Is the universe governed by uncaring forces, or is there a good God reigning over all? The truth is declared in the Bible—God is good—and that truth is transformational when we take it to heart.

It means that our life is not just a meaningless flicker in an uncaring universe, but there is an ultimate power of goodness reigning over us; and therefore we can look to God for blessing and purpose, and we can find in God the sure hope for a positive future.

It also means that we are to live in goodness. As I John puts it, “Since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.” (I John 4:11) This principle has moved Christians throughout the centuries to engage in extraordinary actions for good in the world.

But if God is good, then why is there evil? Atheists frequently object to Christian faith with this question. But atheists often fail to realize that they must answer the opposite question: if there is no God, why do we even have an idea of good and evil? How does the human ideal of “the good” emerge out of an uncaring universe? If we are just physical beings, we should be interested only in our own survival, and we should have no interest in the sort of goodness that we see exemplified in Jesus, who is willing to sacrifice himself for the sake of others. Yet when people look at Jesus, they sense that this is how we should live.

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This makes sense only when we acknowledge what the Bible declares—that God is good and we are created by God “in the image of God,” so that we have a deep, built-in idea of the good; and thus when we look at Jesus we recognize that this is how life should be.

But if God is good and created us with the intention that we should be good, then why is there evil? God allows evil precisely because God in His goodness gives people freedom. In the opening pages of the Bible, the story of Adam and Eve lays out the principle that a truly good world will be one in which people are free to choose whether they will follow God or not, and this create the possibility—indeed the inevitability—that people will choose poorly and will do wrong. God’s goodness will be seen not in God forcing us to be good, but in God redeeming us out of the sin and evil into which we fall—which is what God does in Jesus Christ.

God is good. When we recognize that truth, we have the answer to evil—as we open ourselves to what God can do, and how God’s goodness will flow in and through us.

Sunday’s Scripture Readings:
Psalm 100
I John 4:7–13

A photo posted by UMC of Kent, Ohio (@kentmethodist) on Jan 21, 2016 at 11:43am PST

About the Author

Dr. David A. Palmer has been the senior pastor at the United Methodist Church of Kent since 1995. He has a B.A. from Wittenberg University, a Master of Divinity from Duke University, and a Doctor of Ministry from Princeton Theological Seminary. A native of Wooster, Ohio, he has served three other churches in east Ohio before coming to Kent. He and his wife, Mavis, have three children.