"In this sense Good has already won, and its victory can only get larger."
I think this is key. It seems to me that the God-outside-of-time idea leads many to have real difficulty coping with evil's evident victories. But the way you've laid it out, it makes more sense. It reminds me of the building on a rock versus building on the sand comparison.
25 April 2021 at 18:44
Duh, yeah! Evil is stronger than Good if you are talking about the trends evident in this mortal life, here on earth; and if you are discerning from a Christian point of view. This is what it is like to live in a world where evil rules at the highest level and in all nations; and where every week brings new evil plans and policies, every day brings new evil news and evil interpretations. So, at least in the human world; evil is already strongest and evil is winning; especially because this is unrecognized. Quantitatively evil is triumphant; and few people seem even to want what Jesus Christ offers. Yet this material world is evanescent, subject to 'entropy', degeneration and death; thus each human life is temporary, our human civilization and society is temporary; the existence of the planet and even the sun is temporary. Evil, therefore, is triumphant - but in the material, earthly world; which is temporary. But the true earthly war is spiritual, not material; and spiritually; evil is damnation - which is at most only a delaying of death. Therefore, ultimately Good is still winning; for at least so long as there are any Men still being resurrected and going to enlarge Heaven. Only Good is everlasting. So, no matter how much evil may triumph in the short term, no matter how much evil destroys and how many souls choose evil - there already is eternal Good that cannot be destroyed and will endure forever. And this eternal good is being added to, and is growing; and itself has the property of creation so will continue to grow - eternally. In this sense Good has already won, and its victory can only get larger. Of course, evil is real, and its ill effects are real. Self-damned souls are committed to evil and are lost from what might have been a larger Heaven; what those unique souls would have brought to Heavenly life has been destroyed. This is why we fight evil in general - and the fact that these damned souls may include those we love, who also are lost to Heaven, is what makes the fight personal and urgent. But the basic shape of reality is that evil is (here, now) strongest on this earth, and this is a Bad Ting and needs to be resisted and fought-back against; but since Jesus Christ Good has irrevocably won in an eternal and ultimate sense. This earth is a world of entropy. We will all die, and death is a necessary preliminary to resurrection: hence death is (for a Christian) ultimately Good. The Big Question is whether you and I (and those we love) want to join-with and partake-of this everlasting Good - or reject it and choose spiritual death.
"Is evil stronger than Good?"
1 Comment -
"In this sense Good has already won, and its victory can only get larger."
I think this is key. It seems to me that the God-outside-of-time idea leads many to have real difficulty coping with evil's evident victories. But the way you've laid it out, it makes more sense. It reminds me of the building on a rock versus building on the sand comparison.
25 April 2021 at 18:44