God shows incredible love through His patience for our fallen, evil world, but what exactly is God’s role in dealing with our problems? Is He silent? Is He powerless? These four points will explain how God’s goodness is displayed in the midst of evil circumstances.
Four Signs of God’s Goodness in the Midst of Evil
- Satan has done a good job getting people to blame God for his deeds.
Some things that are evil are in fact demonic, meaning that Satan and demons are fully or partly responsible. It is important to note that Satan and demons do exist, are evil, and are at work in the world in powerful ways.
- God is so powerful and so good that He defeats evil by turning it toward good.
For example, Joseph’s brothers betrayed him, abandoned him, and seemingly destroyed him. His ensuing years were spent in slavery and prison. After many years, upon reuniting with his brothers, we hear him say in Genesis 50:20 (ESV), “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.” Many years later through the evil of the crucifixion, God would use the sins of Jesus’ betrayer Judas Iscariot, religious leaders who opposed Jesus, and the Roman government who murdered Jesus to fulfill His plan of salvation. Romans 8:28 (ESV) promises that “we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” Sometimes God uses the worst evils to bring about the greatest good.
- God is not done.
In the middle of a movie it is difficult to judge the ending because there is often a wild plot twist near the end. So it is with life as we know it. God is the author of history and knows the future, and we are in the middle of it watching it unfold. In the middle, we must trust that Jesus, the Prince, will get His Princess, the Church, rescued from that old Dragon, the Devil. In that day, those who trust Jesus will find eternity wonderful, while those who do not will find it woeful.
- Our choices are within the limits God allows and, if needed, overcome by His choices.
Indeed, we have each suffered evil and caused others to suffer from our evil. As a result, life on the earth can seem hopeless, out of control, and pointless. There is much that we can grieve, things we wish we’d never done, and words we wish we’d never said. All of these choices, including our worst ones, are still under the control of a good God determined to get us home.
To use an analogy used by an old preacher, passengers on a ship make choices for which they are responsible and which affect their life and the lives of others. However, their choices, and the effects of those choices, are limited by the fact that they are on a ship over which they are not the captain. Over all of the passengers and their choices, the captain remains at the helm determined to bring the ship safely to port. History is a ship, Jesus is the captain, and despite all the mutiny on the boat, He is still at the helm and will get us home.
What do you most look forward to in the Kingdom of God? Whom do you most look forward to reuniting with?