Don’t forget to complete your problem of evil fictional conversations and submit them to homework drop or send them to my email.
We’ve discussed some heavy topics this week and I want to leave you on a positive note. When we talk about the problem of evil, we can often be left with lingering thoughts of natural evil and a feeling that God should do something to bring it to an end.
Why doesn’t God stamp out all the suffering in the world right now? For God to do that He would have to put an end to the cause of suffering: rebellion against God (or, as the Bible calls it, sin). For God to end all rebellion against Himself means He would have to end history with a final judgment of the righteous and the unrighteous. The moment that final judgment occurs, all opportunity for repentance and salvation will be gone.
The apostle Peter offers this insight about why God has not yet ended suffering, sin, and, therefore, the world as we know it:
The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up. (2 Peter 3:9–10)
In other words, when Jesus said, “It is finished” as he hung on the cross, evil was defeated. The countdown clock was started and will ultimately be completed when Jesus returns to judge the living and the dead. But in the meantime, God is patient and loves us despite our role in the evil of this world. He is giving us grace in the moment and allowing sinners to come to repentance.
There is coming a day when there will be no more sin, injustice, pain, suffering, heartache, or disaster. We are told to look forward to that day in hope as Christians and we are messengers of God’s loving offer of reconciliation. Who do you know today that needs to hear God’s message of hope in the face of suffering?
Below, let us know one evil thing here and now that you are thankful will not be part of God’s perfect new creation in heaven.
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I’m thankful that viruses won’t be a part of God’s new creation.
The Lord is not slow with his promises, but is patient towards you.
It’s amazing how one day there will be no more sin, pain, heartache, suff ering, if disaster!!
Like nate said, we are truly great full that one day we will be saved. That we will get to go to a place where nothing big evil can enter.
I like how god rules out all pain and suffering in his kingdom. Everything bad won’t be in God’s heaven!
Heaven is a place of joy and peace. Heaven is a great thing to look forward to right now. Jesus won over sin at the cross, and he will come again and put an end to all sin.
If God wipes out evil right now, then there’d be no more history. And with that final judgement, all of the opportunities for grace and salvation would be gone.
Jesus defeated evil while he was hanging on the cross
I liked the time bomb idea. It’s like God is the ultimate SWAT team, and Satan is a terrorist. We as humans are the hostages in the building. God’s giving us a chance to get out, to fight and escape, before the building falls down on our heads. If we don’t then that’s our fault. But if we stay indecisive and wait too long, then it’s too late and we go down with the bad guys.
That is a good illustration.
I think it’s great that one day we will not have to worry about sickness.
its really reassuring that Jesus died on the cross for us so that we didn’t have to die from the sins we committed
it is very motivating to look at heaven as my goal and i know that all i have to do is believe to get there
its amazing to think that one day In heaven we will be able tonot worry about the problems we have here
Yeah its very comforting to know that this imperfect world isn’t all there is.
Its cool to think that one day all pain will be gone and sadness wont exist
I think it will be amazing to never feel sad or angry again.