Devoted to the Propagation and Defense of New Testament Christianity
VOLUME 22
June 4, 1970
NUMBER 5, PAGE 8a

Why Did God Make Men Sinners?

Garreth L. Clair

From my earliest childhood I have overheard people, sometimes professed Christians, ask this question. Today God's critics ask "If your God is such a great God and so infallible why did he create a man (Adam) that he knew would sin and bring calamity upon all men?" Questions such as these are asked by men who misunderstand the nature and eternal purpose of Almighty God, Isa. 55:9.

Oftentimes, men come to the defense of God, by such statements as "God created man in a perfect state (unable to sin)," and that the first sin was entirely the fault of the Devil. Nothing could be further from the truth as is revealed upon the pages of Inspiration (The Bible).

God created the first man (Adam) a free moral agent (will of his own), Gen. 2:16, 17; 3:1-6. God did not create him a robot with no will of his own. A robot obeys its creator without the least deviation from its creator's intended wishes. Had man been created with no will to choose, he would have served his creator because of his built-in directive to do so. Such a creature could not have given unto God the glory which he desired. God did create man with a will of his own, as is seen from the first sentence in this paragraph.

It was God's desire that his creation serve Him, and Him alone, that His creation would of his own free will (choice) choose to serve Him and love Him for what He had done for the man. Thereby glorifying his creator. But contrary to God's desires the man (Adam) of his own free will chose to obey the serpent (Devil) and reject his creator's wishes, Gen. 3:16.

That God foresaw the possibility of this rejection is evident. Had Adam's fall not have been a possibility, God would not have made provisions for man's rejection of Him (fall). God knew the possibilities of His creation. By making him a free-moral agent He anticipated man's fall. God did not plan for the man to fall, but He was aware of this possibility which caused Him, "from the foundations of the world" (before He had made man) to make provisions for man in a future age, Matt. 13:35; Matt. 25:34; Eph. 1:4; Heb. 4:3.

God, therefore, did not create man to sin. Man chose to sin of his own free will. That man had a will from the beginning is evident from Genesis 2:16, 17; 3:1-6. Had man been unable to choose between good and evil, God's statement, "Thou shalt not eat of it," would have been meaningless.

God's original intent was to create a servant that would glorify Him. He gave to His creation the right to choose between good (God) and evil (Satan). His creation failed to choose as He desired. Therefore, His plan for the redemption of His fallen creation was put into action, Gen. 3:15.

His plan is now completely revealed and is available to all creation, Acts 2:38, 39; 10:34, 35. Man also has a choice today. Men are free-moral-agents, we can reject the plan and loose paradise or we can obey and remain faithful unto death, thereby receiving a crown of life, Rev. 2:10; I Tim. 4:8. The plan which makes you and I Christians today is the plan which God put into action after Adam fell, and, which was consummated in His Son Jesus Christ, I Peter 1:20; Heb. 5:8, 9; Rom. 5:18.

I pray this article will be of some value to the Bible student who has been asked these questions. May God give understanding to all of us through His Word.