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One of the main objections to the existence of evil is that a perfect, all loving God would not allow for evil to exist. As a result of this false belief, many individuals take the position morals are subjective as opposed to objective, and, in turn, reject the possibility of there being an infinite, infallible and loving God. Yet it should be noted, many cultures share the same core moral values and are opposed to actions such as murder, stealing, and disobedience to parents. Therefore, morals,instead of being subjective, are universally objective, and this implicates the existence of an all loving, sovereign God. Additionally, the problem of evil is less complicated for a Christian to understand, as Christians recognize God created man with free will and that man is free to make good or evil choices as a result of his free will. This confirms that God did not create evil, but, rather, gave man free will, and evil is the result of man’s disobedience toGod.
Moral evil is the act of sinful conduct,which causes direct or indirect harm to others, and also negatively affects the person perpetrating the evil act; it is rebellion against God. An example of moral evil is found in Genesis4:8-12, when Cain kills Abel, and as a result of his actions, was forced to be a “restless wanderer on the earth.” The consequence of Cain’s morally evil act resulted not only in the death of hisbrother, Abel, but also had adverse consequences for Cain. There is, however, a distinction between moral evil and natural evil. Natural evil is the occurrence of natural storms and disasters, such as: earthquakes,tsunamis, and hurricanes. An example of natural evil could be an earthquake which takes hundreds of lives. However, unlike moral evil, it is difficult to attribute the term “evil” to things which naturally occur in nature. If God created a storm or earthquake that took human lives, then you could not attribute it to natural evil, but, it would instead be a justified judgment of God. Likewise, if the disaster were caused by Satan, you would then attribute the disaster to moral evil. Thus, natural evil is not inherently evil, but would instead, if caused by a moral force, be attributed to Satan or demons. Otherwise, if such a disaster were attributed to God, it would not be an instance of evil, but of righteous judgment.
Elwell states, Adam and Eve’s “disobedience and commission of sin brought spiritual, physical, and social depravation tothe entire human race. Some Jewish scholars, however, argue Adam’s sin only affected Adam, and that “physical death, instead of spiritual death, was its result.” However this view is flawed, as we would not have inherited physical death, like Adam, if it were true. Furthermore, those who assert this position believe they can justify themselves before God, by merit, and deny the need fora Messiah. Likewise, natural disasters occur as a result of “The fall” and man’s continuous sinful nature, as illustrated in Genesis, chapters 6-9. Therefore, this also discounts the view Adam’s sin did not affect the whole of humanity.
Despite the existence of evil, it is evident God is all-powerful and all-loving. If God were not all-loving, there would be no atonement for our sins through Jesus Christ. This begs the question, why then does evil exist? Unfortunately, there is no single answer that provides and adequate solution to the problem. Evil exists as a direct result of free moral agents, who intentionally choose to disobey God,and evil’s consequence is separation from God and the inability of man toreconcile himself before God. So we can conclude God allows for evil to exist, although He did not create it, because He is patient and extends to us the opportunity to receive reconciliation through His Son, Jesus Christ. Likewise, God has a divine plan, and although He has not given us every detail, ultimately, His plan will serve the “greater good.” Since men have free will, their decision to make evil choices impacts their relationship with God. This can potentially lead to separation from God, as well as spiritual death. Regardless of our inability to avert our sinful nature, the solution to this problem is found in accepting God’s grace, through our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.