If There's A God – Why Is There Evil In The World?

"For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil." 1 John 3:8 People wonder why - if there is a God - why is there so much evil in the world? The answer should be obvious, yet few get it. In the very beginning of the Bible, in the book of Genesis, God tells us about the creation. And after each thing he created, God said it was "good." Then, when all has been created it says: "Then God saw everything that he had made, and indeed it was VERY good." Genesis 1:31 Well it's obvious that right now, all is NOT good. So if all that God created, was "very good," logically, there has to be a contender. And there IS one. His name is Satan, and Jesus had A LOT to say about him. Satan is a fallen angel. He lived in the peace and love and beauty of heaven, until he envied God and made an attempt to challenge him. The Scriptures tell us there was war in heaven and that Satan was able to gather one third of the angels to follow him in his revolt. But he didn't succeed and for this rebellion Satan was banished from heaven, along with the angels that followed him. Consequently, Satan hates God with a pure hatred and he hates all that God loves. He especially hates everyone who belongs to Jesus Christ, because they are going to inherit Satan's place, in the place he was thrown out of. THIS is where all the evils in the world derive from. Hatred. Jesus said of him: "He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it." John 8:44 Why, then, doesn't God stop him? Oh, he will. But first he will use him to teach the people of earth things that can only be learned through conflict. Those who profess to love God will be sorely tempted and sorely tested. Satan will lie to them, he will accuse them, he will tempt them, he will attack them in any way he can. He might cause someone to lose his employment, to see his house burned down, to come into various diseases, to lose a child or a family member, to be betayed by a loved one. The list goes on. He even sorely tempted Jesus Christ when he came to this earth (Luke 4:5-8). Jesus could have wiped him out with a word, but he didn’t, because he knows that this time has been allowed to Satan until his end comes. Many do not understand this, they ascribe evil things TO GOD, and not to the real enemy, the one who hates God, and by extension, hates us. He does all he can to draw people AWAY from God, to convince people that it was God who did those things, not he himself. But it’s going to come to an end. God has told us in his Word (the Bible) that Satan has a period of time allotted to him wherein he is able to cause all the distress and heartache we see in our world. But when that time is up, his eternity will be in the lake of fire (Revelation 20:10). If we are to overcome, we must know all about our enemy and how to respond to his works in our lives. Jesus described Satan's agenda: "The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly." John 10:10 "To steal, to kill, and to destroy...." Those are Satan's works, not God's. Jesus said he has come to give LIFE. And so the enemy assaults us, but in Christ we can overcome. Nothing has value that hasn't been contested. For example, we are told to love. But love is only shown to be real when we love someone who is unlovable. It's easy to love the lovable, everyone does that. But loving the unlovable demonstrates real love. When a person is born again, he is transferred out of the kingdom of Satan into the Kingdom of Christ. No longer will Satan be in charge, but Christ will become the Lord of that person's life. And then the Lord will begin the work of destroying the works of the devil out of that person's life and that person will come to understand what Jesus means when he says that he has come to give life, and that more abundantly. Jesus describes HIS agenda: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed;" Luke 4:18 Turn your life over to Jesus Christ that he might work this work in you. Surrender all to him. Ask him to save you and to become the Lord of your life, and he will begin this work in you and will change you forever.