Ever hear that question before? I heard an answer that made sense to me for the first time ever.
Let me answer this way:
Imagine if you will a court case where a murdering pedophile rapist was on trial. Imagine that the evidence has been presented, the defense has rested. The final arguments have been made. The jury has deliberated, and it took them less than an hour to come back with a verdict. The defendant stands, and the verdict is read. “Guilty on all counts, the jury recommends the maximum sentence in this case.”
The sentence is to be determined. The maximum penalty in this case is death. The courtroom falls silent as all await the judges pronouncement of the sentence. Gasps are heard all around the room as he speaks, “I’m feeling generous today. Let’s just forget about this one. You may go free.”
Is this a good judge? Can you imagine the reaction of the victim’s family? Can you imagine the reaction of the arresting officer? This is the ultimate evil in a judge! The visceral reaction is deserved.
So friends, let’s not minimize the very real question our friends ask as they see pain and evil in the world.
If your God is so good, why does he allow these things to happen? He must either be powerless, or diabolical. In either case, why would I bow to him?
But let’s look at Romans 3:23-26.
Rom 3:23-26
(23) for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
(24) and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,
(25) whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.
(26) It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.
Verse 23 says we all come up short, not having the glory of God. We were made in His image. It has been demonstrated that we know right from wrong, and that we exchanged His glory for that which is lesser. (notice 1:23)
Rom 1:21-25
(21) For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.
(22) Claiming to be wise, they became fools,
(23) and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.
(24) Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves,
(25) because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.
Notice 3:24. We are justified as a gift, through the redemption of Jesus.
Verse 3:25, Jesus was the propitiation put forward by God through Jesus’ blood. (propitiation is payment in my place)
This shows that God is righteous. Even though God has overlooked sin in the past. You see, if God did not pay for the sin He overlooked, He is like the evil judge we just spoke of.
He has been patient with us. But He cannot pretend it is no big deal if he is anything but diabolical.
Sum it up like this:
You are right to be appalled by evil in the world if I say God is good. You received the very ability to recognize evil by nature of the fact that you are made in His image. God hates sin. But He loves you more. He has been patient with us for a time so that we could be forgiven. But while forgiveness is a gift that we receive freely, it was not free. It was the most costly gift ever given. God in his patience has forgiven me, but He did not just ignore my sin. My sin was a BIG DEAL!
God showed that sin is a VERY BIG DEAL by the enormity of the sacrifice made in order to pay for it.
Friends, there is no argument that explains evil in the world except the cross. Yes, God is just. Someone had to pay. But he is patient, and as such in Christ he became the justifier as well.
Whenever someone asks this, take them straight to these verses. The cross is the answer to this question. Any other answer lets them off of the hook.
John Piper puts it like this:
Your thoughts?
The Simple Guy
Just A Simple Guy 
Man opposed God and doubted His right to say what they had to do, so God gave the power in their hands and let them take care of their own environment. Man is making nothing of it, but seems to blame god for something they themselves are responsible for.
You write “God did not pay for the sin He overlooked, He is like the evil judge we just spoke of.” God has not to pay for anything and did not pay for something; He gave his only begotten son; It was this son, not God Himself who offered him as a ransom for the sins of many.
By: Christadelphians on August 6, 2015
at 7:07 am
The text is clear that Christ paid. It appears we disagree on the person of Christ.
Jesus clearly claimed to be the “I AM” repeatedly.
He also claims to be the Almighty God who was dead and is alive in Revelation 1.
So I am maintaining that Jesus, God, paid for the sin he chose to forgive.
By: The Simple Guy on August 6, 2015
at 7:24 am
So if you answer the phone or when you are asked if you are such are such person and you reply “I am” you are saying you are God? Jesus replied that he was the person being talked about, he did not say he was the “I am Who Is the Being”.
By: Christadelphians on August 8, 2015
at 7:54 am
Context is key. When Jesus said “before Abraham was, I am” the verb tense change is significant, the reaction of his listeners is telling (they took up stones to stone him)
What he said was an exact quote of the claim made by the burning bush. And was clearly understood as such by his listeners.
When he stands up I the feast of lights at the climax of the feast celebrating Gods miraculous provision of light in the wilderness and the temple and says “I am the light of the world” he claimed to be the pillar of fire!!
Context is king.
Look, your argument is not with me, it is with Jesus. He clearly claimed to be almighty God when he appeared to John in Revelation 1.
By: The Simple Guy on August 8, 2015
at 9:01 am
Please also note that Jesus said I am to the question if he was the son of God. Jesus who does not tell lies, because he sinned not said the Fatheris greater than him and that he was the ‘son of God’, not god the son, (something totally different).
Before Abraham was born Jesus, like all of us was already written down in the Book of good and evil. God knew and provided Jesus already long ago before Abraham. In the Plan of God Jesus existed and ‘was’.
By: Christadelphians on August 10, 2015
at 5:25 am
We do not have to argue with Jesus because we do believe him and do follow his teachings, honouring the same God as he did, the god of Abraham, Who was and is One True Divine Eternal Spirit, Who has no flesh bone nor blood, no beginning and no end, not able to die and Who cannot be tempted, all things Jesus had (a beginning, being born, being seen by many, having flesh, blood and bones, being tempted more than once, really died, not faked his death nor standing up from the dead after having been three days in hell.)
What should God have to gain by coming to earth faking that He was tempted and died and for what reason would He have gone in hell? He was also seen by many, who did not fall death, which would be in contrast to His earlier sayings in the Old Testament that people could not see Him and live.Though God is a God of order Who doe snot tell lies.and when your ideas are true He would have told many lies and mislead His people and others.
By: Christadelphians on August 10, 2015
at 5:30 am
You and I are talking in circles. I hear what you are saying but you are not actually engaging the texts I have pointed out. As I have said in my sidebar, this is not a place to play tit for tat and fight. I’m done responding to you until you engage the scripture I have pointed out.
I am not the authority. You are not the authority. Almighty God is the authority. He has spoken and we must hear Him.
Jesus clearly claimed to be God in the flesh several times. He is not just a prophet, not just a man. Based on His claims we must choose whether to believe and worship Him (as Thomas did by the way – and Jesus accepted it) or believe one of two things. That He was a crazy man, or the worst kind of fraud.
Since He raised from the dead and pleased God (as God Himself audibly said twice) I chose to believe that Jesus spoke the truth when He made those claims. Your choice is between you and Him.
This discussion between you and I will only serve to continue to distract you from Him if continued on this vein, so I am finished with it.
I pray He opens your eyes as you read what He said.
By: The Simple Guy on August 12, 2015
at 6:22 pm