It is only
natural, I think, for humans to doubt things they believe in –-
religious things-— when things go wrong. People, crushed by tragedy or hardship will look skyward and ask "Is there really a
god?" This is an arguably
human response. We will all, at some
miserable point in our lives, ask ourselves "how can the God of the Bible –-a loving, caring, forgiving God—- allow such bad things to happen?" We all find our own answers to that question. Some will decide that there really is no God. Others might come to the conclusion that all things –-even awful, rotten, and downright evil things-— happen in accordance to God’s
cosmic plan. I, however, have come to believe that our
omnipotent and
all-knowing God simply chooses to sit on His
divine hands. He looks down on us, wallowing in our self-pity, sorrow, and sin -– and does next to
nothing.
The belief that God is always in control is neither correct nor is based on basic
Biblical truths. It is
wishful thinking at best. The Bible tells us that we were created with a
free will. That is, God gave us the power to decide how to live our lives. This fact alone shows that God does not exercise
exclusive control over us. He chose to instead let us make our own decisions. The concept of free will is incompatible with the belief that God controls everything; they are
mutually exclusive.
But, then, not every
Christian believes that God is responsible for all that happens; some believe that God plays an active -–but not an ever-
vigilant-— role in determining the happenings of the world. I am certain that this is an
erroneous belief as well. God has the power to do whatever He desires, but He chooses not to exercise it. Time and time again, we see that God depends on
people to do His work. He does not act
directly. When the
Jews were threatened in the time of
Queen Esther, it was a person -– not a direct act of God-- that saved them. When the
Nazis threatened to exterminate the Jews in the
Twentieth Century, did God step in to end the slaughter? No, He waited for the Nazis to be defeated. God simply does not play a direct role in directing mankind. He "speaks" to and
influences those that believe in Him, but He refuses to step in and assert Himself as an almighty
deity. He is not impotent, but He chooses not to control us as if we were
puppets. In fact, He does not control us at all.
God does not govern our planet like He did in the
Old Testament. The reason behind this change in strategy will remain a mystery. God once destroyed
Sodom and
Gomorrah because they were sinful cities. Does He do anything quite so drastic and direct now? No, He leaves things to His
human agents. Does He strike down those that take his name in vain? No, He has taken the role of spectator. I do not believe He will remain passive forever. One day He will return and do everything He promised to do. But for now He remains a
governor on leave. Did He stop terrorists from destroying the
World Trade Center and ending thousands of innocent lives? History has countless examples that illustrate a simple point: God does not
swiftly dispense
justice, nor does He control what happens in the world. God expects His people to carry out His policy. He expects us to punish evildoers and bring
criminals to justice; He does not do it for us. One day, He will return to play an active role as our leader. But for the time being, He is a
passive God. He watches over us, but He does not
interfere. And under that kind of supervision,
bad things can happen.