"... [B]ut I want you to be wise about what is good and innocent about what is evil" (Rom. 16:19, NIV).
"The LORD saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time" (Gen. 6:5, NIV).
"In regard to evil be infants, but in your thinking be adults" (1 Cor. 14:20, NIV).
"Don't ask for whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee." --John Donne
"If there is no God, all things are permissible." --Fyodor Dostoevsky
Do we need to apologize for evil in the world? No! We live in "the best of all possible worlds," according to Leibniz, and this means God has a purpose for everything and allows evil to exist for the greater good (cf. Gen. 50:20; Prov. 16:4; Psalm 76:10). God is able to turn evil into good and to overrule it for His glory, even making the wrath of man to praise Him (cf. Psalm 76:10). Whenever men intend it for evil, God intends it for good (cf. Gen. 50:20). There is a silver lining behind every gray cloud.
"The LORD saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time" (Gen. 6:5, NIV).
"In regard to evil be infants, but in your thinking be adults" (1 Cor. 14:20, NIV).
"Don't ask for whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee." --John Donne
"If there is no God, all things are permissible." --Fyodor Dostoevsky
Do we need to apologize for evil in the world? No! We live in "the best of all possible worlds," according to Leibniz, and this means God has a purpose for everything and allows evil to exist for the greater good (cf. Gen. 50:20; Prov. 16:4; Psalm 76:10). God is able to turn evil into good and to overrule it for His glory, even making the wrath of man to praise Him (cf. Psalm 76:10). Whenever men intend it for evil, God intends it for good (cf. Gen. 50:20). There is a silver lining behind every gray cloud.
Jesus said that the man was born blind that the goodness of God would be manifest in him. God sees the big picture, we are near-sighted. Eph. 1:11 says God supervises all events according to His will. John Milton wrote Paradise Lost to explain and defend the ways of God to man--this has been an issue from the beginning of all sin, even back to the Garden of Eden where Satan accused God of holding back on Adam and Eve. Remember: Hindsight is always 20/20!
We must be ever vigilant against evil and show our colors whenever possible--not standing on the sidelines--for we may all be called "for such a time as this" (cf. Esther 4:14). We would not appreciate good, if not for the existence of evil! Good is contrasted with evil and evil cannot exist apart from good, for it's merely a corruption of it or absence of it. Good and evil are not coequals in some cosmic battle like the yin/yang of Oriental philosophy, but evil is already defeated by good in Christ at the cross and we live in a mop-up effort between D-day and V-day so to speak.
We must be ever vigilant against evil and show our colors whenever possible--not standing on the sidelines--for we may all be called "for such a time as this" (cf. Esther 4:14). We would not appreciate good, if not for the existence of evil! Good is contrasted with evil and evil cannot exist apart from good, for it's merely a corruption of it or absence of it. Good and evil are not coequals in some cosmic battle like the yin/yang of Oriental philosophy, but evil is already defeated by good in Christ at the cross and we live in a mop-up effort between D-day and V-day so to speak.
We need not apologize for its existence, for Wycliffe's tenet says "that all things come to pass of necessity." Fear not though: God did do something about evil--He made you! You must ask yourself: "What's wrong? Start with you. The evil questioned has been solved by the death of Christ and its resolution is only a matter of time.
Many skeptics see evil everywhere and say why, rather than seeing the good possibilities and say why not. Do you see possibilities in every difficulty or difficulties in every possibility? It's not: if there is so much evil, where's God, but if there's so much good, where isn't He? The force of God's good will eventually overcome evil! We want to be part of the answer, not part of the problem. That is our M.O. to take the high road and defeat Satan by the power of the Spirit in us. We may look at the world and may even doubt God and wonder where He is; however, we really should say, "Where isn't He?" The real issue is where the church is, not where God is. God uses His church and has commissioned it as His ambassadors of goodwill, for God is the moral center of the universe.
If God were to stamp out evil where would you and I be? Would we escape judgment ourselves? We are not without evil. Let's indeed start with us and repent of our own evils. Don't blame God for evil--He didn't create it nor direct it but allowed its entree by virtue of the gift of Adam's free will in eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil--the opportunity to decide for or against Him and thus creating the possibility of evil's existence. Remember: It's impossible to have free will without both good and evil and the power to choose between the two. We can be grateful for the patience of God in extending the day of grace so that we all have space to repent.
The world is filled with evil and no one escapes blame. There seems to be a lot of evil turning into good because there's a lot more of it. Remember, it's only in contrast to evil that we see good! But people react differently to the same evils: some become bitter; some become better! As they say, "The same sun hardens the clay, melts the butter." Here's one quotable remark: In response to the article, "What's wrong with the world? I am, sincerely yours, G. K. Chesterton." If we yielded fully to God's will to accomplished His work we could usher in the kingdom of God a lot sooner, for we are to speed His return (cf. 2 Pet. 3:12); i.e., fulfilling the Great Commission, which is Job One. Soli Deo Gloria!
Many skeptics see evil everywhere and say why, rather than seeing the good possibilities and say why not. Do you see possibilities in every difficulty or difficulties in every possibility? It's not: if there is so much evil, where's God, but if there's so much good, where isn't He? The force of God's good will eventually overcome evil! We want to be part of the answer, not part of the problem. That is our M.O. to take the high road and defeat Satan by the power of the Spirit in us. We may look at the world and may even doubt God and wonder where He is; however, we really should say, "Where isn't He?" The real issue is where the church is, not where God is. God uses His church and has commissioned it as His ambassadors of goodwill, for God is the moral center of the universe.
If God were to stamp out evil where would you and I be? Would we escape judgment ourselves? We are not without evil. Let's indeed start with us and repent of our own evils. Don't blame God for evil--He didn't create it nor direct it but allowed its entree by virtue of the gift of Adam's free will in eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil--the opportunity to decide for or against Him and thus creating the possibility of evil's existence. Remember: It's impossible to have free will without both good and evil and the power to choose between the two. We can be grateful for the patience of God in extending the day of grace so that we all have space to repent.
The world is filled with evil and no one escapes blame. There seems to be a lot of evil turning into good because there's a lot more of it. Remember, it's only in contrast to evil that we see good! But people react differently to the same evils: some become bitter; some become better! As they say, "The same sun hardens the clay, melts the butter." Here's one quotable remark: In response to the article, "What's wrong with the world? I am, sincerely yours, G. K. Chesterton." If we yielded fully to God's will to accomplished His work we could usher in the kingdom of God a lot sooner, for we are to speed His return (cf. 2 Pet. 3:12); i.e., fulfilling the Great Commission, which is Job One. Soli Deo Gloria!
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