In the cable show Fargo that aired recently (season 3, episode 9), the character V. M. Varga said:
“The problem is not that there is evil in the world. The problem is that there is good. Because otherwise, who would care?”
The Coen brothers are known for making statements about evil in their productions. Their dialogues have been food for thought, which means they have put thought into preparing that food for our digestion.
Recently, I wrote that the world is the mother of all sin. Because of that, we human beings are all born of sin. Certainly, sin can be lovely and enticing. It is like the lure of a Las Vegas vacation: lots of flashing lights and fancy food, but at a cost most people cannot afford. Think of how Satan presented the world to Jesus and said, “All these things I will give you, if you fall down and worship me.” Sounds like the slogan, “What happens in the world stays in the world.” If the sin of the world was ugly and readily recognizable as evil, it would be difficult to offer its bounties as payment for a soul.
Let me point out that mortality is the gift of sin (or curse). The “reward” of reincarnation keeps most of the world’s sinners coming back to Momma Sin (time and time again). This life, past lives and future lives (for as long as mankind has existed) are the never-ending phonograph records of souls failing to be like Jesus and say, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.'”
The character V. M. Varga spoke a sinner’s truth, which is a lie, as a half-truth. The world was created as the antithesis of Heaven – which is a Spiritual place, not the endless void of outer space, dotted by star lights and galaxies of elemental matter. Heaven is God.
The half of his statement that is true is focused on the animal version of Man being in the world. Animal Man was created on the “sixth day” … late in that “day” … at which point animal Man (and animal Female) was given dominion over everything else that lived in the world (flora and fauna). There was no good Man in the world then. Thus, there was no one to judge how animal Man went about in that domination. Good Man came on the “seventh day,” which Yahweh deemed holy.
Keep in mind that these “days” have absolutely nothing to do with the third rock from the sun’s axial revolution – a 24-hour rotation. This means the “seventh day” alone cannot be what those who do not believe in dinosaurs calculate, when they say the world is only 6,000 year old … give or take a century or two. God “days” can only be estimated by carbon dating techniques and other scientific methods, as being representative of eons of time. However, sin (or V. M. Varga’s “evil”) can be seen as a “modern” twist in the Creation theme.
Genesis 1 does not include the story of the battle between the angels, where one angel (“the dragon” – some call him Lucifer, Satan, or the devil) led a third of the angels to resist God’s order to serve Good Man, once Adam became mortal. One must assume this war took place after Good Man had been seeded into the world and animal Man began to judge right from wrong, given knowledge of good and evil. Still, in many places in the Holy Bible one finds referenced angels, cherubim and the like. When were they created, if not “in the beginning”?
Genesis 1:1 does begin with the Hebrew words: “bə·rê·šîṯ bā·rā ’ĕ·lō·hîm,” which literally translate to state, “in the beginning created gods.” When one assumes the Creator of gods could only be the One God, then the “gods” (“elohim”) created would explain the Creation of the angels. It would then be logical to assume it was they who helped God with His master plan for Creation. Therefore, it was angels who made animal Man (male and female they made them) in “their image” and it was those angels who determined their six “days” work to be “good.” That means the angels knew the difference between being a mortal and being eternal with the One God, such that the difference between right and wrong has always been determined by one’s proximity to the One God.
This means the false half of Mr. Varga’s assumption – that evil existed with Creation – is wrong. Animal Man acted in natural ways, just as all animals do. They kill prey, steal the prey killed by others or steal eggs from nests, run off weaker family members, eat their young, etcetera, etcetera; but they do not do those acts unless they are necessary for survival and the preservation of the balance of nature. Evil requires forethought but Good requires hindsight, where looking back has never been a strength possessed by the animal brain. This means the Big Brain of evil Man began when Good Man fell to the earth. This is symbolized by the story of Cain and Abel.
Still, as with Eve’s temptation, mortal Man needs prompting to do evil, as evil is not natural. Ergo the slithering snake in the grass (offspring of “the dragon”) still finds a way to use craftiness to influence small minds.
If one recalls how the serpent in the garden with Adam and Eve was considered the craftiest (shrewdest, most subtle, wisest) beast of the field, then one can see how small the brains were in Adam and Eve. As direct creations of Yahweh, to serve Him as Good Man (and Female), in a world that was being filled with an animal form of mankind, God taught His simpleton children rules. “Do not eat of the fruit that yields a Big Brain” was the biggie. The serpent (the devil in the form of the craftiest beast) used his Big Brain to convince the little brained, good and holy, Adam and Eve to break that rule. Once they sinned, the pair became too smart for Heaven on earth. They were cast out of Eden (and the serpent lost his legs).
The “original sin” was to go against God’s rules. However, only Good Man knew those rules. That means Adam and Eve had to go into the world of animal Man and let them know about God and rules.
I once compared Adam and Eve to children told not to eat a cookie from the cookie jar … the one placed right in front of them on an easy to reach table … just before the parents would walk away, leaving the invitation of sweet cookies for small brains to refrain from taking. Temptation would be the sole culprit for such innocent ones breaking the rule just set.
I said, “God knew they would break that rule,” to which one woman shrieked, “How did God know that!”
I said, “God is omniscient (All-Knowing).” Duh.
That realization allows one to see how God intended on Adam and Eve growing big brains, so they could survive in a world that was to become the mother of all sin. Adam and Eve represented the good that was identified as a problem by V. M. Varga. Adam and Eve were made holy – by the hand of Yahweh – so knowledge of Good and Evil could be shared by all mankind.
That also means God knew beforehand how the rule He gave to His angels (His elohim) – who were instructed to serve Good Man in their quest to preach a message of redemption to Heaven, by resisting a world of evil – would likewise be broken. God knew beforehand how the third of the angels would be led by “the dragon” in rebellion – the War of the Angels. God knew beforehand they would lose that war and be cast into the depths of the earth – making the Earth forevermore the mother of all sin. God knew “the dragon” would be the prefect tester of faith.
Knowledge of Good and Evil – of Right and Wrong – of Obedience and Rebellion – is the only way to get out of this revolving theme of birth, death, and repeat until the end of time. We have to know the rules of Good. We have to realize that reincarnation only works as a desirable place to visit, as long as some Big Brains have not designed a way to destroy paradise, so that it stops supporting life. However, simply knowing some rules is not enough to escape this cycle.
A Big Brain can just as easily be tricked by the craftiness of the world’s lure, as was Eve being told she could be God’s equal if she just broke one rule. Animal Man is not strong enough mentally to force himself to only do Good. Will power is weak and unable to have lasting focus. Try willing yourself to hold your breath until death and see how well that works. This means sin is impossible to will away. Add to that complication how Satan will never serve Man, knowing how easy it is to trick Man into deserving punishment from God.
Because Satan will always present Man with the gifts of mortality, as lures tempting animal Man to sell his soul to him, Man needs the help of God. This is where the Holy Spirit offers that protection. Becoming an Apostle of Jesus Christ gives a Christian the power to tell Satan, “Away with you!” Anything less cannot pass the temptations of this world in which we live.
Look at how dejected the “rich young man” was, who asked Jesus how to guarantee his going to Heaven. Jesus said, “You know the rules; but to get to Heaven you have to give up your addictions to the world of things and do as I do.” The rich young man sighed, shrugged, and slithered off.
God knew Satan would forever test the faith of animal Man. Satan is the contaminant that causes the world to be the mother of all sin. The presence of Good Man in an evil world is so animal Man can choose to become reborn as Good Man.
The presence of good in the world is not the problem Mr. Varga. It is the way out of the trap of worldly existence. Good Man was sent because God cares.
That is who cares Mr. Varga.