Center for Creative Ministry A research organization and research center for Seventh-day Adventist pastors and their congregations
The Problem of Evil
Why?
Why did an American Airlines jet and U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter collide over the Potomac River, killing 67? Why did a medical plane crash into a Northeast Philadelphia neighborhood, killing 7 and injuring at least 22 others? Why did a small aircraft strike a bus in São Paulo, Brazil, sending 6 to the hospital and 2 to the morgue? Why did 10 flyers blip out of existence from the Alaska sky? And why are so many aircraft plummeting?
Why did Marcelo Perez, born to two perfectly healthy parents, develop Treacher Collins syndrome? Why are innocent children born with congenital anomalies and disabilities?
Why were at least 10 people slaughtered in a mass shooting at Sweden’s Campus Risbergska? Why are mass shootings so prevalent, especially at schools?
Why?
Will there ever be answers? Will there ever be relief? How can evil flourish in a world intimately breathed into existence by a good and loving Creator?
We can’t help but ask, “Why do You stand afar off, O Lord? Why do You hide in times of trouble?” (Psalm 10:1 NKJV)
Just as we plead with and question God, so did the great psalmist David – a man of God’s own heart (Acts 13:22) – as well as the blameless and upright Job (Job 1:8). Not even the Son of God could refrain from crying out for answers (Matthew 27:46).
As we learn from the story of Job, many cosmic conflicts take place behind the scenes that can inflict injustices upon us. Job’s story also teaches us that we cannot comprehend God’s complex plans or power.
Evil permeated God’s creation when Adam and Eve sinned. As Paul writes in Romans 8:22, “the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.”
If God knew humans would fall to sin, why was Lucifer created with the gift of free will?
Just as it is with humans, heavenly beings must also have the freedom to choose to follow God. If created beings did not have this opportunity but were instead forced to obey God, mutual love would not exist. Furthermore, God’s love could not be revealed to us as powerfully as it was displayed on the cross.
Despite knowing the torturous death Christ would face, God created us. Giving us the ability to choose to return God’s affections is one of the greatest gifts we could be given.
When we view the problem of sin in that light, despite lacking answers, we can join David (Psalm 73), Paul (Romans 8:18) and John (Revelation 21:3-4) in a song of hopeful praise.
For Reflection
Connecting: What is the problem of evil that you most wish you could see the answer to?
Sharing: The prevalence of evil and suffering leads some to consider adoption as the higher moral choice over bringing their own biological children into the world. Visit the blog post “Is It Selfish to Bring a Child into an Unstable World?” on GoodTherapy.org. What is the best solution when it comes to adopting or birthing one’s own flesh and blood?
- It’s different for every family and must be determined by God
- Both are equally good; God calls us to adoption (James 1:27) as God adopts us (John 1:12)
- Adopt, for the mandate to “be fruitful and multiply” (Genesis 1:28) predates the entrance of sin and evil in the world
- Both are equally good; even in the face of adversity, God blesses those who believe in Him (Exodus 23:23-26)
- Both are equally good; after all, Jesus was born to Mary and adopted by Joseph
- Other:
Applying: An agnostic couple claims that there is nothing their child could do that would cause them to believe their offspring deserves death; their parental love is just too strong to accept it. Therefore, they don’t understand how a divine creator could allow such suffering and devastation to wreak havoc in the world. How would you explain the problem of evil to them?
Valuing: Revisit Job 38-42:6. This passage reveals how little Job actually understands of God’s power and of what happens behind the heavenly curtains. How do you feel when reading God’s challenges to Job?
~ Stefani Leeper
The Center for Creative Ministry is fully recognized by the North American Division (NAD) of the Seventh-day Adventist Church; it is also a 501c3 nonprofit organization which makes donations tax deductible in the U.S.
