One particular story I remembered today was the part in Genesis 18 and 19 where god destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. The story told by my teacher ends with Lot's wife looked back after being told not to and she became a pillar of salt. Genesis 19:26
My that particular teacher didn't finish telling the whole Genesis 19. Sometimes I do bug her to tell me stories because lot of stories in the bible are kind of fascinating.
There is even one about God sending fireballs down from heaven but I have yet to locate it again, not that I intend to anytime soon.
And today someone was telling how good God is but one Q that hit me pretty hard is why there are still suffering, war, natural disasters etc. The guy said "It is because we can't read God's mind and therefore we don't know the purpose of his plannings".
Of course I am not satisfied with that answer because it doesn't sound realistic although it might be true if He really exists. Other theories being put on is He wanted to punish those who sinned or He just want to get some attention as people tend to forget Him.
One particular theory that got my interest is this - it is Satan who is the destroyer. Jesus said, "I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven" (Luke 10:18). Satan was once a holy angel at the right hand of God in heaven (Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28). He rebelled against God and was cast out of heaven. " Jesus said, "the devil was a murderer from the beginning, and the father of lies" (John 8:44).
So, the next big Q is why does God give Satan permission to destroy?
Satan deceived Eve and through her he led Adam to sin. Since Adam was the first man and head of the human race, Satan claimed that Adam had chosen him to become "the god of this world" (2 Corinthians 4:4).
The chaos in this world is caused by the fact that Satan is fighting to hold on to his claim to be the god of this world. He makes this claim on the basis that many inhabitants of the world have chosen him to be their leader.
And since God is Love, and His character is perfectly unselfish and just, his own love prevents Him from doing anything that is unfair. Satan claims that it would be unfair for God to interfere with man's free choice. Satan claims that God must allow those who choose Satan to follow him. God lets Satan demonstrate to the universe the consequence of sin when Satan has his own way.
A rebellious teen may choose to leave home because he/she finds the rules too restricting. He or she may find a cruel world waiting to teach them the harsh realities of life. The parents do not stop loving their rebellious son or daughter. They do not want them to be hurt, but they can do little to prevent them if they are determined to go. The parents hope and pray that the difficult realities of the world will bring them home much like the prodigal son in the Bible (Luke 15:18).
The next big Q is why did God create the devil in the first place?
The answer is that God did not create the devil. He created a perfect angel called Lucifer (Isaiah 14, Ezekiel 28). Lucifer, in turn, made a perfect devil out of himself. Lucifer tempted a perfect man and woman to sin. When they did so, they opened a floodgate of evil.
Why does God not kill the devil?
Some will ask: If it is not God's will for people to die, why does He allow it to happen? If it is Satan doing the dirty work, why does God not stop him? Have things gone beyond God's control?
God could have destroyed Satan. He could have destroyed Adam and Eve and started over. If He had done this, however, He would have been ruling from the standpoint of force, rather than love. In order for love to flourish, it must operate on the principle of freedom of choice. Without freedom to choose there would be no such thing as real love. We would simply be robots. God could let us keep the gift of freedom, however, and let us see the reasons for making the right choice by allowing sin to run its course.
I don't really buy the answer above though. We are told to fix any problem before it propagates or becomes bigger and bigger. What happen to this now?
Why is it so often the poor, the elderly, and the children who suffer the most?
Some would say it is not fair for the innocent to suffer. This is true. The point is that sin is not fair. God is fair, but sin is not fair. That is the nature of sin. When Adam sinned he gave himself and the human race into the hands of a destroyer. God allows Satan to become active in working through nature to bring about destruction as a consequence of man's choice. God does not want it to happen. He did not want Adam and Eve to sin. But he allowed it because He gave man the gift of freedom of choice.
A son or daughter may rebel against good parents and go out into the world and become a drug dealer. They may have children. They may abuse the children. This is not fair, yet it happens when people make wrong choices. A loving parent or grandparent would want to rescue abused children. This is why Jesus came to this earth (Mark 3:27)
source: here.
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