My brother-in-law (an unbeliever) posted the above.
I responded the following:
And they didn’t prevent men from killing the Savior of the world.
What you are referring to is often referred to as “the problem of evil.”
Changes to Policy will not prevent evil. It only allows those who have a monopoly on violence to make the rules.
Read Rothbard’s “Anatomy of the State.” Like you Rothbard was an Atheist, only he did not make government his god.
I believe in Prayer. And I believe in God, the Son, and the Holy spirit.
I believe evil exists. And I believe God permits evil to preserve free-will. For without free-will, there cannot be the opposite of evil.
Prayer changes us. Ask and your Father in Heaven is listening.
If there is no God, then nothing matters. Human life does not matter. But you do matter. And what individuals freely choose to do matters.
Atheists will blame God (who they claim does not exist) when things like this happen.
Those who have made their politics their religion will cry out to false gods to save them.
Don’t remove what is good, because of the evil done by some. And don’t give the corrupted more power over others, though they make promises to you that they cannot keep.
God allowed evil to brutally kill Jesus, so that all may see the love of God, but not all will see. And for many, a stumbling block (1 Corinthians 1:23).
I’m not here to Bible-thump. I speak these truths so that some may listen. Government will not solve “the problem of evil.” Only God conquered death and sin, and by His grace, so can the fallen human race. But, He does not force you to be good (which would not be a choice at all).
God created us in His image. I know you have heard this, but what does it mean? It means the Creator gave us the ability to create. What we do with this gift can be used to glorify God or used for evil purposes. It means that the One who is Love, created us to also love and to be loved. What we do with this gift can be put into practice or can be rejected.
I define “evil” as anything that is not of God’s desired will, which is different from God’s permissive will. If you would like to dive deeper into the theology behind why evil exists, I would start here.
The answer to the problem of evil is not rejecting God and embracing government. It may seen pragmatic. It may feel efficacious and give you a sense of self-purpose, but it is disordered and dare I say “evil.”