He is not the cause of evil in this world
Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God.
Let there be no sexual immorality, impurity, or greed among you. Such sins have no place among God's people. Obscene stories, foolish talk, and coarse jokes - these are not for you. Instead, let there be thankfulness to God. You can be sure that no immoral, impure, or greedy person will inherit the Kingdom of Christ and of God. For a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world.
"If you,
O Lord, kept a record of sins, O Lord, who could stand" (Psalm 130:3).
One of the
most common questions every person wrestles with in life is this: "God, if
You are loving, just, and all-powerful, why do You allow good people to
suffer?" Many choose not to believe in God because they cannot adequately
explain this question. Evangelist Billy Graham addressed this question in his
book Answers to Life's Problems:
We do not
know all the reasons why God permits evil. We need to remember, however, that
he is not the cause of evil in this world and we should therefore not blame Him
for it. Remember that God did not create evil, as some believe. God created the
world perfect. Man chose to defy God and go his own way, and it is man's fault
that evil entered the world. Even so, God has provided the ultimate triumph of
good over evil in Jesus Christ, who on the cross, defeated Satan and those who
follow him. Christ is coming back and when He does, all evil will be ended
forever and righteousness and justice will prevail.
Have you ever
thought about what would happen if God suddenly eliminated all the evil in this
world? Not one person would be left, because we are all guilty of sin.
Because Jesus
suffered and died for us, our suffering can be made like His -purposeful and
meaningful. Evil, suffering and death came into the world when the first man
and woman listened to Satan and committed the first sin. Evil was never part of
the Garden of Eden. The moment Adam and Eve crossed the boundary of God's
command, evil became the terrible reality of this world.
AW Tozer said, “The sovereign God wants to be loved for Himself and honored for Himself, but that is only part of what He wants. The other part is that He wants us to know that when we have Him we have everything—we have all the rest.”
Salvation:
Jesus bore our sins upon the cross and died in our place so we could be
reconciled to God and receive eternal life.
Service: Jesus said He “did not come to be served, but to serve and to give His
life a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45). Christ’s supreme act of service was dying
on the cross so we might have eternal life. Our Savior calls us to deny
ourselves and follow Him through sacrificial service to others (Luke 9:23). As
we embrace a lifestyle of humility and servanthood, we will bring glory to our
heavenly Father.
Sacrifice: His first 30
years were spent in obscurity, without recognition of His Messiahship. During
His public ministry, He faithfully carried out God’s plan all the way to His
death on the cross. We admire
Christ, who was “in very nature God” (Philippians 2:6 niv), chose to leave the
perfection of heaven and live among sinful people. Laying aside His divine
authority, He was born a helpless baby, completely dependent upon. Jesus’ days
on earth are an example to us of the sacrificial life (Romans 12:1–2).
If we are to
fulfill God's purpose for our life, we will become like Jesus. We will humble
ourselves before God and say, "Not my will, but Yours, be done" (Luke
22:42). When our purpose is to fulfill God's purpose, His will will be done.
Paul had a similar thought in mind when he wrote to the Philippians, "Let
this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 2:5). He
wanted the Philippians to be like Christ in a particular area of life:
humility. When Christ entered the world, He humbled Himself by giving up any
aspiration except that which was the Father's purpose for His life. He set
aside His rights and prerogatives as the Son of God and humbled Himself, taking
on the lifestyle and behavior of a servant. In that way, Christ fulfilled God's
purpose for His life. His purpose was to know and carry out God's purpose for
His life.
Blessings,
Raj Kosaraju
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