Why does God allow harm? Scriptures?
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Anonymous
Why does God allow harm? Scriptures?
I am new to the boards although I have been a fan of this site for a while now. I lead a group and during that group a question was posed, If God loves us why does He kill innocent people and let these natural disasters harm us? I know that it ultimately falls back on to free will. That is a sticky thing to try to explain to someone. I am asking for help as to what scriptures I should this person and any other advice you could provide. Thanks.
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Kurieuo
- Honored Member
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Hi TMS,
First, the question posed is loaded. That is, the question asks something, but within the question it already contains an assumed answer to another question that may not be commonly accepted. Does God kill innocent people? I say no. So question really is, "Why does God allow people to die, and let natural disasters harm us?"
Now I'm not quite sure of what kind of verses you are after, however, there is something in Luke 13 that might interest you. It records a verbal exchange between Jesus and some people who inquired about the slaughter of innocent people at the hands of Pilate. They also inquired about a tragic event that involved a tower falling, which killed eighteen people. In response, Jesus did not provide any glib explanations about why such events occurred, and he outrightly rejects that the people who died were killed for their sins (for if this were really the case as some Christians say, surely there would be none of us left!). Rather, He redirected a question back to the people. His brief response implied a warning of the impending danger they would face if they did not acknowledge and address the evil in their own hearts. As Geisler writes in Unshakable Foundations, Christ essentially said,
Now the free will defense (which is what was focused on at Is An All-Powerful And All-Good God Inconsistent With Evil?), is basically a defense for why evil exists, despite the existence of an all good and loving God. It serves to show the existence of the two are infact compatible. What this reply does not really tackle, is why the extent of evil is so great. However, there is another response which does tackle such a question, and goes along the lines that good increases all the more where such evil happens. It certainly unites people together, and perhaps softens even the hardest of hearts. I'm sure we've all witnessed this in the case of the recent tsunami. So where such tragics events happen, evil as we perceive them to be, good increases all the more. Thus, it could be said God allows natural evils to happen, as He desires the good in the world to rise up even higher.
Kurieuo.
First, the question posed is loaded. That is, the question asks something, but within the question it already contains an assumed answer to another question that may not be commonly accepted. Does God kill innocent people? I say no. So question really is, "Why does God allow people to die, and let natural disasters harm us?"
Now I'm not quite sure of what kind of verses you are after, however, there is something in Luke 13 that might interest you. It records a verbal exchange between Jesus and some people who inquired about the slaughter of innocent people at the hands of Pilate. They also inquired about a tragic event that involved a tower falling, which killed eighteen people. In response, Jesus did not provide any glib explanations about why such events occurred, and he outrightly rejects that the people who died were killed for their sins (for if this were really the case as some Christians say, surely there would be none of us left!). Rather, He redirected a question back to the people. His brief response implied a warning of the impending danger they would face if they did not acknowledge and address the evil in their own hearts. As Geisler writes in Unshakable Foundations, Christ essentially said,
"Does the evil out there in the world really disturb you? If you are troubled by evil, start with the evil that is closest to you—the evil in your own heart. Leave the rest of the world to God and be more concerned about your own evil ways and the consequences you will face if you do not confess and turn to Him!" If we want to see God stop evil, we should ask Him to begin with us.
Now the free will defense (which is what was focused on at Is An All-Powerful And All-Good God Inconsistent With Evil?), is basically a defense for why evil exists, despite the existence of an all good and loving God. It serves to show the existence of the two are infact compatible. What this reply does not really tackle, is why the extent of evil is so great. However, there is another response which does tackle such a question, and goes along the lines that good increases all the more where such evil happens. It certainly unites people together, and perhaps softens even the hardest of hearts. I'm sure we've all witnessed this in the case of the recent tsunami. So where such tragics events happen, evil as we perceive them to be, good increases all the more. Thus, it could be said God allows natural evils to happen, as He desires the good in the world to rise up even higher.
Kurieuo.
"Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved." (Romans 10:13)
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Prodigal Son
- Senior Member
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- Joined: Thu Dec 16, 2004 5:49 pm
- Christian: No
to God, i think our lives are only like seconds long. he sees a greater picture that we can't even conceive of.
a few years ago, i had my wisdom teeth taken out. it was horrible and painful, but i had the surgery because i knew of the benefits following it. a week later, i had forgotten all about my pain.
all our negative experiences on this earth seem horrible because we can't see the end result. when we get to heaven, we will forget the pain and horror that was our existence here.
everything that happens to us effects someone else. so even if people die from natural disasters, it's for a reason. for another benefit we can't yet see. and God's not really being evil and mean...he knows all those people who die (in natural disasters, etc.) will be okay after their lives here have ended.
a few years ago, i had my wisdom teeth taken out. it was horrible and painful, but i had the surgery because i knew of the benefits following it. a week later, i had forgotten all about my pain.
all our negative experiences on this earth seem horrible because we can't see the end result. when we get to heaven, we will forget the pain and horror that was our existence here.
everything that happens to us effects someone else. so even if people die from natural disasters, it's for a reason. for another benefit we can't yet see. and God's not really being evil and mean...he knows all those people who die (in natural disasters, etc.) will be okay after their lives here have ended.