So, when I left off last time I posed the question, have you ever wondered why you have the ability to do such good and yet such evil at the same time? It’s as if all of us are cursed with the Incredible Hulk syndrome. That is on the one side we are a nice regular everyday person who wants to do good, but inside all of us lives this Hulk that when it comes out destruction ensues.
I mean why is it that a man claims he loves his wife and then lusts after another woman? Why is it that a person claims to love themselves only to destroy themselves with addiction? Why is it that a person can be your best friend one minute and then stab you in the back the next? How can the same people who made Raiders of the Lost Ark make Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull or if you liked that movie…how can the same people make The Matrix and then The Matrix Reloaded and Revolutions…or if you liked that then how can the same person be responsible for Star Wars and Howard the Duck? ?The point is that all of us have the ability to do good things and bad.
The Bible gives an answer to this. You see when Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit it was from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Before that man only knew good, but since then man is cursed with knowing both good and evil. You see from that point on man had the ability to do good and evil. It doesn’t matter how good you are you still have the potential to do great evil. But the reverse is also true. You see I don’t believe that anyone is beyond hope. I think that the worst of the worst have the potential to do good.
I’m not trying to preach or anything, but there are a few things that I have been thinking about with this subject.
1. It shouldn’t surprise us when someone messes up. I’m not shocked by the news that so and so did such and such. I have seen too many good people do very bad things. Nobody is perfect and all of us struggle with temptations. It doesn’t matter if you are the President of the United States, The Pope, or just an average Joe there comes a time when you Hulk out and wake up the next morning regretting your actions.
2. You have the ability to do great things. Don’t limit yourself or let your past mistakes define you.
3. You have the ability to do great harm. We always underestimate the power of sin. Think about it, how many times have you told yourself that you were never going to drink that much again, or that you were never going to do that again, or that this time you’ve learned your lesson only to find yourself doing the exact same thing. Nobody is immune and so the best solution is to not put yourself in situations where you will fail.
4. I think that discipline can play a huge role in this, but for me it is so much more than just not doing bad things. I believe that when you fall in love with God He puts in you the desire to be more like him and less like the Hulk.
Whether you believe in God or not I hope you can see that’s not the point. The point is that we all have the ability to do good and evil. It’s a constant battle that will never end, but with God’s help we can choose to do what is good…most of the time.
Good stuff Rob! Good stuff!
‘Twas good to see you and Monica tonight, if only but for a short breath of time…but good none the less!
Did you enjoy the movie?
Brian, I loved the movie!
Was it the fruit that made man the way he is? If it was, and he was good before, why did he disobey and eat the fruit in the first place?
Just things to think about. Good blog.
DP, great question! I think that man was decieved to eat the fruit. He must have had the potential to do evil, but before that it wasn’t a natural thought like it is for us today. On his own he didn’t desire to disobey God. Now on our own we pursue disobedience to God.
Good answer.