Good vs Evil

When I was in the sixth grade I got a temporary job on a local truck farm. The truck farm advertised through my school that they needed workers to perform various tasks and that the farm would pick those workers up on Saturday morning, take them in a truck to the farm for a day of work and then bring them back at the end of the work day.

While riding in the truck on the way to the farm, some of the boys who were older than I pressed on me to smoke a cigarette. “Come on, it’s easy,” they said. “You can do it. You’ll like it.” But it held no appeal for me at all. So they pressured me, and ridiculed me until I finally agreed to light one. But I failed to get it lit, because I didn’t realize I had to “suck” air through it to light it. This brought more ridicule, but I refused to go any further down that path.

The point to be made in relating this incident is not to highlight what did happen so much as it is to highlight what did not happen. What happened was that some boys boldly and forcefully set upon me to do something of disrepute. What did not happen was someone, anyone, speaking up to encourage me not to capitulate to the temptation being pushed on me. It seems a law of human nature that the forces of evil are more aggressive in pursuing their goals than are the forces of good.

There is an abundant supply of those who would push innocent adolescents to try “it” because they might like “it.” The same cliched approach is used pushing innocent youth to drink alcoholic beverages, or to engage in illicit sexual activity. I would dare say we have all experienced this phenomenon from one side or the other.

It is the dynamic operating in the first story of human interaction after creation found in Genesis 3. God created man and woman and placed them in the Garden of Eden, which He also created and which was the perfect home for His created beings. He explained to them their situation, and gave them one restrictive rule (for their own good.) He told them not to eat of the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden.

God, the good, explained, and He told, and He left. Satan, the bad, had other plans, and he didn’t just leave man alone to find his own way. He gave advice and recommendations. He argued against the reasoning of Eve and the statements of God. He made suggestions for action that led her to break the only restrictive rule which God had given. Adam, who should have been a force for good, instead stood by and did nothing. In fact, he joined in the sin with Eve. And so began mankind’s history of forsaking righteousness and following after evil.

On a personal level, those who would be good find obstacle after obstacle placed in their way by those who favor evil. Associates at school will push those trying to follow God to cheat on tests, to break school rules, to steal items from stores, to lie and deceive, to drink, and etc. Adults experience the same thing among business associates. Some are proud of their ability to skirt the requirements and standards of proper practice and cheat others in their dealings and anxious to get others to share in their behavior. Such things are the basis of movies and novels. Good people don’t apply pressure in the same way to get evil people to behave more properly.

Throughout the Cold War, the USSR, a ruthless dictatorship in which people lived in fear of each other and the state, was often aggressive and hostile, engaging in armed intrusions to conquer other nations and bring them into subjugation in order to benefit themselves. Germany in WWI, and Germany, Italy, and Japan in WWII, fit this same mold. North Viet Nam warring against South Viet Nam is an example. Iraq invading Kuwait is another, and there are many more.

Nations that allow citizens the right and opportunity to influence decisions, and to have freedom to speak and practice religion generally don’t try to force dictatorships to become democracies through warfare. The United States has allowed Cuba to exist and conduct its affairs for years without actively engaging in warfare to overthrow the dictatorial leadership. Israel has been defensive when necessary, but has never instigated war with the dictatorships that surround it. It is the evil nations that act aggresively and in a threatening manner against the good nations.

On the highest level of good versus evil, we find the same dynamic to hold. Satan can use every trick, every deceitful path that exists, to force us into evil. God demonstrates His love, explains His desires, and hopes we choose righteousness. We must exercise our own free will or we will never be good (to the extent that a human can be “good.”)

Consider this question; can a person be tempted into being good? The answer is, “no.” Can a person be tempted into being evil? Most definitely. Temptation implies a perceived benefit. If something is tempting to me it is because I see some benefit resulting from my acceptance of temptation. If offering me $20 to help an elderly lady across a street tempts me into performing, I would not be doing it to help the lady, but to help me. I’m acting out of selfishness, not altruism. I was tempted into “doing” good, but that’s not the same as being good.

There is only one reason for which a person can do a righteous, act: explicitly because it is righteous. If I do good because it is good, and for no other reason, then I am being good (in worldly terms. It is impossible for a human to be righteous on God’s terms, Isaiah 64:6.) Any other reason than “because it is good” implies temptation of some kind which means I am being selfish, not good.

Righteousness will always labor under limitations at which evil scoffs. There are certain things that God, being righteous, cannot do. For example, the Bible spells out that God cannot lie, Titus 1:2 and Numbers 23:19. God desires righteousness for us. That means there are certain things we cannot do. Phil. 2:3, “do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit.”

God cannot tempt us into doing a good act because that would cause us to act out of selfishness, not righteousness. Neither can God trick us, bully us, intimidate us, or force us into doing good because in none of those cases are we being good. We might be gullible, or fearful, or conniving, or weak, but we would not be “good,” as God wants us to be.

Satan, on the other hand, has no restraints. He is pure evil. He can threaten us, frighten us, trick us, confuse us, and more. If any of it causes us to slip up and do the wrong thing, Satan wins.

We have a high calling, an altruistic and righteous calling. Our choice is between good and evil, and reality is that the deck is stacked. In fact, without God on our side our destiny would be hopeless. But God is on our side. He has demonstrated His love. He has explained our situation and His will. All He can do now is hope. We must choose. Choose righteousness.