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Question on Why God allowed sin to enter the world

May 13th, 2015

Sarah Van Baale‎Got Questions Writers

May 12, 2015

My son, Isaac, (12) has been asking everyone he knows – literally everyone – if they can explain why God allowed sin to enter into the world. Not why sin is in the world. Not why bad things happen to people. Not why the devil is allowed to wreak havoc. He wants to know why God initially allowed Satan to enter the garden – so to speak, though he didn’t phrase it that way. I gave my thoughts to him, and talked about free will. I asked him how he would feel if every morning he programed the computer to say, “I love you.” Would it have the same value as a person who chooses to love you (and some days acts like they don’t)? However, I’m concerned that I’m merely speculating. He wants scripture. I can’t think of any off the top of my head. He said he’d write in and ask, I told him not to bother and that I’d ask for him. So, any thoughts or ideas? I’ve already prepped Isaac that God doesn’t have to explain Himself or His actions to us, but Isaac is 12, and would prefer a solid more concrete answer. I figure the collective group can probably give him a better answer than me, so I’d appreciate any and all thoughts. Thanks! smile emoticon

  • Tim White A father who only protected us from evil, any allowed us to see and know good, and who showered us with blessings well above our need without any adversity could never get us to understand his grace and glory, and could never get us to appreciation. That is part of redemption. I would go to Ephesians 2.
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  • Jinny LeoMy understanding is that the original sin was not in the garden, it was Satan elevating himself (worshiping himself) above God. And in order to show all of heavens armies that He was in control He sent Satan to earth to let it all play out because he already knew how it would end (Job 1:6-12; Revelation 20:10). If He would have vanquished Lucifer at the onset of his rebellion the other angels may have thought He wasn’t all powerful and had something to fear.
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  • Lea Ann Davis McCombsQuite a thinker you have there! lol I think we see from scripture that Satan was already on the earth when God made the Garden (Luke 10:18; Is. 14:12). Many speculate that one reason the earth was without form and void and darkness was on the face of the deep (Gen 1:2) was because this was the domain of the fallen Lucifer until God said, “Let there be light.” When God created everything and pronounced it “good” He was reclaiming even this dark earth from the clutches of Satan. So it was not that God “allowed” Satan to enter His perfect world. He had already been cast from heaven and relegated to this planet. God did not restrain him from tempting His human creations for the reasons you have stated. Satan is called the “god of this world” (2 Cor. 4:4) and has been given this domain for reasons known only to God. Thankfully, we are promised there will be an end to him and Jesus will create a new earth without him. Hope that helps Isaac.
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  • Tim White We have to be careful about saying that this was in response to Satan’s rebellion. That no more caught God by surprise than did man’s fall. God was still God, and still created Satan with full knowledge of what he would do. Thus Satan’s rebellion was still a part of God’s plan in allowing evil.
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  • Ed Chait This may also be a good opportunity to teach Isaac that he will not find a completely “concrete” answer in the Bible for all of his questions.
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  • Tim White Love always grows. God’s love always grows good. God chose to grow His good love to share it with millions of redeemed souls. Love grows strong and pure through adversity. It is safer to look at the eternal results of God’s perfect plan to what it will produce than how it began, imho.
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  • Jesse McphaillGreetings in the name of our Lord Christ Sarah! Here is a brief glimpse at how I might answer the little one’s question. It is written that Jesus, the Lamb of God, was “slain from the foundation of the world” (Rev. 13:8; cf. I Pet. 1:19-20). Our Lord created the world, not just with the plan of redemption, but for our redemption. One good man pointed you to Ephesians 2. I point you to Ephesians 1. Not only was Christ “slain from the foundation of the world,” but the believers were also chosen “before the foundation of the world” (Eph. 1:4). I will not endeavor to step on some theological toes here, but our question about the origin of sin and (God’s allowal of) satan’s temptation are too anthropocentric. If we develop a theocentric (God-centered) mindset, we see God allowed these things “To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved” (Eph. 1:6). I am not here saying God predestined us to sin (how silly and heretical that would be! Jas. 1:13), but rather that He created us, knowing we would fall into sin, so that He might take on flesh and redeem sinful man, so that He might recieve more glory. God wills all people be saved (I Tim. 2:1-4; 2 Pet. 3:9), but He also desires we love Him for who He is, not what He can give us. By allowing the Serpent in the garden, he showed man how corrupt their hearts could become and how they needed to depend on Him for His grace and (ultimately) salvation. As C.S. Lewis put it, apparently God thought it best to allow this whole ordeal to come about, and how can we presume the mind of God? Not only will our being redeemed give God more glory, but it will also result in our eternal joy. Praise the Lord. May God give you wisdom as you bless your child Isaac! Remind him about the sacrifice of faith Abraham was willing to enact with his son, and watch the Holy Spirit illumine his precious mind with His love. God bless you!
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  • Ed Chait Sarah, I believe the answer that you gave your son is the correct one, but it’s not found explicitly in Scripture. I know that the Jews do not have the same take on The Fall that we do, and indeed, they do not consider the disobedience a fall but rather the beginning of the fullness of relationship between man and God.
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  • Wendyl LeslieYes, Sarah, God did permit sin to enter into the world, though He did not create it. I think there are two parts to answering Issac’s question. Your initial response to his question about God creating mankind with a free will is, I believe, the first part of that equation. Then, too, I think we must first understand why God created us in the first place: To glorify Him (Isaiah 43:7; 1 Corinthians 10:31).

    We can’t really do this unless we first of all understand just who God is, who we are, and why we need Him. It was when man chose not to follow God (exercising his free will), that man came to realize that His relationship and fellowship with God was severed as a result of his poor choice. Then man realized his need for a Savior . . . a Savior with a perfect, incomprehensible, redemptive love that would bring him back into fellowship with Him. That’s the second part of the equation.

    Without this realization of our sin which separates us from Him, we could never recognize the need for a loving God to redeem us and make us perfect; we would never understand the need to glorify and worship God.

    So, IMHO, God permitted sin into world in order to enable mankind to recognize the incomprehensible love of God in order to glorify and worship Him as God had purposed for man to begin with.
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  • Sarah Van BaaleThank you all for the input. I forgot to mention that I also explained to Isaac that suffering is typically what sends us running to God. I asked him to think about how many people would turn to God and have a deep understanding of who He is and how much they needed Him, if they never suffered. However, I’m going to read through what everyone wrote again tomorrow and come up with a more thorough explanation using Scripture – still emphasizing that God doesn’t give account to us, but rather we are accountable to Him. I’m glad Isaac asks questions. And I’m thankful that he thinks deeply about spiritual things. I simply thought I’d have a few more years before the more difficult questions came out. Even so, sometimes I’m concerned with my own speculation. I don’t like it when pastors come up with their own ideas and preach them from the pulpit. Similarly, I have to put myself into check when I’m actually teaching others. I do think it is really important to base our beliefs and explanations on biblical principles. It is far too easy to speculate and there is way too much speculation in the world. At some point as we mature in our faith, we recognize how much we simply do not know, and become more comfortable with the fact that an omniscient God does not owe us any explanation. But that seems a little to dismissive an answer for the adolescent years. Thank you again. I’ll pour over all that everyone has written again tomorrow. Good night for now. smile emoticon
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  • Sarah Van BaaleThanks Wendyl – I was typing as you were typing. smile emoticon That’s what I was trying to explain to Isaac, but you said it so much better than me! I think he could probably grasp what you wrote too. Do you mind if I copy what you wrote verbatim and let him read it as part of what I write out for him? (I know, perhaps it is strange that I write out answers for my children, but I find it easier to write it out than repeat myself over and over again. With 6 kids, I need to find shortcuts every now and then!)
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  • Wendyl Leslie Please feel free to copy what I wrote. Hope it helps. And thank you for your kind words.
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  • Ed Chait OK then, I have a question. Will the relationship we have with God in the eternal state be the same as what Adam and Eve had in the Garden before they sinned or will it be fuller and more complete?
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  • Wendyl Leslie Well, John certainly had a difficult time trying to describe the “new heavens and the new earth” for us. Even Paul couldn’t find words to describe it (2 Cor. 12:2-2). I think we can safely say that whatever awaits us, including our relationship with God, will far exceed anything our finite minds could possibly comprehend.
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  • Ed Chait No doubt it will be far beyond what we are able to conceive, but we talk about Adam and Eve and the Garden as being perfect before they sinned. So Adam and Eve were perfect and they lived in a perfect world, but their relationship with God was not perfect? Not trying to be obtuse, just asking smile emoticon.
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  • Tim White They’re relationship with was not mature and based on wisdom. It was based on the status quo with the mystery being what life would be outside the relationship.
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  • Ed Chait Thank you, Tim. I hesitate to say “that makes sense” but that makes sense.
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  • Kathy MartelHi Sarah, the verses that stand out to me are in Luke 7:37-46. They are in stark contrast to Adam and Eve walking in the garden daily with God and not having a clue about what it meant to be present with His holiness, goodness, compassion, creator of the universe. It’s tied in to your comment to your son about free will and the deep, genuine love God wants for our eternity. “A woman in that town who lived a sinful life learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house, so she came there with an alabaster jar of perfume. As she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them. When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner.” Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to tell you.” “Tell me, teacher,” he said. “Two people owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he forgave the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?” Simon replied, “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt forgiven.” “You have judged correctly,” Jesus said. Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.”

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