“And they went into Capernaum; and straightway on the sabbath day he entered into the synagogue, and taught. And they were astonished at his doctrine: for he taught them as one that had authority, and not as the scribes.” Mark 1:21-22

The people of Jesus’ day were often dumbfounded by his teachings, not just because of the things he said but also because of the perspective from which he spoke those truths. He conveyed God’s message as though he had been given a measure of authority on this earth. He spoke as one in charge, not someone who was helpless against the power and influence of spiritual forces outside of his control. Evidently, the idea of man’s spiritual authority and influence was something that had been lost in the generation of his day as well.

The last few weeks we have written in response to some tough questions concerning the seeming contradiction between the declared goodness of God and His undeniable sovereignty. Tough questions in our age, not because the answer can’t be found, but because we most often look for the answers to these questions in places they can never be found. Our experiences, our own ideas, the collaborative “brainstorming” of man never lead us to the absolute truth in these matters. There’s only one place to find the answer to these types of questions—that’s in the Word of God.

So, with that in mind, we’ve looked in Genesis 1 and in Luke 4, and we’ve seen evidence that man was originally given the task of managing this planet according to God’s design, but that somewhere along the line (the Fall), Satan crept in and stole that authority and it’s resulting control from man. Then came Jesus. Then unfolded the mystery of the ages and Jesus died and rose again for our forgiveness and justification, and what the devil declared he had at the beginning of the book of Matthew, he had lost to Jesus by the end. In Matthew 28:18, Jesus tells his disciples, “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.” Power had been restored to “God-made-man,” and now, through his Body, that authority and control have the potential to be utilized for God’s desire once again.

Of course, that’s not what we see in practice throughout the world today, is it? We look at what’s going on in the world, and we see a lot that can’t be what God desires. It’s contrary to His written will and testament—the Word of God. If Jesus truly has all power in heaven and in earth, and that power is exercised through his Body, the congregation of believers on this planet, then why the abundance of disfunction? Well, I can say this with much assurance—it’s not because Jesus doesn’t have the right to that control, and it’s not because the Body of Christ doesn’t share that same right. The New Testament is clear on these matters, and God’s Word is true regardless of any “evidence” to the contrary.

So, what is it then? If God is in control once again because of the victory of Jesus, why do we have all this turmoil in the world? Is it because He, in fact, is in control and He desires it? That’s the conclusion of some, but the truths declared in the New Testament concerning the nature and plan of God for humanity don’t bear that out.

What is it then? Well, to put it succinctly, it’s because of one of the fundamental “rights” of humanity, gifted to us by God at Creation. The vast majority of the trouble in this world is due to our ability to choose. God created us with a free will. He loved us enough to build us with the ability to make our own decisions, knowing full well that many would choose to reject His graciousness and embrace wickedness instead.

Many have failed to understand why God would do such a thing and hence rejected the idea of free will altogether, but the Scriptural facts remain as a testimony to this great blessing that many men have twisted into a curse.

Greg Crum is the pastor of Calvary Temple in Lovely.