Help me define EVIL.

How do you define good and evil? You take a minute to answer. Is good what feels right ? What about evil? Is evil what hurts you? What if it does not hurt you but hurts another? Is evil what hurts others even if it does not hurt you ? What if it does not 'hurt' anybody in anyway? What if someone decided to do something 'awful' in the streets that literally 'hurt nobody', would that be termed evil in anyway? What is 'evil' in your view? It seems 'Good' has much more definitions these days than 'evil'. So how do we know what 'evil' is since everything seems 'good' or 'fine' or 'up to you' in our time and no body really finds anything 'evil' anymore. Has 'evil' simply ceased to exist? Well 'evil' does not have a clear cut definition if defined outside of God's nature: His ways, His purpose and His goodness. If evil is defined in reference to God's principles, His likes and dislikes,  we all have a perimeter of operation. If not, evil will only be a term defined in each person's little kingdom called 'personal life' by a little King called 'personal conscience'.  

The closer we draw to God, the more closely we begin to have a distinct understanding of 'Good' and 'evil', because He begins to reveal to us what He dislikes. He reveals even those things that seem 'okay' to us but which He desires us to desist from. It may be as simple as the way we spend money on certain stuff, or a conversation we engage in or the way we speak about someone. You may not out rightly 'insult' a person but the Holy Spirit can chastise you for a remark, saying for instance, 'that was not right', 'that was judgmental', or 'do not mock others in that way again.' and so forth. When these promptings come from God through his word, it permits us to perceive more and more what is displeasing to God, and to adjust our behavior to what is Good in His sight.
In Isaiah 5:20-21 the Lord warns us seriously about wrong mixed up judgement of our way of life as a people. It says: Woe to those who call evil good and good evil,who put darkness for light and light for darkness...woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight. Evil is what defiles and distorts the purpose of God and goes against His nature and His will for us. 

 5 This is what the Lord says:
“Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who draws strength from mere flesh and whose heart turns away from the Lord' . (jeremiah 17:5)
So as children of God, our hearts need to go after God and after the ways of God. You need to learn to know your father and submit to His ways, then shall you please him. God says the times when we used to say 'okay, follow your heart, what does your heart tell you' has to cease. Our hearts and conscience depending on our spiritual maturity can be faulty, it cannot be trusted, it is not perfect ! so 'follow the voice of God'. The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? (jeremiah 17:9)


We cannot rely on our conscience If we want to remain in the will of God. Our hearts can be deceptive in our judgment of Good and Evil so we need HELP from God to discern and know. In this world of compromise and corruption, there is a thin line between GOOD and EVIL and we as Christians must go with God's definition. May the Lord help us define GOOD and EVIL and may He help us discern between both.



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