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Theologians have pondered for ages the question of why God permits evil. Dr. Tony Evans, in his book Our God is Awesome offers three reasons why he thinks God allows evil. 1) Since God does all things for his greatest glory, God evidently gets more glory with the existence of evil than without it. 2) God allows Satan and humans to do all they can to thwart his kingdom so that, in eternity, it will be clear that no enemy can win against God. 3) God allows evil because of his love. In love, God created us with free wills to obey Him voluntarily. He does not want robots. Forcing people to obey would nullify voluntary obedience. God does not cause, incite, authorize, or approve sin. But He does permit it. God can and does overrule sin and evil–even use them to accomplish his ultimate righteous purposes. God used the evil deed of those who crucified His Son. He used it to pay the sin debt for each human being. Sadly, some people stumble at God’s way of running the universe, but they stumble to their own peril. Isaiah, in ch. 26, said of such people, “Your kindness to the wicked does not make them do good. Although others do right, the wicked keep doing wrong and take no notice of the LORD’S majesty.” Yet Isaiah also said, “You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you. Trust in the LORD always, for the LORD God is the eternal Rock.”
