Maybe you’ve seen this quote in social media. And, like the person who created this graphic, maybe you also think it’s silly.
But before you instantly agree and move on, give this graphic some thought. In fact, give it more thought than the person who created it.
The point is not whether God created good and bad people. The point is He created people with absolute freewill. In other words, people like YOU and me.
Did God know how Adolf Hitler would turn out? Quite possibly; followers of Jesus of Nazareth (who many people believe is God’s Son) believe God exists outside of space and time (even as He created them) so we can speculate that he was aware of the choices people would make.
So does that mean He suddenly changes His mind and stops someone like Osama Bin Laden from being born? I’m sure some folks would say yes.
If you’re one of them, this sudden denial of freewill is a slippery slope. If you believe God is perfect — a position held by serious Jesus followers — and stands in rightful judgement of his creations’ choices, then where do the limits on freewill end?
Should God also stop YOU from driving because He knows that one day, you’re going to hurt someone in an accident?
Should God have forced eternal singlehood on singer Kenny Rogers, actress Joan Collins, director James Cameron and TV host Larry King? Each was married at least five times; think of all the emotional pain and (possibly) financial hardship caused by all those divorces.
What about AK-47 machine gun inventer Mikhail Timofeyevich Kalashnikov? Wikipedia says Kalashnikov emphasized the weapon was for defensive purposes only and severely regretted the deaths it caused. But so what? Why not hold Kalashnikov and, by extension, God responsible for the actions of people Kalashnikov never even met?
Singer Amy Winehouse (1983-2011). There’s someone whose death we can certainly stick on God, right? After all, He should have denied her the right to ever touch a drop of alcohol, since it was a major factor in her death.
Casinos. Now there’s a good one. How dare God allow even one to be constructed, since gambling has contributed to freewill-loving people going bankrupt, to marriages and families breaking up, and to careers being destroyed.
Now let’s consider another element of freewill: The freedom to accept or reject the idea of a loving, perfect creator who has every right to judge you and me on all the wrong things we’ve done and the right things we’ve failed to do.
If you accept the idea, then how about the notion that this perfect creator wants His creations to spend eternity with Him — wants it so much that He sent His equally perfect Son to live among us and be put to death to pay for the sins of everyone who believes in His Son?
One of those believing people could be YOU, if you accept the gift of Jesus. What do you think? Post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.
Frank's Cottage 