The Problem of Sin
Psalm 50:10-12
“For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell thee: for the world is mine, and the fulness thereof.”
“If God exists, why is there so much suffering in the world?” Many of us are used to such accusations from atheists, but, unfortunately, many Christians do not know how to answer the point.
Christians would be right to point to Genesis 3 and show that evil came into the world by disobedience – the disobedience of Adam – which polluted the entire world.
However, there are some who object to this presentation of the Eden account on the grounds that, if God is a God of love and righteousness, how could He allow evil to happen in this way? This question leads some, incorrectly, to assume that God cannot know for sure what is going to happen in the future.
The problem, if such it is, is better resolved by reasoning in biblical categories. Thinking in categories appears to be a lost art. Our error is in judging God by human standards even though God rebukes us, in Psalm 50, declaring: “You thought that I was just like you.”
God is not like us, even though we are made in His image. We understand events through the passage of time, but God is transcendent over time. Therefore, to us it appears that God, in His Sovereignty, wills two different things; He permits evil but is not responsible for it – we are. If we do not fully understand this, we remind ourselves that His thoughts are so much higher than ours.
Prayer: It is hard for us to understand everything that You do, Lord God, Heavenly King. But we know that all that You do is good and is for Your Own Glory. Amen.
Author: Paul F. Taylor
Ref: Taylor, P.F. (2020), About Genesis – Volume 1 (J6D Publications), pp. 227-230.
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