When Evil is Confronted by Good Men

The Present Evil

Recent events have caused fear and anxiety to fill the hearts of many people. The assassination of a popular conservative activist and the cold-blooded murder of an innocent young Ukranian woman in North Carolina women which was caught on a video camera has brought shock and fear to the western world. But these issues are only the most recent in an increasing downward spiral into greater chaos and lawlessness as there has been an increase in mass shootings in churches, schools, and shopping centers where the weak and innocent are targeted. I have addressed this issue many times in the past few years with my posts, “Chaos and Disorder,” “A Biblical Understanding of Evil and Suffering,” “A Depraved Mind: God’s Judgment on a Rebellious People,” “Fleeing Wickedness and Seeking Righteousness,” and “Chaos and Disorder Part II.” Hearing from many people and observing the reactions of many of the media personalities, I am of the opinion that a threshold has been crossed where evil has risen to a new height—Evil has achieved a level of Triumph. In other words, in the never-ending cosmic battle between good and evil, evil is taking a victory lap due because many have turned to wickedness. Evil and the dark spiritual forces directing it are advancing forward with greater and even darker schemes to expand their Kingdom of Darkness. Both believers and unbelievers can feel these changes and are looking to leaders to give them hope and direction. I believe this is the task of Christian leaders, and in response this article is presented.

The Battle Between Good and Evil

To better grasp the situation, a greater understanding of the battle between good and evil is needed. The conflict between good and evil reaches into both the spiritual and material realms of existence. It is the cosmic battle between God’s forces of good versus the rebellious Satanic forces of evil. This conflict has existed alongside the biblical Drama of Redemption beginning soon after the time of creation and ending in the end-times conflict when evil is permanently defeated. Most religious traditions such as Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Zoroastrianism, and the ancient beliefs of indigenous cultures present a view of a battle between good and evil, or order and chaos. The conflict between good and evil form the plot of many historical classics such as Les Misérables, Lord of the Rings, The Count of Monte Cristo, Great Expectations, A Tale of Two Cities, and A Christmas Carol, just to name a few. These traditions, beliefs, and literary forms all highlight the virtues that define good and evil. The qualities that are produced by the good include humility, purity, truth, honor, respect, faithfulness, love, compassion, loyalty, courage, etc. Evil is exemplified by opposing traits such as hatred, dishonesty, immorality, deceit, slander, corruption, selfishness, rudeness, impatience, greed, lawlessness, violence, cruelty, etc. And with this background knowledge the current situation can be better understood as a struggle that has deeper roots than what is seen at a surface level. The current champion in the conflict can be determined by observing which traits are dominating the current culture. It is through this filter that it can be declared that evil is triumphing. The evidence is seen in the growing selfish pursuit of pleasure, entertainment, and immorality by modern society. It is also seen in the degradation of the Church which has become lukewarm as it embraces the beliefs of the secular culture and rejected the teachings of the faith.

Evil triumphs when:

• Lies and deceit are favored over truth.
• Violence and hatred become commonplace, and compassion has become a rarity.
• The government authorities create policies that promote corruption, chaos, and lawlessness.
• Immorality and vile behavior are fully accepted and even celebrated.
• Children are no longer protected but are instead exploited.
• The offender becomes the victim, and the victim becomes the offender.
• The religious faithful are targeted as evil, and the evil are seen as the privileged.
• The weak, the innocent, and the aged are targets of violence and no one to comes to their aid.

History has shown that when evil people, rulers, nations, and empires rise to power, good people have responded with courage by opposing them, even at the cost of their own life. Courage is defined as the overcoming of fear in the face of great danger. Evil times bring forth good men and women who challenge the ensuing evil. Evil can only be defeated by the sacrifice of good people who rise to the occasion. Christ is the model of ultimate sacrifice to defeat evil for the sake of others. Believers are called to battle evil in both the spiritual and the material worlds. Unbelievers, through conscience, answer the call to battle evil in the material world. All persons are able take a stand against injustice if they possess the courage and integrity to do so. Unfortunately, in these times courage is one of the virtues that is lacking. This is verified by the great number of violent attacks where no one comes to the aid of those unable to defend themselves, even after the attacker has left. This has to change. Evil has to be confronted, and it is only by the courage of good people that evil can be overcome. This is a call for good men and women to find the courage to rise up against evil in whatever capacity they can because, “Evil will triumph when good men do nothing.”

What is Good?

In a world where the modern views of relativism, post-modernism, pluralism, and nihilism claim that there is no objective truth, then good and evil also cannot be known. Each person decides for themselves the meaning of these terms. This means that the meaning of good and evil is merely opinion based on a person’s political, moral, cultural, sexual, racial, or other worldview. There is some truth is these statements, but it must be expanded to say that mankind who has a fallen nature is unable to know good from evil apart from the revelation of God, because God is the standard of truth. He is the source of all that is good, and He condemns evil. So, what is good? The Scriptures taken in their sum total instruct humanity on discerning the difference between good and evil. The Gospel further teaches that believers are to strive to conform to the highest example of the good which is exemplified in the life of Christ. So, what is good? The following quotes from Scripture tell us what is good.

Apart from the Scriptures, mankind is created in the image of God where he is endowed with a conscience which gives him the ability to know good from evil. All persons who do not know the law, (God’s commandments), follow the law instinctively guided by their consciences, “Even Gentiles, who do not have God’s written law, show that they know his law when they instinctively obey it, even without having heard it. They demonstrate that God’s law is written in their hearts, for their own conscience and thoughts either accuse them or tell them they are doing right,” (Rom. 2:14-15). This why all persons know by their conscience that certain things are evil such as murder, hatred, theft, deceit, assault, etc. Humanity knows what is good by instinct, and therefore they can and often do good by opposing evil.

When the Righteous Triumph

The theme of this article is the quote of Edmund Burke, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing!” Though the essence of this message is sufficient for it to be understood to mean that evil will triumph unless good men intervene to confront it. The quote must be considered through the context of Proverbs 28:12, (pictured above). Then it can be better understood as meaning that evil will triumph and the wicked will prevail if good men do not battle against them. Then there will be great joy because righteousness and justice are restored. This is the battle that is being waged now, in these present times and the battle is not going well for the good. The battle is waged in the spiritual and the material worlds. Only believers have the weapons to engage the demonic spiritual forces as explained in Ephesians 6:10-20. All others can engage evil in the material world as it manifests through wickedness. Courage is required in either realm and there will be casualties, but this is the necessary cost for good men and women to triumph over evil.

Commission to Preach, Protect, and Provide Care

Christ gave the Church the Great Commission to preach and teach the Gospel throughout the word. Theat is exactly what Charlie Kirk was doing when he was assassinated on a college campus. The Scriptures provide us with another commission to seek justice, to rescue the oppressed, to protect the widows and orphans, and to care for the sick and the wounded. The Parable of the Good Samaritan is a teaching of Jesus explaining that the righteous person is the one who cares for the injured stranger. Iryna Zarutska was murdered on a train in cold blood for no reason. Though there were many people on the train, no one intervened to help her. And as she lay bleeding and terrified, no one came to care and treat her wounds or to comfort her in her last minutes of life.

In the above verse, Matt. 25:44-45, Jesus teaches the importance of providing care for the injured and helpless. He explains that caring for those in need is just as if they were caring for Him. How many Christians have lacked the courage to come to the aid of the weak when attacked, or lacked the compassion to care for the sick and injured? This apathy must end if we do not want the wicked to prevail. We have our commission from God, and the blood of the innocent victims scream for good people to rise up to challenge evil!