Opinion column

Why did God create the devil?

Regular columnist James Knight has been pondering why the Creator of all things included the devil and all the consequent disruption in His perfect creation.

Have you ever wondered why God created Satan, as described in Isaiah 54:16? “See, it is I who created the blacksmith who fans the coals into flame and forges a weapon fit for its work. And it is I who have created the destroyer to wreak havoc"
 
Well, I have. Given that the devil causes so much havoc in God's creation, and that presumably it would have been a nicer creation without the notorious fallen angel Lucifer in the story, mightn't it have been a better creation story if Satan had never been created at all?
 
I doubt it, and here's why - Given that God did create the devil, one must presume that his inclusion in the story ultimately works for our betterment. God is clearly more concerned about our spiritual development and building of character than He is our worldly comforts.
 
That's why I think the devil is actually a provision of God's regard for us, His love for us, and His desire for us to fulfil our potential. Remember, God also tells us through Isaiah that the enemy will not prosper against us. What's absolutely astounding about God's creation is that fallenness, including Lucifer's fall (Ezekiel 28, Isaiah 14), is a key part of the story, and its inclusion makes a better world than its omission.
 
Even God Himself declares that the inclusion of Satan in creation is part of the provision of His love for us, and an instrument to refine us and sharpen us, ready for being Heavenly creatures. Perhaps we shouldn't be surprised; just about everything in nature conforms to a similar pattern: for things to grow and prosper fully, they need to be victorious against competition and come face to face with less-favourable things to resist against, and grow stronger as a consequence. It seems God uses Satan's antics to help us turn stumbling blocks into stepping stones.
 
Naturally, for humans, in the midst of our "light and momentary troubles" it's often quite hard to focus on the "eternal glory that far outweighs them all" (as per 2 Corinthians 4:17) - but it's reassuring to know that it is an essential part of the creation story. And how great that if we live with a steadfast Christ-centredness, we know that "no weapon forged against us will prevail, and we will refute every tongue that accuses us".
 
The fallen angel image is courtesy of Asa K on pixabay.com.

James Knight is a local government officer based in Norwich, and is a regular columnist for Christian community websites Network Norfolk and Network Ipswich. He also blogs regularly as ‘The Philosophical Muser’, and contributes articles to UK think tanks The Adam Smith Institute and The Institute of Economic Affairs, as well as the London Institute for Contemporary Christianity (LICC). 

The views carried here are those of the author, not necessarily those of Network Norfolk, and are intended to stimulate constructive debate between website users.