hardened Pharaoh’s heart in Egypt. Exodus 7:3 says, “But I will harden Pharaoh’s heart that I may multiply My wonders in the land of Egypt.” God does not fear evil, and has proven that He has no reason to fear it for even that is used for His glory. The difficulty is that this issue makes it seem as though biblical figures such as Judas Iscariot and Pharaoh never had a chance. What makes this issue so problematic is the matter of culpability and what must happen when it comes to God’s decrees.
This author believes that when God decrees something it is guaranteed to happen. The decree of the Hebrews being freed from Egypt under the hardened heart of Pharaoh came about just as God decreed. God said He would harden Pharaoh’s heart. God did, just as He said He would. God must be good, and what He does cannot be evil. God did not make Pharaoh sin. The only recorded time of Pharaoh actually sinning, interestingly enough, was when Pharaoh hardened his own heart for the last time, he and all his household.
Judas Iscariot is also a tricky issue. The tough thing is that Jesus Himself never prayed for Judas like He did for the other disciples. Since Judas was the prophesied son of perdition, His role in life had been decreed. Yet the book of Romans says that he was not without fault. James also says that God cannot be tempted by evil and He Himself does not tempt anyone.
This author does not think that God makes mankind do evil. This author will also not advocate the doctrine of double-predestination.
Was evil part of the plan? Evil did not catch God by surprise for He is omniscient. This author believes that evil exists for the sole purpose of contrasting and proving to mankind just how holy God is. By learning how wicked and evil evil is, mankind can truly know one day what is truly good. Though evil was part of the plan, God most assuredly did not create it.
Very Good and Very Evil
What must be addressed now, are the different kinds of evil. The evils of morality, and physicality. Joseph de Maistre states, “If there was no moral evil upon earth, there would be no physical evil.”[9] The question must be asked, why does God allow evil? There are several instances in the Bible when God used evil to chastise mankind to repent. This can be seen in Isaiah 45:7, Genesis 6:13, and Acts 13:9-11. Physical evil may result from Adam’s original sin in Genesis 3:6, and Romans 5:12-14. God may also use physical evil to test us for a higher glory. This could be seen in Job, and 1 Peter 1:6-7; 5:10, and 2 Corinthians 12:7-9. Physical evil is a means God uses to accomplish His work on earth. This is evident from John 9:1-3 and also Jesus’ physical torture before and during the cross for things that He did not do. God allowed physical evil to happen to the Israelites in Jeremiah as punishment for their idolatry and their irreverence for God’s commands. A sad reality is that many times, the reason for physical evil is simply unknown to us. Sometimes we must accept the reality.[10] This is no different than a parent who is walking alongside their child. Just because the child may trip and fall over, does not mean that the parent was not watching over the child. But any good parent will be there to pick that child up and cradle it.
The next issue is moral evil. The problems of moral evil have been confronted several times throughout the Bible. The ten commandments are a great proof of this. Exodus 20:12-17, Deuteronomy 16:19, 1 Chronicles 22:8, Isaiah 2:4, Mark, 7:21-22, and Romans 12:17-19. Moral evil is caused by sinfulness and rebellion as seen in Exodus 20:1-17 when we fail to love God, and fail to love people Matthew 22:35-40, Romans 13:9, and James 2:8. We have a choice of whether to be good or evil in the ways we choose to follow as seen in James 1:13-15. The problem with evil is that our actions always will effect the lives of others.
This author is not saying that moral evil is a simple issue. Approaching a grieving wife and father over the loss of a child or an unfortunate girl who is the victim of rape presents a difficulty for a biblical counselor. One cannot simply say “God cause all things to work together for good. There’s a reason for it.” This is the actual problem of evil. It has a paralyzing effect even for Christians on the goodness of God.
Why does God allow Evil?
John Calvin, “You must submit to supreme suffering in order to discover the completion of joy.”[11] The problem of evil is a very tricky thing. It becomes all the more difficult when one asks why God would do something like this? Once someone begins to tread the path of absolutely no rhyme or reason to the workings of God, and when one thinks that there is no purpose, how can there be any constructive endeavor?[12] What one must understand is that God is just, and that God will do all that is right to bring about the best outcome. [13] God is not capricious, unjust, or random. He is a God of order and foresight.
Is God all-powerful, all-loving, or neither?
Richard Dawkins said in his book The God Delusion, “The God of the Old Testament is arguably the most unpleasant character in all fiction: jealous and proud of it; a petty, unjust, unforgiving control-freak; a vindictive, bloodthirsty ethnic cleanser; a misogynistic, homophobic, racist, infanticidal, genocidal, filicidal, pestilential, megalomaniacal, sadomasochistic, capriciously malevolent bully.”[14] Men like Richard Dawkins, Chris Hitchens, and Sam Harris claim that because evil exists God cannot. Because He is either all-loving and cannot do anything about it, or He is all-powerful and does not care. Returning to the analogy of the parent before, just because something “bad” happens does not mean that the parent wished for the child to be harmed. But perhaps, if the child would simply hold the hand of his/her parent, then the fall would be prevented. If the Christian would hold the hand that holds the world, perhaps the fall would not be.
Paul Little states, “God’s will is always the highest good His wisdom can devise. In the Garden of Eden, Lucifer succeded in convincing man that he could do better for himself than God had planned for him; and this is a contemporary problem in the world today.”[15] This is the sad reality.
Created without a creator?
The final issue is that of the creation of evil. Is evil Satan himself? No. God cannot create evil. John 1:3 states, “All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.” For some Christians, including this author, this can be a problem passage. One must take great care to take to heart the character of God and what He must be separate from to be the God that He is. Numbers 23:19 states, “God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent; Has He said and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?” God creates only that which is good, and that is why this author maintains that though God did not create evil, the means for it to exist were certainly created by God.
Conclusion
Augustine said, "From whence is evil? ... as yet I knew not that evil was nothing but a privation of good, until at last a thing ceases altogether to be … it [is] not any substance ... but the perversion of the will, turned aside from Thee, O God."[16] The greatest evil that evil truly accomplishes is the lower perception of God that man gains when he looks through its grisly lens. The greatest being in all of creation imploded in unrighteousness. The fall of Lucifer truly tells in graphic detail how powerful evil truly is. If the mightiest of the angels could succumb to selfish ambition, then how easily is the same for mankind? All sin is most grievous, yet how much more grievous are sins of the righteous who know better?[17]
What is truly alarming is how quickly, and easily mankind is choosing to accept and praise God for what is clearly denounced as evil in the Bible. John MacArthur once said, “There's no surer and no sadder evidence of an abandoned society under God's wrath than when that society will not tolerate anger against sin.[18]
Evil is a frightening thing and it fears no man. It succeeded in turning man from God. But it does fear one thing. It fears the final day. When God finally eradicates evil from the face of the earth that will be glory. God is Lord of all. He created all that is good and is Lord of it. He allowed evil to exist, and though not the direct cause of it, He is Lord of it.
How can man live against such reckless hate? Man can live through the might and power of Christ in His death and resurrection. [1] MacArthur, John. “The Reality of God’s Wrath.” http://www.gty.org/resources/Sermons/80-184#.Trq-E92CYRg Accessed November 9, 2011
1 Paul Enns. The Moody Handbook of Theology. 322
2 Charles Ryrie, Basic Theology: A Popular Systematic Guide to Understanding Biblical Truth (Chariot Victor: Colorado Springs, Colorado, 1986), 212
[2] Becker, Wayne P. “The Meaning of Evil: A Survey of Hundreds of Quotations.” http://www.word-gems.com/evil.html Accessed November 9, 2011.
[3] Charles Ryrie, Basic Theology, 143
[4] Paul E. Little, Know What you Believe (Victor Books, Wheaton, Ill, 1975) 148
[5] Charles Ryrie, Basic Theology, 143
[6] Ibid., 149
[7] Pounds, Wil. “God Brings Good out of Evil.” http://www.word-gems.com/evil.html Accessed November 9, 2011.
[8] Peter Kreeft, Ronald K. Tacelli, Handbook of Christian Apologetics: Hundreds of Answers to Crucial Questions (InterVarsity Press: Downer’s Grove, Ill, 1994) 138
[9] Brainyquote. “Quotes of Joseph de Maistre.” http://www.brainyquote.com/inquire/copyright.html Accessed November 9, 2011.
[10] Leitch, Cliff(editor). “Why does God allow Evil?” http://www.twopaths.com/faq_evil.htm Accessed November 9, 2011.
[11] Marie Ferree Association, “The Edict of Nantes and Revocation of the Edict.” http://www.ferreereunion.com/edictofnantesandrevocationintro.htm
[12] J.I. Packer. Knowing God, (Intervasity Press: Downer’s Grove, Ill, 1973) 105
[13] R.C. Sproul, The Holiness of God, (Tyndale House Publishers, Wheaton, Ill, 1983) 103
[14] Richard Dawkins, The God Delusion (Mariner Books, Orlando, FL, 2008) Unable to find page number.
[15] Paul Little, Know what you Believe. 149
[16] Becker, Wayne P. “The Central Question¾What is the Underlying Nature of Evil? Does it have a Deep Reality?” http://www.word-gems.com/personalstatement.67.evil.nature.html Accessed November 9, 2011.
[17] Charles Ryrie, Basic Theology, 145
[18] John MacArthur. “The Reality of God’s Wrath.” http://www.gty.org/resources/Sermons/80-184#.Trq-E92CYRg
[1] Paul Enns. The Moody Handbook of Theology (Moody Publishers: Chicago, 1989), 157.
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