Why do some people do bad things?

Why do some people act in accordance to the law while other people willfully and knowingly disobey it? How we ultimately answer this question is going to depend upon what worldview we have when addressing this issue. From the secular perspective theories range from socio-economic motivations, biological or genetic disorders, our exposure to positive and negative influences and multiple others. And while certainly, these can all be risk factors nothing in any of these theories provides any decisive link between the theorized cause and its effect. For instance, not all poor people are criminals and therefore while poverty might contribute to the problem it is not a determining factor.

However, as God fearing Christians we needn’t be constrained to the physical realm as is too often the case. I heard of a pastor who argued that everyone is born with two wolves. A good wolf and a bad wolf, and which ever wolf we feed the most is going to become dominant. Essentially what this pastor was arguing for was how many positive verses negative influences we are exposed to determines if we are law-abiding or not. Therefore, for this pastor we should surround ourselves with positive influences so that we become law-abiding citizens. However, this approach takes God out of the equation completely. We, of our own free will, determine our “fate” for lack of a better term. Ignoring the divine providence that is involved in all aspects of our lives. Instead as Jonathan Edwards argues,  God “wills that evil come to pass…that good may come of it” (Edwards, “Concerning the Divine Decrees,” 542). This isn’t to say that God is the author of evil or that He does evil. Rather God uses evil so that His glory might be proclaimed and His purposes served . There are numerous examples of former prisoners finding Christ in prison or going into prison ministry when they are released, but these are just the ones that are readily apparent to us. There are many reasons that we may not be aware of as to why God allows certain sins. However, as Christians we believe that God does have a plan and a purpose for everything that is done in the world. Even though we may mean certain things like making false claims or performing illegal acts for evil God is able to use them for good (Genesis 50:20).

“The reason that people do evil or that evil things happens is that God allows it to happen. All of the devils, demons and forces of evil are controlled by God and subject to God’s ultimate authority (Amos 3:6, Isaiah 45:7, Job 42:2, Proverbs 16:33). This is a fundamental truth that helps explain some perplexing things in the Bible; namely, that God often expresses His will to be one way and then acts to bring about another state of affairs. God opposes hatred toward His people, yet ordained that His people be hated in Egypt (Genesis 12:3; Psalm 105:25—“He turned their hearts to hate his people.”). He hardens Pharaoh’s heart, but commands him to let His people go (Exodus 4:21; 5:1; 8:1). He makes plain that it is sin for David to take a military census of His people, but ordains that he do it (2 Samuel 24:1, 10). He opposes adultery, but ordains that Absalom should lie with his father’s wives (Exodus 20:14; 2 Samuel 12:11). He forbids rebellion and insubordination against the king, but ordains that Jeroboam and the ten tribes rebel against Rehoboam (Romans 13:1; 1 Samuel 15:23; 1 Kings 12:15–16). He opposes murder, but ordains the murder of His Son (Exodus 20:13; Acts 4:28). He desires all men to be saved, but effectually calls only some (1 Timothy 2:4; 1 Corinthians 1:26–30; 2 Timothy 2:26).” (John Piper, Desiring God Meditations of a Christian Hedonist, 148-149)

God does work through evil and allows evil things to happen as seen is the examples given above. To simply overlook this fact or try to minimize God’s role and control over the forces of evil and how evil can be used for the glory of God misses the mark. While God puts us in situations and provides us with life experiences that shape us into being “good” or “bad” each and every aspect of our lives is under the sovereignty of God. Either God allows us to succumb to our human nature and sin or by His grace He allows us to do good. Or to use an analogy given by Jonathan Edwards in his famous sermon “Sinners at the Hand of an Angry God” people are like pieces of lead floating in the air. By all natural forces, we are doomed to fall into temptation and sin, however, it is by the grace of God that we are held up and lifted that we might glorify His name. Man isn’t a blank slate or neutral going into the world with two wolves to feed, we are by nature wretched sinners. If it wasn’t for the grace of God the world would be Leviathan, chaos, evil and selfishness would abound. However, it is not because God has graciously held our piece of lead up, he has not let us fall into the sins and temptations but lifts us up.