Day 1:Recently I have been studying the concept of opposites. In cases of opposites they usually include two extremes that have a purpose in working together to form a complimentary result. An example would be ‘hot’ and ‘cold’. In their extremes they are harsh and brutal producing damage and destruction. But when they are utilized in compliment to one another they yield a result of ‘warmth’. ‘Wet’ and ‘dry’ is another example. In their extremes they produce flood and famine, but when used in compliment to one another they yield agriculture.
But…there is one set of characteristics that we normally consider opposites that I must question the validity of. It is the concept of ‘good’ and ‘evil’. In their extremes only one is bad and they serve no complimentary purpose on one another. One must then question if they are truly opposites. The concept of opposites is that the two extremes are equal and opposing forces that yield purpose when they come together. To say that evil is an equal and opposing compliment to good is an inaccurate assessment of the concept. If we believe that all that is good is of God and all that is evil is of Satan then to say that evil is an equal and opposing force is to implicate that Satan is some sort of opposing equal to God… and he is not that. Evil does not even come close to manifesting the power of good. They are not equal in any sense of the word. In light of that I must ask… what is the concept of ‘good’ and ‘evil’ all about then since they do not follow any of the rules of opposites. Thoughts… ideas?
Day 2:
New thoughts for a new day…
Good = pleasant, agreeable, appropriate, to be delightful, joyful, to be pleasing.
Evil = bad, disagreeable, malignant, giving pain, injury, calamity, to break, shatter, to be broken.
So I guess they are opposites but not in the sense of a complete reverse characteristic. In order for evil to exist there must first be good. When good is shattered or broken then we come to the result of evil. It does not work in the reverse however because you do not need to have evil first in order to then have good. Evil is only a result of shattering what is good. Good can come when evil is fixed or restored but the ultimate source was always good.
This thought process came about when I was trying to define the source of evil. We know that for Adam and Eve the source was in the serpent’s presentation of a broken logic to them. But where did it come from before that? In Satan’s fall from grace it was as a result of his pride in something of genuine goodness. He was created beautiful and had extreme talents for glorifying God but he took that good and broke it, wanting instead to be glorified himself. He could not however be the source of evil, since Satan has no creative power and therefore could not create evil. Evil’s ultimate source is good. It is the brokenness and shattering of a pure intent. Therefore, the only way for evil and sin to come about is to distort, break, or shatter something that is originally intended as good. Evil begins with good, but good does not begin with evil (unless you are originated in a sin nature)…aha… the story takes on new shape. We are born broken and shattered because of the “fall”. But we have a means to return to good - Jesus Christ. So our entire existence is based in our pursuit to return to good which was the original source of everything.
(My brain hurts… I think I’m going to go find something less thought provoking to do… like plant flowers.)
These are just my thoughts today… they may be different tomorrow if this logic proves to be “broken”.
Day 3:I finally made it outside to plant sunflowers. I planted a total of 30 yesterday afternoon and they're still alive today so things are looking up. I am somewhat weary of the birds though... the sprouts look amazingly similar to shiny worms and I think curiosity may get the better of them. I think I'll look into scarecrow options... pesky little critters.
My thoughts for today are sourced from Galatians. "So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law. The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealous, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the life. I warn you, as I did before that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other." (Gal. 5:16-26)
Why this passage? Well firstly because my mother called me this morning with it and said it might help my search in defining the concept of 'good' and 'evil', and secondly because it outlines some characteristics associated with 'good' and 'evil'.
As I look over the characteristics of the sinful nature, I see a common pattern with the qualities of good and that is that they both attempt to achieve the same goal. The difference in the two sides is that one is attempting to reach it without God - evil - and one is attempting to achieve it with God - good. They both try to reach a place in life that "feels good". What makes one evil is that it is an attempt to reach that which is good without God who just happens to be all that IS good. It would be like trying to breathe without air - it is futile.
Like my sunflowers, when we receive the Seed that the Father has for us, which is Jesus Christ, the Spirit comes into our lives and new life begins to grow. We are the soil, Christ is the Seed, and the Spirit - giving birth to new life within us - nurtures and waters our souls as we grow in God. As we grow in God we begin to bear the fruit of the Spirit and we learn to attain that which is good, through God. We begin to see all that is good as intended by God. Without God, we can never reach this level of spiritual or emotional maturity. We may try to reach a similar place through our sinful natures but we will never be able to reach the ultimate source of good, who is God.
Adam and Eve desired wisdom and knowledge. Satan tricked them into thinking such qualities were contained within the tree of knowledge of good and evil. We know now, from looking over the Scriptures that wisdom and knowledge are qualities endowed by God. They had access to the source all along and could have attained it through good. But instead they chose to try and reach it through the tree and without the help of God - and evil entered the world. Evil is our attempt to reach something good without God. Are good and evil truly opposites?... my quest continues.
2 comments:
Debbie, I'm so glad you've joined the blog world. I think you've brought up a very interesting concept regarding opposites. I immediately thought of art. Complementary colors are colors on the color wheel that are opposite each other. When placed side by side, they create the most visual "pop", or contrast, making each look it's brightest/most pure. I don't know if good/evil would qualify in this sense as opposites/complements. When true goodness is placed next to true evil, do they clarify each other...or make the other "stand out" more? Is it easier to recognize evil in the context, or from the perspective of good, or vice versa? I agree that God and Satan are not equals. What happens in a person's life when they've been exposed to enough evil that evil is winning? Drug addiction, for example--evil is winning. Then some good enters the picture, maybe in the form of a concerned person. Let's say this person has the power of God's love in their life and exposes the addict to that. When you mix two complementary colors, in equal proportion, they make gray, which is considered a neutral. The less you mix in of one of the colors, the more it begins to take on the opposite hue. In this sense, I could see arguing that good and evil are opposites. The less one is present, the more the other shines through. What else would work? The less ________, the more good shines. The less ________, the more evil shines.
Ah crap, I don't know! I'm not nearly the philosophical thinker you are. Plus I'm just about to leave work. Work fries my brain a little each day. There's my disclaimer. I apologize if the first comment you receive on your new blog is completely incoherent. I look forward to more posts!
I really like the color analogy. It serves to further prove the concept that complete extremes will cancel each other out or meet at a "neutral" place. The only problem with using this analogy to 'good' and 'evil' is that we're told that we cannot be on 'neutral' ground when it comes to this. We have to be either good or evil, there is no happy medium. But in the sense that more of one means less of another... that's a very interesting thought.
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