Pastor Peter Mason - May 5, 2019
The Problem of Pain and Evil
The Problem of Pain and Evil Acts 2:22-24 and 36-41
I. The Problem Stated
A. If God is all-good, He would destroy evil.
B. If God is all-powerful, He could destroy evil.
C. But, evil is not destroyed.
D. Therefore, there is not an all-good and all-powerful God.
II. God is accused of being the source of evil
The philosopher, David Hume (1711-76) argued that misery exceeds happiness in the world.
This fact of pain would prove that God is either not benevolent, or not almighty.
He articulated the philosophical argument against the existence of God based on pain.
A. God is the creator of everything.
B. Evil is something.
C. Therefore, God is the creator of evil.
III. Our moral compass, the sense of right and wrong, points to the existence of God.
The Moral\Axiological Argument: Without the existence of a Moral Being who is the Creator there is
no basis for right and wrong. That moral sense or conscience points to the existence of this Moral Being.
See Romans 2:14-16…
In the opening chapters of his classic work, Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis refers to this moral law as
The Rule of Right and Wrong, a “thing that is really there, not made up by ourselves.”
For Many years, Lewis says that he argued against God because the universe seemed cruel and unjust.
But they began to wonder where he got the idea of just and unjust. He said, “A man does not call a line crooked
unless he has some idea of a straight line.”
In the end, Lewis says, it was in the very act of trying to prove that God did not exist that he was forced to
acknowledge atheism as being too simple. “If the whole universe has no meaning, we should never have found out
that has no meaning: just as, if there were no light in the universe and therefore no creatures with eyes, we should
never know it was dark. Dark would be without meaning.”
IV. What is the source of evil?
Understanding Biblical Terms for Sin:
hatah (Hebrew) and hamartia (Greek) mean "to miss the mark."
parabasis means "a transgression, overstepping."
paraptoma means "to fail, to lose one's way."
anomia means "lawlessness" rebelling against God.
Therefore, sin is not a created reality . . . it is a lack or corruption of that which is good. It results in a broken
relationship, alienation from God.
A. God made everything perfect.
B. One of the things God made was free creatures.
C. Free will is the source of evil.
D. So, imperfection (evil) can arise from perfection (not directly, but indirectly through freedom).
V. God’s Solution is to “Change Your Mind”
Repent (metanoia) . . .
A. About Jesus
B. About Self
C. About Salvation