Evil is all around us. From hatred, envy, and jealousy to sex trafficking, dealing deadly drugs, school shootings, divorce, and even gossip. Evil wreaks havoc in countries, communities, and families. This is not the way it’s supposed to be, but it’s the way it is in this life under the sun.
Last week we addressed the question, “Why Does Evil Exist?” (click to view that sermon). Here is a quick review:
Why Does Evil Exit?
· God did not create evil. Everything he created was good (Gen. 1:31). Evil is the absence of goodness.
· God did not create us to be robots. He gave both angels and man free will (Gen 2:8-9, 15-17)
· Some angels rebelled against his will (Isaiah 14:12-14, Ezekiel 28:12-18).
· Adam and Eve rebelled against his will (Gen 3:6)
· Sin and evil entered the human race (Rom 5:12)
This week we will address: “Why Does God Allow it?”
Why Does God Allow Evil to Continue?
God gave free will to the angels, and Satan (and his followers) rebelled and were thrown down from heaven (Isa 14:12-14; Eze 28:12-18). Adam and Eve fell for Satan’s lie (Gen 3:6), and sin and death became a part of the human experience (Rom 5:12).
The world “under the sun” that Solomon wrote about is not the way it’s supposed to be. Sin has invaded our planet, led by Satan—the father of all evil. Jesus called Satan “the ruler of this world” (John 12:31). Paul calls him “the prince of the power of the air” (Eph 2:2).
Ephesians 6:10-12
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
Satan at work and man infected by sin - this is not the way it’s supposed to be. So, why doesn’t God put a stop to it?
In life under the sun, as soon as God stops evil, he stops free will - reducing man to robots. For instance, murder (a great evil) is the end of a process made up of lesser evils. If every lesser evil were taken away, man would be stripped of free will.
Why doesn’t God judge and remove from the earth all who commit sins? No one would be left!
Ecclesiastes 7:20
Surely there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and never sins.
God did not create us as robots, nor does he turn us into robots. In a real world with real choices, the same natural laws that allow us to build cool resorts and develop medicines can be abused to make weapons, bombs, bullets, and illicit drugs.
Sometimes God allows evil or sin to test and grow us.
James 1:2-4
Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
Romans 5:3-5
…We rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
Sometimes God allows evil to discipline us.
Hebrews 12:5-8
“My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him. For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.” It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.
God sovereignly uses evil to work his perfect purposes.
Genesis 50:20
As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.
The book of Ecclesiastes needs to be read backward. Life under the sun doesn’t always make sense, but the answer is always Jesus!
Ecclesiastes 12:13-14
The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil.
Love and evil intersected at the cross. Jesus paid sin’s penalty fully and finally. One day, in God’s sovereign timing, he will call time on this world. Evil will be abolished, and those who know Jesus will enter eternal life.
Revelation 21:3-4
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
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