4. Theodicy
Notes
Transcript
Handout
Handout
Building the Case against God
Building the Case against God
Types of “Evil”
Types of “Evil”
When we look at the world around us, we see all kinds of dysfunction and undesirable things in it.
Moral Evil—The action of a moral agent against God’s will
Moral Evil—The action of a moral agent against God’s will
What are some examples of moral evil that we see in our world?
Natural Evil—Suffering that is not caused by the direct action of any moral agent.
Natural Evil—Suffering that is not caused by the direct action of any moral agent.
What are some examples of natural evil that we see in our world?
Can you think of any reasons why my definition might not be a fully accurate description of ‘natural evil’?
When we think of the definition of this second category, can we say with certainty that a tornado destroying a town was not caused by the direct action of any moral agent? Not really. As Christians, we don’t believe that bad things “just happen.” So, when we talk about “natural disasters” or “natural evil,” sometimes we talk about them as if they “just happened,” but theologically, that contradicts Scripture. There’s no such thing as coincidence.
Biblically, then, a “natural disaster” is either caused by demons (and permitted by God), or it was caused by God himself.
So, once we acknowledge that, we seem to have an even more difficult task at hand vindicating God.
The Greek philosopher Epicurus, observing these difficulties, argued that belief in a Good, omnipotent God was incompatible with the existence of evil.
The Epicurean Paradox:
The Epicurean Paradox:
Three propositions, of which only two can be true:
Evil Exists
God is all powerful
God is all good
Epicurean Paradox:
Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent.
Is he both able and willing? Then evil would not exist.
Christian Responses to the Problem of Evil
Christian Responses to the Problem of Evil
1. Logical fallacies in the Epicurean paradox:
1. Logical fallacies in the Epicurean paradox:
Proposition 1: “Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent.”
True—if God lacked the ability to prevent evil, he would not be omnipotent.
i.e., the heresy of Open Theism, which argues that God cannot foresee the future and has not foreordained the future. “God is just as surprised as you are when tragedy strikes.”
Proposition 2: Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent.
False Dilemma—forces you to choose between one of only two options when other options exist.
E.g., “If you don’t vote for candidate A, then you must like candidate B.”
E.g., “Have you stopped beating your wife yet?”
Forces you to choose between: A good God who prevents evil, or a malevolent God who permits evil.
Eliminates the option of a good God who permits evil.
Proposition 3: Is he both able and willing? Then evil would not exist.
“Begging the Question” (Circular Reasoning)—Begging the question is a logical fallacy where an argument’s premises assume the truth of its conclusion, rather than proving it.
E.g., “If you believe in God, then you’re an idiot. You believe in God, therefore, you’re an idiot.”
“If you’re a loving parent, and you have the ability to prevent your child from getting injured, then your child would not get injured.” There are times when a loving parent permits their child to get injured for a greater good—to learn an important lesson or prevent worse injury later.
Assumes that God could not have a morally good reason for permitting/ordaining that evil exist. But this assumption is expressly denied in Scripture (Rom. 8:28, Job, etc.)
28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.
20 As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.
2. The Moral argument—The existence of evil actually proves the existence of God.
2. The Moral argument—The existence of evil actually proves the existence of God.
Mere Christianity 1. The Rival Conceptions of God
My argument against God was that the universe seemed so cruel and unjust. But how had I got this idea of just and unjust? A man does not call a line crooked unless he has some idea of a straight line. What was I comparing this universe with when I called it unjust?
...Of course I could have given up my idea of justice by saying it was nothing but a private idea of my own. But if I did that, then my argument against God collapsed too—for the argument depended on saying that the world was really unjust, not simply that it did not happen to please my fancies.
Thus in the very act of trying to prove that God did not exist—in other words, that the whole of reality was senseless—I found I was forced to assume that one part of reality—namely my idea of justice—was full of sense. Consequently atheism turns out to be too simple.
The existence of “evil” assumes the existence of an objective “good” with which to compare it. So, the more we insist on the existence of objective evil in this world, the more we must insist on an objective good, which leads us right back to the existence of God.
So, instead of proving that God does not exist, the so-called “problem of evil” ends up being the very thing that proves the existence of God.
A Christian Understanding of Good and Evil
A Christian Understanding of Good and Evil
God is good.
God is good.
5 This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.
17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.
23 And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb.
God ordains to permit evil.
God ordains to permit evil.
12 And the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your hand. Only against him do not stretch out your hand.” So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.
37 Who has spoken and it came to pass, unless the Lord has commanded it? 38 Is it not from the mouth of the Most High that good and bad come?
The cross was not Plan B. God ordained it. We’re talking about the worst sin in history. So, we have to acknowledge that God permitted the cross, and he permitted all the sins that made it necessary, including the Fall.
Yet, somehow he did this without himself committing evil.
While this is a mystery, I can say that we don’t blame the light for the shadows it casts—we blame the objects that block the light and don’t allow it to pass through.
God has good purposes for all he ordains.
God has good purposes for all he ordains.
28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.
20 As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.
It can be difficult for us, in the midst of tragedy, to imagine a scenario where the tragedy we’re enduring is something God is working for good.
I think, for example, of the miscarriage that Jennifer and I had between the birth of our two boys. I have no explanation for that. When we think of things like miscarriages, it is hard to imagine why God would take the life of an unborn child who has not yet done anything good or bad.
I’m going to use an absurd example to make a point, so bear with me here. If we look at someone like Hitler, most of us would say that it would have been better for Hitler and the world for him not to have been born. It would have been better for Hitler to die in the womb. And while none of us would like to think that we would raise the next Hitler, we’re not in control of our children once they leave our homes. I do not mean to imply that every stillborn infant, miscarriage, or childhood death prevented a future Hitler. I’m only illustrating the fact that just because we cannot imagine how a terrible situation or tragedy could be a better outcome than what we would have preferred does not mean that that isn’t true.
Our imaginations are quite limited. When tragedy strikes, we get tunnel vision and can only see the tragedy. But God sees all things he knows all facts, and he knows all potential events. The root of the Christian answer to the problem of evil is that we believe that God and his omniscience has picked the best course for his creation, and that that is the course we are currently on. In other words, all things work together for good for those who love God. Whatever evil comes our way, God means it for our good.
God permeates his creation with goodness and restrains evil.
God permeates his creation with goodness and restrains evil.
We’re tackling the question tonight of “why is the world so bad if God is so good?”
But, we also need to ask the alternative: Why is the world not as bad as it could be?
From a biblical standpoint, the answer is quite obvious: because God sustains it and restrains evil and natural disasters. He makes his rain to fall in the dust and the unjust.
He uphold the universe by the word of his power. Look for verses that demonstrate that God restraints evil, and does not allow men to be as evil as they could be.
45 ...For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
When Abimelech almost took Sarah as his wife, God came to him in a dream and said
6 Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know that you have done this in the integrity of your heart, and it was I who kept you from sinning against me. Therefore I did not let you touch her.
So, we must acknowledge them that if there is a God, yes, he has allowed the world to be in worse shape than it could have been. But he has also restrained it from becoming as bad as it could be.
Similarly, why are we not all wiped away with natural disasters every moment?
3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power...
Created beings cannot judge God.
Created beings cannot judge God.
1 And the Lord said to Job: 2 “Shall a faultfinder contend with the Almighty? He who argues with God, let him answer it.” 3 Then Job answered the Lord and said: 4 “Behold, I am of small account; what shall I answer you? I lay my hand on my mouth. 5 I have spoken once, and I will not answer; twice, but I will proceed no further.”
6 Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind and said: 7 “Dress for action like a man; I will question you, and you make it known to me. 8 Will you even put me in the wrong? Will you condemn me that you may be in the right?
5 I am the Lord, and there is no other, besides me there is no God; I equip you, though you do not know me, 6 that people may know, from the rising of the sun and from the west, that there is none besides me; I am the Lord, and there is no other. 7 I form light and create darkness; I make well-being and create calamity; I am the Lord, who does all these things.
8 “Shower, O heavens, from above, and let the clouds rain down righteousness; let the earth open, that salvation and righteousness may bear fruit; let the earth cause them both to sprout; I the Lord have created it. 9 “Woe to him who strives with him who formed him, a pot among earthen pots! Does the clay say to him who forms it, ‘What are you making?’ or ‘Your work has no handles’?
10 Woe to him who says to a father, ‘What are you begetting?’ or to a woman, ‘With what are you in labor?’ ” 11 Thus says the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, and the one who formed him: “Ask me of things to come; will you command me concerning my children and the work of my hands? 12 I made the earth and created man on it; it was my hands that stretched out the heavens, and I commanded all their host.
God enters into our suffering.
God enters into our suffering.
While we cannot give an answer for what might have been or the specific reasons, God chooses to allow certain tragedies to strike, we do have ample evidence from his words and through the person of Jesus Christ that God is not unsympathetic to our suffering.
He is not aloof and disconnected like the god of Islam. He is not detached from suffering like the Buddha. He is not petty, vindictive, and selfish like the pagan gods.
14 Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
The Christian God not only sympathizes with us in our suffering, but has entered into our suffering in the person of Jesus Christ. He has born the weight of tragedy himself, carried our weaknesses, carried our diseases, carried our pain, and even died our death.
4 Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. 5 But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.
And now through the person of the Holy Spirit, he enters into our tragedies with us.
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. 5 For as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.
18 The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.
He may not deliver us and spare us from every trial, but he is with us in the fire. Our God does not leave us to suffer alone, but enters into our suffering and uphold us through it, and strengthens us through it.
1 But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. 2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.
God will one day eliminate evil.
God will one day eliminate evil.
18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. 19 For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.
22 For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. 23 And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.
When dealing with this objection, minister to the person, don’t attack the argument.
When dealing with this objection, minister to the person, don’t attack the argument.
“Why do you ask that question?”
Why the Free will argument doesn’t work:
CS Lewis’ Mere Christianity
Mere Christianity 3. The Shocking Alternative
God created things which had free will. That means creatures which can go either wrong or right. Some people think they can imagine a creature which was free but had no possibility of going wrong; I cannot. If a thing is free to be good it is also free to be bad. And free will is what has made evil possible.
Why, then, did God give them free will? Because free will, though it makes evil possible, is also the only thing that makes possible any love or goodness or joy worth having. A world of automata—of creatures that worked like machines—would hardly be worth creating. The happiness which God designs for His higher creatures is the happiness of being freely, voluntarily united to Him and to each other in an ecstasy of love and delight compared with which the most rapturous love between a man and a woman on this earth is mere milk and water. And for that they must be free.
Of course God knew what would happen if they used their freedom the wrong way: apparently He thought it worth the risk. Perhaps we feel inclined to disagree with Him. But there is a difficulty about disagreeing with God. He is the source from which all your reasoning power comes: you could not be right and He wrong any more than a stream can rise higher than its own source.
When you are arguing against Him you are arguing against the very power that makes you able to argue at all: it is like cutting off the branch you are sitting on. If God thinks this state of war in the universe a price worth paying for free will—that is, for making a live world in which creatures can do real good or harm and something of real importance can happen, instead of a toy world which only moves when He pulls the strings—then we may take it it is worth paying.
Summary:
God created humans with free will, which necessarily requires the possibility of evil.
Without free will, genuine happiness, joy, and worship are impossible.
God knew what would happen as a result of sin.
God thought it “worth the risk.”
Humans did, in fact, sin and thus evil entered the world.
Problem 1: Lewis assumes a definition for free will that is incompatible with Scripture. If this definition of free will is required in order for worship to be genuine, and if this type of free will necessarily leads to sin, then we have a problem in heaven. Either we will have this kind of free will in heaven and, therefore, it is possible that heaven will cease to be perfect at some point in the future, or we will not have this kind of freedom in heaven and, therefore, our worship will not be genuine.
Problem 2: This solution puts God in the position of taking “risks,” which is unbiblical. God did not take a risk in creation. The Fall was foreknown and ordained.
Problem 3: This just pushes back the issue, but a smart person will see through it and you’ll get into a never-ending loop.
Alternative (biblical) explanation for the Fall, see:
The History and Theology of Calvinism Chapter 29: The Origin of Sin
Chapter 29
The Origin of Sin
God is good, and God is omnipotent. Evil is simply the absence of good from some moral agent. God has ordained to permit evil in parts of his Creation and has not given us an explanation in Scripture as to why or how he has done so, except to say that even through the evil actions of moral agents and the secondary suffering caused by it, God is working all things together for the good of his people and his own glory. God’s glory is in the best interest of his creation.
The existence of sin is not like the existence of good. In science, ‘cold’ actually does not exist. ‘Cold’ is simply a description of what we feel in the absence of heat energy. Heat energy is a thing. When we feel cold, what we’re feeling is simply heat leaving us. In scientific terms, the absence of all heat is called ‘absolute zero,’ which is a temperature that has never been achieved and is considered theoretically impossible to reach according to the laws of thermodynamics. While scientists have reached temperatures within trillionths of a degree above it, reaching zero requires removing all kinetic energy, which is prohibited by quantum mechanics and the need for an even colder, nonexistent, cooling medium.
Similarly, Augustine argued that evil is not really a ‘thing,’ that it has no substance on its own. It’s like a shadow (the absence of light) or cold (the absence of heat) or a vacuum (the absence of matter). So, evil cannot exist on its own. Evil, by definition, is the rebellion against God’s decrees and goodness.
So, why does God permit evil? Augustine said, “He judged it better to bring good out of evil than to allow nothing evil to exist.”
The History and Theology of Calvinism Why Did God Decree to Permit Sin to Exist?
Without sin, there could be no grace or wrath, for both presuppose the existence of sin. Grace forgives sin; wrath is angry with sin. It is like
This seems to be what Paul is getting at in Romans 5:19-21
19 For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous. 20 Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, 21 so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
And it is consistent with the natural response Paul anticipates in Rom. 6:1-2
1 What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?
