All things done in the dark3/2/2023 ![]() ![]() ![]() Don’t romanticise Jesus out of this either. Make no mistake about it, God is a killer: “The Lord sent a plague on Israel, and seventy thousand men of Israel fell dead.” (1 Chronicles 21:14). Then he revealed his grace through Jesus, where the gift of God is eternal life. God first gave the law through Moses, where the wages of sin is death. Accordingly, the first man was Adam the sinner but the second man is Jesus the righteous. While the first might reveal the wrath of God, the second reveals the grace and mercy of God. God’s second often brings his first into sharp relief. “For God does speak- now one way, now another- though man may not perceive it.” (Job 33:14). Remember: God’s mercy ultimately triumphs over God’s judgment. This is because the first time might be the expression of his power: but the second time will be the expression of his mercy. If God speaks once, it is absolutely essential to hear him twice. Also to you, O Lord, belongs mercy for you render to each one according to his work.” (Psalm 62:11-12). The psalmist says: “God has spoken once, twice I have heard this: that power belongs to God. Unlike man, God does things in twos: “The LORD makes poor, and makes rich: he brings low, and lifts up.” (Isaiah 2:7). ![]() Solomon says: “To every thing there is a season, and a time for every purpose under the heavens: a time to be born, and a time to die a time to plant, and a time to pull up what is planted a time to kill, and a time to heal a time to break down, and a time to build up a time to weep, and a time to laugh a time to mourn, and a time to dance.” (Ecclesiastes 3:1-4). In short, God creates evil that we may know him: the good, merciful and compassionate God.įor this reason, God creates times and seasons of good and evil. If we don’t know sickness, we would not appreciate good health. If we don’t know evil we would not appreciate good. If we don’t know darkness, we would not appreciate light. God creates evil that we might know and appreciate the good. So why did God create the devil, and why does God create evil? As a matter of fact, the role of the devil is crucial in God’s plan of salvation. The devil and his works are part and parcel of the will of God. ![]() So, God did not make a mistake with the devil. Jesus also says the devil has always been devilish: “He was a murderer from the beginning.” (John 8:44). He says: “I have created the waster to destroy.” (Isaiah 54:16). The devil, on the other hand, was never perfect. It was Adam who was cast out of the mountain of God. It was Adam who was perfect in all his ways until iniquity was found in him. It was Adam who was in Eden, the garden of God. In actual fact, in Ezekiel 28, the king of Tyre is compared to Adam and not to Satan. So where do Christians get the fallacy of a devil created good who then deviated to evil? The scriptural backing for this error is found in Ezekiel 28:1-19 where a lamentation of the king of Tyre is said mistakenly to be about Satan and Isaiah 14:12-23, where a proclamation about the king of Babylon is also said incorrectly to be about Satan. The psalmist says: “The plans of the Lord stand firm forever.” (Psalm 33:11). “Surely, as I have planned, so it will be, and as I have purposed, so it will stand.” (Isaiah 14:24). God is emphatic: “My purpose will stand.” (Isaiah 46:10). ![]()
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