Many have wondered why there is so much evil in the world. Many have even asked where the Sovereign LORD is in all these and why He has allowed so much evil in the world. Psalm 115 verse 16 declares: “The heavens are the LORD’s but the earth he has given to the children of man.” Given this understanding, the question should rather be asked differently, why has man allowed so much evil in the world, because the earth God has given man to have dominion over.
The devil in his attempt to tempt our Lord Jesus Christ in Gospel of Luke chapter 4, it was recorded that the devil took the Lord Jesus to a high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of tbe earth and their splendour and in verse 6 said: “And the devil said to Him, “I will give You all this realm and its glory [its power, its renown]; because it has been handed over to me, and I give it to whomever I wish.”
Adam, in whom all men have their progeny, handed over his realm, the kingdoms of the world, and the splendour to the devil through his disobedience. In Genesis chapter 1, we read how God made man in His own image and likeness, male and female created He them (Genesis 1:27) and He blessed them to have dominion over the earth, to be fruitful and to replenish the earth with his kind, that is, offsprings who are also in the image and likeness of God.
God gave Adam clear instructions to protect him. In Genesis chapter 1 verse 29, God said, of all seed bearing plant and every tree that has fruit in it, he may eat. But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, God commanded Adam in Genesis 2 verse 17 that he may not eat, for in the day he, Adam, ventures to eat, that day he will die. Now, this tree is symbolic. It was not so much the fruit, but the tree here is symbolic, and God speaks to man in symbolic terms. Symbols like proverbs endure time and also ensure there is no mistaken interpretation. Trees are also given as biblical metaphors for men, so this particular tree of knowledge of good and evil depicts personality, a created being. That this tree bears both good and evil depicts corruption. We know that God is light. We know that God is good and there is no shadow of turning in Him, no variableness or corruption in Him (James 1: 17). That was the essence of Him, He is life, and there is no corruption in Him. The tree of knowledge of good and evil shows corruption, and there could be no life in it. God was letting Adam know of an existing corruption, embodied in the personality, and that Adam should not share in his knowledge and profanity. Who is this person who had so corrupted himself.
The book of Isaiah chapter 14 gave us insight into this personality. In verse 12, we read: “How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, You who weakened the nations!” Lucifer was this personality. He was the son of the morning, meaning he was created by God and was good until he corrupted himself and became evil. Book of Ezekiel 28 ran a description of Lucifer from verse 12 and : “… You were the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was your covering, sardius, topaz, and diamond, beryl, onyx, and jasper, sapphire, emerald, and carbuncle; and crafted in gold were your settings and your engravings. On the day that you were created, they were prepared. You were anointed as a guardian cherub, for I had ordained you. You were on the holy mountain of God; you walked among the fiery stones. You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created, Till iniquity was found in you.” What was his iniquity? “Your heart grew proud of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendour.” He lifted his heart and said in Isaiah 14 verse 14: “I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.” In his heart, he wants to make himself above God. He led a revolt, and God cast him out as profane. He was made by God, had the knowledge of God, but became profane and a murderer. Our Lord Jesus in Gospel of John chapter 8 verse 44 described the devil thus when He was speaking to the Jews. “You are of your father, the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” So the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was symbolic of a personality, Lucifer, who though was created good, a sum of wisdom, beauty and perfection, but corrupted himself and became evil and the LORD God cast him out as profane. He was like a byword which the LORD God was showing Adam not to partake of.
Apostle Peter in his epistle and in 2 Peter chapter 2 verse 14 talks of the corruption (knowledge of good and evil) that was in the world through lust (of Eve and Adam). Adam was the door though which so much evil and spiritual wickedness in heavenly places came into the world, including death. The devil sold the lie “to be like God” to Eve and Adam. His desire was not to be like God, for he was the son of morning. His desire was to be in stead of God. But Adam and Eve also were already made in the image and likeness of God and were given dominion over the earth, same realm where Lucifer was given till he lifted up his heart in pride, became corrupted by his beauty and wisdom and was cast out as profane from heaven. The angels in Revelation 12 verse 12 said: “Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time.” Hidden from Adam and Eve was the wrath of the devil and he sold his profanity to be instead of God to Adam and Eve who were already made in the image and likeness of God and given dominion and blessing by God. Man who had the endowment of good lost the capacity to do good because he lost the life of God, the breath of God, the Spirit of God that was in him and which sustained him. It was a great treason and a great fall by Adam and the generation of men after him. He lost the capacity to produce offsprings after the image and likeness of God. They had the form of God but had no capacity for godliness, for they lost the life of God that was in them through sin. Man was given to do evil and violence continually as a result.
Having an understanding of how evil came into the world and why we consequently have so much evil in the world, is there a way out, a hope for man?. Very well yes, and that hope is in Christ Jesus, the Saviour of the world. Man, fashioned after Adam (for Adam was born of God, not of the will of man) sinned against God, and only a Man in the likeness of Adam, not born of the will of man but of God can save man. For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Begotten Son, that whosoever believe in Him will not perish but have everlasting life (John 3: 16). Jesus Christ was the Lamb of God, He was made a propitiation for the sin of man (1 John 2: 2). He came in the flesh, died, shed His own blood for the remission of sin and man’s redemption, and whosoever believe in Him will be saved. Just like Noah led his family into the Ark, and they were saved, Jesus Christ led also the whole of the human race that Adam led into sin and death, into life and reconciliation with God. As many therefore that receive Him and believe in Him, He gave power to live as children of God John 1: 12) and restored to the estate they lost through the lust of Adam. Man sold himself, that is, his whole essence of being in the image and likeness of God for nought, but he has been given a provision to redeem himself without money through the vicarious suffering and death of our Lord Jesus Christ.
God has promised a new heaven and a new earth, wherein is righteousness (2 Peter 3:13). This present world, which man had sold out to the devil and on which the devil has unleashed so much evil, violence, and wickedness will be rolled away. God has made a way of escape for man. Apostle Peter, in his epistle, talks of we having escaped the corruption that is in the world. This escape is only in that one provision that God has made, for there is no other name under heaven by which men might be saved, except in Jesus Christ (Acts 4: 12). It is only Him that was born not of the will of man. He died on the cross, taking the place of man to pay the penalty for sin, for the soul that sin, it shall die. This is eternal spiritual law. To show that Jesus’ sacrifice was pleasing unto God, the LORD God raised Him from the dead, that whosoever will look unto Him and believe, will be saved and justified. So, in the death and resurrection of Christ, God has made us a way of escape from the corruption that was let into the world by Adam, who yielded to the lie of the devil. It did not stop there, God wants us to be partakers of His divine nature through the precious promises that He has given us. Being partakers of God’s divine nature guarantees our eternal escape from the corruption already in the world. What are these precious promises. And you shall be my people, and I will be your God (Jeremiah 30: 22), And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more Hebrews (10: 17). And I will give you a new heart and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh (Ezekiel 36: 26), Then I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am the LORD; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God, for they shall return to Me with their whole heart (Jeremiah 24:7), for God so loved the world that He gave His only Begotten Son, that whosoever believe will not perish but have eternal life (John 3: 16), God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind (2Timothy 1: 7), Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ (Ephesians 1: 3). These and numerous promises we have been given in Christ that through the knowledge of Him and these promises, we are motivated to embrace eternal life and godliness and thereby partake of God’s divine nature.
We live in this world, but we are not of this world. A thousand may fall at our side and ten thousand at our right hand, but none shall come near us (Psalm 91: 7). In this world, we will experience tribulation, but we should be of good cheer, for our Lord Jesus has overcome for us (John 16: 33). Even though evil abounds in the world, we are not kept here to be victims, but we have the authority in Christ to redeem each day from evil and ask the heavenly Father to deliver us from every evil (Mathew 6: 13). In addition to this, we have heavenly resources at our disposal. We have the power of God at work in us (Ephesians 3: 20). Our Lord Jesus promised us that we shall receive power after that we receive the Holy Spirit. We also have the blood of Jesus by which we overcome the wicked one, Satan and his agents. We have the word of God that should be near our mouths to declare and bring everything into subjection and to the obedience of Christ and the power that is at work in us. We also have the angels of God, given charge to minister to us, who are heirs of salvation. We have the fruit of the Spirit against which there is no law and which we are to live by. The devil can bring no accusation against us when live and bear this fruit of the Spirit. We have the gifts of the Holy Spirit given us for our profit. These are weapons of our warfare that are mighty through God to cocoon us. Yes, there is so much evil in the world, but we are not victims but rather overcomers and more than conquerors in Christ. We are not of this world. We have a kingdom far more superior residing in us as we are sitted together with Christ in heavenly places far above powers and principalities and rulers of darkness of this world. As believers in Christ, we must open ourselves to the knowledge of what God has wrought for us in Christ and of who we are in Christ and live by this. We who are believers in Christ and who are the redemption the whole creation is waiting for cannot be victims with the world.
*Believers Are Victors Through Christ*
The victory of Believers over evil is firmly rooted in the finished work of Jesus Christ on the Cross and His glorious resurrection. Through these, God has granted His children authority over the works of darkness. This truth is well established in Scripture:
**Victory in Christ*: _”But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ”_
(1 Corinthians 15:57).* The resurrection of Christ signifies His triumph over sin, death, and the devil. As believers, this victory is imparted to us, making us victors, not victims.
– **Power Over the Enemy**: Jesus declared, _”Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you”_
*(Luke 10:19).* Believers are equipped with divine authority to overcome the enemy’s schemes and are protected by God.
*The Reality of Evil in the World*
Evil exists in the world because of the fall of man and the corruption brought by sin *(Genesis 3)*. Yet, despite its presence, believers are not destined to be victims. God’s plan of redemption has empowered His children to shine as lights in a dark world.
*God’s Empowerment Amid Evil:*
_”You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden”._ *(Matthew 5:14).* Even in the midst of evil, believers are called to influence the world positively and bring hope through the gospel.
**Overcoming Trials*: Jesus said, _”These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world”_*(John 16:33).* Believers are assured of peace and ultimate victory in Christ, despite the challenges they face.
*Believers Are Not Victims But Conquerors*
Through Christ, believers are more than conquerors, equipped with spiritual weapons to overcome the works of darkness. We are not powerless; instead, we possess everything needed to live victoriously.
**More Than Conquerors*: _”Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us”_ *(Romans 8:37).* This verse emphasizes the overwhelming victory believers have, which cannot be subdued by evil.
*Spiritual Armor for Victory*: _”Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil”_
*( Ephesians 6:11).* God provides believers with spiritual armor to resist the devil and walk in triumph.
*Conclusion: Living in Victory*
While evil persists in the world, believers are assured of victory through their union with Christ. By walking in faith and relying on God’s Word and Spirit, we can stand strong, knowing that we are victorious through Jesus. Evil may challenge us, but it cannot defeat us. *”For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith” (1 John 5:4).*
Believers are never meant to be victims. Through Christ, we are empowered to live boldly, triumphantly, and as shining testimonies of His grace and power. Let this truth fuel your faith and strengthen your resolve!
Thank you, beloved Brother Taurayi, for your insightful comments that have lent to the biblical position that believers in Christ are not victims but victors. As believers, we might be troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed as written in 2 Corinthians 4: 8-9. In all this, our hope is unfading, and the love of God is made perfect in us. May the LORD enrich you with knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding.