The Bible is clear that God is holy, righteous, just, and sovereign.
It is obvious from these descriptions and so many more that God doesn’t like evil and has the ability to end it. So why does God allow evil? Why can’t God just remove the evil?
God could regulate every person’s choices. But to what end?
This would remove the free will that makes humans…human. Our autonomy and spiritual nature sets us apart from the animals. We would not choose right or wrong because we would be “programmed” to only do right. Had God chosen to do this, we would not know His love for us.
God made Adam and Eve innocent but able to choose good or evil. Because of this, they could respond to His love and trust Him or choose to disobey. They chose to disobey. And so would we.
We live in a real world where we can choose our actions. And our actions ALL have consequences. Our decisions to sin have an impact on us and those around us and those who will come after us. God allows evil so that we can freely seek him.
God could compensate for people’s evil actions through some type of intervention. God could stop a drunk driver from causing an automobile accident. God could stop a lazy construction worker from doing a poor job on a house that would later cause grief to the homeowners.
God could stop a father who is addicted to drugs or alcohol from doing any harm to his wife, children, or extended family. God could stop gunmen from robbing banks. God could stop high school bullies from tormenting the less aggressive kids. God could stop thieves from shoplifting.
And, yes, God could stop terrorists from flying airplanes into buildings.
While this solution sounds good, it’s not what it seems.
We want God to prevent evil, but are we willing to let “lesser-evil” actions slide?
Should God only stop actual sexual affairs, or should He also block our access to pornography or certain television shows, or end any inappropriate – but not yet sexual – relationships? Should God stop “real” thieves, or should He also stop us from cheating waiters out of a tip?
Should God only stop murder, or should He also stop the “lesser-evil” actions done to people that lead them to commit murder? Should God only stop acts of terrorism, or should He also stop the indoctrination that transforms a person into a terrorist?
God could judge and remove those who choose to commit evil – but then God would have to remove us all. We all sin and commit evil acts. Romans 3:23 – For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
While some people seem worse than others to us, where would God draw the line?
Ultimately, all actions – real or imagined – cause harm to others. So God chose to create a “real” world in which real choices have real consequences.
Any other choice removes man’s free will and turns us into robots before God.
God allows evil so that we can freely seek Him. So seek Him today, turn from evil and do good in every moment. You are not alone – we are all on this path.
James and Cindi Runyon 