Tag: Good

Did God Create Evil?

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In a word: Yes!

Have you ever heard the question of how could God allow evil to exist? The simple answer is that evil would not exist without God. A verse sprung this thought into existence, or should I say allowed a way to put a big concept into words. I form light and create darkness; I make well-being and create calamity; I am the Lord, who does all these things. (Isaiah 45:7) What this says to me is that evil would not exist without good, darkness would not exist without light, joy would not exist without sorrow. How would we recognize one without the other? Darkness is nothing without a reference. Darkness is simply the absence of a real thing, in this case light. Cold isn’t real on its own, it is again the absence of another thing, heat. God is the source of all good and created the light of our world. The absence of Godliness in this world is where we become aware of evil and darkness. The fact that God exists to bring us light, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control is the only way that the opposite can exist as the world turns from is creator. So yes, God did create evil by existing and offering His glory to His creation. He also created free will and allowed us to choose to walk in His light or turn from it and suffer in darkness. God is not evil and His hand does not create the harshness of this world. Those things exist when a hardened and sinful heart falls into pride and rejects the light. God seeks to hold your hand as you reflect His light into the darkness in the earth. He wants you to walk in His presence for all eternity in Heaven. Heaven also has a counterpart: Hell. Hell is simply the absence of all things that God offers. We can never say anyone is sent to Hell by the same concept. Hell belongs to those who reject God and His glory. That decision is simply honored and they are given that wish for eternity. Hell exists because people chose to have a life without God and in turn are allowed to live in that desire. If we remove God, we have Hell; which this world resembles more and more as it falls into selfishness and pride. Be the light, reflect God’s goodness, shine your light on the path that leads to Jesus, and know that turning from darkness leads you into the arms of Jesus Christ.

 

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control (Galatians 5:22-23)

Marks of a True Christian (2 of 12)

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2) Abhor what is evil, hold fast to what is good (Romans 12:9)

Abhor (regard with disgust and hatred) all evil, sin, darkness (anything not glorifying to God). Hold fast to God, the source of all good. True Christians are not perfect. The goal is not instant perfection at salvation, it’s sanctification (growing toward Holiness) as the Holy Spirit matures in our hearts. The goal is not to be without blemish, it’s to trust The Lamb of God who is without blemish. It is impossible to live a perfect life for even a day. We should seek to grow in God’s mercy which is renewed daily. We will fall short of the Holiness of God. We know we are growing when we are able to recognize our moments of failure, take that moment captive in Jesus, and grow from that lesson. Repeated recognition of our sin puts light into that darkness and matures our spirit. Only with the power of God through His spirit can we grow and reflect His light.

Spiritual Maturity (Goodness)

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2 Peter 1:7-9

As God works in your life and changes your heart to resemble His Spirit and not the darkness of the earth, your goodness will flow from you. All good comes from God. (3 John 1:11) Beloved, do not imitate evil but imitate good. Whoever does good is from God; whoever does evil has not seen God. Your goodness comes directly from Him as the source. The goodness that comes from you separates you from a life in darkness and guides you into the light. You also become a source of light as you reflect the light of Jesus to the world. Goodness requires selfless action. When this goodness of God through a believer changes their perspective of life, they begin to seek all the goodness of God and that leads them toward the next step which is knowledge. Only in Jesus can we see what the goodness of God looks like without being tarnished by our sin and the influence of this world.

Fruits of the Spirit (Goodness)

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Goodness

(Exodus 33:19)  And He said, “I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name ‘The Lord.’ And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. According to this passage we can understand goodness through God’s grace and mercy. In human terms we can work toward forgiveness in our pursuit of goodness. Refusing to forgive and allow God to be your vindicator bleeds dry your peace and joy. Leave your weights in the hands of God and be His example of good.  (Mark 10:18) And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. The words of Jesus tell us that true goodness is only available in God. As fallen beings we can only hope to achieve degrees of goodness, always falling short of God. By this we learn that we must rely on God’s Spirit to exemplify goodness. The conviction of the Holy Spirit will lead us to seek the things that are good in the eyes of God and not the world.

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