Permitting of Evil
This study answers the question, why does God allow evil to occur in this present world? God labeled this world evil in Galatians 1:4.
4Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father:
It is God’s will to deliver the world from this evil. If that is true, then what is God waiting for? Further, Yeshua stated in Matthew 24:12:
12And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.
It is only getting worse. What is a believer to do when confronted by someone and asked, if you have such a God of love, why does God allow so much pain and suffering to occur? Especially when one considers that God allowed six million Jews to die in the Holocaust and 10s of millions of non-Jews during World War II. What does one say?
Do you tell them that everything happens for the good and God knows best. Or possibly, God is punishing us for our sins. Or do you tell them that we are all sinners and we need to repent or we will all end up in hell. Try telling that to a parent whose child is dying of cancer or when their teenage child is gun down in the streets or killed by a drunk driver.
There is so much suffering in the world. Why would a God of love allow this? Why would an all-powerful God allow needless pain and suffering to continue? Why does He allow starvation, abuse in families and merciless killings to continue? How does one answer these people?
Before that is answered, consider the following, 1 John 4:7-16.
7Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. 8He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love. 9In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. 10Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. 12No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us. 13Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit. 14And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world. 15Whosoever shall confess that Yeshua is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God. 16And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.
Love or a form of love is in this passage 16 times. This passage declares that He is a God of love. There are many other verses in the Bible that proclaim this. Especially ones similar to 1 John 4:19.
19We love him, because he first loved us.
Well our God is a God of Love and it is important to declare this to others. This is the gospel that should be proclaimed to the fallen world. However, what about the evil in the world?
Well, before I knew the answer to this question, “Why God permits evil?” I have to admit it was hard for me to believe that there truly was a God of Love. Through the following pages, this question will be answered based on the word of God, the Bible. This is something all believers should be familiar with, because the Bible provides a very specific answer.
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