The problem with wisdom and an increase in knowledge is that
it does not prevent one from doing evil.
In some instances it just makes it harder to catch the evil, or perhaps
even to detect the evil. Ted Bundy was
anything but stupid. He used his
intellect to manipulate, to plan, to calculate, and ultimately to kill. Adolph Hitler was anything but stupid. He used his natural charisma to intimidate,
to inspire fascism, and to systemically with precision, attempt to exterminate
an entire race of people. Charlie
Manson, Pol-Pot, Saddam Hussein, pick your dictator; they do not seem to suffer
from immense stupidity, yet they kill without hesitation despite having an
intellect.
This does not mean that all smart people are evil people,
but it does mean that smart is no defense against evil. Passion as well, seems to be a common motive
for doing evil. Temporary blinding rage,
from jealousy, from envy, from a need for revenge, all can lead one to perform
deeds they would otherwise not contemplate, or at least not execute. So emotion as well, is no defense against
doing evil. Retardation is no defense
either. People not in total control of
their faculties, whether drunk, or high on drugs, or simply with
ultra-low-level IQ’s – have been known to participate in extraordinary evil
behavior. It seems then, we have few if
any natural defenses against being evil.
Yet despite our inability to fight evil effectively, we
continue to blindly reason that we do not engage in it continually. This myopic view of our own motives keeps us
feeling better about ourselves, but also keeps us blind to our true nature, and
our true condition. One of those thought
provoking, scary prophetic texts in the Bible was uttered by Christ Himself
when He said “as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be …”. In the days prior to the flood man engaged is
SO much evil it made God sorry he created us.
Our species stooped to such a degenerate level we caused sorrow in the
heart of God over our very existence.
Clearly we are capable of horror.
I realize that Christ was making an analogy when discussing
this point. But just how far does this
analogy hold up? You see a few things
jump out at me about the story of Noah and the people in his time. Only Noah and his immediate family were saved
in the ark. Not because he was the only
one given the opportunity, but because he was the only one who chose to be
saved. Everyone else passed. They passed, because they found it hard to
believe there was a God; that if a God did exist – Surely He was not capable of
extinguishing the life He created; and what was rain anyway – they had never
seen it before. It did not make
sense. The message Noah preached for 120
years was fodder for comedians. It did
not make sense. It was not logical. It was in the realm of the fantastic.
People then, like us I’m afraid, did not recognize their own
condition as being evil. They did
things. They said things. They lived, and did not see living life in
the dichotomy of evil and good. But
God’s review of them was that even their minds were constantly engaged in evil. What a condemnation of an entire generation
of people. Not them, us. We live in a time right before the final
destruction of evil itself, but refuse to see ourselves as partakers of
evil. We see evil everywhere but in the
mirror. We can’t imagine ourselves as
being perpetually evil. But in the days
of Noah, there was NO-ONE who avoided the flood outside of Noah and his
family. That meant everyone else was
guilty, while stubbornly holding on to their claims of innocence. Sound familiar? Those people had mirrors too, and they saw
the same things in them that you do.
Christians something think that they are immune to this
phenomenon. They are not. It is said the average male has a sexual
thought every 13 seconds. No stats on
women in this area. But for sake of
argument, even if this stat were once in every 13 minutes, do you think every
thought is a pure one. Do you think each
impulse is based on intimacy and the unity that comes from the marriage that
unites God with his creations? Or do you
think perhaps short skirts, low blouse lines, muscular physiques, or a look in
the eyes, … that perhaps the origin of the sexual thought may come from an
entirely different source. One designed
to disregard monogamy as old fashioned, out dated, and unnecessary; a source
bent on the removal of intimacy from sexual expression to be replaced by
objectification of people as mere things.
This is far more likely the reason for the statistic and the battle it
presents to the average male, be it every 13 seconds, every 13 minutes, or even
every 13 years.
Another favorite tool of evil is power. The entire religion of Satan worship is based
on the acquisition of power. Public
service is the face we put on it, but the current political process looks more
like a power grab than an opportunity to serve.
Power over others has an allure all its own. Wanting to have power can drive some to do
evil to acquire it, and few change their patterns once having secured that
which they sacrificed their values to get.
The idea of power is it at polar opposite of the idea of service. Those that choose to serve do not crave
power, but anonymity. It is the humble
that are able to serve, not the powerful, not the arrogant.
The job of taking this lump of clay that is me, and molding
it into something that is remotely capable of existing in perfection without
ruining everything it touches, is an effort worthy of a Creator God. Only a Creator God is capable to extracting
all that is evil within me, and replacing it with all that is worthy. I dare say not a molecule exists within me
that is not constructed of evil materials.
Almost every thought, almost every deed, almost every action must be
completely redone. To be born again is
an analogy designed to reflect this molecular level change we need in our lives
to begin to understand a lack of evil.
Perhaps I understand a little better the fear Christ had on
the cross as he took on the enormity of the weight of evil in this world. He feared His sacrifice might not be enough
to overcome the influence and effects of evil.
He who was sinless feared that once having been in so close proximity
with this evil that perhaps His Father could not look upon Him again
afterwards.
When I look at the enormity of the evil that exists within me,
when I see the vastness, when I realize my continual state, I fear that perhaps
I am just too evil to be saved. I fear
that the work of changing me from this to perfection may be more than even
Christ had thought to do for me. But
then I put aside my fear, and cling to the only hope I will ever have. For if I am to be saved, if I am to be
changed, it will be because He saved me, because He changed me. When evil dies within me, it will be because
He killed it, perhaps even over my objections.
My nature will be to fight Him to hold on to my evil, but I ask Him to
win the fight with me, and change me in spite of me. This is a work ONLY He could do.
If for no other reason, this is why I am so convinced of the
divinity of Jesus Christ, and the plan for our salvation He and His Father have
accomplished. When I look at the true
state of who I am, logic dictates the need of a Creator God who alone is
capable of creating in me what does not naturally exist. It took His death to pay my penalty. It will take His life to make my existence
worth having. It takes His creative
power to bring into existence within me, what cannot exist without Him.
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