Why doesn't God stop all evil?

"Where is God in the midst of our suffering world? This is a fair question to ask; and knowing that God fears nothing we should rest assured He is not afraid of such a question. Most often... "

“The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering

toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” – 2 Peter 3.9

Where is God in the midst of our suffering world? This is a fair question to ask; and knowing that God fears nothing we should rest assured He is not afraid of such a question. Most often, when a person sees the evil in this world and contemplates “why,” it will have one of two effects. One response, and the calculated response the prince of this world intends, is that we believe there must not be a God at all. This logic comes from the thought process asking this question: “If God is so powerful and so good then why does He allow suffering of this magnitude to happen”. And as follows, the conclusion: “God must not be good, or God must not exist”. This is the common view of the blinded eye. The reality, however, is that the presence of evil is proof that evil is real, and that evil exists. Before we get to the question of good – that being GOD, we can, without argument, agree that evil exists. Consequently, because evil exists then good must exist as well.

Because we can prove that evil exists let’s examine evil for a moment. Where did evil come from? What is it? Where is the source of evil? It is here that the Word of God, and no other book in the history of humanity, clearly and unmistakably gives the answer to the origin of evil. Rebellion against God is the source of all evil and from the third chapter of the first book of the bible we see evil step onto the pages of human history. We see that Satan himself is the source of injecting unbelief into the minds of people that they might, as he did, rebel against God. God, through His written Word, has given us the reason that evil abounds in this world – the answer: we have rebelled against God. We have agreed with Satan that God is not worth believing and not worth worshipping. Consequently, what follows rebellion against God is mayhem and destruction, death and divorce, murder and hatred, selfishness and deceit, and every evil thing that we see in our present-day society.

So now, we must ask: “Why does God not put an end to such wickedness if He is powerful enough to do so?” First of all, let it be noted that God will put a stop to all the pain and suffering one day, and that day is likely coming sooner than we think. But why not yet? The answer is that when, not if – but when, God does put a stop to all evil in this world there will be no more chances for anyone to ever get right with God again. Let me ask the question this way: What if God had come back last night? What if God had decided that enough was enough; that no more children will ever suffer; that no one else will ever be murdered; what if He had chosen to stop the violence and the suffering of this world last night? The answer is beautiful on one hand. Evil would once and forever be finally and fully eradicated and done away with; evil would be punished accordingly and justly forever. On the other hand, had God put an end to all evil last night, the weeping and heartache that this world would have seen would have been unparalleled since the beginning of creation. Billions forever doomed to an eternity in hell. Billions to wake up to find out that their children have been taken from them into the presence of God forever more only to know that they would be separated from them forever as they spent eternity in the place called Hell which was prepared for the Devil and his angels. I ask you the question, dear reader – if God had come back and put an end to all evil last night, where would you be at this present moment? Where would your neighbors be? Where would your loved ones be? Do you still wish that He had returned? Do you still wish that He put an end to that which is evil last night?

Here is the error of the people of this world who cry out for God to eradicate this world of evil: they do not realize that they are the evil they are asking God to destroy; that they too are on the side of the enemy they say they hate. They somehow think that their sins are not worth punishing; yet those with ‘more wicked sins’ should be punished. They think that when someone does evil, when someone else hurts people, when someone else sins that ‘someone else’ should be punished. They error in failing to realize exactly how fair and how just God is. They fail to understand that the greatest sin of all is not a sin against another human being (which is a great sin indeed), but the greatest sin is to rebel against God. Nothing is more evil and vile than turning from the very God who created us and loves us with a perfect love. Nothing is more evil than to reject the Lordship of Jesus Christ and live your life as if you know better than God himself, as if your way is better than your Creator’s. This is wickedness at its core. This rebellion against God is the very thing that leads to the wickedness that we witness in this world. While there are many who will say “but I am not as wicked as that man”… it matters little the extent of your wickedness. You are guilty as charged; and a God who is perfectly fair and perfectly just must judge all wickedness – not just that which is appalling to you.

So again I ask the question: do you really wish that God put an end to all wickedness last night? Where would you be forever had God decided last night was the night He would once and for all stop evil? Are you saved?

The very reason that God has not stopped the tragedies of our day, is because His perfect righteousness demands that He stop all wickedness when He steps in to put an end to sin, judge the world, and bring in a new heaven and a new earth. When God does so (and He will) there will be no more opportunities for repentance and salvation when He makes that move; and He will make that move one day. One day He will judge all the world in perfect justice and righteousness. Judging all that is wicked, not just that which feels wicked to you. The wicked will be punished – forever. The saved will be saved – forever. There will be an end to all of the evil in this world. Evil will be punished – forever. But when that happens what will become of you? What will become of your friends? Your neighbors? Your family?

This is why God waits. And until He returns there will always be evil in this world. It is impossible for there not to be unless God removes it all. The very fact of evil in this world only proves how true and clearly supernatural the Bible is, for it alone explains all of this clearly. Yet, how wicked the hearts of men are, for they still refuse to believe. Oh may God open the eyes of many that they might be saved before that glorious and terrible day when time as we know it is no more and evil if forever done away with.

And to that we pray as the Lord Himself taught us… “Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.” It will happen one day. I pray that you be ready when it does.

#humility #integrity #trust #jesus #obey #live #love #wait #faith #family #fun