A very common argument that skeptics robotically spit at believers is the question that if an all-loving, omnipotent god exists, why does he let bad things to happen to everyone, more specifically, bad things to good people. Initially, we may not be prepared to answer such a question. It tends to take the conversation down an avenue where many feel uncomfortable discussing. Maybe this is due to not thinking much on the topic or just not reading God’s Word much leading to an inability to defend the faith. Despite the panic we may feel by being approached by this question, the argument is easily discredited with elementary logic.
The first track to answer this question deals with the issue of free will. When concentrating on this, be sure to clarify the idea that without free will, we’re all robots. For instance, if a man jumps from a building twenty stories high and God catches him ten feet from the ground, would this be a good thing? The man’s life was saved; a good person was saved from a bad thing. On this earth, this can be a bad thing.
Think of what just happened: the man made a choice to jump. His choice was overridden by God, and a controlled outcome resulted. Now the question is what can come from this type of existence. It illustrates that God would control our lives and if we are controlled, we have no choice; we’re puppets. This is not what God wants for his children. Imagine that another man loves a specific woman. She clearly doesn’t want the man. Having utter control over her, he forces her to love him. Is this a bad or good thing? Most will agree that it is wrong to force someone to do something they don’t want, yet this is the same type of situation with jumping from a roof with God catching the jumper. God didn’t create robots; he desired a creation that by choice can turn to him. Without choice, we’re robots living a robotic existence.
But what about situations where bad things happen without choice like cancer? This still deals with free will. If we’re to be given the choice to make decisions and have true freedom, we must accept the fact that the bad comes with the good. If I‘m cooking in the kitchen, I make a choice to start the burner. The burner is good because it cooks my dinner, yet it will burn me if I put my hand on it or eat the hot food without letting it cool. The point is that we must accept the fact bad comes with good. Consider the alternative: we would have no control over thoughts, emotions, and movements. He doesn’t want this, nor do we.
The second point to make is that we do live in a sinful world. Because of what we did by sinning against God’s will, the world is now cursed with sin and is in an imperfect state. In this state, we encounter pain, death, aging, murder, disease, sexual perversion and immorality just to name a few. God does let this happen because we brought it on ourselves. God is so holy and just, he keeps all promises and allows good and bad things to happen. Image a judge who just convicted a mass murderer that changes his mind to let the murderer go after a short stay in prison. What should happen to the judge? Would we have trust in the justice that is passed? God will not waiver from his promises or judgments.
The pitfall to watch for in these types of conversations is to evaluate the setting in which the conversation comes. If it is a quick discussion with a friend on the street, a person may want to tailor the points to fit the scenario. A deep philosophic discussion may not be fruitful at this point. When a time comes later for a sit-down conversation, this is when a deep illustration will come into play. Keep this in mind and pray for God’s guidance. He will provide for us all.
God’s commission for us all is to spread his Good News. Even though situations like these don’t always directly address Christ’s resurrection, guiding others through these issues will lead them to where they are more willing to accept the Gospel. Remember, God says to love him with all of our mind, heart, and soul. He gives us the capability to handle these philosophical questions for times like these. Let the Spirit speak through you and do his will.
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Excellent points here. Where atheists are ultimately (and quite sadly) bankrupt of logic is in the shallow state of the argument in which you have adressed. I have the statement many times: "if there is an all powerful god (little g since they do not believe) why does he allow bad things to happen to his believers and good people in general?" The answer, as you have explained, is in the concept of natural law. We live in an imperfect world full of pitfalls and uplifters. The results we get are either by our own design or are a product of our imperfect status (i.e. the fragile nature of our human bodies). As Dr. William Lane Craig has stated: the idea that good and evil can exist at the same time in the world is seperate from God's omnipotence, His omnipresence, and His omniscience as we are not "pets in God's terrarium". God does not force his love upon us but rather gave us the tools in which to find and come to know Him. This logic is indeed unbreakable.
ReplyDeleteI have also heard it explained that because of Adam's sin in the garden, the whole creations is cursed. Romans 5:12 says, "Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned" So we suffer because of our sin. When people ask "Why do bad things happen to good people?" I feel that we need to describe what a "good" person is. It is not possible for someone to be free of sin, we all sin, so none are good (except Jesus and that is why he is able to pay for our sins). I really like what you have written here. This question comes up often and can be difficult to answer, especially if the person asking has just experienced a great loss. The other one I hear sometimes is "Why would God send good people to Hell?" It can be answered in the same way I think, explaining that we are not "good" and we need a savior. Anyway, I am not spamming your blog, I promise. It just took me this long to get the verification thing to work.
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