Wednesday of the Third Week of Easter
Can God really bring good out of evil?
St. Thomas Aquinas wrote, “There is nothing to prevent human nature’s being raised up to something greater, even after sin; God permits evil in order to draw forth some greater good. Thus St. Paul says, ‘Where sin increased, grace abounded all the more.’”
The Acts of the Apostles records the persecution that breaks out against the early Church in Jerusalem, which leaves the disciples scattered throughout the countryside of Samaria and Judea. Saul is trying to destroy the Church and is imprisoning followers of Jesus with overwhelming tenacity.
Yet, even in the midst of the persecution and their experience of being scattered and driven away, the disciples remained committed to their faith. The early Church seems to demonstrate that God can (and will) bring good out of evil. Due to the severe persecution, they were scattered, but because of their faithfulness to Jesus, they used their new environment as an opportunity to continue preaching the word. Their perseverance in preaching bore immense fruit as they continued winning souls for Christ. They drove out unclean spirits, healed the paralyzed and crippled, and there was great joy.
The disciples did not desire or like the evil of the persecution they experienced, but God used it to bring about good. Consider the dispositions that are important for us when we are experiencing evil or difficult situations: 1) Holding fast to our convictions of faith, 2) Remaining committed to Christ by daily prayer, 3) A willingness to be open to the Spirit’s action, and 4) Maintaining hope and striving to see God’s grace in all things.
It is counterintuitive to think that the growth of the early Church came through persecution, but this is precisely what the Acts of the Apostles and history recounts again and again. It reminds us that God is in charge, so we must not cling to our own carefully crafted and calculated plans. God can bring about growth and flourishing in the most dismal and disheartening of conditions. We just need to trust more in God’s action than our own.
Posted in Lenten Resources