“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” - Isaiah 41:10
I have watched countless interviews in which men and women of God are repeatedly asked the same type of question, but they rarely offer an appropriate answer or simply dodge the question altogether. Frustrated by their lackluster response, I would like to address these questions posed by numerous television and radio hosts. They ask, “If your God is as powerful and loving as you claim, why didn’t He stop the devastation in Japan from happening? Is your God really only all-powerful but not loving, or is He all-loving but not powerful? Which is it?”
I hope that my Christian brothers and sisters who are far more influential than I take notice because you are seriously driving us who know the truth crazy! Speak the truth already! (Note: I am not slandering you. I am trying to help you see that it is time to stand up for the truth and stop being silent on this matter.)
When God created the universe, everything was perfect. No death. No disease. No thorns or thistles. This means all of creation was perfect. Death, disease, and hardship are a result of our sin — our disobedience to God.
Is God all-loving? Yes, God’s love for us is ultimate. He allows us to do whatever we choose, but there are consequences for our sinful actions. Sins from the past affect the future, and our sins today affect the present as well as the future. So stop blaming God or saying, “I don’t know the answer”! The earthquake and tsunami would not have happened if He had made us puppets and made us do what He wanted us to do. But we would not have FREEDOM! We would truly be slaves to this Being.
Is He all-powerful? Why yes, He is all-powerful. By His very own words He spoke the heavens and the earth into existence. He defeated death! No one in history, except for this God, has ever died, rose from the dead, and stayed alive, never to die again. No one.
We die now. Before we sinned, we didn’t die. No tornados. No tsunamis. It was perfection.
Stop blaming God. Or help others to understand that they need to stop blaming God. He did not cause this. He is allowing it to happen so that we will all turn to Him and repent. His Word is clear that some will repent and confess their sins and others will curse God. He loves you so much that He wants you to be with Him for eternity. But He wants you to make the choice for yourself. He has given you free-will to decide to follow or decide to walk away.
In this discussion, “I don’t know” just doesn’t cut it anymore. If we didn’t have an answer, then “I don’t know” would be fine, but we have the answer. It’s time to share it. I recently heard an author who calls himself a Christ-follower answer the question of whether God is all-powerful or all-loving with the response, “It’s a paradox.” Unless this person is really a follower of some other god, it is not a paradox. As Christ-followers, we have the answer.
To my Christian brothers and sisters who are on these shows: know that I am praying for you to start being strong in Christ and speaking out the truth in love instead of being wishy-washy. This confuses people who are seeking the truth and puts fellow Christ–followers on the defensive. And we know what happens to those who are on the defensive: “When you dig a foxhole, you dig your grave” (General George S. Patton Jr.). Please start answering this question with a biblical answer. Otherwise, all you are doing is making a mockery of God and His Good News for the world.
As one of my all-time favorite bands says,
We once drew
Some lines in black
And right now it’s about time
We took them back
So bored of losing ground to the heresy
In our hearts...
Project 86 — Sincerely, Ichabod
Are you sick of losing ground to our adversary, Satan? I know I am. It’s time to get out there and speak the name of Jesus Christ in action and in word. Do Not Keep Silent.
Check out Philippians 4:4–9 and James 4:7-17.
