Why does God allow evil in the world?

By Joyce Webb 2020

This question has been asked many times.

Why would a God who loves people allow so much evil in the world?

That was not God’s plan in the beginning. Adam’s sin and disobeying God brought sin and evil into the world.
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We have only a little explanation of things that happened before our earth was recreated for humans.

The Bible tells us very little. Some books written ages ago, like the Book of Enoch and others, tell us more things.

God created all the beings in heaven. There are many different kinds of beings. We think of them as angels. But they are not all the same.

They have different shapes. They were created to do different things. Some were given more power than others. Some were given higher rank than others.

The angels we are more used to —are beings that come down to earth at times and help people, or protect people, or talk to people.

All the beings in heaven were created to be eternal. That means that once they have been given life—they will never die.

We know that some of the beings in heaven have a “will” because we know that Lucifer and his angels had a “will” to choose.

In giving this creation a “will” to choose, then there is the risk and chance that they will choose to go against you.

The question is—-why would God create beings with a “will” who could choose to go against him?
If these beings did not have a “will” to choose they would be more like a machine.

There would be no feelings of love or devotion. A machine does whatever it was made to do.

Only a creation that can think on its own, and make decisions, can choose to love you, can choose to obey you.

Love is a choice.

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Adam was created in the image of God. This means that he can think, make decisions, and has a “will” to choose.

When God made Adam, God knew that Adam would choose to go against Him.

Again, we wonder, why would God make a person when he knew he would go against him.

Again, God did not want to make a “machine”. He wanted a person who would love him and be devoted to him. That meant the person needed to have a “will” to choose.

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In heaven, a high angel named Lucifer, decided that he wanted to be as God. He wanted to be as high and in power as God, or perhaps more powerful than God.

Lucifer was created by God. How did he think he could be as powerful or more powerful than the One who created him?

The One who can create you is far more powerful than you are.

Yet, Lucifer continued in his idea. He went against God and tried to be in power. He was able to get many of the angels to go along with his idea and try to take power in heaven.

God threw Lucifer out of heaven, and the angels that followed him. Revelation 12:9-10

But they are not allowed to stay in heaven.

The Bible does tell of a few times that Lucifer came before God to ask to do some things. But he did not stay in heaven.

Lucifer and those angels are eternal beings. They will never die.

Because they went against God, they will be punished in the future —in hell forever.

When they were thrown out of heaven, it seems that they are in the heavens right above the earth.

The Bible does not explain where they “live”. We know that Lucifer came down to earth to tempt Eve.

We know that after Adam sinned and disobeyed God, then Satan had power over the earth and the heavens around it.

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When Adam was created, it could be that God intended for his body to be eternal, also. His spirit was eternal.

But when Adam sinned and disobeyed God, then death came to his body and punishment came to his spirit—-in that he would be punished forever for his sin—-like Satan.

God loved man. He had a plan for him.

God had already planned a way to save Adam’s spirit from eternal punishment.

God had already chosen to have his own Son to come in a man’s body and to die——to pay the punishment debt for man’s sin.

In the future, all men could have their spirits saved from eternal punishment.

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When God created Adam, he gave Adam dominion or power or rule over all of creation—animals and plants. See Genesis 2: 15, 18, 20

Many Bible teachers say that when Adam disobeyed God and sinned—and did what Satan said—that Adam gave up his dominion over creation and Satan then had dominion over creation.

Lucifer now has this power over the earth—–so he influences people to disobey God—and we have evil on the earth.

Paul speaks of Satan as the “prince of the power of the air” and the “spirit that works in the children (people) who disobey.”. Ephesians 2:2

From what we have seen in the Bible and from experience—Satan has great influence over people on the earth. His evil angels who followed him— help spread evil.

People disobey God. They do evil things. These people can be kings, and rulers over many people.

Whole nations of people who disobey God can make a lot of evil in the world.

Could God have taken away Lucifer’s power over the earth? Yes. But God chose not to.

Do we know why? No. That was God’s choice. He has his reasons and He does not have to explain it to us.

People say that God could stop all the evil in the world if he wanted to.

That is true. But God has chosen not to. We do not know why.

As a created human —–we can not tell God what he should do.

God has promised to be with us as believers —–and to walk with us in this world with all the evil. God has not promised to keep us from every effect or influence of evil.

As believers, we can call upon God to help us in every thing that comes into our lives.

Bad things will happen to us. But we are not alone. God will be with us in our troubles.

God promises that someday—-in His time—-evil will be destroyed and Lucifer will end up in hell.

There will be a new heaven and earth without evil. It will be beautiful and we —as believers—will live in it.

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Lucifer is against God. He uses every opportunity to try to destroy what God has made.

So Lucifer tried to get Adam to go against God. Lucifer started with Eve and got her to disobey. She got Adam to disobey.

Eve had a choice to obey God or not. She did not have to listen to Lucifer.

Lucifer is very smart and very clever. He used words that got Eve to think in ways that went against what God told her.

Adam had a choice to obey God or listen to Eve. Adam chose to listen to Eve.

God had told them that if they ate from that one tree, they would die.

Lucifer tried to get them to doubt God. He put a question in their mind as to whether God would do such a thing.

God meant what he said.

Once they had disobeyed—-their bodies began to die—they began to grow old.

Once they had disobeyed—their spirits were now under eternal punishment.

God came to them in the evening and talked to them.

He told them that their bodies would die, and their spirits were now under eternal punishment.

He said that the earth would now be under a curse. That weeds and thorns would grow and it would be hard work to get food to grow.

He said that the woman would have much pain when she gave birth to babies.

He said that the woman would now be under the man’s authority.

Lucifer had used the serpent as a “tool” to talk to Eve.

We do not know what the serpent looked like. It seems it may have been a beautiful creature. Lucifer used it to talk to Eve.

So God said to the serpent, from now on you will crawl on your belly and eat the dust of the ground. We use the word snake.

Lucifer was already under eternal punishment. He already knew that would never be changed.

His goal was to try to destroy anything God did.

God spoke to Lucifer. He said, I will use the “seed” of the woman. You will bruise his heel, but he will bruise your head.

The “seed” of the woman would be a baby born of a woman.

This baby would one day bruise the head of Lucifer.

This baby would be Jesus. Born of a woman’s body, but the father would be the Holy Spirit that made the baby in the woman—-not a human man.

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Lucifer did not know when this baby would be born.

Through the years, in many ways, Lucifer did things, and tempted men to do things so this “baby” would not be born.

Lucifer did not succeed. Jesus was born. Jesus died on a cross paying the punishment for sin. Now people would not have to pay the punishment themselves, because Jesus paid it for them.

People could now be free from eternal punishment and they could live forever in heaven.

People would have to believe in Jesus, ask for forgiveness, come under Jesus’ authority and call him Lord. Then they could have eternal life.

Some people will say—I do not want to call anyone Lord.

I will not be under anyone’s authority.

That is exactly what Lucifer said.

We can go against God and receive the punishment.

We can go with God and receive his blessings.

God makes the rules. God makes the consequences.

We can choose the blessings or the punishment—which ever we want.

But we can not tell God what to do. He is in charge.

Lucifer—could not tell God what to do either.

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Satan and his angels —over the earth and the heavens around it.

In Daniel, in chapter 10:12, 13 An angel tells Daniel that God had heard his prayer. That he had been sent to bring the answer to Daniel. But the “prince of Persia” had stopped him—for 21 days—finally the angel Michael came to help him so that he could pass and come to Daniel.

Verse 20 speaks of Michael going back to fight with the prince of Persia, and after he does that the prince of Greece will come.

In verse 21 It speaks of Michael as being the angel guardian over the nation of the Jews.

This “prince of Persia” was an “angel” over the land of Persia. It was against God’s angel and tried to stop him. So this angel was one who followed Satan.

This shows us that evil angels are “guardians” over certain nations.

Paul speaks of Satan as the “prince of the power of the air” and the “spirit that works in the children (people) who disobey.”. Ephesians 2:2

Matthew 12:24 Satan is called “Beelzebub, the prince of the devils.”.

John 12:31 Satan is called “the prince of this world”.

Ephesians 6: 12 “We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers , against the rulers of darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”

Since Lucifer still has the power over this earth and the heaven right around it—–he continues every day to try to destroy God’s plan for the people.

In every way he can—he will tempt people to do bad things so they will not obey God,

He will cause as much evil and trouble and upset on earth and in the heavens as he has the power to influence.

In the end, he will be thrown into hell forever, and his angels. He knows this and he is trying to get as many people as he can to go to hell with him.

He knows God wants to save them and take them to heaven. So he works against God—– so they never turn to God and ask for forgiveness or call him Lord.

People have the opportunity to be saved from eternal death. Satan and his angels do not have that opportunity.

The angels had been in heaven with God and had a more full knowledge of God, but the went against him.

The Bible says that some day, “every knee will bow and every man will call Jesus, “Lord”.

All persons will come before God. They will bow on their knees and call him Lord.

If their sins are forgiven they will stay in heaven.

If their sins have never been forgiven they will not be allowed to stay in heaven but will go to hell forever.

They will have to have their sins forgiven before they die, before they appear before God.

The day the appear before God will be judgment day.
It will not be a day for forgiveness.

So why does God still allow Lucifer, Satan to have power over the earth and the heavens right around it?

God has decided to allow it. He has his reasons.

Evil does give us a choice. We can choose to go against God or we can choose to obey God.

Evil makes all kinds of sad, terrible, painful things happen.

That is Lucifer’s will. He has chosen to be an enemy of God.

Because we are on earth, we have to live with the evil.

It is painful.

Someday Lucifer and his angels will be in hell forever.

If we stay with Jesus, someday this evil will all be over. And we will be with Jesus forever.

The Bible says that someday, there will be a new heaven and a new earth and we will be in it. It will be beautiful and without evil.