Job 1.8, “And the Lord said to Satan, ‘Have you considered my servant Job?’”

The Bible does not give a comprehensive overview of evil. While it says some, it doesn’t answer our every question.

Why God would allow evil is uncertain.

Yet there are two basic Biblical truths regarding the presence of evil in our world:

1. The source of evil is Satan, not God. The Bible makes it clear that God is not the author of evil. It is not in his character and it is not his creation. To source evil with God is to step outside of the Biblical record. The story of Job illustrates this truth. If God was the originator of evil, Satan would not be a necessary character in the story. The Adversary comes into God’s presence looking for someone to destroy.

2. Satan, and evil, must submit to God’s sovereign design. While God is not the originator of evil, he does reign over evil. We do not live in a dualistic world of equal powers—good and evil. There is nothing outside of God’s control. For evil to occur, it must have God’s divine permission.

From these two truths, we can draw the conclusion that God controls our darkest days.

There is a never a time in which God is out of control. Anything which has ever happened to us has occurred with, at minimum, God’s divine permission.

In part, this is difficult news. It means that anything which happens in this world could have been prevented by God—cancer, car wrecks, earthquakes, Tsunamis, genocides, wars, divorce, random acts of violence, child abuse, etc. While God is not the author of these things, he must give his divine permission for them to occur. He must restrain his divine power in order for evil to take place. It is difficult to understand why a loving, compassionate, powerful God would allow bad things to happen.

Yet, this is very good news. While this truth leaves us with unanswered questions, it does give us a powerful God to whom we can ask those questions. If God didn’t control our darkest days, he would not be a sovereign or powerful God. He would, by the very definition, not be God. While it is difficult to understand why God allows evil, I would far rather have a God I do not understand than to have a god whom I understand but who does not have the power to do anything about evil.

God controls our darkest days which means our grief is never wasted; our sorrow is never useless; and our pain is never pointless.

 It reminds us even our worst moments can be used for good. It tell us even when everything seems in chaos, God is still in control.

The Cross of Jesus Christ is the best example of the relationship between God, good, and evil. The death of Jesus on the Cross is not God’s fault. It is evil at it’s worst. Yet that evil was not out of God’s control. He used it within his divine plan to bring tremendous good to us all.

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Scripture references:

Job 1.6–12; 1 Peter 5.8; Psalm 34; Psalm 54; Psalm 118

Book reference:

C.S. Lewis The Problem of Pain