Evil Is Defeated

Humans have a fascination with evil. We like to hear the death toll, see the video of the devastation, and stare at the faces of suffering. Celebrity divorces, political scandals, even O.J. Simpson’s infamous low-speed chase by police after being accused of murdering his wife, Nicole Brown, kept us glued to our TV sets. We couldn’t get enough.

Unlike OJ huddled in the back seat of Al Cowlings’ SUV, God lets us know we have control of the steering wheel of our hearts. We have a choice. We don’t have to love bad. Instead, we can love Him.

He warns us not to get into “evil imaginations” (Romans 1:30), mostly because we are good at it. We like to develop skill sets for advancing evil. We even invent new types of evil because we truly believe evil has power.

It does, but it really doesn’t. It only has the power we give it. Goodness is much greater, so this begs the question: why should we be impressed with something inferior? Satan has been defeated, so why be defeated by a defeated devil?

You see, it was actually our rebellion against God that caused us to fall in love with evil and give it power over us. It’s why evil can hurt us. We let it.

There is a solution. When you fall in love with God, your childish infatuation with evil fades. Give the cold shoulder to romantic notions of darkness and discover the true adventure of falling in love with God’s goodness. It never fails.

“… backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, and those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same, but also approve of those who practice them.” Romans 1:30-32