Daily Wisdom

Was God A Bad Guy?

JAMES 1:17 NKJ
17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and
comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no
variation or shadow of turning.

MALACHI 3:6 NKJ
6 “For I am the LORD, I do not change; Therefore you are not
consumed, O sons of Jacob.

HEBREWS 13:8 NKJ
8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

“Then why are there verses in the Old Testament that seem to
ascribe evil to God?”

This question is not easily or quickly answered. There are many
reasons, and we can only touch on some briefly in this article.
Here are a few key points.

The Bible is progressive revelation. We know more about God and
His ways now than we did in the past.

JOHN 1:17 NKJ
17 For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth
came through Jesus Christ.

In the NT (New Testament) God is dealing with people
differently than in the OT (Old Testament). We have a new
covenant. Until the death and resurrection of Jesus the most
important goal for God was to preserve the Jewish people and
get Jesus here to be our Substitute. Some things had to be done
to protect the people of God so that could happen. Compare it
to a surgeon who amputates an arm or a leg so that the person’s
life may be spared. It is not an act of hatred, but of love. No
one would condemn the surgeon as being guilty of anything bad.

Now under the new covenant, God is able to fully display His
grace. Jesus has already arose victorious. The battle for man
has been won, and Jesus is Lord!

Another problem is our Bible translations. None are perfect.
Some verses are wrongly translated in a causative sense instead
of the correct sense of allowing something to happen. The truth
is that God did not cause bad things to happen. The people and
the devil were responsible. But sometimes our translations make
it sound like God was at fault, when He was only allowing it.

Also, the devil and demons are almost NEVER mentioned in the
OT. Yet when Jesus began His ministry we see them everywhere.
Did they just show up then? No! Demons were present in OT times
also. It is just that God did not yet reveal all that was going
on. Maybe the reason God did not reveal more was to prevent
people from worshiping the devil. So God just kept quiet. (The
one exception to this is the book of Job, which makes it clear
that all the calamity was the result of the devil’s actions,
not God’s actions.)

Another key point is that Jesus Christ perfectly revealed God
to us. Look at His life. Jesus never harmed anyone.

ACTS 10:38 NKJ
38 “how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and
with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were
oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.

JOHN 1:18 NLT
18 No one has ever seen God. But the one and only Son is
himself God and is near to the Father’s heart. He has revealed
God to us.

COLOSSIANS 2:9 PHILLIPS
9 Yet it is in him that God gives a full and complete
expression of himself in bodily form.

JOHN 12:45 NKJ
45 “And he who sees Me sees Him who sent Me.

2 CORINTHIANS 4:4 NLT
4 Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of
those who don’t believe. They are unable to see the glorious
light of the Good News. They don’t understand this message
about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God.

SAY THIS: God never has been a bad guy.

Original Article

Photo by bobsfever

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