​​​​​

​

FREE WILL

​

First, it is important to address a consistent argument of there being no God, and that is… if there truly is a loving God, why does He allow evil and/or bad things to happen? The answer to this question lies within the state of free will. Simply put… we exist not as servants, nor pets, nor slaves to our Creator. We form our lives. We form ourselves. We make our own decisions. We make our own choices. We have the ability to do so… because we have freedom and free will to do so.

 

Also, as free will relates to conscious human choice and morality…  our physical universe functions on operational principles leading to causal events that are not individually directed.

 

  For example:

 

-   A hurricane develops and becomes responsible for the loss of life and property. A hurricane is not directed… but an outcome

    of the laws of Thermodynamics.

 

-   A child dies in its mother’s arms from malnutrition. Malnutrition is not directed… but an outcome of environment, governments

    and society.

 

-   A person commits murder. Murder is not directed… but an outcome of the free will of the individual.

 

-   A cell becomes cancerous. Cancer is not directed… but an outcome of the mechanics of biology, genetics and environment.

 

We as individuals and as a society through our inaction, ignorance, apathy, prejudice, selfishness and greed affect the outcomes of many of the world’s woes. Other hardships are the outcome of nature… a complex and finely designed physical structure that allows our existence as it perpetuates through laws of the physical. There is no stopping a star from going supernova… there is no stopping the formation of a destructive hurricane… as there is no stopping illness and aging. All is the outcome of our physical reality infused with free will. Just as we can make a wrong decision… the physicality of our existence can never be perfect. Such are the consequences of free will in a physical world.

 

Also consider that our physical reality operates with precision, governed by unchanging, elegant mathematical laws. The universe, from the spin of a galaxy to the mechanics of a single cell, adheres strictly to laws of the physical. Every event is an inevitable consequence of preceding causes; in that matter and energy simply react as dictated by physical laws. In this physical framework, human consciousness would be nothing more than complex chemical reactions and predictable outcomes of our genetic history and environment.

 

However, our experience of human consciousness suggests a single profound exception to this physical framework. Our capacity for genuine free will points toward consciousness as a non-physical phenomenon. Therefore, if our capacity for choice is outside the physical chain of cause-and-effect observed in the universe… it would be sensible to consider that it must originate from something other and outside of matter and energy. This unique ability provides compelling evidence of a reality intentionally infused with free will.

 

​

The Atheist's Challenge: “If your God is all-loving and all-powerful, why does He allow evil to exist?”

 

The Christian Response: As a Christian, I affirm that both good and evil exist as natural consequences of free will… the capacity God granted humanity to make genuine moral choices. This moral framework isn't merely a product of evolutionary psychology or social conditioning, but reflects an objective moral law inscribed on human hearts by a divine Moral Lawgiver.

​

The Logical Counter-Challenge: Moreover, this question reveals a fundamental inconsistency in the atheistic worldview. If you reject God's existence, you simultaneously reject any transcendent source of moral authority. Without a Moral Lawgiver, there can be no universal moral law. Without moral law, the categories of "good" and "evil" become meaningless… merely subjective preferences.

​

The Philosophical Conclusion: Therefore, the challenge is self-defeating. You're asking why God permits evil while denying the very foundation that makes "evil" a coherent concept. In a purely materialistic universe, what you call "evil" is simply matter in motion through time… no more morally significant than a hurricane or volcanic eruption... purely natural forces that cause suffering and devastation without committing a moral wrong.

​​