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[We the people, make the mistake of thinking that the way we view things is
how everyone has always viewed things.
That the way we feel is the way everyone feels.
The whole question, “Why do bad things happen to good people?” flows from
the misinformation we hold in our minds.
The question stems from our personal understanding or feelings about what
right and wrong is and what good and bad constitutes.]
[Illustration:
It wasn’t all that long ago, in our
world, that people (whole nations) thought that their emperor or king was a God.
During World War II the nation of Japan
held just such a belief. The people
felt so strongly about their belief that they were willing to give their lives
sacrificially at their emperor’s request.
This nation, these people, held this deep conviction a mere 60 years ago.
As a matter of fact, many who fought for and against this deeply held
belief are still alive today. It
seems that to many in our, so called, enlightened society that these beliefs are
from the distant past, but they are walking among us still.
The point is that situational ethics, or the way someone feels about a
certain set of circumstances change as ones circumstances change.]
[The whole question of “Why do bad things happen to good people?” is based
upon situational ethics. The
question is based upon what you view as good and bad circumstances, and who you
view are good and bad people. To a
homosexual one living a homosexual lifestyle may be a good person, but to the
evangelical Christian one living a homosexual lifestyle is likely viewed as a
very bad person. Hence, the question
is distinctively different when asked by different people living under the
microscope of their particular circumstances.]
[Illustration:
Hence, the western world’s terrorists are the Muslim worlds hero’s in our
current American war on terror.]
[It seems that the distinction between combatants, terrorists, and good
citizens are becoming more and more confused with each passing day in our
American culture. Right and Wrong
have become more and more obscure and people are tending to agree with Pontius
Pilate who asked Jesus, “What is truth?”(John 18.38)]
[It seems that the nature of the carnal is the tendency to
become blinded to the absolute truth’s that permeate our world so that we can
feel justified when we ask the assuming question, “Why do bad things happen to
good people?”]
[The foundational truth that
under girds the question before us is the idea that if there really is a
Sovereign God; whether a Christian God, a Muslim God, or any other sovereign
God for that matter. If there is a
sovereign God who is also a loving God then why do bad things happen to
good people? If God is so powerful,
and in absolute control, and loves unconditionally then why would He allow the
bad things (evil) to permeate our world?
This Atheistic question is the unbeliever’s trump card to every Christian
belief and doctrine. To the atheist
this single question is the ultimate evidence that there is no God.]
[So, the question arises, Why do bad things happen to good people?
Is there a biblical answer to this question?]
In answering this question we must understand:
A.
The Necessity of Choice
(Isa 45.7) [- Did God create evil?
The atheist would quickly quote,]
[Isaiah 45:7
7
I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace,
and create evil:
I the LORD do all these things.]
[These unbelievers
would quickly contend that even the Bible states that God created evil.
In stating this they are trying to prove that God is not nearly as loving
as He says He is, if He is a God at all.
But what does God really say about where evil came from.]
[God
only created evil in the sense that He allowed for the possibility of evil.
God did not set out to create evil, but instead God set out to
prepare a perfect place, with a perfect provision, with a perfect presence, for
perfect people. Which is exactly
where Adam and Eve were placed according to Genesis chapters 1-3. ]
[God declares that in
the Garden of Eden there was no death, there was no disease, there was no
deception there were only perfect lives walking in the perfect presence of God.
What God created in the beginning was the ultimate demonstration of His
incredible love. What God will
provide in the end will again reveal the incredible love of God.
As a matter of fact, everything, even the evil in this world is a
continuing demonstration of the unconditional love of God when it is properly
understood under the illumination of God’s revealing Word.]
1.
God’s Love Demands a Choice (Gen
2.15-17) [– God loved Adam and Eve too much to force them to be His preprogrammed
robots. Hence, God’s love demanded
that God provide Adam and Eve and all mankind with the ability to choose.
Hence, God placed a tree in the middle of the Garden.
This tree
represented the unconditional extent of God’s love.
Adam and Eve, who were living in the midst of God’s love, with a perfect
provision, in a perfect place were allowed by God to choose to either love God
and His fellowship or to reject God by choosing to eat of the fruit of that
forbidden tree.]
[Genesis
2:15-17
15 And the LORD God took the man, and put
him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.
16 And the LORD God commanded the man,
saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:
17 But of the tree of the knowledge of
good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof
thou shalt surely die. ]
[God’s love was
so great and so unconditional that God essentially said, through His provision,
I have given you everything you could ever want or need, but I will not force
you to accept it or receive it, you can choose to go your own way if you like.
Adam and Eve made a choice and evil (bad things) were the consequential
result.]
[God Provides A Choice Today – Because of Adam and Eve’s rebellion against God they brought this
sinful and corrupt world into existence.
We live with corrupt people in this contemptible world because of the
effect of sin and sinfulness upon all mankind and this world.
But God still offers you a choice today.
God loves you enough to give you the choice to choose to accept God’s
love through Jesus Christ. If you
choose the Lord Jesus Christ God promises to help you through the remainder of
this life and to give you eternal life in His eternal paradise one day soon.
Just as Adam and Eve had a choice so do you.]
2.
God’s Love Demands Consequences [–
What is evil? Isn’t evil actually
the resulting consequences of bad or wrong choices?
Granted sometimes evil is poured upon the unsuspecting or the innocent,
by no fault of their own, but by the wrong choices of another self-willed
person; as in the case of those who are killed by a drunk driver.]
[There may be
some argument about whether or not evil is always a matter of choice.
Some might argue that diseases are completely contrary to human choice,
that people cannot control what disease they get when they get one.
However, according to the Bible and God even diseases are the result of
bad choices some where along the way, perhaps many generations ago (Adam and
Eve) but they are still the result of a sinful choice.
In the Garden of Eden there were no diseases.
As a result of Adam and Eve’s choices disease and death became a part of
the human experience.]
[The ultimate truth here is that choice, if it is
really choice demands consequences.]
[God’s Justice
- Many a scholar has attributed the consequences of sin to God’s justice.
It is valid to note that God is just; just as He is holy, loving, and
kind. God’s justice demands that God hold
each of us accountable for the consequences of our choices and actions.]
[Choice and Consequences
– However, it
seems clear to me that a choice without a result is no choice at all.
If God were to just ignore your sin and not hold you accountable for your
choices then in essence you never really had a choice in the first place.
Because regardless of what you choose to do, God would in the end get His
desired result, hence you never would have had a choice at all.
Real choices
demand a consequence or a result or its no choice at all.]
[This is the position of our promiscuous society
today – Today people want to be able
to do anything they want to do, whether it is moral or immoral and not be held
responsible for their choices. The
truth is, God will allow you to do anything you want to do, but with your
choices there comes responsibility whether in the form of a consequence or a
reward.]
[God’s love demand a choice, real choices demand
consequences.]
B.
The Nature Of The Carnal
[– So what does the Bible reveal about our choices and bad things?
Do bad things happen to good people?
The standard you use to determine whether or not someone is good or bad
will undeniably guide your thoughts concerning this question.
There are people in our lives who are comparatively good and moral, hence
compared to another not so good individual someone appears good.
But if you are going to judge God by your question then the comparison of
ones morality must be made with God.
What does such a comparison reveal?]
God reveals through the Bible that:
1.
We Live Contemptible Lives (vs 9-10; Rom
3.10-13; ) [–
God declares that there is none
good or righteous.]
[Romans
3:10-12
10 As it is written, There is none
righteous, no, not one: 11 There is
none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.
12 They are all gone out of the way, they
are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. ]
[God then goes on to say,]
[Romans 3:13
13
Their throat is an
open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps
is under their lips: ]
[Our sin, the
result of our choices have led us to places or to do things that are completely
reprehensible to a holy, righteous, and just God. At the very least our choices
are selfish, and self-willed. Our
choices rarely represent the selfless love of God.
Our sinful choices, by necessity, carry dire consequences for us, our
communities, and for Christ. God’s
only begotten son gave His life to die for all sin, hence at the very least our
sins cost God dearly.]
[Without a
doubt, even the best of us have made shameful, disgraceful, and loathsome
choices at some point in our lifetime.
Yet, we disgracefully fail to weigh sin under the manifesting light of
God’s perfect holiness and somehow strive to declare that someone is good, even
when they are not.]
[Our text
reminds us of where we fell under the consequences of our sins, ]
[1 Corinthians
6:9-10
9 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall
not inherit the kingdom
of God? Be not deceived:
neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers
of themselves with mankind, 10 Nor
thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall
inherit the kingdom
of God.]
[No one escapes
the searching gaze of God. God does
not look on outward appearances as people do.
God looks right into your heart and when Almighty God looks in, you find
you must admit that you are but filthy rags in His estimation.]
2.
We Have Corrupt Hearts (Jeremiah
17.9-10) [– The atheist strives to deny the corruptibility of his life.
Who are you preacher to so self righteously declare that there are no
Good people in our world today? I
would only be self righteous if I were declaring myself righteous in comparison
to everyone else. When the Bible
declares that there are no good people in this mortal creation there are none
who are exempted. We are corrupt
because our hearts are corrupt. The
Bible states,]
[Jeremiah 17:9
9
The heart is
deceitful above all things, and
desperately wicked: who can know it? ]
[Illustration:
A teenager once said, I know I am okay because I feel okay in my heart.
I know that I am doing the right things, even if the Bible says I am
doing the wrong things because I feel it in my heart.]
[If you are following your heart then you are
following the wrong thing.
If you are trusting your heart, then you are trusting the wrong thing.
Right and wrong are not a mater of what you feel at the time, but right
and wrong are a matter of what God has declared is right and wrong.
God says,]
[Jeremiah
17:10
10 I the LORD search the heart,
I try the reins, even to give
every man according to his ways, and
according to the fruit of his doings.]
[It is because
of our corrupt hearts that we live contemptible lives.]
3.
We Have Confused Minds (1 Cor 6.9; 5.6;
5.1-3; 1 Cor 6.11) [– . . .
Be not deceived:
. . . – Just asking a question like, “Why do bad things happen to good
people?” reveals the blindness of many in our culture today.
Without a doubt people would rather justify or excuse their sin rather
than repent and turn away from their sin.
Adultery, fornication, covetousness permeate our culture and churches
with profound permeation. It is just
as Paul warned when he wrote,]
[1 Corinthians
5:6
6 Your glorying
is not good. Know ye not that a
little leaven leaveneth the whole lump? ]
[What was Paul addressing in this passage?
[1 Corinthians
5:1-3
1 It is reported commonly
that
there is
fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as
named among the Gentiles, that one should have his father's wife.
2
And ye are puffed up,
and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken
away from among you. 3 For I verily,
as absent in body, but present in spirit, have judged already, as though I were
present, concerning him that
hath so done this deed, ]
[Fornication right in
the midst of the Church.
The Church wasn’t dealing with this
profound and abominable sin. Why?
Because this was someone’s son!
This was some families relation!
This was some Church families reputation!
This is what is permeating contemporary Churches today.
Churches are confused about sin and as a result our culture is certainly
confused about sin.]
[Atheists seem to have
great sway with their question, “Why do bad things happen to good people?”
because people have lost sight of what constitutes a good person.]
[Notice what Paul wrote in our text,]
[1 Corinthians
6:11
11
And such were some of
you: . . . ]
[Without a
doubt, the Bible reveals that there are
NO GOOD PEOPLE!
Everyone is a sinner, everyone is condemned by their sin, the only
hope that remains for sinners is the redemption provided through the cleansing
blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Bad
things happen to bad people who deserve much more than they will ever receive.]
C.
The Nurture of the Cross (Psalm 103.8-13;
1 Cor 6.11) [– Bad things happen to
bad people because the choices of humanity throughout the ages have brought us
and our world to the place where we are today.
This world is
a fallen, corrupt, rebellious, presumptuous, deceitful world.
In our blind corruption we would endeavor to make God the villain when He
has faithfully and mercifully endured our hideous corruption.
God reminds us in the Bible that,]
[Psalms 103:8-13
8
The LORD is
merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.
9 He will not always chide: neither will
he keep his anger for ever. 10
He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our
iniquities. 11 For as the heaven is
high above the earth, so great
is his mercy toward them that fear him. 12
As far as the east is from the west,
so far hath he removed our
transgressions from us. 13 Like as a
father pitieth his children,
so the LORD pitieth them that
fear him.]
[God has not given you
what you deserve, nor has He given our world what it deserves.
God has longsuffered with your sinfulness for one and only one reason,
because He loves you and desires to restore a right relationship with you. Our
Text reveals,]
[1 Corinthians 6:11
11
And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are
sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the
Spirit of our God.]
1.
God’s Cleansing Love (Titus 2.14) [- . . .
but ye are washed, . . . – God’s
justice and your choice require that God cannot just overlook your sin.
There are definite consequences for your sin.
But God has offered a cleansing for your sin.
God is willing to take the penalty for your sins and lay that cost upon
the Lord Jesus Christ. God is
willing to allow the Lord Jesus Christ to pay your sin debt for you, if you will
choose to allow Him to pay it for you.]
[Titus 2:14
14
Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity,
and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. ]
2.
God’s Conforming Love (John 1.12) [-
but ye are sanctified, but ye are
justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God. – God
desires to bring a transformation into your life.
God wants you to choose to become a part of His eternal family by
receiving the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior.
Through this purposeful choice and its resulting divine adoption you will
receive the promise of eternal life and mortal purpose.
Bad things will continue to happen in this corrupt and sinful world.
Not because God is incapable of stopping them but because God will not
violate His love by removing choice and consequences from any man, woman, or
child’s life. But God promises that for all who choose Him in this life, there
is a perfect home and habitation on your immortal horizon. Live like eternity is
already yours for through Christ Jesus our Lord it is.]
CrossRoads
Baptist
Church, April 6, 2008
