People who question the existence and/or goodness of God often bring forward examples of horrific tragedy (and we know there are many!) as evidence that whoever is in charge of the universe isn’t doing a very good job. Of course, if no one really is in charge of the universe, what grounds does anyone have for complaint?
What non-believers or unsure believers may not realize is that the outrage they feel about what goes wrong in the world is only a slice of the outrage God feels.
Given the human capacity for treating neighbors poorly, we don’t look to ourselves like the bearers of the Lord’s image and the stewards of the creation that make the divine work “very good.”
This is why we need to read on. Chapter 1 of Genesis might lead us to conclude that the world becomes “very good” simply because humans will be running the place but chapter 2 gives us a more precise picture of what God means. In this second creation story God creates the man and the woman for each other because “being alone” is something God dubs “not good” (Genesis 2:18). In other words, what really makes the creation “very good” is that human beings will be in relationship to each other and to their God.
The problem with relationships is that they require free will, which in turn, opens the door to bad decisions. This is what makes our world a complicated mix of good and bad: human choice infecting God’s good intentions. But is there any other way this scenario could have played out?
For updates on my book, or more information about me, continue to check back to this blog! I will also be frequently updating my Facebook Author page found here: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Author-Katie-Hoyt-McNabb/1473116102939321, as well as my twitter account, @AuthorMcNabb.
9 Responses to It’s Complicated