What is Evil?

After my manager and I had dinner with a group of atheists, a number of other atheists showed surprise that it was considered brave of us to enter into a “den of lions.” The inference was, “Do you think that we are evil?” Well let’s do a little test to see if you are. We will call it “The Evil Test.” To do it we need a “standard” to see if the test has been passed. Without a standard, the test is irrelevant. We will use atheistic morality—a "nothing is absolutely right or absolutely wrong" standard. Question # 1: Is it evil to kill a baby in the womb? Answer: The consensus is that they are not “human,” so the answer is “No. It is not evil. It is a woman's right.” 2. Is it evil to say that there is no God? Answer: “There is no proof of God’s existence, so of course it’s not evil to say that God doesn’t exit. The thought is ridiculous.” 3. Is it evil to hate someone? Answer: “No it's not.” 4. Is it evil to look at pornography? Answer: “Definitely not. It’s not hurting anyone, so how can it be evil? That’s ridiculous. Who is to say what right and what’s wrong? Answer: Of course it’s not evil.” So the atheist passes the test with flying colors, because he judges himself by his own moral standard. However, his “Who is to say what’s right and what’s wrong?” is telling. When we ask the same questions using the absolute unchanging morality of God’s Law (which tells us what’s right and what’s wrong), there is a completely different outcome. The Bible says that even if I don’t advocate abortion and atheism, or don't hate anyone or look at porn, my heart isn’t just “evil,” it’s “desperately wicked” (see Jeremiah 17:9-10). When we are as the Bible says--a “law to ourselves,” we will never think that we are evil by nature. But if we have an honest look at ourselves under the light of God’s unchanging Law, we will find that His testimony is true, as will be seen on Judgment Day.