Christian Basics No 2: What’s wrong with the world? ‘How can a God of love allow suffering?’ Many people struggle with such questions, however the Bible helps us to understand how sin affects both our own lives and the world. Genesis provides us with a picture of how sin entered the world. In Genesis 2:16-17, God gave Adam and Eve both permission (‘You are free to eat from any tree in the garden’) and a prohibition (‘But you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil’), alongside warning them of the consequences of disobedience (‘For when you eat of it you will surely die’). In Genesis 3, they broke God’s law by eating fruit from the forbidden tree. As a result, their eyes were opened to the nature of sin (they knew shame) and their relationship with God was broken (they hid from Him). As a consequence, death entered their lives. This story reminds us that God gives us free will (an essential aspect of being human) to choose whether God will be at the centre of our lives or not. The Bible offers different ways of describing how sin: a spirit of independence: we don’t want God to interfere with our lives, preferring our own ideas, plans and ways of behaviour. ignoring the Maker’s instructions: if you ignore user instructions, you only have yourself to blame when things go wrong! God created us to function with Him at the centre of our lives. missing the mark: we fail an exam even when we miss the pass mark by one mark: ‘All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God’ (Romans 3:23). In a famous correspondence in The Times under the title ‘What’s wrong with the world?’ GK Chesterton’s letter simply said: ‘Dear Sir, I am.’ (Paul Hardingham begins this year-long series on the very foundations of our Christian faith.) (Material taken from Parish Pump, web site for Church Magazines). 19
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