love reading your responses...thanks
I find this confusing. Or, maybe, theologically dishonest...not sure.
I mean...who made the darkness? Who put the serpent in the Garden after it was created? Who created Satan himself?
I'm not trying to turn this into a free-choice vs. free will debate...but honestly...if God is the antidote to the darkness, but he is also responsible for it's existence, what does that mean?
Is he not playing both sides here?
If you read Gen 1-3...it reads like a setup to me. He put the bad tree dead-center in the middle of Eden, called it the "tree of knowledge" (that's a very compelling and attractive marketing term. I mean...he could of called it the tree of death, right?), placed the craftiest of all creatures right next to man, caused the serpent to talk!?!, and placed it at the forefront of their mind by talking about it to them, specifically.
If you haven't seen Megamind...this may be a spoiler (warning!): but Megamind defeats his arch-enemy, and becomes completely bored...so he goes about creating a new arch-enemy that he can go to war with. I get it...I would be bored too, wouldn't you? So...why not create an arch-enemy for yourself? Enter satan. Then...you're the antidote...and it's viewed as "good" by everyone, right?
And it is good...I mean, given the circumstances! Especially since we all entered into this story that was already in motion...and the things that have taken place prior to our entry are only in God's sovereign control anyways.
So, yes, I get it...but going back to "is God good"...I've somehow got to grapple with that, and I think to not do that is dishonest at some level.
Not saying I'm right on this, necessarily...I'm just saying that it's a question that for me, I need to address before I can honestly answer the question.
We have no capacity to understand the goodness of God. We cannot even conceive how good He is because it's so far outside our scope of comprehension. The concept we ascribe to be good is so far short of the truth as to be laughable, but our hearts are so wicked and deceptive we will never understand until we have His spirit dwelling within us to reveal the true root of evil that underlies even the best intentions we strive to show to one another. And typically, it's pride that drives our fleshly concept of "goodness."
But, let me share a couple things...
God's glory and power are shown in two ways: By the good that He does, and the justice He delivers to those who persist in wickedness. Certainly, freewill cannot be discounted from any discussion of why there is evil. If we were automatons, there would be no glory. But, since we have freewill, and we're fallen in nature, and He still loves us enough in our fallen state to die for us and redeem us, when we seek Him out, and He lavishes us with the love He has for us, we are saved and He is glorified. Alternately, if we continue in rebellion, despite His attempts to warn us, woo us, and draw us to Him, He is just and metes out whatever righteous judgment that is required for said soul.
The real core of the issue for you, it seems, is you want God to make everything around you perfect, and thereby deliver to you what I would call "free-will lite." Many atheists like to entrench themselves in this reasoning because it justifies the fact that they refuse to willingly submit to a Higher Authority to be truly delivered from evil in our world. They want to think they can handle morality in their own understanding and strength when, in fact, they are helpless and in need of a Savior.
God is not beyond knowing. There is no trickery here. If you want to know if there truly is a God, it's simple: Take a step of faith, even the smallest amount of faith is sufficient, and repent. Repentance is an act of submission which starts in the intellect. We must recognize that His ways are better for us than our ways, and that we willingly submit to be changed by Him.
This will result in the Holy Spirit of God coming into you and convicting you of whatever sin stands in the way of truly opening your heart to Him. When this happens, cry out to Him to take that sin away from you. Listen carefully to His Holy Spirit and weep, mourn, and travail because your immortal soul truly is at stake. Let your heart be soft to the conviction. If you feel the fear of Him come upon you, don't fight it with worldly reasoning. It's your LORD granting you the ability to receive Him, don't let Satan steal your opportunity for eternal salvation. Humble yourself before the LORD and trust Him to deliver you from yourself and this world. Pray to be baptized in the Holy Spirit, if you are sincerely seeking Him He will not forsake you. Then, God will reveal Himself to you and you will know that Christianity is not a tenuous belief system people blindly cling to, but it is the revelation of a Holy God in a personal way to His beloved creation. You will never know God, or understand Him, until you submit to Him.
I pray the LORD will grant you repentance, and that you receive His Spirit so that you may be redeemed and He may be glorified. In Jesus' name I pray.
