World News and Trends: Are people evil, and if so, why?
Two alleged acts of wife killing (the Scott Peterson and Mark Hacking cases) have dominated America's evening newscasts. Why do such things happen? Are people evil, and if so, why?
Modern pluralistic thinking assumes human beings are basically good. The 1960s American TV comedian Flip Wilson parodied the notion of human nature gone awry with his famous line, "The devil made me do it!" But is there some truth to his line?
Jesus Christ, speaking to His apostles, said, "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!" (Matthew 7:11).
The prophet Jeremiah tells us that "the [human] heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick" (Jeremiah 17:9, New American Standard Bible). The fact is that Satan the devil is "the god of this age" (2 Corinthians 4:4) and that "the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one" (1 John 5:19). Scripture also refers to him as "the tempter" (see Matthew 4:3).
The devil has a powerful influence on humankind to do evil, although human beings still have a choice and can do good. If you'd like to learn more, request or download our free booklet Is There Really a Devil?
An Article from:
Good News Magazine: September - October 2004
Course Content
Jerold Aust
Jerold Aust has served in the ministry for 52 years, as a public speaker for 58 years, a published writer for 38 years, and is employed by UCG’s Media and Communications Services. He is a Senior Writer, interviewer, and editor for Beyond Today Magazine and has taught Speech Communication for UCG’s ministerial online program and the Book of Revelation for ABC.
Jerold holds a BA in theology from Ambassador College, Pasadena (1968), an MA in Communication from California State University, Fullerton (1995), a distance-learning Ph.D (2006), and a Famous Writers School diploma in non-fiction writing (1973). Additionally, he studied post-grad communication at University of Southern California (1995), radio, TV, voice-overs, and Public Relations at Fullerton College (1995-1996), and graduate communication at Wichita State University (1978). Jerold has taught communication at the University of South Alabama (7 years) and ABC (17 years). His published works include, Ronald Reagan’s Rhetoric: Metaphor as Persuasion and EZSpeakers: Public Speaking Made Easy in 7 Steps. Jerold's overarching goal is to share with humankind its incredible destiny!
John Ross Schroeder
John died on March 8, 2014, in Oxford, England, four days after suffering cardiac arrest while returning home from a press event in London. John was 77 and still going strong.
Some of John's work for The Good News appeared under his byline, but much didn't. He wrote more than a thousand articles over the years, but also wrote the Questions and Answers section of the magazine, compiled our Letters From Our Readers, and wrote many of the items in the Current Events and Trends section. He also contributed greatly to a number of our study guides and Bible Study Course lessons. His writing has touched the lives of literally millions of people over the years.
John traveled widely over the years as an accredited journalist, especially in Europe. His knowledge of European and Middle East history added a great deal to his articles on history and Bible prophecy.
In his later years he also pastored congregations in Northern Ireland and East Sussex, and that experience added another dimension to his writing. He and his wife Jan were an effective team in our British Isles office near their home.
John was a humble servant who dedicated his life to sharing the gospel—the good news—of Jesus Christ and the Kingdom of God to all the world, and his work was known to readers in nearly every country of the world.
