Why does so much bad & evil stuff happen in this world if..
GOD IS IN CONTROL?
See below about God, what happened in the past, what's going on now, and what's coming for those who believe. (Video Below)
***He Has The Whole World In His Hands***
God IS
The first thing to establish is that God is!
This is very much a philosophical question; the 'why do bad things happen if there is a God and if He is powerful and good?'
The only reason we have an idea about good and bad/evil, is because there is a moral standard of goodness that we hold to. Because there is a good God, we can see and understand what bad and evil is because of the ultimate standard of good He is and gives.
If there is no God, then there is no standard in which anything would be considered good or evil, it would just be. We as individual humans would create our own versions of good and evil, that would vary in groups and over time constantly change, and the most powerful would decide. Which has been done in history, but because humanity as a whole has a standard of goodness, a God, they have overcome and have brought goodness to the world.
So the first thing we want to establish is that because there even is the question, shows that there is a God, if we start there we can navigate the question of: Why God, Why?
There is a video below I put up a while ago that goes through this question. It breaks the answer down in 3 parts: Past, Present, and Future. I will outline it here, the video is about 45 minutes long if you want to check it out.
Past
God creates everything good and perfect, a beautiful heaven with beautiful and majestic angels. His desire was not to create robots that were programmed to act and think a certain way, He created them with a choice. A choice to obey, honor, and worship their creator, or not. That first sin was not some evil wicked practice, it was a desire to be as God was, the desire to be worshiped, the pride that came before the fall.
Even Lucifer was created as a model of perfection, full of wisdom and beauty. He was a guardian cherub, an angel closest to God. He was created blameless but wickedness was found in him. He was filled with violence and sinned, God drove him out of heaven in disgrace. His heart became proud on account of his beauty and his wisdom corrupted because of his splendor, he was thrown down to earth to be made a spectacle of before kings. (Ezekiel 28:12-17)
For you (Lucifer) have said in your heart: 'I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation on the farthest sides of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.' Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, to the lowest depths of the pit. (Isaiah 14:12-15)
Not only did he have choices but so did all the other created angels, some chose to follow him and they were also thrown down. But see God did not create that evil, choices were made to rebel and go their own way.
God created man, different than the angels, He created man to be in His image, to one day judge the angels. He also created us good and perfect, but like the angels He gave us a choice. A choice to follow Him and His instructions, or to rebel against Him and go our own way.
God gave man the ability to rule on earth, to live in peace, love and joy. To experience life walking with Him, in constant communion with Him. He gave one rule, not to eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. The question can be asked, "Why was it there in the first place?" I believe it was there because when they were ready, in God's timing for their sake, they would have been able to eat from it, but not until God said it was time, when they were ready.
The same sin Lucifer had fallen into was the very thing he tempted them to do. To eat from the tree so they could be like God. See they were already in His image but God is infinite, we will always, for eternity, be learning and getting to know Him. The idea of 'NOW' was appealing to them, and so they ate. They specifically decided to knowingly disobey God and go their own way.
From that point forward we have had God's instructions written on our hearts, even on stone and paper, yet we either decide to directly disobey Him and go our own way, or we have decided to disregard knowing His instructions at all, and life as we see it now is a reflection of that. We are not robots programmed to do anything, God has shown us His love and our choices have led to destruction. We see people as the cause of such evil and destruction as well as victims of it.
Present
Now Lucifer is here, we call him satan, and many have fallen for his evilness and trickery. With him comes wickedness and hate. He is called the god of this world in 2 Corinthians 4:4. God has given us instruction in 1 Peter 5:8; to be sober-minded, to be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to destroy.
The devil hates you and wants to destroy you! He knows he has been defeated, prophesied in Genesis 3:15 and fulfilled with Jesus Christ on the cross and His resurrection, but he wants to either try and alter his end or take as many people as he can with him to destruction. Remember you are made in God's image, created to rule over and judge satan and his demons. He wants to destroy you and see that your end is as his is.
God's instruction to us is to be watchful, know that he, and all those that follow him, are lurking and plotting to destroy. To hatefully turn as many as they can against God, to experience the pain and agony he feels. He not only has many angelic followers but now many made in God's image follow him as well. Through all of his connections he can be many places deceiving many people to worship this world and the things in it. To disregard God, to ignore Him and walk on his own "happy" path, which often leads to pride, selfishness and pain, not only for them but all those around them.
God does not create evil and pain, it is here because we have chosen it to be. Luckily God is patient, I say luckily because if He was not, there would be no possibility for any of us to achieve what only He can do; Redemption! In 2 Peter 3:9 it says, 'The lord is not slack concerning His promise, but is long-suffering (patient) toward us. Not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.' God's desire is for all to turn to Him, and due to His patience many have come and are coming to Him now.
So why doesn't God intervene for the good people, for His people? Why do we get sick, deal with pain, death and poverty?
Well first let's look at God intervening: many times He does, we just don't know it or notice it. We hear stories all the time about a healing or a close call that many will see God in, but many will mark up as coincidence. Plus, many of the ways God intervenes is through other people, it has probably happened to us all, as well as you may have been used by Him to do so for others.
But our expectations are to want Him to intervene always. If that's the case then when does it start and stop? If God stopped all evil and pain then we no longer would have any choices. In big and small ways we have been the cause of chaos as well as the victims of it. If you want choice then there has to be a choice, and if there is a choice, then there will be victims. The Bible never promises no suffering, but peace through it. So why do we sometimes not have peace? Because we forget, our expectations become molded by society and even those preaching a false gospel of health, wealth, and prosperity. We forget to keep our eyes on God, in prayer, in His Word, in worship, and in remembrance of those that held to their faith before us through excruciating circumstances. There are volumes of books written about those martyrs that died for their faith, to hold onto it and pass it down to you. You can read some of their amazing stories in, 'The Acts of the Martyrs,' there are volumes of them!
"Vengeance is Mine, I will repay," says the Lord (Romans 12:19). Some have had horrible evils done to them, and I want to assure you that God's judgement will be so fierce that we are to pray for our enemies, so that they might turn from their evil ways and turn to God. That is the strength we should pray for, for our peace. But know God sees, He hears, and He has you in the palm of His hand, and He will repay.
Plus some of the closest people to God, and some of the times we have been the closest to God in our lives is through pain, sickness, and poverty. He is here for healing in the midst of sickness, peace in the midst of the storm, riches in righteousness in the midst of poverty. Most of the time God's gifts and His intervening lies within us. Peace that surpasses all understanding!
- (Romans 5:3) We glory in tribulation knowing that tribulation produces perseverance, and perseverance character, and character Hope.
- (Romans 8:28) And we know all things work together for good for those that love God, to those that are the called according to His purpose.
Be poured out in this life as an offering, when your time comes be able to say that you fought the good fight, you finished the race, you have kept the faith. There will be a crown of righteousness waiting for you on that Day! (2 Timothy 4:6-8)
Through His Redeemer He has defeated satan and evil, and it will no longer be in the age to come, stay strong, stand fast, hold on to the faith!
Future
There will be a Time, an Age, a Day that we will be with Christ, a place He Himself called paradise. When all of us that love God, that accepted His Redeemer, Jesus Christ, will no longer deal with pain, loss, poverty or evil. Paul says that to live is Christ and to die is gain. See he knew that when his time here was over, glory awaited him.
So when will all this happen?
Well, for all that have passed and probably for us, it will be when we pass away from this life and enter the next.
When will it all be over? When will satan and evil be defeated for good?
That is answered in 1 Corinthians 15:25, 'when all of His enemies have been put under His feet, the last enemy destroyed is death.'
In 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 it says, 'For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.'
So putting it all together it looks like when we die we go to be with Christ in a place described as Paradise, then when the full culmination of things to come takes place we will not only spiritually, but physically meet Christ at His return and always be with Him in the New Kingdom, a New Age!
So for now remember that no matter what we face here in this life, the worst, most would say is death, is actually what leads to life, eternal life with Christ, in the presence of God, and His Spirit shining on us with all the glory of Him in which we can't even imagine.
STAND STRONG IN THE FAITH!!