Why Evil?

Why does God allow evil? That is likely the most common reason people have for rejecting God. They look around the world and recognize it is messed up. People do horrible things to each other, so they reasonably ask themselves, “If God is all-loving and all-powerful, how can there be evil?”

The answer to this problem is found in 2 Peter 3:9: The Lord does not delay His promise, as some understand delay, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish but all to come to repentance. It is God’s desire that all people come to repentance, which is a churchy way of saying He wants everyone to stop doing bad things and seek Him instead. Obviously, everyone is not doing that. If it is God’s will that this happen but it is not happening, what does that mean? It means we can choose if we will turn to Him or try to find our own way through life. In other words, we have freewill. We can make our own decisions and those lead us closer to or further away from God.

Something closely tied to the concept of freewill is that God wants us to choose to love Him. Without freewill we would have no say in the matter. If God forced us to love Him, that would be no different from rape. He would be forcing His will on us against what our own will would had been if He had allowed us to have our own will. It would be brainwashing at the deepest level. Even though it would be for our own good, it would still be forced upon us.

Therefore, God must allow freewill so we can choose to love Him. However, the cost is that people can make horrible decisions which have devastating effects on others. Could God step in and stop those actions? Yes, but actions are not the only thing God views as evil. Jesus told us in Matthew 5:21-22, “You have heard that it was said to our ancestors, Do not murder, and whoever murders will be subject to judgment. But I tell you, everyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment.” So, for God to stop evil, He would have to stop us from thinking evil. This gets us right back to having freewill. If God controlled our thoughts, we would not have freewill.

In summary, the reason evil exists is the same reason there is love: freewill. God allows us to choose to follow Him or our own desires. The fruit of those choices are love and evil. So, for there to be no evil, there would also be no love. That is too high a price to pay. Therefore, God chose to send Jesus to pay the price for evil so we could experience the gift of love.

[Nothing here is original except for the packaging of these concepts. I formed my thoughts about this question from the Bible, and other authors such as C. S. Lewis, Timothy Keller, N.T. Wright, and William Lane Craig.]

The Golden Rule

I am sure you have heard the Golden Rule from Luke 6:31-32, which says, “Do to others as you would have them do to you.” (NIV) Perhaps you have heard it stated like this, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” This is straight from Jesus and a good rule to live by.

Christianity is not the only religion to have a rule like this. Confucianism has what is called the Silver Rule: ‘What you do not wish done to you, do not do to others.’ This is basically the Golden Rule stated in the negative form.

The Golden Rule works very well if used correctly. However, it is very easy to apply this in the wrong way. I know I have. How could you apply such a wonderful concept incorrectly? Actually, it is quite easy if you do not consider the context of the rule.

The verses immediately preceding the Golden Rule say:

²⁷…Love your enemies, do what is good to those who hate you, ²⁸bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. ²⁹If anyone hits you on the cheek, offer the other also. And if anyone takes away your coat, don’t hold back your shirt either. ³⁰Give to everyone who asks you, and from one who takes your things, don’t ask for them back. (Luke 6:27-30 HCSB)

The context of the section containing the Golden Rule is all about doing what is best for someone else even if it is difficult. The rule is about doing the right thing. It is important to note that the right thing may not be the first thing that comes to mind. To apply the Golden Rule correctly, you have to understand the needs of the other person.

I often phrase the rule this way to myself, “Treat others as you would want to be treated if you were in their exact situation.” One problem I have in doing this is seeing things from someone else’s perspective, but you absolutely have to do that to live out this rule. Without understanding the needs and backgrounds of the people you are trying to help, you could harm them.

An extreme example may illustrate this point. Say you are walking in the woods one day and hear splashing and screaming. You run through the trees to see someone splashing in a lake who is tangled up in rope. You were already thirsty before hearing the screams. The run to the lake made your throat feel like sandpaper. You could apply “do unto others as you would have them do to you” literally. You might think, I am very thirsty, and I would really like a drink of water from this jug of mine. Therefore, I will toss my jug to that drowning man so he can have a drink of refreshing water. I am really sacrificing here. I am such an awesome Christian.

That is obviously an absurd example, but it clearly shows what misapplying this rule can lead to hurting someone when you intended to help. Unfortunately, this happens frequently.

I am by no means saying that you should not try to apply the Golden Rule as much as possible. You simply need to give some thought as to how you wish to help someone before you do it.

God’s Timing in the Lives of Vance and Juli

I sat at a table in my tuxedo, alone, sad, and disappointed. There were a couple of hundred people around me in that large room, but I had rarely felt as alone as I did at that moment. 1995 was only minutes old, and I had just finished a long and frustrating 1994.

I was at the old train depot in downtown Atlanta, right next to the Coke Museum and Underground Atlanta, at a Christian New Year’s Eve celebration. I was the only guy in our group of seven who had gone down for this event. I was ‘chaperoning’ six women from my church. I don’t think they really needed a chaperone. They probably just felt sorry for me and invited me along.

It was a nice event and the room we were in was about 150 feet long and 30 feet wide, with a third of it set up as a dance floor. Christian music was blasting and people were having a good time. Well, most of them were.

I know it is cliché, but I was very much alone in a crowded room. I sat at that table praying and telling God that I had finally learned the lesson He had been trying to teach me. It had literally taken one year, pretty much to the minute, to learn this lesson.

It all started the previous New Year’s Eve. I had been out with a group from my church on that New Year’s too. We had gone to a concert. I was 28 years-old at the time and was ready to settle down. Just after midnight on that trip, I told God: “This year we are going to find my wife. I am ready to have a family.”

I had started 1994 with a very positive attitude. I was ready to get married and I was excited that it was going to happen that year with the plan God and I were putting into place. I was very enthusiastic about implementing that plan. I hit the ground running and had a date early in January followed by another date not too longer after that. Unfortunately, those dates were not with the same girl. That developed into a pattern for most of 1994: A lot of first dates but very few second or third dates. I just was not connecting with any of these women. I did date a couple of women multiple times, but I always felt I was forcing myself to stay with them in the hope that something would blossom. Instead, all those relationships rotted on the vine.

I worked very hard that year to implement the plan I thought God and I were working on together. In the back of my mind, I did not want to be thirty and single and that deadline was rapidly approaching.

Just prior to going to sit by myself at that table, I had just been outside to apathetically watch the birth of 1995 with a brilliant fireworks display that was launched from somewhere in downtown Atlanta. We had a good view from our location standing just outside the train depot. I think it was a very nice display, but I remember very little about it.

The event itself was fabulous. I enjoyed myself right up to the point of walking out to see the fireworks. The group of girls I was accompanying were fun, and I liked being around them, but there was no chance of any relationships sprouting from that group. In fact, I had already dated two of them. We were all just friends. In fact, one of the girls in our group whom I had dated ended up being a bridesmaid in my wedding, but that’s jumping ahead.

I had danced with a few women who were not in our group, but there was just nothing there either. I had seen this one girl who caught my eye several times that night. However, she was always on the opposite side of the dance floor. I had even tried swapping sides a few times only to find she had left the dance floor or worse had swapped sides as well, so I never managed to dance with her before midnight.

It was standing out among the dazzling display of moving lights in the sky when it fully struck me that the plan of finding my wife in 1994 had failed. I wondered why God had failed to implement our plan. 1994 was over and I stood there among many couples giving each other New Year’s kisses while disappointment sank into me. That is when I went back inside and sat down at the table by myself.

I sat thinking about the plan I had thought God and I had been working on all year when I realized that God had not been a part of that plan at all, I had told God what my plan was and simply expected Him to fall into line.

I prayed something very similar to this after that realization:

Lord, I get it now. I was so arrogant to think I could tell you when you should do anything. I am so sorry, Lord. Who am I to tell you anything? I realize I must wait on your timing and that your timing is always better than mine anyway, unless my timeline just happens to match what you already have planned. In that case, it is once again your timing and not mine anyway.

I am sorry I tried to tell you to find me a wife last year. I understand now that I must wait until you think it is the right time for me, if you want me to be married at all. I will serve you as a single man all my life if that is your will. I am willing to submit to your will, Lord. However, I would prefer to be married and  will wait until you feel it is the right time for me to find a wife who will help me be more of the Christian man I need to be. In Christ’s name I pray, Amen.

After I prayed that prayer, I sat thinking about what God might want me to do next. I sat there less than two minutes before one of the women from my group walked up and asked if I wanted to come dance with the group. I told her I did not feel like dancing any more. She insisted and grabbed me by the arm and hauled me out of my chair back. She led me back into the dancing crowd.

About ten feet into the crowd I come within five feet of the girl I kept seeing across the dance floor all night. I pulled on the girl’s arm who was leading me to our group. She turned around and I leaned over and told her, “We are dancing right here.” She shrugged and we stopped. We started mixing in with the crowd around us as we danced.

I turned and made eye contact with the girl I had wanted to dance with all night. We started dancing and trying to talk to each other over the blaring music. Eight months and four days later I married her. We celebrated our 20th anniversary last year. She certainly has helped me develop as the Christian leader God is directing me to be.

This is an awesome story, but the most impressive part is that I could see Romans 8:28 at work through this. For a refresher, here is Romans 8:28:

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. (NIV)

I tried telling God what to do and when. Instead of being angry with me and keeping me from ever getting what I wanted, He used it as a way to teach me to trust in His timing and in His plans. I do not subscribe to the myth that there is only one perfect (or even almost perfect) person out there for each of us. However, I do know that some couples are more compatible than others. Juli and I are more than compatible and I know God led me to her. I am extremely happy that He did.

God took my arrogant, selfish attitude and taught me something valuable that I will never forget: God's timing is perfect. Never try to force your timetable on God.