4.3 Good and Evil Seen from the Viewpoint of Purpose Having already defined good and evil (cf. Creation 4.3.2), let us further examine the nature of good and evil from the viewpoint of purpose.
Had Adam and Eve loved each other as God intended and formed a four position foundation centered on God, they would have established a good world. But when they loved each other with a purpose contrary to God’s intentions and established a four position foundation centered on Satan, they ended up forming an evil world.
This demonstrates that although good and evil elements or actions may take the same form, their true nature may be discerned through their fruits. They yield their fruits in accordance with the divergent purposes they pursue.
We find many cases where an aspect of human nature conventionally considered evil is, in fact, good if its purpose is directed toward the Will of God.
Let us take the example of desire. Desire, which people often consider sinful, is actually God-given. Joy is the purpose of creation, and joy can only be attained when desire is fulfilled. If we had no desire, we could never experience joy.
If we had no desire, we would not have any aspiration to receive God’s love, to live, to perform good deeds, or to improve ourselves. Without desire, therefore, neither God’s purpose of creation nor the providence of restoration could be fulfilled. An orderly, harmonious and flourishing human society would be impossible.
Desires, being part of our God-given nature, are good when they bear fruit for the purpose of God’s Will, or are evil when they bear fruit for the purpose of Satan’s will.
On this basis, we can deduce that even this evil world will be restored to goodness and become the Kingdom of Heaven on earth if it changes its direction and purpose according to the guidance of Christ (cf. Eschatology 2.2). |