The Question of Evil!

OK! I've seen a lot of ways that this basic question has been addressed and instead of answering one of the threads that has gotten off base completely, I thought I'd start a new one.

The basic question is in some form wondering why GOD (if He exists) would cause/allow/or otherwise permit EVIL in any form on the Earth, or maybe it is caused by Satan/Lucifer/ or just mankind?

So here I want to give my understanding of what is going on.

You sure don't have to agree with me, but I think you'll find it interesting anyway.

In the beginning, God created the earth, (then we find it is without form and void) some of us think there is credible evidence that there may have been a number of billions of years between verses one and two of Genesis chapter one. The Angel Lucifer was given a charge to protect the people (not necessarily humans) on planet earth. (maybe that was the garden of Eden, maybe before) Then at some point Lucifer decides he wants Gods place. He wants power, so God throws him out of heaven, down to earth, and looses his position. (Some of us see evidence that God may have destroyed the earth and all it's inhabitants at that time.)

Then we find our selves in Genesis 1:2 where the Earth is with out form and void, God does his 6 days of making it beautiful, and livable again, and He makes man. He tells Adam and Eve to replenish the Earth. Lucifer was already here, and God knew it, He also knew He was making man with a free will. Then God gives man (Adam) the "dominion" over the earth. He (Adam) is in charge, and "owns" the whole earth. What he says goes. God gave him that authority.

God only gave him one issue that he needed to obey, this was to show his Love for God, and his free choice to obey, and trust God. That was to not eat of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. You see he wouldn't have known evil had he never eaten the forbidden fruit. The tree was not poison, it was a fruit that when you ate of it, you would become aware of Good and Evil.

God didn't sentence man to death either, God knew that if he ate of that tree, he would be giving his allegiance to Satan, the Lord of Evil. "The wages of sin is death" Some things are better left unknown. When he disobeyed God he followed the Lord of Evil in that disobedience. The fruit was not the problem, it was mans disobedience, and the fact that it put him under another lord, Satan, the "Lord of this Age".

Now God had given the dominion of Earth to man, but man (by eating the fruit) gave his dominion over to Satan. Now, according to the Bible, "the whole world is under the sway of the wicked one".

Then God sent His son, who was born of a virgin, so as not to be contaminated by the blood of those under Satan's authority, so Satan couldn't claim rule over Jesus. So Jesus then (living solely as man) was able to be the "second Adam" and overcome Satan, who killed him without the right to do so, and in so doing became a murderer, and so forfeited his dominion to Jesus Christ, who then gave it to us the Christians. (Those who trust in the power of His innocent an pure blood.)

So now Evil, (all those terrible things that happen on Earth) can be traced back to someone, who could have done something and didn't. Even birth defects could have been avoided, historically, by our health not being sabotaged, by our own human nature over the centuries. So the only way to overcome Evil is by Faith in Jesus Christ who is the only one who ever overcame Evil in History. So He has given us the power to overcome it now. None of us has the power to do so on a large universal scale, but all of us has the capacity to do so in our personal lives.

I know this because I have first hand experience in doing so.
That is why I am a Christian!

I posted this here for those who are interested in a serious discussion, I am not trying to preach at those who don't believe in Christ, but I am saying that I believe Christ is the ONLY way to God, and the ONLY way to overcome Evil.

 

Like I said you don't have to agree. It sounds to me like you don't know how to respond because what I said makes perfect since. :smt073

 

Like your spelling, I'm afraid that your grasp of "sense" is less than ideal.

 

I used to be a great speller, until I learned Spanish, and my English spelling went right out the window! Sorry!!

 

Many things are said in the bible...I believe in my religion but I also recognize the selectivity that we Christians have in what we strictly adhere to...how some things are complete deal breakers and will get you sent to hell...but the vices we have aren't so bad. Drinking and womanizing is kind of bad but being gay is soooo much worse.

 

Scripture in the Old testament was very strict in the law for the Israelites. The new testament is a completely different thing. The laws to stone rebellious teens was in the old testament and is not part of the new covenant.

Jesus was called a "wine bibber" and a drunkard because he hung out with prostitutes and drank some.

He loved all people, I do to, I do not think that womanizing is kind of bad. If you are married you should be faithful to your wife, if not and you are looking that different.

I don't believe in extra marital sex nor sex before marriage. I've made that clear on other threads.

The only thing I said was that I couldn't tell whether this new guy was a guy or a gal, and I called him an IT. That seems to be it's choice. Yes I think it's wrong. The new testament talks about that too.

NO! It's not any worse than any other sin. It's just that I was pretty much attacked for saying it when others won't even tolerate a black man who disses his sister, or a black woman he thinks is bitchy. So my dislike of the decision this person made was not at all tolerated. The person who hates themselves to the point of taking hormones and having surgery to change their very sex is OK. WOW???

I don't want its opinions on anything and may leave the board if that sort of thing is encouraged here. That will be my choice.

I'm not asking anyone to tell it to leave, only wondering why that is encouraged when a black guy that doesn't date black women is criticized.

 

Wait how does that work?

 

Spanish is 95% phonetic and it is way to easy to spell, every things is spelled just like it sounds. English is only 80 % phonetic, so its complicated, and you have to remember all the rules, and memorize the spellings.

Too much work!! Sabes?

 

It may be the old testament...but it's the Bible. We like the New Testament because it is easier for us to handle. Since when do we parce the Lord's words?

I don't mean cheating on a spouse...I mean sleeping around before marriage....I'm not trying to attack you...please don't think I am.

Changing one's sex isn't much different from dying one's hair or having cosmetic surgery....it's altering one's body from the way it was intended to look.

 

That's not why I made the distinction. The new testament is the NEW covenant. Christ fulfilled the law, and we are no longer under it, therefore those scriptures no longer apply to us. You are right it is still the Bible, and I do study it, we should disregard it, but a lot of it is meant to be studied as historical fact at this point. We live under Grace, now, which shows how tolerant and loving God really is with us.

I don't feel attacked, I know you are saying we tend to put sin in categories that mean some are worse than others. I really don't. In my books SIN is SIN. even if it is not a sexual sin, it still separates us from our creator.

The point of my other thread is that I seem to have been attacked for giving a strong opinion about a lifestyle choice that someone made that I find wrong. I find others just as wrong, I don't always verbalize it. I know I am on a site for BM/WW and many are not married. I didn't mean to offend anyone, I guess I over reacted to the post, finding a trans-sexual here. I wasn't trying to be tolerant of that lifestyle choice, and probably never will be.

That is an interesting point, I'll have to think about it a bit, because I am guilty of dying my hair. Would that go for dieting, and exercising also? Maybe it shows I don't like who I am, if I do that?

OK - Thought about it, Changing ones hair color and having cosmetic surgery can be good or bad depending on the motivation behind it, so I will say so can changing ones sexual orientation. Because if I change my hair color to change or hide the essence of who I really am, thus denying my self, I am doing myself a terrible wrong. OR if I do so to deceive others into thinking I am someone, or something completely different than I am, I am doing them a terrible wrong.

In changing ones sex for purely cosmetic reasons, not denying ones real identity, and with no intent to deceive, then I guess I would have to concede it's OK, but in this case he is trying to become a woman so as to appear so to others, and to find himself a male mate. He doesn't say he is homosexual, he doesn't even admit he's male, he calls himself a shemale.

(If this were a hook up site for gay people, I would have kept my mouth shut, and when, and if, I ever want to understand such people more I will go looking for that information, at this point I do not have that much curiosity.)

IMO this is one of the most dangerous forms of lies, because he is actually trying to convince himself, he is not what he is. He may even end up in a relationship, casual or otherwise where a lot of that deception is relevant. That has not yet happened, as far as I know, so I cannot judge it.

 

Hi all
The Evil , Satan or Negative force is here to train us so that we may become more godlike or becoming a coworker with God.
In five words be a co-worker with god is "Learn how to give and recieve Love."
The Evil is like a School teacher to give us Lessons at the School of Life .
Finally we upgrade and become co- worker with God and find our place in the Divine plan.

 

You're entitled to your opinion, but where in Scripture does it say that Satan or Evil is there to train us or be our teachers, that's what God gave scripture for.

I do agree we are to be co-workers with God and we are to become Christlike, which is a little differrent than Godlike.