<BrethrenVoice> 05/31/02 QUESTIONING THE QUESTION Ravi Zacharias As we have been discussing the theme of evil, we see how the presence of evil raises the question of the goodness of God. I have yet to hear a skeptic who failed to raise this as a major reason for his or her skepticism. The question is without doubt one of the most daunting questions raised of the Christian faith, which talks of a loving God who is in control of all things. Unfortunately, glib and incoherent answers to such heart cries have resulted in a breakdown of communication between honest skeptics seeking the truth and those who claim to know it. But if the Christian can be charged with ignoring the force of the question, then the questioner must also face the indicting possibility that he or she has often not thought through the question itself fairly. We have already seen how the question does not disprove the existence of God, now we see how the skeptic answers his own question about good and evil. In a landmark debate between the agnostic philosopher Bertrand Russell and the Christian philosopher Frederick Copleston, Copleston asked Russell if he believed in good and bad. Russell admitted that he did. Copleston then asked him how he differentiated between the two. Russell said that he differentiated between good and bad in the same way that he distinguished between colors. "But you distinguish between colors by seeing, don't you? How then, do you judge between good and bad?" "On the basis of feeling, what else?" came Russell's sharp reply. Somebody should have told Russell that in some cultures people love their neighbors while in other cultures they eat them--both on the basis of feeling! Did Mr. Russell have a personal preference? How can we possibly justify differentiating between good and bad merely on the basis of feeling? Whose feeling? Hitler's or Mother Theresa's? There must be a transcendent moral law, a standard by which to determine good and bad. Without such a point of reference, the question of evil is no longer coherent. Removing God, the giver of the moral law, from the question of evil, in essence, blunts the force of the question. Yes, the "why" of evil must be spoken to and in fact, in the Bible God has. At the heart of evil is the will of man to resist the love of God. In response to an article entitled What's wrong with the world, G.K.Chesterton replied : "I am, yours truly, G.K.Chesterton." He was right. We can all reply the same way. Only when we grasp this can the problem of evil begin towards a solution. ---- Copyright (p)(c) 2001 Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM). Reprinted with permission. A Slice of Infinity is a radio ministry of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries ______________________________________________________________________ ["EXAMINE YOURSELVES WHETHER YOU ARE IN FAITH." (2 Cor 13:5)] [BrethrenVoice facilitates free flow of Christian information towards establishing the saved in the sustaining grace and leading the unsaved to the saving grace.] TO GOD BE THE GLORY! To UNSUBSCRIBE, email: <brethrenvoice-unsubscribe@...> To subscribe all messages, email: <brethrenvoice-subscribe@...> To subscribe digest, email: <brethrenvoice-digest-subscribe@...> To post a message to the List, forward: <brethrenvoice@...> To contact the List Moderator, email: <brethrenvoice@...> BrethrenVoice Home: http://associate.com/digests/brethrenvoice eFellowship Home: http://communities.msn.co.uk/BrethrenChristiansForum