THEODICY AND THE ANGELIC CONFLICT: WHERE ARE THE THEOLOGIANS?

For many disciples of Christ and consequentially those forming a personal theology (which we all form as Christians whether we understand that we do or not simply by virtue of how we live) the issue of theodicy - essentially why God permits and rules as he does with emphasis on why evil is permitted is expression in light of God's omnipotent power - eventually appears on the landscape of their lives and frequently integrates itself into their existence. From this, the Christian is compelled to ask a number of reasonable questions.

Several of these are as follows (in some form or another):

• Why did God create man? 
• Where did evil come from?
• Why did God create man so weak that he could succumb to evil?
• Why was it a fallen angel that tempted mankind and caused him to sin against God?

It is not uncommon to read or hear the answer to the first questions being one which states that man was created for God's glory. And with that, I have no qualms, the Bible states that much.

But what is begged, here, is that to assert man was created for God's glory is to force the question, why? Why did God decide his glory needed expressed via mankind's creation?

Was there an issue with his glory? Was God not getting the expression of his glory as it should be? 

Or course the answer to that is no, there was nothing wrong with God's glory being expressed or needing man to add to its expression.

So, then, why? What was going on?

The truth is that mankind's creation is a response to a previous event and it is of no coincidence or anecdote that both human history and the final judgment of Satan and mankind are co-terminus.

Why?

Well, the books I have shown at the beginning of this article explain, in great theological detail and with excellent documentation, the relationship between the fall of Satan and 1/3 of the heavenly host and mankind's creation, Christ's incarnation and our eventual eternal reign as co-heirs.

I encourage you to read and learn about the Angelic Conflict and its theological implications as well as explications. 

A final note - Donald Grey Barnhouse is one of the authors in the three books posted. I find it rather interesting that The Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals loves to point to him as a theological anchor yet, few, if any of the members ever venture into the theological water contained in his book, The Invisible War.