Why does God allow evil men to do evil deeds
like the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center?

When personal calamities happen it is common to ask why God would allow such things. When a calamity affects the whole world it is even more difficult to understand. How could a loving, sovereign God allow such things? God is all knowing and all powerful. Why does He not stop things like the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center? Does He like to see people suffering?

Different Reactions

Before coming to the Bible to seek what it might show us, I would like to give my observations about what I see as the two main reactions to this terrorist attack. I think almost everyone first reacted with shock and a feeling that this couldn't be real. But after the horror and enormity of the attack had sunk in people began to have different kinds of reactions.

One reaction is of anger and hatred. The same kind of hatred that motivated the terrorists has been reproduced in at least thousands of others. Before the attack there obviously were a number of Muslim extremists who hated America to the extent that they were willing to go to any lengths to damage it as much as they could. They consider all Americans their enemies and evidently do not believe that the moral standards of their religion apply to how they treat Americans. They have been plotting for years against America. On September 11th the world watched in horror as one of their planned attacks succeeded with terrible consequences.

The other reaction that I observed is that many people have been shaken out of their complacency toward God. Especially here in North America, many people had been going through life with little thought about God. It seemed that to them there was not much more to life than accumulating wealth until you had enough to retire, then spending it on whatever leisure activities you could still enjoy. Many Christians were living the same kind of life right along with their unbelieving friends.

The terrorist attacks on September 11th and the Anthrax scares since then have made a dramatic difference. People don't feel as safe as they did before. Many non-Christians have begun to inquire about God. Many Christians have become much more serious about seeking God. In other words, people realize their need of God the most when they are shaken out of their complacency by a calamity.

What the Bible Shows Us

There is not a verse in the Bible that gives a simple answer to the question of why God allows calamities to happen. But that does not mean that you cannot find the answer there, it simply means that you need to dig below the surface. You need to consider this question in the light of God's eternal purpose and His economy. God's purpose is to gain a people who would match, express, and represent Him on earth. God's economy, the means by which He accomplishes His purpose, is to impart Himself into His people as their salvation and life, to have that life grow in them to maturity, and to build them into a corporate Body, the church, for His expression, consummating in the New Jerusalem, the bride for His Son. Thus God's intention is centered on man.

Satan also has his own intention related to man. He is the ruler of this world and is working in it to build up his own kingdom, a kingdom of darkness. His kingdom is built on the principle of rebellion against God and against every authority established by God. Thus, lawlessness is the trademark of Satan's work in man.

From this we can see that there are two unseen, spiritual kingdoms in the world today, each developing toward its own climax. The kingdom of Satan will climax with a great world leader who will claim to be God. He will lead most of the people in the world into full rebellion against God. On the other hand, the kingdom of God will climax with a relatively small number, a remnant of His people, who will overcome every threat and temptation to be God's faithful testimony on earth. The Lord Jesus will return to destroy forever the kingdom of Satan when these overcomers have been perfected through sufferings and have proclaimed the mysteries of God's kingdom to the whole earth.

God is Tolerating Evil Only for a Time

So the first point in the answer to why God allows calamities is that He will not allow them to go on indefinitely. God does not delight to see people suffer and one day He will put a complete end to all the suffering on earth. Neither does He desire to see anyone perish but, concerning this, He gives man a free choice. He doesn't force Himself or His salvation on anyone. Right now God is tolerating evil temporarily so that more people have opportunity to repent and receive His salvation. When the Lord Jesus returns to put an end to evil and establish His kingdom on earth that will include the judgement of all those who have committed it. Judging evildoers is a necessary part of ultimate justice but not something God delights to do.

We All Deserve God's Judgement

The second point is that our standards are different from God's. We watched the September 11th attacks with horror and want retribution on all who were involved in this evil plot. This is necessary, not only to prevent them from doing more of the same type of thing but also for the sake of justice. But according to God's standard none of us is innocent. It is not our deeds that make us sinful. There is an evil element in our nature that is the source of all the evil deeds that we do. We are not different in nature from the terrorists, only different in degree. Thus, by nature we all deserve to be judged and one day each of us will stand before God to be judged by Him. That is one of the main reasons we need salvation. When all things are made clear at God's judgement seat each one of us will admit that God's dealing with us has been just.

This does not mean that the victims of this attack were being singled out for judgement by God. The Lord Jesus, referring to a similar incident, told us that unless we repent we would all likewise perish. It does mean that we should humble ourselves before God so that He would give us His mercy and grace. One day God will judge every one of us. How we need His mercy!

We Would Like to Tell God What to Do

God has given each of us a free will. Most of us don't want God to interfere with us living however we choose even though many of the things we do hurt ourselves and others. We want God to stay out of our own lives but we expect Him to intervene in other people's lives, especially if they become terrorists that target our nation. This expectation doesn't make sense. Mankind in general has rejected God so we live in a godless world. The evil that people do is part of that godlessness.

We Need Suffering

The last point I want to make concerning why God tolerates evil and allows calamities to happen is that without these things God could not accomplish His purpose. This does not mean that God is the source of evil, Satan is. But it does mean that even Satan's worst turns out to further God's purpose. The problem for God is that once He decided to give man a free will and that He would never coerce or violate man's will then the accomplishment of His purpose depended on man's cooperation. Without trouble, suffering and sorrow none of us would be that serious about seeking God. Life would be too easy. So we need the sufferings we experience to help us pursue God and His purpose.

Lawlessness and Violence Will Increase

Lawlessness and violence will increase as the end of the age approaches and Satan's kingdom is heading toward its climax. The great world leader who claims to be God will try to force everyone to worship him and his image instead of the true God. Each person will be forced to choose between worshiping the true God or going along with those openly fighting against Him. As it gets harder and harder for God's people to remain true to Him they also will be forced to either overcome Satan or be overcome by him. Many of God's people will be defeated and need God's discipline in the coming age to perfect them. But the ones who remain true to Him until the end will be perfected and fulfill God's purpose for man. Then the Lord will come to establish His eternal kingdom in righteousness and justice. This is God's intention for man. What we are passing through now is the process to get there.

How Will You React?

So the events of September 11th and the two kinds of reactions I observed to those events are advancing both the kingdom of God and the kingdom of Satan toward their climaxes. Some people have turned toward God and are seeking Him more seriously than ever before. Others have become bitter and angry, some to the extent of wanting to do the same kind of things to Muslims in general that those few terrorists did to Americans. I don't know if the response of the USA and its allies will be successful in eliminating the terrorist network that carried out those attacks but I do not believe that the trend toward lawlessness and violence can be checked. I do not know of any nation where there is more respect for law and authority now than there was 50 years ago. The trend of the whole world is the other direction.

The issue each of us has to deal with is how will we respond to the things happening around us. If we allow hatred to fill our hearts we have been captured by Satan. Even if we participate in any lawless activity, no matter how worthy the cause, we are actually advancing the kingdom of Satan. But if we turn to God and seek Him and receive Him as life according to His Word in the Bible then we can enter into the kingdom of God.

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