Evil is that which produces unhappiness. While atheism ridicules the Bible teaching that man fell from perfection into sin and into the suffering conditions resulting in death, all must agree that this is indeed the universal human experience and acknowledge that the problem of evil is beyond human power to resolve. It is reasonable, therefore, to give an attentive hearing to the Bible’s testimony as to why evil exists and why its wretched toll on human happiness continues. The moral sense, or judgment of right and wrong, and the liberty to use it, were important features of Adam’s likeness to God. Ability to love implies ability to hate. The Creator could not make man in his own likeness, with power to love and to do right, without the corresponding ability to hate and to do wrong. As principles, right and wrong have always existed, and God having endowed man with free will to choose his course, the scene was set for the greatest object lesson possible for the world of mankind. Knowing of evil as a principle, but never having experienced its effects, Adam made the wrong choice, became alienated from his Creator and set in motion in the human family the process of sin and death, the physical, mental, moral, artistic, and religious deterioration evidenced in the pages of human history. Even the earth itself reflected God’s displeasure and eking out the human lifespan became a tale of toil and hardship (Genesis 3:17).
Why does God permit evil to predominate? He saw that an actual experience with evil would be the surest and most lasting lesson to serve man eternally. There are other ways of learning, for example by intuition, by observation, by information received. But experience is an effective teacher. Adam and his posterity will learn that sin is bad in its nature and terrible in its effects, and therefore should be hated and renounced. Will evil ever be removed? It will indeed! The Bible assures us that as condemnation passed upon all in Adam, so God has provided another life giver – Christ, who will become the everlasting father of the resurrected race of mankind. The Kingdom of Christ on earth will be the time for their experience with good, as contrasted with evil, and in that age every help will be given to restore mankind to perfection and enable them by the exercise of their free will to choose goodness, righteousness, when they will be granted the right to eternal life in earth’s new Paradise. . . . “and there shall be no more death nor sorrow nor crying nor pain. All of that has gone forever.”