Years ago I subscribed to a Christian magazine. A month
passed and it never arrived. I called and was told to expect the next month issue. It never came. I called again. Same routine and the third time the magazine was still a no-show. I called again and happened to get connected to the Editor in Chief. I explained the saga to which she replied, “Oh well, God’s in charge.” I wanted to explode! Instead I prayed and commented, “Yes, God’s in charge but there is such a thing as human error.” God was not responsible for the missing magazine!
The mindset that causes people to ascribe everything that happens—good, bad or indifferent—to God, is not Biblical. And frankly I suspect the times God is grieved is when we either attribute a destructive work to Him, or when we fail to appreciate Him for the prevention of evil He consistently works.
Understanding the origin of our suffering, God’s role in it and our response to it is critical to finding the victory road that Christ died to provide us. A wrong perspective about the origin and the order of evil causes many people to wrongly blame God.
One verse often cited to try to ascribe the authorship of evil to God is Isaiah 45:7. It reads in the NKJ, “I form the light and create darkness, I make peace and create calamity I, the Lord, do all these things.”
One of the most important aspects of interpreting Scripture is allowing Scripture to interpret Scripture. When we consult the whole of Scripture regarding this verse we learn that God is not the author or originator of evil. It’s impossible for a good and holy God, in whom there is no evil, to create evil. It is possible however, for a holy sovereign God to use evil to produce good. This is the very promise we have in Genesis 50:20 and Romans 8:28 and many other places.
Evil exists because of the free-will choice of angels and mankind. God orders or directs evil to exercise judgement for the purpose of repentance. Satan uses evil ever and only for destruction.
If this post intrigues you, consider returning to view more excerpts from my book series Faith to Live By. I’ll be offering very special discounts upon release of the second book later this fall. But for now, I have many complimentary offerings available for you on my web site. One is the Faith Quiz. A great way to see if your beliefs are firmly grounded in truth.
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