Why Evil

Good morning. Let's Pray . . .

We are in our series "You Asked for It," and this week, we will tackle this question. "How can people be so bad? And why does God let it continue."

These questions can be two separate sermons, but I will do my best to answer them as best as possible.

Do you remember the Lady Gaga song, "Born this way"?

The chorus says this

I'm beautiful in my way 'cause God makes no mistakes

I'm on the right track, baby; I was born this way

Don't hide yourself in regret, just love yourself, and you're set. I'm on the right track, baby; I was born this way

The short answer to our sermon question is the song's title, "Born this Way. " And yes, God doesn't make mistakes, but as we know, humans do make mistakes.

But to properly unpack this, we have to agree on some curbs and lanes that we will stay in. The basis for this message, as are all our messages, is the word of God. The inspired, inerrant word of God. When we deal with a topic like evil/bad, it leads us to a mirror. We get a view of ourselves. It's important to be reminded that when we look into that mirror, we may not like what we see, as in our case, we will see a sinner who was "born this way."

What else does it mean? We don't always like what the Bible says. Especially on topics where there is an absolute truth. Like things that are Evil/bad. But we listen anyway. Because God is smarter than us, His word is inspired and suitable for teaching.

Look at it like this. The CHP says I should drive at most 65 miles an hour on the freeway. I like to think I am in pretty good control of my vehicle and could probably handle faster speeds. But because they have the authority, whether I like it or not, I have to listen to what they say. Ultimately they are guarding my well-being. But our sinful nature hates being told what to do; I guess it's just cause we were "born this way."

And with that said, let's look at today's reading, Genesis 3

3 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?"

2 The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3 but God did say, 'You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.'"

4 "You will not certainly die," the serpent said to the woman. 5 "For God knows that when you eat from it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."

6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked, so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.

8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the Lord God called to the man, "Where are you?"

10 He answered, "I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid."

11 And he said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?"

12 The man said, "The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it."

13 Then the Lord God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?"

The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate."

14 So the Lord God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this,

So the short answer was the song "born this way" The long answer was the passage we just read. Adam and Eve sinned, and we inherited some bad genes. This is why we are bad . . . we were perfectly made, and we disobeyed, and that resulted in sin entering the scene. The sin of disobeying God's law leads to us doing things by our own power and strength, leading to what we call Evil.

We have what is called original sin. The doctrine holds that humans, through birth, inherit a tainted nature that needs regeneration and a propensity to sinful conduct.

You might stay, Joel. I have to disagree with you. Have you seen the Yale morality study? 90% percent of the babies in that study bent toward good and not evil.

And I agree there are many who are "good," but as the Bible reminds us, our goodness is like filthy rags. In the film White Christmas, Bing Crosby makes a remark upon finding out that they were tricked into seeing a musical act. He said, "Everybody has an angle," and if we are being honest with ourselves, the good we do is for self-preservation, not for the benefit of others. The fact is the moment our goodness becomes selfish, it ceases to be good because if you needed to do something not morally correct to self-preserve, you would.

So here we know where Evil originated, and this is according to the Bible, which has final authority.

But honestly, Have you wondered why God would punish Adam and Eve so harshly? Confession time, I have stolen cookies, candies, and yes, even an apple; I have seriously disobeyed God many times. To think Adam and Eve were banished over biting into a fruit. Definitely gives me pause. Why would God come down so hard on them? Have you ever wondered about that question?

The reality is they were not punished for a simple act of disobedience. That really wouldn't warrant eternal damnation, would it? The fact is it wasn't the simple disobedience . . . it the fact that they questioned God; remember Genesis 3:1 3 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?"

Remember when you were younger, and your friends wanted you to do something bad with them? What's the argument they always used? Well, did your parents really say that? We bend the rules so we can do what we want. That is what got Adam and Eve in trouble; they doubted the maker of the universe, whom they saw every day had communion within the garden. Who's very breath was in their lungs. That is the person they questioned. The one who gave them the right, the will to choose, they didn't choose him at that moment.

God gives us free will to question him; you have the right not to believe; you have the right to do whatever the heck you choose. Adam and Eve had that same freedom, and they used it and questioned God and, in the process, sinned. Is it wrong to question God? I don't think so; David in the Psalms always asks God why, but if you have done a study on David, you see that questioning led him closer to God, not further away.

And now we come to the second question, why does God let it continue?

If I were God, this planet probably would not exist; I'm serious; I would give more than three strikes, but after seven times doing the same thing, I would be done. Praise God that I am not God. God in his word reminds us that he is

compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth; (exodus 34:6). In psalm 86:15 says But You, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious,

Slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness and truth. Or in 2 Peter 3:9, 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. God is patient; God is Kind, and God is Love.16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

He loved is so much that Jesus became the sacrifice, the lamb who was slain. He died on the cross so we could be with Him in eternity. He wants every one to salvation

God doesn't stop it yet because he is patient, and each person on earth gets the same chance and opportunity as another.

Even when the Israelites where sinning in the wilderness God was patient and endured it until He gave them the messiah.

This brings us back to our questions, "How can people be so bad? The answer is in our sin nature, "original sin" The second question is, why does God let it continue." It is because he is patient and loving, and even though he realizes that you were "born this way," he loves you too much to leave you that way and is willing to invest time and energy in you to help you be who he has called you to be.