A Word about Virginia Tech

All week I have been thinking, pondering, contemplating, and praying about how I should respond to the dreadful evil events that unfolded on Monday morning at Virginia Tech University. Like you, I have probably asked many of the same questions: Why? Did God allow this? If so, why would He? How does this fit with a biblical worldview of a Sovereign God? These are all good questions. And we ask them because they are desperately needed by our human minds in order to try to piece together some sort of rationale for what took place. But in the end we will undoubtedly be left with the conclusion that these kinds of acts are purely irrational. There are no “reasonable” explanations. And the conversations and various responses we hear and see all around us are very revealing of the worldviews we hold. Your response to tragedies like these reveals your worldview, and your view of God.

Perhaps the oldest and most asked question of Christian theology is “Where was God during this tragedy? How could God allow evil like this to happen?” It always comes up at times like these. And it always has come up throughout history whenever evil, tragic events rock our world. In fact these questions go all the way back to the Bible. The questions are asked all throughout the book of Job. And they are asked throughout the gospels in conversations Jesus had with his disciples. It is an age-old question. It is the question of evil. And it always rears its head whenever evil manifests itself in such a dramatically horrifying manner such as at Virginia Tech.

As with any evil that manifests itself in our culture, the terrifying evil of the killings at Virginia Tech bring us face to face with the reality of all human evil. Biblical Christianity does not duck the question of the problem of evil. Christianity faces this challenge honestly, and acknowledges the horror of moral evil and its consequences. The Bible never shies away from assigning responsibility for moral evil. Human beings are capable of committing horrible acts of violence, wickedness, cruelty, and killing.

Here is a paraphrased summary of Dr. Albert Mohler’s On Faith article in the Washington Post from this week that I thought was very insightful and on the mark:

The Bible locates the problem of moral evil, and points directly to the human heart. As the prophet Jeremiah reflected: "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?" (Jeremiah 17:9). In taking moral evil seriously, the Bible affirms that we (human beings) are responsible creatures. Our Creator will hold us fully accountable for our actions. All are sinners. Some sinners embrace evil more explicitly than others—leading to horrors such as these killings on a university campus.

As author C. S. Lewis so powerfully reminds us, we must trust that God's perfect justice will destroy evil and reset the moral equilibrium of the universe.

A central principle of the Christian faith is the claim that, on the cross, Jesus Christ willingly suffered the full force of evil, even unto death—and that in raising Christ from the dead, the Father vindicated Christ's victory over sin, death, and evil.

The Virginia Tech horror reminds us all what human beings can do to each other. The cross of Christ reminds us of what Jesus did for sinners in bearing the full punishment for this evil.

Christianity does not deny the reality of evil or try to hide from its horror. Christians dare not minimize evil nor take refuge in clichés (i.e. “God is in control”). He certainly is, but we must be willing to acknowledge how God is in control and how God has responded to human evil. Additionally, we cannot accept that evil will have the last word. The last word will be the perfect fulfillment of the grace and justice of God. We know this promise from God’s Word. And we trust in it and live by it.

In the meantime, we are witnesses to the true nature of moral failing and tragedy such as the killings at Virginia Tech. We mourn with those who mourn, and weep with those who weep.

None of us can truly know the pain and suffering of these victims and their families? Even now as I pray for those who grieve and suffer, I place my confidence in the assurance that God will bring all things to the perfect conclusion of his judgment. Without this confidence, how could I make sense of what certainly appears to be senseless evil and violence?

Does this still not answer your question of how can I believe in a God who would allow something like this? What answer will satisfy that question? One thing I know for sure, and I will stand by this regardless of what evil I see in the world or even experience personally. And that one thing is: God is GOOD. He is so good that it’s not as if he measures up to some external standard of goodness—He actually determines what goodness is just by being who He is. God is love. God is light and in Him there is no darkness at all. And you may even hear some Christians try to wiggle out of this question by suggesting that God is not omnipotent—meaning, God did not have any control over this circumstance. He is omnipotent. He is in control of all things. God is the creator and He is ultimately responsible for all things, either by making it happen, ordaining it to happen, or allowing it to happen. He is omnipotent and sovereign.

So if He is truly omnipotent, then how can He be good? It would seem, in our minds that a truly good God who was also omnipotent would never allow something like this to happen. I will again say what I said above. The Bible hits every single one of these issues head-on. On every issue that deals with this problem of evil, the Bible never flinches. It tells us that God is omnipotent and in control of His creation. It tells us that God is good and in Him there is no evil at all. And it tells us that we (his creatures) are responsible and will be held accountable for the evil we do.

There is such a clash of worldviews out there, and you have undoubtedly seen, read, or heard them. For instance, the Christian scientists say that there is no evil at all. There is no sickness. It is all just an illusion. Well, those students and families in Blacksburg, VA know all too well that evil is not an illusion. I remember hearing one preacher address the question, why do bad things happen to good people by saying this: “Look, God is good, but He is not in control of all these evil events (translation: God is not omnipotent). He is doing the best He can under the circumstances. He tries his best to make good come out of the evil we choose to do, but it is not always possible. In that case He is always ready with ‘plan B’ whenever ‘plan A’ fails.” Open theists offer similar answers: “God is ultimately resourceful; He’s just not completely sovereign.” In other words, we cannot blame God for this because God could not have prevented it.

All of these are efforts to keep people from blaming God for evil events. For many, the only way to make sense of the answer that God is not to be blamed is to suggest that God could not have done anything about it. For if He could have controlled it, then He would be to blame. And if He is to blame, then He is not good.

The problem with all of this rationale is that it is completely antithetical to the Bible. The Bible says He is in control. The Bible says He is good. There is no “Plan B.” The Lamb—who was slain from the foundation of the world (Revelation 13:8)—is, was, will be, and always has been “Plan A” for the problem of evil. God is not shocked or surprised by the events of this world. God is not stunned or taken aback by our actions. And God’s plan is not thwarted by evil. God’s will has never been thwarted by man’s evil. The story of Joseph teaches us that clearly. God did not just use the evil actions of Joseph’s brothers, the Bible says that God “meant” for Joseph to be sold for “good” reasons according to God’s redemption plan (Genesis 50:20).

So, God ordains and/or allows all that comes to pass. Within that omnipotent sovereignty you will find man doing evil. The distinction that we must make in our understanding of biblical theology is that God did not ordain the evil but “allows” it because it is going to bring about the good will of God. This is consistent throughout the full counsel of God’s Word.

For example, Judas was not forced by God to betray Jesus. But God allowed Judas to act like Judas (an evil sinner) because God’s will of the cross would be thus fulfilled. In order for Judas to act like Judas all God had to do was cease from restraining the evil in Judas’ heart. Thus, God did not create the evil, Judas did.

As you can probably see by now, I for one believe that God is not a casual observer in His own universe. He does not sit idly by with His hands tied and watch the events of His creation unfold, wishing He could do something about it but either not having the ability to or restraining Himself from interfering. That is not the God that is described in the Bible. He is the Lord of all that He has created.

But, He has done something very interesting with human beings. He created us as moral creatures. If you go back to the Garden of Eden in the book of Genesis, you will see that God created Adam and Eve as moral creatures, in His image. What it means to be created in God’s image is to be creatures who have moral capacity—to do good and to do evil; to obey and to disobey. The whole story of the fall of humanity had to do with this very issue of evil: they did evil rather than good. They disobeyed rather than obeyed, and it came with consequences. One of the consequences of their sin (Adam and Eve) is that for all of us in the human world, sin is a very real threat, evil is an all too real reality. And the fact of the matter is that we do not have to look very far to find horrific acts of this evil.

Just looking at the many photos and video captures of the faces on the campus of Virginia Tech University tells us that human beings know all too well the face of moral evil. The biblical Christian response to this, as well as to any tragedy, is to affirm that God is sovereign and Lord over all; that God is good, absolutely righteous. And that God has made us as moral creatures, capable of doing great good and great evil. And the sad story of human sinfulness is that we so often choose the evil rather than the good. The Bible doesn’t say that some people are sinners, but that all are sinners. But there are some sinners who give themselves unreservedly with abandon to their sin, and that is the only explanation for what took place on Monday morning in Virginia.

And the only HOPE to find in what took place is that God, who is ultimately good and sovereign, is working together in this evil—as well as in all the evil we experience—for good for those who love Him and who are called according to His purpose.

Whenever something like this happens in our world it tends to put Christians on the stage with onlookers saying, “Okay, how will you respond?” It certainly puts us on the spot. And so my word to you is this. Respond with truth. Respond with grace. Respond with the compassion of Jesus Christ. Respond ultimately with the Gospel. And most of all I would exhort you with this: to respond with a theology that is honoring to God rather than with one that simply makes us feel better. Do not be quick to rationalize in order to make sense of evil. Hold fast to the timeless truth of God’s Word. To me, the theology of a sovereign, holy, omnipotent, loving and good God is the most comforting thing there is. To know that we have a Lord of lords and a King of kings, whose supremacy reigns over all people, all events, and all circumstances; that is what helps me rest and have joy even in times of tragedy. Because I trust Him; even when it is difficult to accept the events and the results of the evil in the world. I trust Him.

Even if just a little, I hope you feel more equipped to converse with your friends and co-workers on this. Do not overlook the incredible opportunity you may have to be a witness to the truth of the Gospel as a result of this event.

May God bless you this week, church.

Comments

[Josh Lynch]

Chris,

Thanks for your analytical thoughts and relevent commentary. The tragedy in Blacksburg is one of a handful of horrible events that still haunt the lives of the "natives" here in the D.C. area. I say natives in quotes because this area is very transient; It seems sometimes there are more people from other places here than real Virginians.

Remember, the 2001 Pentagon terrorist attack is still fresh in the minds and hearts of people here. That momentous tragedy still haunts those who were here and who know someone who was killed or hurt in the attack.

In 2002-2003, the Maryland/Virginia "Beltway Sniper" shootings were terrorizing random citizens as they read books on benches, put gas in their taxis, locked up their business, even while mowing their grass and sitting in the parking lot. All shot dead at the hands of two men driving around incognito with a vain and evil plan to hold the public hostage until the federal government met their demands.

Now, in 2006, another evil, unprovoked killing spree at the hands of a fallen world that we cannot put our hope in. For every doctor or lawyer to keep the idea of progress around for the humanist, there is a Cho Seung-hui. The idea that the world is getting better is an illusion.

God is good, mankind are sinners. Chris put it right. There is no "human spirit" to prevail. God prevails. His nature, his beauty and his likeness are all around us. (Romans 2) God's beauty is evident, our ugliness is too. I can only hope that the families, those affected by this tragedy, and those who have heard will come to know God the Father in their time of need and healing. Only He can truly heal our brokeness and incompleteness.

[Chad Dodson]

Josh,

Of all the things that you said this really stuck with me: "Now, in 2006, another evil, unprovoked killing spree at the hands of a fallen world that we cannot put our hope in." People try desperately to put their hope in this fallen world. They put their hope in infomercials, diet pills, self-help manifestos, and a whole litany of things in which it is useless to place one's hope. People honestly think that things such as this are going to make them whole and fix the brokenness that they feel is evident to the world around them. In light of such me centered thinking it is little wonder to me that when horrendous tragedies occur, like what has transpired in Virginia, the response of many is to say, “Who is this God of the Christians and where was he when this was going on?” I think many are empowered to spout such a question by the fact that their hope is not in God, but rather in a fallen, sinful world that doesn’t always make the kind of sense that they think it should. If all your hope lies in something that is not perfectly sovereign, perfectly righteous, and perfectly just, you should prepare yourself for great disappointment and frustration throughout the entirety of your life. The simple fact of the matter is that God was God before the killing spree in Virginia, during the killing spree, and after the killing spree. He was also perfectly sovereign, perfectly just, and perfectly righteous at every stage of that occurrence. He was God before, during, and after the Holocaust. He was God before, during and after 9/11. He was God before, during and after the Spanish Inquisition. He was God before, during and after the Salem witch trials. He was God before, during and after the reign of Stalin (which claimed the lives of at least 3 million people…many of whom were guilty of nothing). He was God before, during and after the Vietnam war (which easily claimed the lives of well over a million people). He is God every year of the current war in Iraq, which has claimed the lives of well over 100,000 people. He is God every day of our lives when about 126,000 babies are being aborted…that’s a daily figure by the way (which makes over 40 million abortions per year). If you count up the number of recorded fatalities in the Bible (I mean the ones where the Bible gives us a specific number) the total comes out to over a million. God was still God over all that. I say all these things not to minimize what happened in Virginia, but rather to highlight, as starkly as possible, the points that Josh and Chris have already made. There is but one place in which we can place our hope and our trust. That place is, of course, our perfectly sovereign, perfectly just, and perfectly righteous God.

Atrocity is a part of our history. If you need further evidence of this then I suggest you go to this website: http://users.erols.com/mwhite28/warstatz.htm Prepare to upset yourself if you look through this website. You’ll scarcely be able to believe the figures that you see. This website will help you see a more full face of evil throughout time. It will also give you new respect for the idea that God has defeated sin in the flesh. Look at what God has defeated and currently is defeating in the flesh. All atrocity whether ancient, current, or future, will under the wrath of God. He will judge perfectly. He will condemn righteously. Nothing that has ever happened in our history has changed or diminished the sovereignty of God. Nothing ever will.

“You will say to me then, ‘Why does he still find fault? For who can resist his will?’ But who are you, O man, to answer back to God?” (Romans 9:19-20) Who are we to ask of God, “God where are you when tragedy strikes? Why don’t you do something?” He did do something. He planned it out before the world was even made. He brought forth the remedy 2000 years ago. As a songwriter once wrote, “The only freedom we have is in a man nailed to a tree.” Christ is the something that many people don’t want. This something isn’t good enough to ease everyone’s mind. We want immediate justice. We want immediate results. We want immediate retribution. I say this to people who insist on asking, ““Where was God during this tragedy? How could God allow evil like this to happen?” God has made peace by the blood of his cross. Evil is not greater than him. Bad things will always happen, even to “good” people, but God remains greater than all tragedy. Grace through Christ still reigns. Do not seek the hope or things of the world. Instead, learn to see the world through the perspective of the Bible. To do this is to see that all things are working out for the good of the counsel of the will of God. Yes this includes atrocity. It’s difficult to embrace but the difficulty of embracing it does not change the ultimate truth of it. “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and he will draw near to you.” (James 4:7-8)