Evil

How would you answer the question, “If God is good and powerful, how could he allow evil and suffering?”

First, we must reject any notion that evil does not exist. Evil is very real and presents a number of problems in the world. 

Second, the origin of evil cannot be divorced from humanity. Sin came into the world through Adam and Eve (Rom. 5:12), and as a result it has plagued creation until this very day. In order for God to create human beings it was necessary that he gave them certain qualities; and free will was one such quality. Thus, human beings would not be genuinely human without being able to freely choose to reject what is right and good—something they decided to do (Gen. 3).^[1] Regardless of the mode in which free will is exerted, had God limited humanity in such a way that they could not sin, they would not have been truly human—bearers of God’s image.^[2]

Third, the problem of evil and suffering has been remedied by God himself (Rom. 5:18-21)—in such a way, he does not “allow it” but for a momentary period. God was grieved by the sinfulness of man (Gen. 6:6) and yet he personally took on the ultimate consequence of our sins (Isa. 53). God did not create sin, nor did he create evil—however, he did create the conditions in which sin could arise, and therefore evil. Thomas Aquinas was right when he stated that “good cannot be the cause of evil” and cited Matthew 7:18.^[3] That is to say, God cannot be the cause of evil because by nature he is supremely good.

The bigger question that should be wrestled with is, “why is there good in the first place?” and the answer will bring us home to the Lord. It is the Christian alone that can point to the greatest and only solution to evil and suffering, because of Jesus Christ. 

*This is a short response, by design it is intended to be no more than 500 words. As such, a much longer, more encompassing answer could be provided. This is my attempt at being concise.

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^[1] See Millard J. Erickson, Christian Theology, 3rd ed. (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2013), 394–95.

^[2] Free will typically has two views ascribed to it: non-compatibilistic and compatibilistic free-will. Either method, despite theological debate, still necessitates that an action contrary to God’s intention is possible, resulting in sin. These distinctions of free will methods and the impact on sin are discussed in Erickson, Christian Theology, 394. 

^[3] St. Thomas Aquinas, “No Evil Comes from God,” in The Problem of Evil, ed. Michael L. Peterson, Selected Readings, Second Edition (University of Notre Dame Press, 2017), 42, https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctvpj7gm2.8.