Why does God allow evil in his creation if God hates evil?

The curious as well as the critics of Christianity ask this question. If God is all-powerful and all loving, then why does He permit evil and suffering in the world? Various answers have been given but permanently settling the issue is impossible because so many of our answers raise further questions. Nevertheless, our lack of ability to answer the question perfectly does not mean that we cannot offer solutions. Of course, I do not assume to be able to answer these questions definitively, but I can offer some solutions.

First of all, it is possible that God has reasons for allowing evil to exist that we simply cannot understand. In this the Christian can have confidence in God knowing that His ways are above our ways (Isaiah 55:8-9). As the Bible says, the just shall live by faith (Hab. 2:4).

Second, God may be letting evil run its course in order to prove that evil is evil and that suffering, which is the unfortunate product of evil, is further proof that anything contrary to God’s will is bad, harmful, painful, and leads to death.

God gave Adam dominion over the world (Gen. 1:28). When he rebelled against God, he set in motion an entire series of events and changed the very nature of man and creation. Both were affected by sin. Creation was no longer a paradise, but bore thorns and thistles (Gen. 3:17-18; Rom. 8:22). People became sinful (Rom. 5:12; Eph. 2:3), who were haters of God (Rom. 3:19-12), etc. The only conclusion to such a situation is death. Jesus said, "And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened" (Matt. 24:22).

Sin is rebellion against God and His created order. But God has not left us alone in this fallen world. He continued to enter this world, pointing us to Himself, to truth, to morality, purity, and love. He used the evil of the world (liars, perjurers, the envious, etc), to bring His Son to the cross so that we might have the opportunity of eternal life. In this, God has not stepped away from fallen creation, but has stepped into it by becoming Jesus. God works within the fallen world to affect change and He uses fallen people to accomplish His will. In this, He is proving His sovereignty over evil, suffering, and rebellious people, proving that sin and evil are utterly futile, and that He is worthy of honor and glory.

A third possible reason that God is letting evil occur is so that on the day of judgment, the condemned will have no right to say that their sentence is unjust. God is not stopping people from exercising their free will. Think about this: If someone said that God should stop evil and suffering, then should God then stop all evil and suffering? If God only stopped some of it, then we would still be asking the same question of why it exists. So, if we want God to stop evil and suffering, then He must stop all of it. We have no problem with this when it means stopping a catastrophe, or a murder, or a rape. But what about when someone thinks of something evil? Evil is evil whether it is acted out or not. Hatred and bigotry in someone’s heart is wrong. If it is wrong, and if God is to stop all evil, then He must stop that person from thinking his own thoughts. To do that, God must remove his freedom of thought. Furthermore, which person on the earth has not thought something evil? God would be required, then, to stop all people from exercising their free will. This is something God has chosen not to do. Therefore, we could say that one of the reasons that God permits evil and suffering is because of man’s free will.

Fourth, it is quite possible that God uses the suffering to do good. In other words, He produces patience through tribulation (Rom. 5:3). Or He may desire to save someone through it. Take for example, the account of Joseph who was sold into slavery by His brothers. What they did was wrong and Joseph suffered greatly for it. But, later, God raised up Joseph in Egypt to make provisions for the people of that land during the coming drought of seven years. But not only was Egypt saved, but also so was his family and brothers who originally sold him into slavery. Joseph finally says to them, "You meant it for evil, but God meant it for good" (Gen. 50:15-21). Of course, the greatest example of God using evil for good is the death of Christ. Evil people brought him to the cross, but God used that cross as the means to save the world.

But then we must ask, if this is true, are we working against God by working against evil and suffering? No, we are not. God says he does not want us to sin and suffer. But it is simply true that God can use evil despite of its apparent despicable nature.

God is in the world using the world and its failures for His glory and the benefit of those who listen to Him.

But then, what about those who seem to innocently suffer with no benefit resulting? What about the woman who is raped, or the innocent by stander who is killed by a stray bullet. In both cases, the victims and families suffer nothing but pain and loss. What good can this possibly be?

I think that the answer is two-fold. One, ultimately, no one is innocent. All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Rom. 3:23) and are by nature children of wrath (Eph. 2:3). There is none innocent. Though this is biblically accurate, it does not satisfy the question emotionally. Why do little babies suffer for things they have not done? I must acknowledge that I do not know. Ultimately, we must trust God who knows the beginning from the end and sees the grand picture. He will have the final word and He will be vindicated.

Conclusion

Suffering is the result of human sin. The world is not the way that God created it and because of that, all are vulnerable to the affects of sin in the world. Why does one person suffer and another does not? Why do catastrophes happen to some and no others? It is because sin is in the world. But there will come a day when the Lord will return and cleanse this world of all sin and all suffering.

"And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away" (Rev. 21:4).

The best advice I can give you is to examine your assumptions, and try to find which ones are true and which ones are false according to the bible. Don't assume ANY of them are obviously true. Here is your argument written out (I think) with all the conditions added. I have read the bible quite a bit as a bible believing Christian, and I can see why this is not a contradiction, but I thought I would leave it up to you. Again, DO NOT ASSUME ANYTHING, but look to the bible. You can't prove the bible or God wrong by your own assumptions.

1. Evil persists in the world today.

2. Either God does not have the power to remove evil from the world, or he chooses not to.

3. God has the power to remove evil from the world.

4. Therefore by 2 and 3, God has chosen not to remove evil from the world today.

5. God hates evil.

6. If God hates evil, and if God has the ability to remove evil from the world, then God would choose to remove it from the world today.

7. Therefore by 5 and 3, God would choose to remove it from the world today.

8. Contradiction between 4 and 7.

Firstly, God is supernatural or "above nature." Our minds are part of nature, so we can't comprehend God.

Now, God allows something called free will because he had two choices. He could either create robots that obeyed and loved him because they were programed to do it, or he could create beings that loved him because of who he was out of their free will. Which is true love, and which love would make you happier.

Yes, God planned out Creation so that evil would exist, but this evil exists so that we have a chance to show true love to God. Also, since God is all-powerful, he can plan a world that is random. He spoke to create, but the Bible doesn't record his words. So, it is certainly possible that he said "random free-will creation," and got people who loved him and people who did not.

God didn't plan evil, he just allowed evil to happen.

Because God is all-powerful, he can create something that has potential to turn against him without making it evil.

God doesn't allow it. WE do through letting our human nature have full control of our thoughts, speech and actions. God merely created the POTENTIAL for evil to exist. Had Adam and Eve not sinned, there's no telling where we'd be today.

Really God isn't allowing evil in his creation, because he loves us. If he didn't love us why did he even bother to create us? You have to remember that it is because this world is ruled by the devil and he is causing the evil to pull us away from God. But we need to remain faithful to God no matter what hardships the Devil throws at us. I believe that there will be a time when God will get rid of all bad things and bad people and all your dead loved one who was faithful to him will be ressurected and live in an everlasting paradise forever. If you serve him now, you will have a joy in this everlasting life.

Who knows ? I dont. I dont try to put myself in Gods position. Why some people are so set against the teachings of the bible I dont know. You dont believe o.k.

Wow you can come up with some question that baffles people. It has been asked before. then you got athiest who come on here and try to answer this and their only preoccupation is downing somebody elses beliefs. Get A Life. On the opposite side I dont believe any body who believes in Christ should judge or tell people their going to hell But i would like people to turn to higher power but its their choice. Answer your own question with your own set of beliefs why is there evil. I guess it all started when were little fishies.

What makes you think that God allowed evil into His creation? According to the bible, God gave man the authority to rule the earth, and He commanded us not to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

We disobeyed. WE are the ones who allowed evil into the world. It's not God's fault. It's OURS. Why are you blaming Him?

You don't even know what the word evil IS. You keep using the word evil evil evil. Don't you know what evil is? The evil of sin is simply the misuse and abuse of God's good creation. It's taking something good that God created, and using it for a purpose that it wasn't created for.

There is another definition of the word evil which means: calamity and disaster in conjunction with the punishment of evil. God created calamity and disaster for the Egyptians when He sent those ten plagues against them. God doesn't commit murder, but He does create a death penalty to punish those who commit murder. God doesn't commit evil, but He does create evil in order to punish those who commit evil.

Your irrational and illogical reasoning has brought you to the wrong conclusion because you don't even know or understand the definitions of the word evil.

You say that God does nothing to destroy evil? Excuse me? Have you never heard of when God wiped out the inhabitants of the earth in the days of Noah, but yet saved Noah and his family because he was found righteous?

Have you never heard of how God destroyed Sodom and Gommorrah and yet saved Lot who he found to be righteous?

Have you never heard how God destroyed the Egyptian army in the Red Sea in order to save the Hebrew people.

Have you never read how God punished Israel for their sin and sent them into captivity in the land of Babylon for 70 years?

All throughout scripture God is faithfull to punish sin and reward righteousness. He is all powerfull and does as He pleases in HIS timing, not when YOU think the time is right.

the place there is an result there is mostly a reason. every person is manifesting of their lives what they are feeling strongly and seeing interior the subconscious recommendations. whilst all they see and proceed to exist is thoughts of lack and poverty, they charm to those issues to themselves with the aid of their recommendations and words. Evil is a made of guy's very own ineffective imaginings with the aid of concern as concern is inverted faith and for this reason a sin. ("Why are ye afraid of ye of little faith") via recognising basically one potential (God) as a replace of two (stable and evil) we close the door for evil as easy and darkish can not coexist. with the aid of certainty guy is desperate loose from the regulation of karma sin and dying and manifests the synthetic in "His image and likeness". Evil, ailment, discomfort and suffering are all synthetic hindrances, the Adamic fall in expertise with the aid of the theory in 2 powers. Its no longer that God needs human beings to go through first in the previous they understand the instructions, yet oftentimes it is the way it relatively is with many human beings. At their lowest factor is whilst they finally commence turning to God for help

What we call "evil" is the rather unpleasant side of human nature. We have large egos so we seek pleasure at any and all costs, we're power hungry and greedy.

Nature made us that way along with our more pleasing attributes. It will always be a balancing act but it's the price we have to pay for evolving to this level.

Pantheist

if god is perfect, then his creation must be perfect. ergo, there can be no evil (which is not perfect). then, logically, there either was no perfection in the first place, OR there are two or more gods, at least one of which is evil, or both. there can be no corruption from inside unless that corruption was there AND allowed inside in the first place.

see the answer is real simple. god allows evil to keep the balance of the world. if everything was just perfect and peaceful that would be so broing to God. he is not opposed to evil that is just what they would want you to think. Good and Evil are just the ways of making you behave. to be honest we need Evil to be Good and Good to be Evil. God knows that and that is why it is.