Why Would God Create Man With Love but Allow the Devil to Exist With Him?

Orthodox Christians believe that God created the world and humanity out of love and with a purpose. According to this belief, God's intention was to establish a loving relationship with humanity, allowing us to experience joy, love, fulfillment, and eternal life in His presence.

The existence of the devil and fallen angels is often understood within the context of human free will. In Christian theology, angels and humans were created with the ability to choose between good and evil. However, some angels using their free will, led by Lucifer (who became the devil), rebelled against God and chose to reject His love and authority. As a consequence, they were cast out of heaven and became adversaries to God and humanity.

God, being all-knowing and all-loving, allowed for the possibility of such rebellion because genuine love requires freedom. God did not create Lucifer as an evil being, but rather as a creature with the capacity to choose between good and evil. However, the consequences of Lucifer's rebellion resulted in his fall from grace and his transformation into the devil.

God's allowance of the devil's existence is often seen as a mystery within the context of divine providence. It is believed that God, in His wisdom, can bring about greater goods even through the existence of evil. The presence of the devil provides a testing ground for humanity, allowing us to exercise our free will and make choices that shape our character and spiritual growth. It also gives us the opportunity to demonstrate our love and loyalty to God by resisting temptation and aligning ourselves with goodness.

Additionally, God's ultimate plan is to triumph over evil and bring about the redemption and restoration of all creation. The existence of the devil is understood as temporary, and ultimately, God's victory over evil will be complete. In this understanding, God's allowance of the devil's existence is part of a larger narrative of redemption and the eventual establishment of His kingdom of love, justice, and righteousness.

Furthermore, the Christian understanding is that God does not will the damnation of any person. His desire is for all people to be saved and reconciled with Him. However, those who align themselves with evil and reject God's love and mercy ultimately choose separation from Him. Hell, therefore, is seen as the consequence of a person's rejection of God, rather than something imposed by God Himself.

God's act of creation and the existence of the devil and fallen angels are part of a larger narrative of love, free will, and spiritual growth. They provide opportunities for humans to choose God's love and to demonstrate their faith, while also allowing for the consequences of rejecting God's grace.

Light of Truth

In the first chapter of Genesis after creating heaven and earth God creates light to overcome darkness. This was before the sun or any of the stars, so what is this light and what is its significance for us today?

Saint Paul gives us the answer in his Second Letter to the Corinthians 4:6-15

"Brethren, it is the God who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," (Gen 1:3) who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ."

Paul is referring to the uncreated light we first see in the Creation story. He shows us that this is a mystical light that also shines in our hearts to enlighten us about the truth of Christ. It is a light of knowledge, the greatest knowledge of all.  It is the light that illumines those who have given us the Scripture and the writings of the Prophets and Church Fathers. It is the light that overcomes darkness or our ignorance of the Creator.

St Basil the Great says, "It made darkness vanish, dispelled gloom, illuminated the world, and gave to all beings at the same a time sweet and gracious aspect." Saint John the Evangelist says, "In the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God... He was the true Light, which enlightened everyone coming into the world." (Jn 1:1; 1:9)
St. John Chrysostom adds, "...this visible light, produced by the command of the Lord, removed the darkness from our vision, in like manner the light coming to our minds dissipated the darkness of error, and led those in error to the truth."

Paul continues,

"But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, to show that the transcendent power belongs to God and not to us.  We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For while we live we are always being given up to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh.  So death is at work in us, but life in you."Since we have the same spirit of faith as he had who wrote, "I believed, and so I spoke," we too believed, and so we speak, knowing that He who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into His presence.  For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God."

This light of Truth we receive in our Baptism and is nurtured through the sacrament of Holy Communion must be treasured as Paul says. We must remember to Glorify God for all we receive from Him. Through this inner light it is Christ who lives in us so we can live in Him. God has created all we know and inherent in this creation is His "light". 

Through the Orthodox way of life we are purified, prepared, so that we can know this "Light" which gives us the full truth and a faith that is unshakable.

Saint Paul says,  "Let us walk becomingly as the light of day suggests." (Rom 13:13)  
Let us not engage in actions that are proper to the dark or ignorance.

Is Man Responsible for the Condition of the Environment?

This is an important question in light of the current debate over global warming and climate change. Is man responsible, is God responsible, or is just some random occurrence according to laws of chance?

To answer this we need to fully understand the nature of our creation, our God given responsibly and the consequences of the fall.

First of all, we know that God could not be responsible for the degradation of our environment for he viewed all of Creation to be “good.” After the Flood God said, "Never again will I curse the ground because of man, even though every inclination of his heart is evil from childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done” (Gen 8:21). Since we believe in a God centered world, neither can our destiny be due to some law of chance.

This leaves us with Man as the most likely culprit. Letʼs examine the nature of our creation to see if we can gain further insight. We know from the Church Fathers that the condition of mankind at the time of our creation was radically different from what it is now. Saint Symeon says, “Adam was created with an incorruptible body... and was established by God the Creator as the immortal king of an incorrupt world...”1 Before the fall our Church Fathers say that Adam and Eve were free from all bodily needs of shelter and clothing, sleep, sexual relations or passions, tears, bodily waste, sickness or physical ailments, all difficulties, sorrows,hunger or pain.2 St. John Chrysostom says they “were living like angels.”3 All of creation was in a different state than what we experience today.

In the beginning, all of the cosmos was incorrupt. The animals were not predators but ate plants. All of Godʼs creation was created for the pleasure of man and made subject to the his control. God had made him ruler of all things on earth. St. Maximos the Confessor says, “man unites heaven and earth, making the whole of sensible creation one with itself and undivided...”4 Man was not viewed as distant or separated from the rest of creation, but instead an integral part of it with a leading role to maintain harmony.

Moses reports to us, “Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground" (Gen 1:26). “The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it...Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name...” (Gen 2:15, 19-20)

Before the fall, man was the king of creation. He had dominion over all creatures, he had the responsibility to care for the Garden of Eden, he had the superior intelligence to name the animals (a sign of superiority for times of old due to the common use of slaves who were named by their masters), and was made in Godʼs own image. Man was the pinnacle of Godʼs creation, connecting the lowest part of Creation with the highest. With His obedience to God, it was up to him to maintain harmony.

After the fall manʼs physical condition was changed and he was separated from God and banned from Paradise. He took on a grossly material body and now lived under the fear of death. He was now inclined to act sinfully, no longer centered on God, but on his own needs and desires. When man fell, all of creation fell and became susceptible to death and corruption. Paul writes, “For the creation was made subject to futility, not willingly, but by reason of him Who hath subjected it in hope” (Romans 8:20). Reflecting on this passage, Saint John Chrysostom points the finger clearly at man asking, What is the meaning of “the creation was made subject to futility”? That it became corruptible. For what cause, and on what account? On of account of you, O man. For since you took a body mortal and subject to suffering, so also the earth received a curse, and brought forth thorns and thistles.”5 It is the sin of man that has resulted in the loss of harmony in our present world.

Through the Incarnation, Jesus Christ came to redeem mankind and to restore his original position. This He accomplished though His victory over death. The gates of Paradise were again opened and Mankind was shown the way to reunite with God according to Godʼs plan. Since man was responsible for the fall of creation, this means that when man is restored to his original incorruption that all of creation will also be resurrected and transformed. Again man is in a leadership role. Chrysostom writes addressing mankind, “Because of you, it [the creation] suffered evils and became corrupt, but no injustice has been done, for because of you it will become incorruptible again. This is what “in hope” means.6 As Paul says, “the creation itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God” (Rom 8:21). So you see that man was the leader in the fall of all of Creation. Likewise He is the leader for its restoration.

Saint John Chrysostom says, “Do you see how man leads the way in all things, and how everything has come about for his sake?...creation is suffering on account of you...”7

So who is responsible for the condition of the environment? You be the judge.

1 First Created Man, p 103 

2 Hieromonk Damascene, Created in Corruption, Orthodox Word, Nos. 258-259, 2008, p.14-15 

3 St. John Chrysostom, On Virginity 14.3, 5 

4 St. Maximus the Confessor, Ambiguum 41; PG 91:1305D-1308A 

5 St. John Chrysostom, Homilies on Romans 14; PG 60:530A; cf. NPNF. 1st Series, vol 11, p. 444 

6 St. John Chrysostom, Homilies on Romans 14; PG 60:530C; NPNF, 1st Series, vol 11, p. 444 

7 St. John Chrysostom, Homilies on Romans 14; PG 60:530D-531A; cf. NPNF, p. 445