Question
Did God create evil?

Answer
Absolutely!  He also created hell and the Lake of Fire. Both are very evil places prepared for the “abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars (Revelation 21:8)”.  

God also created satan!  Although, not originally created to be evil, he chose that state and fits perfectly into the will of God.   

Many wonder why God would choose to put satan on the earth along with mankind?  It’s really very simple!  God is using satan to conform Christian’s to His image, to bring others to His side, and to wreak havoc on the ungodly.   

You may say, “That doesn’t sound like a loving God to me!”  He’s already proven His love by sending His only Son to die for the sins of the world.  That was the ultimate sacrifice, and frankly, if that’s not enough, you simply can’t handle the truth.  

The truth is until you know the Lord He considers you a bastard (Hebrews 12:8) and not His child.  That’s not to say that He won’t bless you, “for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust (Matthew 5:45).”  But what you choose to do with His love is your free will.  You can accept it or reject it.  God won’t twist your arm. 

Of course, this question would not be complete without the counter question “How could a loving God bring such evil, pain, disease, famine and war to this world?”  

First and foremost, we rejected God’s perfect plan for mankind back in the garden.  Today, billions continue to reject the sacrifice Jesus made on a daily basis.  Throughout history, man has consistently broken the laws of God without regret never considering the fact that there would be a price to pay.  

Let me give you an example.  Let’s say that you are a master mechanic.  You decide that you want to give your son a new car, but it’s in a kit unassembled.  Unfortunately, your son who has an interest in cars knows nothing about them. But not to worry, you have assembled this kit so many times at work that you can do it in your sleep. 

When your son begins the assembly you notice that he is starting in the wrong spot and is not even following the instruction book you provided.  When you try to steer him in the right direction he refuses to allow you to help him.  Finally you step back and allow him to do things his way.  As the day draws on it is obvious he is completely heading in the wrong direction and he is way in over his head.  Unfortunately, your son still doesn’t see it your way and continues on to the point of trying to make parts fit…even banging them into submission with a hammer.  In the end, exhausted and frustrated, he wonders aloud why his father the master mechanic would allow him to get in such a mess. 

That’s exactly how God feels about us.  He provided the perfect environment (Garden of Eden) and the perfect sacrifice for sin (Jesus) but we chose to seek another way.  As Christian’s, daily we are confronted with the decision to follow the Lord or the flesh.  Many times we choose the flesh only to incur the penalty. 

One other thing, most people don’t realize that sin brings about an immutable result.  It is the same result as gravity.  If you jump from a ten-story building you will fall to the ground every single time…no exceptions!  The same is true for sin.  If you sin you must pay the price of that sin…and again, there are no exceptions.  

The unfortunate part of sin is many times it affects others.  Case in point, although Daniel did not partake of the sins of Israel he still went into captivity with those who did.  Today, aids and other diseases have ravaged much of the world.  Some who have contracted these diseases are completely innocent of this particular sin.  

I counsel people regularly regarding divorce and the affects of it.  Divorce is a great example of how one person’s sin multiples and affects many including children, in-laws, relatives and friends.  One divorce can destroy the lives of many. 

This has a multiplying affect.  One sin is like a virus out of control seeking to multiple itself and to live out its life as long as it can.  Many times that one sin creates many other sins that go on to multiple themselves thus creating a problem we don’t understand and that we feel we didn’t create.  The truth is, if not for the grace of God it would be many times worse. 

There are many things in this life we won’t fully understand until we stand before God.  Of course, at that point it won’t matter anymore.  We’ll be too excited that He saved us and had mercy on us.  I also believe that we’ll have full understanding at that point and that question will be irrelevant.  

Lastly, you should know that at the end of the millennium God will free satan to fool the nations.  The purpose will be to separate those who will serve God from those who will serve satan.  Once satan has raised an army he will march against the saints.  At that point God will destroy satan’s army and cast him into the Lake of Fire.  

In the end, God will use evil to bring about His perfect will as He has throughout world history. 

I hope this answers your question.

Pastor Malone