The Goodness of God (Chapter Ten)

Chapter Ten

Error Nine: God Uses Evil To Bring His Children To Maturity

"Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!" (Isa. 5:20)

If you and I are to avoid the above error then we must learn to determine what is good and what is evil. The Word of God, and not men’s interpretation, is the standard for discerning what is good and what is evil. God Word is the Word of righteousness and therefore qualified to reveal to us the difference between the two:

"For everyone that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil." (Heb. 5:14)

Because of a lack of Bible knowledge, many Christians, and unfortunately that includes ministers do not really know what God says is good and what He says is evil. Too many of them are calling good what He says is evil and they are calling evil what He says is good. They call things blessings that God specifically said were curses and vice versa.

Some have become so perverted in their thinking that they thank God for these things when they come upon them. They say this as though He were the One responsible for them. Actually, many of these Christians think that He is responsible.

Do not misunderstand me. I believe in praising and thanking God when I am going through trials. But I do not thank Him for the trials because I do not believe that He is the One giving them to me.

The book of James teaches us to count it all joy when we fall into divers temptations:

"My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into divers temptations; knowing that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing." (James 1:2-4)

Why do trials come? First of all they come for the WORD's sake (Mark 4:16-17). It is the Word of God that produces FAITH (Rom. 10:17). The temptations mention in James are the "trying of your faith." They come to find out if faith is truly genuine (1 Pet. 1:5-7).

The trials are actually designed to DESTROY your faith by stealing the Word from you. The person who is trying to do this is Satan (Mark 4:15). He does not want you to have anything the Bible promises because it glorifies God when you receive and he cannot stand that (John 15:7-8). He either wants God's glory for himself or he wants to ensure that God gets none at all.

Satan is the one who comes against your faith. Jesus told Peter that Satan desired to sift him as wheat but He prayed that Peter's faith would FAIL NOT (Luke 22:31-32). The spiritual warfare that we are engaged in is the good fight of faith (1 Tim. 6:12).

If Satan can destroy your faith then he has defeated you. It is only by faith that we overcome (1 John 5:4-5). Therefore it is Satan who brings trials in order to "try your faith."

So why are we told to count it all joy? Because of what we gain as a result of standing on God's Word in the midst of the trials. God has made His blessings available but He has never said that they would come easy. The blessings of God are worth fighting for.

The trying of our faith produces patience and it is through faith and patience we inherit the promises (Heb. 6:12). That's why Jesus told us to pray and not give up (Luke 18:1). He knew that when you pray, Satan would try your faith in God (Daniel 10). But if you stand in the midst of the trials then you will learn patience and you will be perfect and entire, not wanting or lacking anything. You will become and receive all that God has for you.

I wrote all of this to say one thing, God is not the source of our problems. While James tells us the purpose for our trials, he also makes it clear that God is not the source of them:

"Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with EVIL, neither tempeth he any man." (James 1:13)

The word for "temptations" in James 1:2 comes from the Greek word "peirasmos." One of its meanings is "adversity." The words "tempted" and "tempeth" come from the Greek word "peirazo" which means to "scrutinize" or "prove." {1}

The word "temptations" in James 1:2 comes from the word "tempted" or "tempeth" in James 1:13. Therefore, what the Holy Spirit is saying in James 1:13 is that God is not responsible for the temptations against us that are mentioned in James 1:2.

We must also keep in mind that the Bible was not originally written in chapters and verses. These were added later as reference points - and thank God that they were. So there is one continuous theme running through the whole first chapter of James.

As we continue to read the first chapter of James, God distinguishes Himself from being the type of person who sends trials and tribulations. He tells us what kind of God HE is:

"Do not err, my beloved brethren. Every GOOD and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning." (James 1:16-17)

In James 1:13, God makes it clear that whatever comes to try your faith is EVIL. He is not the source of any evil and takes no pleasure in it (Job 34:10; Ps. 5:4; NIV). All of our lessons so far have endeavored to show you the goodness of God. Here, God says that He is the source of all that is good and perfect.

Anything that is evil has its source in the EVIL ONE, who is Satan (Matt. 6:13; John 17:15; Eph. 6:13). It is an insult to God to accuse Him of Satan's work and it is equally insulting to Him when we give Satan credit for the good things that God does (Matt. 12:22-37).

If we are to avoid the error that many Christians continue to fall into, we must find out exactly what the Bible calls good and what it calls evil. When we do, then we must learn to give its source it's just due.

If it is evil then we must not tolerate or accept it, we must resist it (James 4:7). If it is good, then we must not deny ourselves but we must seek God for it (Matt. 7:7-11).

The Bible is clear concerning what is good and what is evil. You will be surprised since "religion" has stated the opposite concerning these things. Yet, you must make the choice of whether you will believe what the Bible says or what tradition teaches. You will either receive blessing or cursing depending on which way you go.

Sickness is EVIL, Healing Is GOOD

There are those who teach that sickness is good. It makes one more humble, pious, and spiritual. They call it a blessing. They make God it's source. They say that if it's from God then it's a good thing. God's Word tells us something entirely different:

"And the Lord will take away from thee all sickness, and will put none of the EVIL diseases of Egypt, which thou knowest, upon thee: but will lay them upon all them that hate thee." (Deut. 7:15)

What is God's description of sickness and disease? EVIL. God says that He does not tempt (try, test, or prove) anyone with evil, so therefore He could not be the source.

Now someone may ask, "It says at the latter part of that verse that God will lay them upon all that hate thee. Doesn't that make Him the source?" One thing to remember is that the Bible was not originally written in English. The Old Testament was translated from Hebrew and the New Testament was translated from the Greek. When it was written, men had to find the best English word to translate from the original language so that we could understand.

Many words that probably should have been translated to show that God ALLOWED something instead shows Him to be the cause of it. The Word "lay" in Deuteronomy 7:15, according Strong's Concordance, comes from the Hebrew word "nathan" (5414). According to Strong's, this word is used with a great latitude of applications. {2}

In some cases it may mean "appoint, ascribe, assign, charge, ordain, suffer" and it even means "withdraw." Therefore, we could translate that to mean that God "will SUFFER, or appoint, or assign" the sicknesses upon their enemies. This does not however make Him the source of them.

I emphasize the Word suffer for a reason. This word is used in an allowing sense in the Old Testament. In Exodus 12, God had finished sending all kinds of plagues to persuade Pharaoh to let His people go. Pharaoh being the stubborn hearted devil that he is refused to comply. So in this chapter, God would send the ultimate plague to Egypt.

God gave instructions on how His own people would avoid this last plague, which would kill all of the firstborn. They had to put the blood of the lamb upon their doorposts. This blood was a "type" of the blood of Jesus. The blood of Jesus, when applied in faith, will offer us the same protection.

In Exodus 12:12-13 God seems to make Himself responsible. And He is as far as He is the one who has appointed this. But in verse 23 we see that He is not the source:

"For the Lord will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when he seeth the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side posts, the Lord will pass over the door, and will not SUFFER THE DESTROYER to come in unto your houses to smite you." (Ex. 12:23)

The word "suffer" comes from the same Hebrew word used in Deuteronomy 7:15 that is translated "lay." The Amplified Bible translates the latter part of verse 23 this way: ".....the Lord will pass over the door and will not ALLOW the destroyer to come into your houses to slay you." The NIV translates the word suffer as "permit." So you see "lay" in Deut. 7:15 can be used in the "allowing" sense and not just the "causative."

God also shows us that the destroyer was the one who would actually do the smiting. Had the Israelites not applied the blood by faith, the destroyer would have been just as happy to smite them too. When we see all of this in its contextual setting, you see that most Scriptures that are translated in a "causative" sense should be translated in an "allowing" sense.

Many scholars study the Greek and Hebrew but they do so with a prejudiced mind. Many of them interpret the language to fit their denominational and theological positions. This is why when you interpret from the Greek or Hebrew you must find where the word is used in other passages to get its full meaning.

The plague came upon Egypt because of disobedience. Sickness and disease come upon people today because of sin. It may not always be a sin they committed but because of sin that is in the world. The best place of protection from sickness and disease is to get under the blood of Jesus.

The "destroyer" is Satan because he is the one who steals, kills, and destroys. Jesus' purpose is to deliver you from Satan's works:

"How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing GOOD, and healing all that were oppressed of the DEVIL; for God was with him." (Acts 10:38)

What was the GOOD that Jesus went about doing? He HEALED all that were being oppressed with sickness. The Bible shows us that healing is GOOD. Its source is from God.

The Bible also shows us the source of sickness: "....healing all that were oppressed of the DEVIL." Sickness is evil and has its source in the evil one. So God is not the responsible one.

Poverty Is EVIL, Prosperity Is GOOD

Jesus told a story about a rich man and a poor man named Lazarus. The rich man disobeyed God's laws by ignoring the needs around him though he prospered. The rich man dies and went to hell. The poor man died and went into the bosom of Abraham.

The rich man was so tormented in flames that he asked Abraham to send Lazarus to dip his finger in water and bring it to cool his tongue. Abraham responded in this manner:

"But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy GOOD THINGS, and likewise Lazarus EVIL THINGS: but now he is comforted, and thou art in torment." (Luke 16:25)

The rich man did not go to hell because he was rich. If that was true then Abraham should have been there too because the Bible says that he was VERY RICH (Gen. 13:2). The rich man went to hell because he blatantly disobeyed God's laws. The law said that they were not to harden their hearts towards their poor brother or shut their hand from him (Deut. 15:4-11).

Yet Abraham points out that the rich man's riches were GOOD and Lazarus's poverty was EVIL. It is not a sin to be poor just as it is not a sin to be sick, but God has made provisions for both by giving GOOD THINGS to those that ask (Matt. 7:11).

In Deuteronomy 28 God tells us the blessings of obedience and the curses for disobedience. In the blessings we see such things as healing, prosperity, victory, etc. In the curses we see sickness, disease, poverty, and defeat. In verse 30 God gives His commentary on these things:

"I have set before thee this day life and GOOD, and death and EVIL." (Deut. 30:15)

In verse 19 He even tells us the one who desires that we choose:

"I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore CHOOSE LIFE, that thou and thy seed may live." (Deut. 30:19)

God wants us to choose LIFE. He wants us to be BLESSED, not CURSED. He wants us to have GOOD, not EVIL. Yet the choice is not His but Ours. We must choose. He has established laws whereby we are guaranteed His goodness. The Lord is the source of that which is GOOD:

"Yea, the Lord shall give that which is GOOD; and our land shall increase." (Ps. 85:12)

So we can see that the Bible is very clear in its distinction of good and evil. I am sure that there are other questions that would arise because of the religious teachings that have been in the church for years. However, we can not address everything in this one chapter. However, we will study this subject in more detail in another book.

This chapter is meant to be a faith builder to those who can accept this truth without reserve. It is not meant to answer theological debates. People will believe what they want to believe no matter how much proof we give them.

For you who desire to know the truth, this was written for you. Receive those good things God has for you. Do not accept any evil, but resist it and God will bless you.

E-mail: victoryword@yahoo.com

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