Why does God allow evil? "In order that He might put His glory on display. If there's no sin, there's no forgiveness, no grace, no mercy, no compassion, no kindness." —John MacArthur

Humans have free will, but that doesn't answer the question of why God allows evil. God allows evil so that He can righteously judge it, and so that He can show mercy and grace to those who commit it.

Scripture quoted: zero. This doesn’t establish anything from God’s Word. It is a philosophical musing of John MacArthur about why evil exists. And consider what the argument actually implies: God allows evil “in order that” He can display His glory because without sin there can be “no forgiveness, no grace, no mercy, no compassion, no kindness.” So evil becomes necessary to God’s plan for displaying who He is. Necessary. Think about what that does to the character of God. God supposedly needs creatures to sin so He can demonstrate forgiveness. He needs suffering so He can demonstrate compassion. He needs people deserving judgment so He can demonstrate mercy. Worse, combine that with Calvinistic exhaustive divine determinism. If God predetermined every event and every human action, then God didn’t merely allow evil. He determined that the evil would occur so that He could subsequently respond to the evil He determined and thereby glorify Himself. Where does Scripture teach that? Scripture instead repeatedly distinguishes God’s will from evil: “God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man” (James 1:13). “For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness: neither shall evil dwell with thee” (Psalm 5:4). God says of horrific human wickedness, “neither came it into my heart” (Jeremiah 7:31). And Scripture plainly says God “will have all men to be saved” (1 Timothy 2:4). God doesn’t require evil to possess goodness, love, kindness or glory. Those are characteristics of God regardless of whether someone sins against Him. Yes, God can respond to evil with mercy, forgiveness and grace. Yes, He can overcome evil and bring good from circumstances He did not morally approve. That does not establish that evil exists because God wanted it as a stage prop for displaying His glory. That’s an enormous additional proposition. So once again: It is written. Show me where God says He ordained evil in order to display His glory. Until then, you’ve given me MacArthur’s philosophy, not God’s explanation.

Is the man who saves someone from a fire he started to be admired?

This is the second worst defense of the problem of evil I’m aware of.

This is a ridiculous answer by this heretic. The man was a disgrace

Calvinists: God is dependent on His rebellious creation (doing what He told them not to do) for the revelation of His own character.

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This is one of many of my fav McArthur Answers!!! Thnx!! I watch it every time I come across it- and yet it just rolls out of his mouth ( heart ).

Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! Isaiah 5:21 Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!

God allows us, and we are evil. God can't destroy evil in the world without destroying us as well. We're not the good guys -- NONE OF US! Even the best of us not even close to what He intended us to be.

Fruits of protestant gnonsense

You don't believe that he allows it. You believe he causally determines it.

So God is a narcissist?

Amen

Yeah, uhh... God is still God if sin doesnt exist. This quote is just nonsense used to justify heretical beliefs.

If he needs all this glory and worshipping, he's a narcissistic sociopath.

And where in the Bible is that? It's not. Lmao even. Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?” — Romans 6:1–2 Scriptura sola retards are cooked

Rom 9:27. Here the Bible says that Pharaohs opposition/sin serves the purpose for God to show his power.

God allows evil because he only wants the few that’s willing to live by his laws and able to overcome sin he does not want robots Here is wisdom for the chosen few

Meaning… God did not display His goodness and mercy in creation? He needed to ordain the Fall in order to display forgiveness? Why? Does God need an audience applauding His attributes? In order to save determinism during the fall, MacArthur has reduced God to an insecure teenager who needs evil in order to put His attributes on display. What an impoverished view of God. God does not need our applause. He is not insecure. He is who He is. His glory does not depend on evil existing.

So god allows evil in order to virtue signal .

Thank the Lord we have His word, instead of listening to blokes making stuff up, like MacArthur

How do you think God is going to glorify Himself in the future after Satan and all evil gets thrown in the lake of fire? By you logic He would need to create another villain. Good couldn’t just be… good, could it? No evil required.

Heretic spewing heresy. What’s new?

Said no scriptures ever 🤷‍♂️

That sounds like the fire department starting fires so they can put them out.

So, God is transactional. Great. Got it.

Just making the creation wasmt enough apparently

In classic theism, God doesn’t just “allow evil”… … God creates each being from God’s own mind/imagination knowing exactly every evil they will ever commit, and God creates them, ex nihilo, knowing exactly who will end up in eternal damnation/suffering.

By that reasoning, parents only show kindness to their children when their children misbehave. I dont think that makes a lot of sense

God wanted more from us than to be great gardeners.

Does man then rob God of his glory when he commits no sin? That's the implication here.