On the Problem of Evil

This was a brief item I put together for a co-worker who had expressed doubt in the existence of God based on the "problem of evil."

The Basic Issue
It seems that every night on the news there are reports of war, famine, rape and murder. What is the purpose? Why do such things happen? If God exists, why does He allow such evil and suffering? The problem of evil has plagued mankind from the beginning of time. Many of the great thinkers of the world have put forth their own ideas on why there is pain and suffering and a few of these ideas will be examined here. While this is not intended to be an exhaustive study on the issue it is a presentation of my understanding of it. It is my hope that some may find it useful in their attempts to find an answer to the question of “why?”
A Discussion of Evil

The problem of evil is possibly one of the most difficult issues that any philosopher or theologian can address. The basic anti-theistic argument in the problem of evil goes something like this:
1. If God were all-powerful He would be able to prevent evil.
2. If God were all-good He would want to prevent evil.
3. If God were all-powerful and all-good there would be no evil.
4. There is evil in the world.
5. There is no all-good, all-powerful God.

This particular formulation would seem to present a formidable challenge to the theist but it is not impossible to overcome. As a matter of fact the theists (Christian theists in particular) would appear to have the best response to this particular issue. Some of the non-biblical views will be presented and then the biblical view will be expressed.
Some of the Eastern religions (as well as some Western cults) believe that evil is just an illusion; that there is no such thing as evil. As absurd as this may sound to many reasonable people, this is actually the core belief of the moral relativist. The moral relativist says that there is no objective morality and that morality is just a matter of taste or preference. By saying this, the relativist is actually giving up their right to make any judgment on what is good or evil because they have marginalized the meanings of these two terms. The idea that evil is just an illusion is also a slap in the face to anyone who has actually experienced what would be termed “evil.” One would be hard pressed to explain to a survivor of the Holocaust that their experience was all in their head. And try telling a grieving parent that their child wasn’t really killed by that stray bullet from the gangster’s gun. Those words would be devoid of any comfort or hope for those experiencing such pain. Therefore, in light of practical experience and what we know to be true, this view would have to be rejected outright.
Another possible explanation for the existence of evil is that, as mentioned above, God is not powerful enough to overcome it. So, you may ask, what is wrong with this? The problem with this view is manifold. First, the Bible teaches that God is all-powerful and sovereign. This means that He is in absolute control of all things. Second, if God cannot overcome evil then mankind has absolutely no assurance that evil will not triumph one day. Lastly, if God is not able to overcome evil then He is no god at all and is certainly not worthy of our honor or worship.
A third possibility is that this is the best possible world that God could have created. The line of reasoning used here states that in order for mercy to be shown, there has to be suffering. In order for there to be good, it logically follows that there must be evil. The problem with this is that it puts God beneath and subservient to certain “laws” of logic. This does not recognize that God is the source of logic and His ways may transcend our human reason (just as it states in the Bible ‘for My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways’ – Isaiah 55:8, NIV).

A Biblical Answer
There are many other “solutions” that have been offered up for the problem of evil both in theistic and anti-theistic circles, but most fall short in some way or other. So, you may ask, if these views are all flawed in some way, what better answer is there? In order to get a good answer, one needs only to turn to God’s word. In the Bible we see that God is absolutely all-powerful, all-knowing, all-good and sovereign. But where does this leave us in regards to the existence of evil in the world? The explanation comes in the transcendence of God. The fact that God is infinite in all His attributes and perfections means that mankind will never fully understand Him or His ways. As God spoke through the prophet Isaiah: “as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:9, NKJV) We know that mankind is finite and limited. This being the case, mankind can never fully comprehend an infinite, eternal God. If man could fully understand God, he would be a god.
So what does all this have to do with explaining the problem of evil? Specifically this: just because God chooses to allow certain things to go on in the universe He created does not mean that it is purposeless. Being the sovereign creator of all that is, God does not owe us any explanation at all for what He does; and even if He did offer an explanation it does not mean that we would even be able to comprehend it. But He has condescended to provide somewhat of an answer in His word. We see one explanation in the story of Joseph.
Joseph had ten brothers who didn’t care too much for their spoiled sibling. Their father had shown great favoritism toward Joseph and this created resentment in his other sons. When an opportunity arose, Joseph’s brothers threw him in an empty well only to draw him out later to sell to slave traders headed for Egypt. They soaked his coat in animal’s blood and told their father that his favorite son had been eaten by wild beasts. Joseph was then sold as a household slave to a prominent Egyptian official where he gained favor for the good work he did. When the official’s wife wanted Joseph to lie with her and Joseph refused, she accused him of rape. After being left in prison for several years, he interpreted a troubling dream that Pharaoh had. The dream predicted seven years of abundant crops followed by seven years of great famine. Because of his interpretation and his plan to save back food for the lean years Joseph was placed as second to Pharaoh in the land of Egypt. After a time, Joseph’s brothers came to buy food from the Egyptians for their starving family. Now Joseph finally had his answer for all of the hardships he had suffered. As he so aptly said to his brothers, “as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.” Did God have to go through such a roundabout way of saving the Joseph’s family from famine? Maybe not; but would his brothers have ever learned the dangers of jealousy and impulsive actions? Would Joseph have learned the humility he learned as a slave or the patience of being in prison for so long?
So we see that God is sovereign in all that happens and has reasons for allowing what He allows. He may not always give us those reasons and we may not always understand those reasons. But we know that God does all things in order to display His glory and to encourage growth in His people. His plans and actions are always to that end and He has a plan for the overall good of those whom He loves (Romans 8:28). Sometimes His plan may involve allowing evil to exist in order to display His glory in the most clear way (Romans 9:17). Just because we, as finite beings, cannot comprehend God’s reasons for allowing certain things to come to pass does not mean that He does not exist or that He is less than who the Bible makes Him out to be. We are simply called to trust that what happens will result in the ultimate good of those who love God and for His glory.