There’s a story about how God created the world in six days. Imagine with me, the universe was dark, and God was hovering over its form. Then He called forth light, water, and the heavens and brought 1.6 million galaxies into existence.
He created the moral law that’s written into our minds and showed us his divine moral standard. He painted the first sunset in broad strokes of pink, blues, and orange. He continued working like this day after day for six days.
He also created mankind out of dust and breathed his breath of life into us. And each time something came into existence, it was exquisite, perfect, and He called it “Good.”
So, if the world was so perfect, beautiful, and good, where did sin come from? It even says in the Bible, everything He made was “very good,” (Genesis 1:31). How did sin enter the world and why didn’t he do anything about it? Or did he?
Where Did Sin Come From?
Sin entered the cosmos due to an act of rebellion against God, not because God created sin. 1 John 3:4 states that “sin is lawlessness.” Sin is any violation of God’s laws or standards. Romans 1:28-32 and Galatians 5:19-21 give us lists of sins. However, the lists are not all-inclusive.
The Bible opens not with the beginning of sin or evil, but with the presence of unexplained evil. Adam is created innocent, and Satan is already there as the serpent. The serpent already hates man and wants to take him down with him because he opposes the God of creation. That is where the Bible begins.
The very first sin in the world is found in Ezekiel. Here, we find the story about Lucifer. He was a perfect, wise, and beautiful angel (Ezekiel 28:14). But then he rebelled: “You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created till wickedness was found in you” (Ezekiel 28:15).
He wanted to be better than God. Scripture hints at the reason Satan chose to sin: “Your heart became proud on account of your beauty, and you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor” (Ezekiel 28:17; 1 Timothy 3:6). Satan’s fall took place at some point before he became a serpent in the Garden of Eden in Genesis 3.
After being thrown to the earth, Satan tempted Eve and Adam to not follow the command Adam was given in Genesis 2:16-17, and he has continued that practice ever since (Matthew 4:1–11).
In other words, Satan was created good, but he fell from his proper place. So, God created all things, including Satan. That would lead one to think that, if He created everything, He must have created evil as well. However, even though sin and evil exist, God is certainly not the author.
Adam brought sin into the world when he chose to disobey God and eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Romans 5:12 says, “Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned.”
The Greek word for “came” in Romans 5:12 is eiserchomi. The word means “go into” or “to come into” with the focus on the initial act. That is, when Adam disobeyed, sin entered or came into the world. It did not exist in the world until he disobeyed.
Why Did God Allow Sin?
Today, we live in a world filled with, tears, tragedy, and terror. Sometimes, it’s hard to walk outside our front door with so many dying from the pandemic or watch the news with videos and images of protestors destroying cities, looting stores, and harming each other. We think, “What is this world coming to? Where is God in the midst of this?”
Why didn’t God create us without the ability to sin? Because God wanted us to have the ability to choose him. God could either make sin impossible, or He could make beings free to choose, but He could not logically do both. He didn’t want us to be forced to love Him.
There would never be a meaningful experience of His mercy and love, His justice and righteousness. He wanted us to come to Him and choose Him with our own free will. Because free will exists, sin exists. Each day, we make choices that draw us closer to God or choices that perpetuate the sin in our hearts.
That’s Not the End of the Story
Right now, we are living in a fallen world between the two gardens. The Garden of Eden where everything happened and the Eden Restored.
“Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him” (Revelation 22:1-2).
In other words, as creation aches and groans under the heaviness of our choices, we know God will cleanse the earth of sin and evil. He will create a new heaven and a new earth without sin. Jesus will destroy every authority and every power that exalts itself against God — including every sin in your own soul.
He yearns to sanctify us completely and bring us into the Kingdom but He is waiting until everyone has a chance to make the choice to love him or not.
James says, “What a gift life is to those who stay the course! You’ve heard, of course, of Job’s staying power, and you know how God brought it all together for him at the end. That’s because God cares, cares right down to the last detail” (James 5:11).
For further reading:
Did Evil Exist Before Adam and Eve Sinned?
Why Did God Create the Forbidden Fruit in the First Place?
Does God See All Sins as Equal to One Another?
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