Evil (progression and limitation)
Introduction
This article explores the origin, progression, limitation and future expectation of evil and what our response, as Christians, should be. We will look at who/what exactly is Satan/evil and how pervasive his/its influence is, and ascertain what restrictions, if any, God places upon him/it.
George Otis Jnr has said (paraphrased):
i Spiritual darkness is increasing and is becoming more sophisticated
ii There is a geographical pattern to evil and spiritual oppression
iii Christians do not understand the spiritual dimension as well as they think
C Peter Wagner in the Foreword to ‘Informed Intercession’ by George Otis says:
Strongholds that the enemy is using are deeply rooted in the actions of past generations
Definitions of evil/Satan
Evil means different things to different people. Two definitions of evil from the Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary are:
i Anything which impairs the happiness of a being or deprives a being of any good; anything which causes suffering of any kind to sentient beings; injury; mischief; harm; opposed to good.
ii Moral badness, or the deviation of a moral being from the principles of virtue imposed by conscience, or by the will of the Supreme Being, or by the principles of a lawful human authority; disposition to do wrong; moral offence; wickedness; depravity.
But as Christians, we need to define evil as God sees it. For example, is it breaking the Law, the moral code set out in the 10 commandments, which leads to sin? Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) defines sin as transgression of the law of God; disobedience of the divine command; any violation of God's will, either in purpose or conduct; moral deficiency in the character; iniquity; as, sins of omission and sins of commission. And where did it originate and for what reason? If God made everything good, how come there is evil at all?
Comments from N T Wright
It has to be said that the Bible does not seek to give us a clear, concise definition of evil. According to N T Wright in his book ‘Mark for Everyone,' the Bible is never very precise about the identity of the figure known as ‘the satan.’ The Hebrew word means the accuser, and at times Satan seems to be a member of God’s heavenly council, with special responsibility as director of prosecutions:
Satan rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census of Israel (1Chron 21:1)
One day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them. The Lord said to Satan, ‘Where have you come from?’ Satan answered the Lord, ‘From roaming through the earth and going to and fro in it.’ Then the Lord said to Satan, ‘Have you considered my servant Job? There is no-one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.’ ‘Does Job fear God for nothing?’ Satan replied. ‘Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. But stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face.’ The Lord said to Satan, ‘Very well, then, everything he has is in your hands, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.’ Then Satan went out from the presence of the Lord (Job 1:6-12).
Wright goes on to say:
However it becomes identified variously with the serpent of the Garden of Eden (Gen 3:1-15) and with the rebellious daystar cast out of heaven (Isaiah 14:12-15) and was seen by many Jews as the quasi-personal source of evil standing behind both human wickedness and large scale injustice, and sometimes operating through semi-independent ‘demons’.
By Jesus’ time various words were used to denote this figure, including Beelzebul/b (lord of the flies) and simply ‘the evil one’. Jesus warned his followers against the deceits this figure could perpetrate.
Whilst the Bible is never very precise, it’s imperative that it shapes our understanding. The Bible is the principal means by which God tells his story, reveals his nature and expresses his purposes for time and eternity. It’s important we understand this because our understanding has been shaped more by the ideas of ancient Greek thinkers like Plato and Aristotle, Christian philosophers like Augustine and Aquinas and the shapers of modern thought like Kant, Hagel and Nietzsche, than God’s self revelation expressed through the Bible.
Repentance: the key to understanding
As Christians therefore, part of our ‘repentance’ is to change our minds and be shaped by God’s revelation. This is easier said than done since God has deliberately not given us a text book – he knows that learning by rote will not lead to a dynamic interactive relationship with each of us, which is what he desires. However, we must take the journey as we remind ourselves:
It is the glory of God to conceal a matter; to search out a matter is the glory of kings (Prov 25:2)
Click here for a number of Teaching Notes that develop this theme further.
Spiritual darkness is increasing, is becoming more sophisticated and there's a geographical pattern to evil and spiritual oppression