Evil and Suffering

This post is a direct result of a conversation that is ongoing between a friend of mine who is an atheist (or maybe agnostic).

"If this is the same Jesus who allows children to be physically and sexually abused, allows men, women, and children to be murdered, millions of people around the world to die of hunger, and send millions of people to spend all of eternity suffering in hellfire because they didn't stroke his ego - I can do without his love, Thanks. "

Well, that's the great thing about discussing these things with an atheist. They are not as likely to pull their punches. I have had some discussions with fellow Christians about the subjects raised in my friend's statement. If we vanquish them in our discussions, it is often because we hold up a straw man. Versions of these realities that are easier to address perhaps than the more blunt versions put before me by my friend. How do I intend to respond?

First, I will offer, in truly cowardly fashion, a disclaimer. There are many a great Christian writer and thinker who addresses this topic. They have opened my eyes to things while I was struggling with some of these same issues, and I do not claim to have the keen intellect nor the touch of God at work in my writing as they did. I say this to point out that if anyone is genuinely interested in hearing the "best" there is to hear in regards to these charges against Christ, I will gladly point you in the direction of these writers and their books.

Ok, on with the show. Oops, I have one more quick thing to say. If you are my friend, the atheist/agnostic, or you share the views espoused by them, I have a challenge for you. Are you genuinely going to hear what I say? Honestly, if someone had stated to me what you stated in an actual real time, face to face conversation, I would have taken it as someone essentially slamming the door in my face. I would have shaken off the dust and eased on down the road because I would have read between the lines that you were really saying this to effectively end the conversation. I am not going to try to intimidate or manipulate someone into believing in Christ. Therefore, if I believe that they have given their final word on the issue, I will stop. So, I am asking you again. Are you genuinely going to hear what I say? Not just read it, but give it a chance to marinate in your mind for a bit? If not, then just stop here. Why bother?

If you are going to trash the Christ of the scriptures, you should be at least familiar with some of the basics of the scriptures that form the context in which He is found. Don't worry this isn't about to turn into a full blown Bible 101 class.... just a few basics. First, the Bible teaches us about our ability to choose. Free will. The devil did not, and I think could not negate this and force us to choose to follow him. Instead, he did what he does. He deceived, and we chose to follow him...in spite of all the stuff around us that screamed to trust God. God chose to make us with free will. You can hate Him for it if you want because that is your choice to make.

He does not want you to, however. He longs for you to understand what is going on that causes these terrible things to happen. He wants you to reach out to Him for help and comfort in the midst of it. People abuse other people. People murder other people. People choose to be greedy and self-centered while others starve. This is the nature of our corrupt free will--self-centered instead of God-centered. It is this "sin" nature that causes all these things that you point to and God has acted to end it by way of His Son. You want Him to end it by intervening. Taking away our free will. I understand the emotions behind your argument. There are very, very real people. CHILDREN. They are hurting and dying and undergoing things that are too horrible to fathom. My point is that we share this observation..... this is truly, truly terrible. However, I believe you have reached the wrong conclusion about this reality. It is true that free will allows for the potential for evil, but it also allows for the potential for love. Without free will, neither could truly exist.


I am reminded of a cartoon that I heard about one time. The jist of it was two turtles talking. One says to the other, "You know, sometimes I just want to ask God, 'Why don't you do something about all the suffering that goes on down here?'"
The other says, "Yeah, I've thought about that too, but I'm afraid He might ask me the same question."


Jesus is the way to enter back into the right orbit, so to speak. A God-centered life that will protect innocents and seeks to love our neighbor as our selves. Jesus came to save the world. He does not take away our free will. He gives us the opportunity to choose to believe in Him in spite of all that screams not to believe. He cries for the little ones. He holds them close for all eternity. His justice is also eternal, and know that His eternal justice will dwarf anything we could ever imagine. This life is a vapor, and anything that happens in it, though seemingly unbearable while living in the midst of it will not even be a dim memory in eternity. He is also ever present for those hurting here and now. Many times they may not even realize what or who allowed them to survive or be comforted through such horrible circumstances, but it was Him.


Now to respond to the last part of your statement about hell and ego.... C.S. Lewis (one of those great Christian writers and thinkers I mentioned earlier), says, "There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, 'Thy will be done, ' and those to whom God says, in the end, 'Thy will be done.' "

I know that the Bible speaks of many terrible tormenting mental pictures when describing hell. I do not mean to detract from this at all, but I want to say that I believe the primary thing that makes hell, hell is the fact that the presence of God is not there. You may think that God is not present near you now, but you are wrong. His presence is the very thing that holds back the tide of evil that would wash over this planet if removed. He longs to salvage all those who will choose to be saved, but in the end, as at the beginning, He will honor your will. If you choose not to pursue a relationship with Him even after He has done so much to reopen the door for you to have that relationship with Him, then He will not force it on you.

A couple of final notes. I want to make it clear that if I were talking to someone who was actually in the midst of suffering from some of the circumstances mentioned above, I would not go to them with all this so called wisdom of mine. I would, by God's strength, be as much of an accurate reflection of Jesus to them as I could be. I would expend energy protecting those in need of protection, comfort those in need of comfort, and feed those who needed food. Actions speak louder than words. I believe sometimes God uses suffering in our lives to bring us to a place in our hearts that we will finally hear His invitation to reach out to Him. I love my God because He first loved me.

Thank you for taking the time. I pray that He will penetrate the hardness of all our hearts (especially mine) with His amazing love.

Dennis.