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God Is Free Of Evil
God is free of evil because of who He is and His transcendence over His creation. But is He still considered the “author of evil”?
Looking at people like the authors of the Westminster Confessions, Jonathan Edwards, and John Frame we see the Reformed tradition is not caught off guard by this claim that results in recognizing God’s complete sovereignty over all things – including evil. Good analogies exist to show the clarity of this paradox as long as we recognize that all analogies break down.
We look at what God’s transcendence, intentions, decrees, and knowledge allows Him to decree evil while not being evil Himself or His actions be evil. God is responsible for all things but those responsibilities can be deficient in cause. In similar fashion, God’s commands that man ought to do something (or not do something) might seem to need an allowance in an ability to do/not do those things but that’s a misunderstanding of the ought/can distinction.
God is good because of His nature and standing above His creation. Man, as His creatures, are not good because of his nature and standing in God’s creation.
Timeline:
00:00 – Introduction
01:53 – Is God Responsible For Evil?
03:36 – The Transcendent Author Of Evil
04:02 – The Westminster On God & Evil
04:52 – John Frame On God & Evil – & Shakespeare
06:08 – Jonathan Edwards On God & Evil
07:08 – God’s Transcendence Over Evil Man’s Actions
09:41 – All Analogies Break Down
11:01 – God Has No Evil Intentions In His Decrees
12:06 – God Is The Deficient Cause Of Evil
14:46 – Moral Responsibility Is Tied To Intentions
16:15 – Knowledge Of Good & Evil
17:32 – Intentions Of The Heart
20:45 – Ought Does Not Imply Can
24:25 – The Nature Of God Allows Him To Be Free Of Evil
29:11 – Conclusion
The episode link is cavetothecross.com/ep158/
Books mentioned in this episode:
What about Evil? A Defense of God’s Sovereign Glory by Scott Christensen
Kindle – https://amzn.to/2UeV3tt
Hardcover – https://amzn.to/3xGsxP6
Logos Link
ChristianBook Link
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