Dr. Leighton Flowers, Director of Apologetics for Texas Baptists, reads an article written by Ravi Zacharias on the Sovereignty of God and the responsibility of man. Ravi clearly holds to the same interpretation of Romans 9 as many Traditionalists.
The central issue in this dialogue is straightforward: how do we account for evil in a universe that God created? Either God is the author of evil or He is not. To say God is the author of evil is unbiblical and horrifying. If He is not the author of evil, however, then where did it come from? The only reasonable answer we are left with is “free will.” This answer, fortunately, is in accordance with the Bible, logic, and our own experience.” — Chad Meister
The Problem of Evil
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Perhaps the thorniest issue in Christian apologetics is commonly known as the problem of evil. How can the existence of a good, all-powerful, and all-knowing Creator be squared with the world in which we find ourselves, riddled as it is with evil and human suffering? One common Christian response is known as the free will defense. Not all Christians believe in free will, however. How would a strict adherent of Calvinism, for example, address the problem of evil?
In the point-counterpoint that follows, Chad Meister, assistant professor of philosophy at Bethel College, Indiana, tackles the problem of evil from the free will position while E. Calvin Beisner, associate professor of historical theology and social ethics at Knox Theological Seminary, Florida, provides an apologetic for the same problem from a Reformed perspective. They then interact with and rebut each other’s presentations.
Both the free will and determinist positions are well represented in historic Christian orthodoxy. The question is, which approach is more consistent with Scripture and sound reason? We invite you to decide for yourself as you consider the cases for both sides made by these two able Christian scholars. (read more)
Dwellings in The Giver.
Greenbelt, Maryland.