Did God Create Evil?

Contributor: Josh Bunnell

This reflection is based on a series of wonderful conversations that occurred in Odyssey Leadership 2025.

As Christians, we must witness to the goodness and glory of Christ. Alas, many people prefer to blame God for the brokenness of the world.  If the Creator is as powerful as Christians say He is, then surely He must have the power to dispel darkness, diseases, and death.  Since these destructive forces nonetheless exist, God is therefore accused of being the Creator of these terrible evils.  As Christians, we must make known the fact that God did not create evil, but rather that He is the Creator of everything that is good, in and beyond this world.

The Opposite of God

Everything that exists must have an opposite.  This is the only way by which humans can measure qualities, such as warmth versus cold, light versus darkness, existence versus absence.  Thus, humans understand God by comparing Him to His opposite, which is called sin.  If sin is hatred, deceit, and wickedness, then God is love, justice, and righteousness.  

God did not create evil because evil is His opposite; the two qualities can only be compared side by side.

Does this mean that evil has always existed in the beginning?  Maybe, but if it did, it was meaningless and powerless – until the selfish actions of mankind allowed it to cross over into the material world that is God’s creation.

The Entrance of Sin

While the fall of Adam and Eve is often perceived as the first occurrence of sin, it was actually the angel Lucifer, also known as Satan, who committed the first sin.  Since sin is self-seeking, it is unsurprising that Lucifer’s sin was pride: “I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God… I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High” (Isaiah 14:13-14, NIV).

Some will look at this account and conclude that since God created Satan, He therefore created evil.  However, it is also possible to dodge this dilemma between the horns: yes, God did create Satan, but He also gave Satan free will so that any sin was his own responsibility.  

Freedom can be a good thing, but Satan used his freedom for evil.  That is his fault, not God’s.

However, even Satan’s sin had no effect on God’s good creation – until mankind listened to him.  Adam and Eve also had free will, and they too used their freedom to reject God in the hopes that they will become as powerful as Him (cf. Genesis 3:5-6, NIV).  Their pride corrupted themselves, their offspring, and the rest of creation, and this is how sin crept into the material world.

The Death of Sin

Even though Genesis clearly elucidates that mankind is to blame for the evils of the world, some people instead accuse God, for He who spoke creation into existence must have the same power to expunge evil in a breath.  These critics fail to acknowledge God’s justice and love.  According to justice, mankind must live out the natural consequences of their actions.  We can rely on God to do many things, but taking away our responsibility for our sins is not one of them.

            Besides, God did provide an alternative to living through these consequences.  With love, God sacrificed His Son, Jesus Christ, so that humans can be with Him in Heaven forever.  All that humans must do is believe in Christ as their Savior, and God secures their future in a new world, devoid of sin or sorrow. 

The reason that God does not immediately take these believers to Heaven is that He instructs them to lead others on earth to Christ.  Comparing an eternity in Hell to a lifetime on earth followed by eternal life with God, living through the temporary suffering of this world to teach others about their Savior does not seem like such a terrible thing.

The Victory of God

Since evil is the opposite of God, will evil continue to exist as it has existed in the beginning?  Perhaps, although it will no longer pose a threat to God or His creation.  The end of Revelation foretells that Satan and all sinners will be thrown into the lake of fire, where “they will be tormented day and night for ever and ever” in a phenomenon known as “the second death” (Revelation 20:7-15, NIV). Death itself will die, and life itself will prosper.

The reason that God has given sinners a second chance to become holy, and an opportunity to thrive in a world “where there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain” (Revelation 21: 4, NIV), is that in this reality, goodness always triumphs over evil.

Just as a candle always dispels the darkness, so God’s justice and love always conquer sin.  How fortunate we are that this is the reality of the universe in which we live!