One more passage and I’m through. Romans 8.18ff is often used both by Creationists to show that death resulted from the fall, and by others to show that the death and decay in it is not God’s will. A careful study shows that this is a complete misinterpretation, and here is an essay by me, and a rather better one by Dan Leiphart demonstrating this.
In summary, the Bible contains no doctrine of a fallen natural creation, but rather that now, as at the beginning, it is good and entirely the work of God. The small number of passages often used to deny this actually don’t do so.
I don’t know about you, but I’m beginning to find it liberating not to have to pick the good bits out of the unpalateable mess in worshipping God, though I have to work on re-educating my taste-buds. Furthermore, if we are intended to worship God for the whole of his creation, but instead attribute large chunks of it to human sin, or Satan, or creation’s adolescent rebellion, or God’s poor design, then might not the Lord think it a little – well – ungrateful of us? Or even blasphemous?
A few scattered thoughts on the search for a better theodicy next time.
