On Whose Authority?
In HIs IMage. For His Purpose. That's why life matters.
What Evil Reveals About God and Ourselves
Many people who deny the existence of God point to the evil and suffering in the world as evidence against Him. If God is loving, moral, and all-powerful, why is there so much suffering? Why do people die, some enduring terrible pain from disease, violence, or tragedy? Why do innocent children suffer? Why do animals experience fear, pain, and violent deaths? These are difficult questions, and for many, they become a reason to doubt that God exists at all.
Remember, God is seeking to awaken us and mature us because He loves us. He wants us to see that true life is found only in Him, for apart from Him there is no life—only death.
According to the Bible, humanity rejected God. We turned away from perfection, holiness, and life itself because we desired autonomy and independence. Yet in choosing separation from God, we brought sin and death into the world. Perhaps physical death is one consequence of that rebellion. Death reminds us that our lives are temporary, shattering the illusion that we are self-sufficient or that we can somehow live forever apart from our Creator.
Why do young children die? Death is no respecter of persons. It confronts every one of us with the reality that our time is not guaranteed and that eternity is closer than we often imagine.
Why do people suffer before they die? Suffering is one of the bitter fruits of a fallen world—a world damaged by sin and estranged from the God who is life. It reminds us of the terrible cost of humanity's attempt to live independently of Him.
Why do animals suffer and die? This, too, is a consequence of humanity's fall. Scripture teaches that creation itself was subjected to corruption because of sin. Death entered not only human experience but the world itself.
In the Old Testament, God commanded animal sacrifices to teach us the gravity of sin. Every sacrifice was a reminder that rebellion against God brings death. Those sacrifices pointed forward to the ultimate sacrifice that would one day be made—Jesus Christ Himself. The innocent would die for the guilty.
We brought the cancer of sin into the world, yet we often question why that cancer produces so much suffering and death. Sin is not a small mistake; it is a corruption so severe that it ultimately required the death of the Son of God. The cross reveals both the seriousness of our rebellion and the depth of God's love.
If God Himself stepped into our world and took the punishment we deserved, should we not pause before questioning the severity of sin's consequences? The very punishment we question is one that God was willing to bear Himself.
Why is there Evil in the world?
People love to ask, "If there is a loving God, why is there evil in the world? Why doesn't He do something about it?" Yet I often find that those who blame God for the world's darkness are unwilling to confront the source of that darkness honestly.
To claim that God is responsible for all the evil in the world is to ignore the obvious. Jesus entered the world teaching love, forgiveness, humility, self-sacrifice, and mercy. He taught us to turn the other cheek, to love our enemies, and to put others before ourselves. There was nothing evil in His words, His actions, or His life. In fact, if humanity truly lived according to His teachings, much of the suffering we see around us would disappear.
But that is precisely the problem—we don't want His way. We have rejected it. We have rejected the very thing that could unite us in love, peace, and selflessness. We reject God and then act surprised when the world reflects the consequences of that rejection.
Who are we trying to convince that evil does not come from us?
Every institution, every ideology, every government, every movement, and every belief system eventually becomes corrupted by human pride, greed, selfishness, and the hunger for power. Humanity struggles to live at peace with its neighbors. Many of us cannot even live in peace within ourselves.
Remove God from the equation for a moment and ask a simple question: Where does evil come from?
Children starve to death while others waste more than they could ever consume. People abuse, exploit, and murder one another. Neighbors hate each other. Animals are mistreated. Wars are started. Lies are told. The evil committed by human beings can become so destructive that societies build prisons simply to protect themselves from them.
Yet when God speaks of separating evil from His kingdom, many become offended.
“The greatest question is not why God allows evil, but why we continue to reject the One who came to save us from it.”
The truth is that sin, suffering, and death point to a guilty party—and it is not God. It is us.
But that is the problem, isn't it? We do not want to point the finger at the real criminal. We would rather point at God—even while claiming He does not exist.
Think about the contradiction. If God does not exist, then He cannot be blamed for the world's evil. Humanity stands alone before the evidence. But if God does exist, He warned us from the beginning what would happen when we rejected Him. The violence, corruption, hatred, and death we see are not a surprise to God; they are the fruit of humanity choosing its own way.
Some will respond, "It is not God that causes the problem, but belief in God."
Really?
Did God's teachings create greed, selfishness, hatred, murder, rape, exploitation, and abuse? Did God's commands create starvation, homelessness, corruption, and war? Are these things the product of Christ's command to love your neighbor as yourself?
Or are these things the product of the human heart?
And while we accuse God, what are we doing? Are we feeding the hungry? Caring for the suffering? Protecting the vulnerable? Loving our enemies? Or are we sitting comfortably, watching the world burn, while pointing an accusing finger toward a God we claim does not even exist?
The reality is that we do not want to admit the evil within us.
We insist that humanity is fundamentally good, yet every century of history tells a different story. A blind man can see that our goodness has not been enough to create a world of peace. The evidence is all around us.
The answer to evil is not less accountability. It is not the removal of God. For when God is removed as the highest authority, something else inevitably takes His place. History has repeatedly shown that when human beings become the ultimate authority, power becomes its own god, and people suffer under it.
The world is not drowning because God has failed humanity. The world is drowning because humanity has rejected God, rejected His ways, and then blamed Him for the consequences.
The cross itself is proof of this. When God entered His own creation, humanity did not crown Him—we crucified Him. Yet even then, He responded with mercy and forgiveness.
The greatest evidence of what is wrong with the world is not God.
It is us.
I do not claim to have all the knowledge necessary to explain every reason God allows evil and suffering in the world. I am not God, and there are questions that reach beyond the limits of my understanding. What I do believe is that suffering exposes the truth about who we are and who God is. It strips away our illusions of self-sufficiency and confronts us with realities we would rather avoid.
Yet no answer I give will ever fully satisfy the skeptic, because the problem is not merely intellectual. If God Himself is the answer, then no explanation apart from Him will ever be enough. The demand is often for an answer that can be accepted without submitting to the One who gives it.
At some point, we must acknowledge the limits of our perspective. A child does not always understand why a loving parent says no, permits hardship, or allows painful circumstances. The child sees only a small part of the picture, while the parent sees far more. How much greater is the gap between finite human beings and an infinite God?
The reality is that there are questions only God can answer. But if we refuse to listen to Him, we should not be surprised that those answers remain out of reach.
In the end, the deepest question is not, "Why does God allow suffering?" The deepest question is, "Whose authority will I trust?" Will I place myself on the throne as the final judge of reality, deciding what God must do before I will acknowledge Him? Or will I humble myself before the One whose wisdom exceeds my own?
That is the question every one of us must answer. Not whether God will answer us, but whether we will answer to Him.
This world will end for all of us. The evil and suffering that surround us today do not have to be our eternal future. The question is whether we will humble ourselves and surrender to the One who alone can save us from it.
In the end, the issue is not God's authority over us. The issue is whether we are willing to acknowledge it.
