The Problem Stated

If God is sovereign over all things, even the salvation of men, then does that mean that God is sovereign over evil as well? Or to ask another way: Does evil exist in the world because God ordained it?

There is a verse in Isaiah 45:7, which says that ‘God creates calamity’ or some translations say that God created evil. This verse has left many scratching their heads. In dealing with passages like this, we must consider the context. God is speaking, and he is talking about natural calamity and bringing distress to people. So, when it says that God brings calamity, it does not refer to moral evil.

On the other hand, there are plenty of verses that affirm the goodness, purity, and holiness of God. “The Rock! His work is perfect, for all His ways are just; a God of faithfulness and without injustice, righteous and upright is He” (Deut. 32:4). “Your eyes are too pure to approve evil, and you cannot look on wickedness with favor” (Hab. 1:13).

How do we reconcile what seems to be a contradiction? Does God create evil? If so, how does he maintain his goodness? This has been referred to as the ‘problem of evil.’ The question that the atheist poses to Christians falls into three premises.

• Premise one: if God is omnipotent, then he could prevent evil if he wanted to.
• Premise two: If God is omnibenevolent (all-good), then he would want to stop it.
• Premise three: Evil exists.
• Conclusion: God is either not omnipotent or not omnibenevolent. Perhaps he is not either since evil exists.

It would follow from this then that if God lacks either one of these, God is not God, and thus, God does not exist.

The Problem Engaged

The “Reformed” response would be to say that we don’t have a problem of evil, but a problem of good. The mystery isn’t that God could allow evil to begin and continue to exist in the world — the mystery is that God would allow any good to happen to bad people like us. True enough, but that’s no help. It’s an answer to a question, but not the question of why we have evil in this world. 

Let us consider, then, the words of the Second London Baptist Confession of 1689. Chapter 5 of the Confession deals with providence. Providence may be defined in two ways: First, providence is simply God’s provision for the things he has made. Second, providence is the means by which God accomplishes his decree. For example, in Peter’s sermon in Acts 2:23, we see both the decree and the means. Peter says that God delivered Jesus to be crucified according to what he had foreordained. How was this accomplished? Peter says in the next breath that lawless men put Christ to death. Therefore, the decree was that God’s Son would die. The providence was in the fact that God used people to crucify his own Son. 

The Problem Engaged Confessionally

What does the 1689 have to say?

The almighty power, unsearchable wisdom, and infinite goodness of God, so far manifest themselves in his providence, that his determinate Counsel extends itself even to the first fall, and all other sinful actions both of angels and men; and that not by a bare permission, which also he most wisely and powerfully bounds, and otherwise orders and governs, in a manifold dispensation to his most holy ends; yet so, as the sinfulness of their acts proceeds only from the Creatures, and not from God, who, being most holy and righteous, neither is nor can be the author or approver of sin.” 

So, there are a few things to mention. Having already talked about providence, the Confession goes on to say that God ordained the Fall and all other actions of sinful men and angels. What do we make of this?

First, if God is not sovereign over all things, then God is not God. Second, notice the words of the Confession. God has unsearchable wisdom. Deuteronomy 29:29 says that the secret things belong to God. Third, it says that God is infinitely good. God cannot do that, which is contrary to his nature. In his wisdom, he ordains all things, even evil things, and retains his goodness.

And one of those areas in which we see God’s goodness is that men and angels are permitted to sin, but not by bare permission. That simply means that God allows sin, but he doesn’t allow it in an unrestrained way. God’s providence does more in restraining sin than in permitting it. Providence restrains sin even in its permission – all for his glory and a greater good.

To quote R.C. Sproul, who said,

“Yet the fact that evil exists in a universe governed by a perfectly holy God must mean that he has good purpose in mind. We see this in God’s answer to the wickedness of Joseph’s brothers: the brothers meant their deed for evil, and it was terribly evil, but God meant it for good and brought much good out of it.” 

Thomas Watson said it well:

“God permitted their sin, which he never would, if he could not bring good out of it.”

Therefore, the Confession answers our question for us when it states that God ordains evil towards a holy end. In other words, God permits the existence of evil to bring about a greater good. 

The Problem Engaged Head On

Paul Helm maintains:

“God could have created men and women who freely…did only what was morally right,” God did not for an important reason: “that out of evil a greater good would come, a good that could not have come, or could not have been as great, if there had not been evil.”

Thus, we again see the greater good argument. God’s ends are holy; God remains holy even in the means he uses to his ends.

But, the question remains, well, why create us in the first place? For his glory. We must understand that all God does is for his glory and so that his attributes may be put on display. In saving us, he displays his grace, and, in his judgment, he displays his justice. These would not have come about if God had chosen not to create mankind.

Is God the author of sin? No. Stephen Charnock is helpful when he says,

God never willed sin by his preceptive will. It was never founded upon or produced by any word of his, as the creation was. He never said, ‘Let there be sin under the heavens,’ as he said, ‘Let there be water under the heavens.’ Nor does he will it by infusing any habit of it, or stirring up inclinations to it; no, ‘God tempts no man’ (James 1:13). Nor does he will it by his approving will; it is detestable to him, nor ever can he be otherwise. [Yet] the will of God is, in some way, concurrent with sin. He does not properly will it, but he wills not to hinder it. To will sin as sin would be an unanswerable blemish on God. But to will to permit it in order for good is the glory of his wisdom. [sin] would never have peeped up its head, unless there had been some decree of God concerning it. And there would have been no decree concerning it had not God intended to bring good and glory out of it. God wills the permission of sin. He does not positively will sin, but he positively wills to permit it. And though he does not approve of sin, yet he approves of that act of his will whereby he permits it. Though God hated sin, as being against his holiness, yet he did not hate the permission of sin, as being subservient by the immensity of his wisdom to his own glory.

As evangelicals, we love to quote Romans 8:28, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” God works ALL things for GOOD according to his good purpose, even the Fall, even evil. Therefore, we may be encouraged whenever we see all this evil in the world. God is bringing things to an ultimate end. That end is for his glory. 

The Problem Engaged Applied

Take the above conclusion into consideration as we ponder the events of our current situation surrounding COVID-19. There are many ways that people can respond to this pandemic. First, there is the naturalist approach. These are the people who want to attribute all things to ‘mother nature’ running its course. Or, second, one could take a Darwinian approach and claim ‘survival of the fittest.’ Or, third, a person can claim conspiracy theories until they are blue in the face. 

The Christian, however, has a different response, not only to COVID but to all that is deemed evil in this world. The Christian response says that God is sovereignly governing all things which he has made. He is bringing all things together for the good of those who love Him, and he is working out all things according to his good will. 

We may never know what that ‘good’ is. We may, in our lifetime, never see the result of Gods ordaining of COVID-19. But in the present, there is a great comfort to be had in resting in the fact that God has everything under control. Not only is he in control of the present situation, but he has also ordained it. Like a bridled horse, God is using this to carry out his perfect will. There is undoubtedly more comfort in this than there is in anything else that has been thrown around as a response to our current crises.