God could end all pain instantly if He wanted to.
The creator of the world most certainly has the power to do so—yet chooses not to. Why?
The answer is freedom.
We have been permitted to choose our own way. This has been described as free will, freedom of choice, free moral agency, and many other terms. But in the end, it’s just the ability to wake up and make our own choices.
We are free to behave badly if we choose. We make that choice on our own. We can be nice or we can be rude. We can forgive or we can hold a grudge.
We wouldn’t have a choice at all if we had been created perfect: we’d behave perfectly every time. We would have no free will.
The freedom to choose requires an option other than just perfection to exist. An imperfect option—a bad option—must exist before we can choose between good and bad.
Yes, there is extreme unfairness: War profiteering. Starving families. Child soldiers. Human trafficking. Lives are destroyed each day.
All of this is awful, and hard to comprehend.
But the fact of the matter is that a choice without consequences isn’t a choice at all. The Creator didn’t go to the trouble to permit us to make decisions, only to immediately save us from the fallout every time we make a poor one.
No, we are here to learn something, and in order for us to learn, we must sow what we reap. The cumulative destruction left in the wake of man’s choices results in a broken world. Many must suffer unimaginably. This is not God’s fault, but ours. It is our greed, our fear, our pride, and our selfishness which has shaped the world we live in—every bad choice has contributed to its demise.
Fortunately, the state in which we find ourselves is only temporary. The Bible promises that everything will be made right one day.
This is a big deal.
The Bible is, of course, recognized by followers of the Abrahamic faiths (Jews, Christians, and Muslims) as inspired by God. But not everyone who is familiar with the Bible necessarily believes this is the outcome. In fact, many religions teach that most of humanity will burn in a fiery place called “hell” forever, without end. Some teach this is the result of our poor choices, belief in the wrong faith, or even just God’s desire.
But that’s not God’s plan at all.
A higher power created us in His own image. He loves us all very much, no matter what we believe about Him. He came and walked among us. His name was Jesus Christ—and He came not to condemn the world, but to rescue it from its current condition.
The Creator of all is also the Savior of all, and He won’t give up until everyone knows it.
