say: this week’s episode the story of god - amazon s3of+go… · 1 say: this week’s episode of...

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SAY: This week’s episode of The Story of God explored a series of important questions:

Why does evil exist in the world?

Does evil come from somewhere inside us?

Or does evil come from somewhere else?

To find out if there is something science or social development can tell us about why people do evil things, Morgan Freeman had conversations with a neurologist, a psychologist, and two

individuals who had committed evil acts. He also sought answers to these questions within a handful of religious beliefs, including ancient Egyptian religions, Christianity, Hinduism, and

Zoroastrianism. But before we get into the different elements of the episode . . .

ASK:

Think about the stories you just heard—what stood out to you as surprising or important?

Do you feel your beliefs about why evil exists were represented in this episode? Why or why not?

NEUROLOGY SAY: Morgan Freeman’s first interview was with neuroscientist Dr. Kent Kiehl and a man who

has been sentenced to life in prison. Dr. Kiehl has scanned the brains of 800 psychopathic criminals, and this prisoner is the most extreme case he’s ever seen.

ASK: What stood out to you about the conversation Morgan Freeman had with the prisoner and Dr. Kiehl? LISTEN: [Even if it takes several students to piece together the answer, encourage your students to share their thoughts on this question. Be sure to leave enough time that everyone who wants

to talk is able.]

MEMORABLE MOMENTS + QUOTES: [Remind students about specific moments in this story, and ask what they think about them.]

Morgan Freeman: “I know what you did. My question is, can you tell me why?”

http://kentkiehl.com/

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Prisoner: “It was a spur-of-the-moment thing. . . . I didn’t have any plan to go out and

snatch anybody—commit any sexual violence against anybody. I had a desire—an impulse—and I wasn’t able to stop myself from acting on the impulse.”

Morgan Freeman: “Let me ask you, about what age did you start?”

Prisoner: “Back when I was 21 or 22. I was out looking for something to steal, and I just

spotted a teacher who had stayed late, so I decided to rob her, kidnap her, and rape her. I just pulled over on an access road, and she fought back, slipped through the door, and I just turned around and took off.”

Morgan Freeman: “When did you first kill?”

Prisoner: “Going on 27. I was going out to commit a burglary, and the crime happened.”

Morgan Freeman: “. . . Did you ever experience [remorse]?”

Prisoner: “I don’t see emotions like everybody else. I don’t feel them. There was no

remorse. I think that I’m not wired the same as everybody else.”

“In psychiatry we have a way of assessing what we call psychopathy or psychopathic personality disorder, and the lack of empathy, the impulse control, the poor planning.

[The prisoner] scores in the 99th percentile” (Dr. Kent Kiehl).

Morgan Freeman: “You’ve been in prison now for, what, 30 years? . . . What if I said I have a way to get you out—would you want to go?”

Prisoner: “I’d wanna go, but since I did commit those crimes, I still have that . . .

capacity. Society wouldn’t be safe. I don’t have the same controls as you do or somebody else does.”

“Neuroscientists say that his behavior is a result of bad neural wiring. But the question is, even so, does he not still have a choice? Can he choose not to commit a heinous crime? Psychopaths are at the extreme of human behavior. But we all face the choice to do good or do evil” (Morgan Freeman).

“When we understand the systems of the brain that are different in people who commit these bad crimes, it gives us an opportunity to try to develop a treatment for that. It’s like if . . . I injure my arm, and this muscle gets atrophied, just like these certain areas of

the brain are atrophied, I might be able to develop a treatment program that remediates that atrophy, and fix it” (Dr. Kent Kiehl).

“The neuroscience today is about [ages] 10, 11, 12—we think—that we could help identify and separate kids that are problems versus kids that are just disruptive and are

going to grow out of it. If you were a judge, and you wanted to know, “Is this a high-risk

kid or a low-risk kid?” we could say, “This is a high-risk kid.” We now have a tool that can help us understand or can help predict the worst type of things that we all want to prevent: a homicide, a death. What we really want to be able to do is get better and

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better at predicting, and then that’ll help us be better and better at preventing” (Dr.

Kent Kiehl).

ASK: [These are some questions you may choose to ask in order to spark conversation.]

Did anything surprise you about the difference in brain activity and function for

someone diagnosed as psychopathic?

Later in the episode, Morgan Freeman talks about how people can be an influence for evil in our lives. The prisoner added that his dad was an alcoholic. We don’t know more

about his story, but what do you think about that? Can the people who surround our lives nurture or be responsible for the evil impulses we have?

Did you hear anything else you agree or disagree with?

OTHER NOTES:

[Use this section to take notes about any memorable moments or about anything you’d like to ask the students to respond to.]

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ANCIENT EGYPT

SAY: In Luxor, the capital of ancient Egypt, Morgan Freeman and Egyptologist Salima Ikram visited the tomb of Menna, a scribe for the Egyptian god Amun. The walls of Menna’s tomb are covered with ancient hieroglyphics that were meant to help Menna in the afterlife. One of the

scenes depicted Menna being judged on the balance of the good and evil he had done. ASK: What do you remember about the hieroglyphic depiction of the judgment of Menna’s life?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luxor

http://www.salimaikram.com/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amun

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TT69

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LISTEN:

[Even if it takes several students to piece it together, encourage the students to summarize this part of the episode. Be sure to leave enough time that everyone who wants to share is able.]

MEMORABLE MOMENTS + QUOTES:

[Remind students about specific moments in this story, and ask what they think about them.]

“In front of Osiris, the god of the underworld, Menna’s heart is weighed against the goddess of truth, Ma’at. While Thoth, her husband, writes down the judgment” (Morgan Freeman).

“So, if you’re lying, or stealing, or cheating, or doing anything evil, the whole thing is the fact that it reflects on your heart” (Salima Ikram).

“Basically, I think that modern religion has its roots in this idea of morality and that anything bad you do is reflected and can be judged in some way. The Egyptians were

very literal. They said you can judge it by your heart. But even now when, you know, you

can say, “He is pure of heart,” it means he’s a good person” (Salima Ikram).

“In the centuries after Menna, the idea of eternal reward for turning one’s back on evil spread throughout Egyptian society. And from there, it may have fed into Judaism, Christianity, and Islam” (Morgan Freeman).

“The weighing of the heart assumes that fear of consequences is the only thing that keeps us on a righteous path. Which makes me wonder, are we inherently good or inherently evil?” (Morgan Freeman).


What stood out to you about the story of Menna’s heart being weighed? Do you agree with Morgan Freeman and Professor Ikram’s inference that ancient

Egyptian beliefs about an eternal judgment could have influenced Judaism, Christianity, and Islam? Why or why not?

Morgan Freeman makes an interesting statement at the end of this section of the episode: “The weighing of the heart assumes that fear of consequences is the only thing

that keeps us on a righteous path. Which makes me wonder, are we inherently good or inherently evil?” How would you answer this question?

Did you hear anything else you agree or disagree with? OTHER NOTES: [Use this section to take notes about any memorable moments or about anything you’d like to ask the students to respond to.]

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osiris

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maat

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thoth

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CHRISTIANITY

SAY: Morgan Freeman met with Baptist reverend and theologian Kutter Callaway to learn about

his perspective of Christianity’s answer to the question of why evil exists. Dr. Callaway also talked about the idea of Original Sin and the role the Devil plays in this discussion. ASK: What stood out to you about Kutter Callaway’s description of Original Sin, evil actions, and the Devil? LISTEN: [Even if it takes several students to piece together the answer, encourage your students to share their thoughts on this question. Be sure to leave enough time that everyone who wants to talk is able.]



“The Christian tradition kind of coined Original Sin. Some primal desire that we all have that’s a very basic human urge or impulse. Because Adam sinned, that Original Sin was

passed on from one generation to the next, perpetuated generation after generation after generation” (Kutter Callaway).

Morgan Freeman: “I have recently spent some time with a person who we could say personifies evil. I needed to say, ‘Why did you do these things?’ And he would say, ‘I just felt like it. And beyond that, I don’t know.’ Now, that’s inherent evil, isn’t it?

Kutter Callaway: “What you saw, you could name that as a sort of demonic thing. . . . But I think it’s important for us to acknowledge that there is a little bit of him in all of us. There’s something inherent in us that seems to bend itself towards death and violence.”

http://fuller.edu/academics/faculty/faculty-profiles/callaway,-kutter/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Original_sin

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devil

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Morgan Freeman: “Is there a devil, or is that just a metaphor?”

Kutter Callaway: “It is a metaphor, and also the Devil is real. There’s a lot of different

forms—you know, devils with pitchforks to goblins and ghouls, etc. In the New Testament, you even get Jesus interacting with Satan. And yet at the same time, you

have Jesus talking to one of his disciples and saying at one point, ‘Get behind me, Satan.’ So it seems even Jesus is dealing with both an actual presence—what we might say is a

personified evil—and at the same time, that we can be satanic, demonic in our own desire to steer away from what God wants.”

“We are born with the capacity for evil inside us. Most of us struggle our whole lives to resist the temptation to do wrong. But that could be another source of evil in our lives : the people who brought us into this world” (Morgan Freeman).


Do you agree with Kutter Callaway’s description of Original Sin and the Devil? Why or why not?

Do you feel as if Kutter Callaway’s beliefs represent your own? Why or why not? Did you hear anything else you agree or disagree with?

OTHER NOTES:


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HINDUISM

SAY: Morgan Freeman traveled to the temple of Pishach Mochan in Varanasi, India, to learn

about the Hindu perspective of where evil comes from. Varanasi resident and educator V.A. Vidya met Morgan Freeman at the temple, where they observed the Shukla family’s departure

ritual. The Shukla family believes the spirits of their angry ancestors caused their money troubles and that by performing the departure ritual, they exorcised the evil presence.

ASK: What was involved in the departure ritual? LISTEN: [Even if it takes several students to piece it together, encourage the students to summarize this part of the episode. Be sure to leave enough time that everyone who wants to share is able.] MEMORABLE MOMENTS + QUOTES:


“[To ease the pain of Pischach] the great Hindu god Shiva puts the goblin through a purifying ritual, which ends with a dip in the nearby pond. That instantly cures him of his

disease. In return, Shiva orders the goblin to protect people near the pond from any other evil spirits.” (Morgan Freeman).

“Now this pond has become a place of healing—a haven for people who feel their lives are haunted by an evil presence” (Morgan Freeman).

“Hindus believe that when someone’s death is traumatic or unhappy, their soul can become angry and haunt the lives of their children or other relatives. This can cause

mental or physical illness, even financial troubles. The correct rituals , however, can liberate the unhappy soul and free the living” (Morgan Freeman).

“To make their ancestors’ spirits happy, the Shuklas must prepare them a good meal—one that is blessed by the priest” (Morgan Freeman).

“They offer honey, clarified butter, banana, fruits , and everything. And this would be offered to dead soul, which is gonna eat the food, so this will be a special meal. After receiving all the food, they offer a lamp and an umbrella and a pair of shoes. So here, every departed soul is fitted like a real human being. The spirit is treated like a real

human being” (V.A. Vidya).

“The ancestors receive what they need for their journey in the afterlife. After the

Shuklas offer the food to the sacred pond and nail a coin to this holy tree, the unhappy souls of their ancestors are set free, and the shadow of evil lifts” (Morgan Freeman) .

“In Hinduism, there’s no dichotomy between good and evil—the same person can become good and evil. In a temple like this, even the evil is treated very respectfully,

and is treated caringly. . . . There is always at the end the hope—the hope that even the evil can be liberated. And evil can be purified, like taking a dip into the pond” (V.A.

Vidya).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varanasi

http://cmcentre.org/staff/

http://cmcentre.org/staff/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shiva

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ASK:

[These are some questions you may choose to ask in order to spark conversation.]

What stood out to you about the rituals at Pischach Mochan and the Hindu beliefs about evil spirits?

How do these beliefs compare to your own beliefs about the existence of evil in the world?


OTHER NOTES:


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ZOROASTRIANISM

SAY: Another ancient belief system Morgan Freeman investigated is Zoroastrianism. He visited the Californian Zoroastrian Center in Orange County, California, to meet with the president of

the temple, Arman Ariane. Morgan also spoke with professor of religion Gregory Riley about how he thinks Zoroastrianism might have influenced other religious belief systems.

ASK: What stood out to you about the history of Zoroastrianism and about Zoroastrian beliefs? LISTEN:

[Even if it takes several students to piece together the answer, encourage your students to share their thoughts on this question. Be sure to leave enough time that everyone who wants to talk is able.]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zoroastrianism

http://czc.org/

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“Zoroastrianism began 3,500 years ago in ancient Iran. The central symbol of the faith is fire. Today there are just a few small pockets of Zoroastrians around the world, mostly

in India and Iran. But some are here in California” (Morgan Freeman). “[The fire] represents enlightenment. The more you are aware of this world of ours —

the more you know what’s ahead—the better decisions you can make. It’s kind of like

you are walking with a flashlight in your hand” (Arman Ariane). “In Zarathustra’s school of thought, you have two mentalities, which were translated by

Westerners as spirits. One is good, and one is bad. They are principles—they are a way of behaving. So the Zoroastrian motto is ‘Good Thoughts, Good Words, and Good

Deeds’” (Arman Ariane). “Zoroastrianism predates the Abrahamic religions” (Morgan Freeman).

“Zoroaster postulated that to defeat evil in the world, we are gonna have to have a cataclysmic battle. And God and the Devil are gonna fight it out . . . ” (Gregory Riley).

“If you go to the great mass of religions around [at the time of Zoroaster], there’s no Devil. The Israelites—they lived without a devil until they were in Babylon. The Jews met Zoroastrianism, and they began to assimilate ideas. They come back, and the Devil begins to appear in Jewish literature. These ideas about the Devil having caused that evil, and those things start to work on people. So by the time we get to Jesus’ day, they’ve actually created a name for the Devil: Beelzebul, if you’ve heard that word. . . . So the great competitor of Jesus in our New Testament and the Gospels” (Gregory Riley).

“For many Zoroastrians, the Devil is no longer a real demonic figure—it’s an internal combatant. The struggle between good and evil is one that takes place in the mind”

(Morgan Freeman). “The Zoroastrian motto is ‘Good Thoughts, Good Words, and Good Deeds,’ and the

order is very important, because you start with a thought, you talk it with a mentor before you take any actions. This way you don’t get yourself in trouble” (Arman Ariane) .

“The Zoroastrian school of thought is not something in the past or future but what we can do at this very time. All our problems in the world are manmade. Therefore, they

should be solved by man. . . . To blame it on a supernatural force is not a Zoroastrian notion” (Arman Ariane).


What do you think about the idea that Zoroastrianism introduced the concept of a devil to the Jews while they were captives in Babylon? Does that have an impact on how

some Christians view the Devil today? Why or why not?

How do you feel these beliefs compare to your own beliefs about the Devil and about

the existence of evil in the world?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zoroaster

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babylon

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Did you hear anything else you agree or disagree with? OTHER NOTES: [Use this section to take notes about any memorable moments or about anything you’d like to ask the students to respond to.]

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______________________________________________________________________________ PSYCHOLOGY SAY: Morgan Freeman traveled to New Zealand to interview psychologist Jesse Bering about his

experiments that seek to understand why kids are more likely to follow rules when they think they’re being watched.

ASK: Who can describe the dart experiment and how the kids acted before and after they were

introduced to Princess Alice?

LISTEN: [Even if it takes several students to piece it together, encourage the students to summarize this

part of the episode. Be sure to leave enough time that everyone who wants to share is able.]



“So what we’ve seen after testing hundreds of kids with this study is that kids that are told that Princess Alice is in the room with them when they’re left alone are significantly less likely to cheat” (Jesse Bering).

“Jesse’s research suggests that we need to believe we’re being watched to eliminate selfish behavior—to keep evil in check” (Morgan Freeman).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesse_Bering

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“So the proverbial question is, would you rob a bank if you thought that nobody could possibly know that you’ve done that? And I think if we’re honest with ourselves, many of us would walk in there and actually take all that currency. An all -seeing, all-knowing, all-powerful interventionist, moralistic deity—that helps steer people in the direction of good behavior” (Jesse Bering).

ASK:


What do you think about the results of Jesse Bering’s research? Does it make sense to you that the majority of kids would act the way they did? Why or why not?

What impact does the research have on your own beliefs about our willingness to do good or evil?


OTHER NOTES:


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BRYON WIDNER SAY: The final interview of the episode was with Bryon Widner, a man with a dark history as a neo-Nazi enforcer. Morgan Freeman’s conversation with Mr. Widner revealed a powerful story

of someone who recognized the evil he was perpetrating and tried to change who he was for the better.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2055437/Bryon-Widner-tattoos-Criminal-tuns-time-16-months-laser-surgery.html

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ASK: What do you remember about Mr. Widner’s story? Where did he came from, and how did

he change his life?

LISTEN: [Even if it takes several students to piece it together, encourage the students to summarize

Bryon Widner’s story. Be sure to leave enough time that everyone who wants to share is able.]

MEMORABLE MOMENTS + QUOTES: [Remind students about specific moments in this story, and ask what they think about them.]

“For 16 years I was a neo-Nazi skinhead. . . . I was in multiple skinhead gangs. I was an enforcer in one—did some incredibly terrible things to a lot of undeserving people. I was an evil person. I wanted to hurt the world—that’s all I wanted to do. I had a sense of just utter destruction for everybody. That was my driving goal” (Bryon Widner).

“I fell in with the wrong people. I was 14 years old, and I was running the streets . These guys gave me a place to stay, they bought me beer, made me feel accepted and wanted. And after about my 10th year, I kinda realized this is a subculture of degenerates. I

realized I’m not superior to anybody. In fact, I was pretty well a lower form of humanity, you know?” (Bryon Widner).

“I went to a skinhead concert in 2005, and I met a woman there. And by January of 2006, we got married. By February she was pregnant. I had to start taking a hard look at

what I was doing with myself. I’m bringing this child into a world, and I told ‘em I can’t do this anymore—I’m done. I gotta take care of my son. So during that time I made the

change on the inside, I actually had to make a physical change on the outside” (Bryon Widner).

“I got in contact with the Southern Poverty Law Center. They actually set it up to where I was able to get the tattoos taken off my face. . . . It took about two-and-a-half years. There was 25, 26 treatments—something like that. Every two weeks I was getting laser-zapped. It was ungodly excruciating. My face was constantly swollen. I looked like the Elephant Man. . . . I very much looked at it as a penance. . . . I took the pain as a reminder that I’ve caused enough, so I might as well have some” (Bryon Widner).

“Looking back, I had absolutely no remorse—I was borderline sociopathic. I had no feelings. I wanted to hurt the world. When I was going through the tattoo removal, I

found God. Before that I was a pagan, and my life was always dark. I always had a hole in my soul, I guess would be the best way to put that. I don’t know exactly what His

name is or if it’s even Judeo-Christian. There is a godly presence in the universe, and it made itself known to me. It helped me realize that there is good and evil in all of us. And

my goal now is basically when I just leave this world a better place than when I got into it, you know? Just try to be a good person. That’s all I can do, and I hope that’s good

enough” (Bryon Widner).

“The outward stains of Bryon’s past have been wiped away, but I’m struck by the astonishing difference in his two lives, on the inside. There was evil in his heart—his admission. Deep and remorseless. But he says the birth of his son and a dawning belief

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in God is what purged him of that evil. If Bryon can do that, it gives us hope that people

can change—evil can be contained. This hope is at the core of the Christian faith. . . . People sin, but those sins can be washed away” (Morgan Freeman).

ASK:


What struck you about Bryon’s story?

How would you describe Bryon’s beliefs about evil in the world, and how do they compare to your own?


OTHER NOTES: [Use this section to take notes about any memorable moments or about anything you’d like to

ask the students to respond to.]

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A SMALL SELECTION OF BIBLE VERSES:

These selections are only meant to be a quick reference of verses. There are many different

understandings of these selections of Scripture, so be sure to review each of them in context, using necessary commentaries and other biblical resources.

Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made.

He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”

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The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God

did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’”

“You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when

you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. . . . (Genesis 3:1-7—continue reading until the end of the chapter.)

The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the

time. (Genesis 6:5)

Folly is bound up in the heart of a child, but the rod of discipline will drive it far away. (Proverbs 22:15)

What are mortals, that they could be pure,

or those born of woman, that they could be righteous?

If God places no trust in his holy ones,

if even the heavens are not pure in his eyes,

how much less mortals, who are vile and corrupt, who drink up evil like water! (Job 15:14-16)

Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. The tempter came to him and said, “If

you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”

Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written:

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“‘He will command his angels concerning you,

and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’” Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of

the world and their splendor. “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.”

Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God,

and serve him only.’”

Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him. (Matthew 4:1-11)

Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be

ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand. If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will

be your judges. But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. (Matthew 12:25-28)

Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.” (Matthew

16:23) Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I have come here

from God. I have not come on my own; God sent me. Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say. You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. (John 8:42-44)

My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. (John 17:15)

Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned—To be sure, sin was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not charged against anyone’s account where there is no law. Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even

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over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who is a pattern of the

one to come.

But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one

man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many! Nor can the gift of God be compared with the result of one man’s sin: The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, but

the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification. For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ! Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people. For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the

obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous. (Romans 5:12-19)

So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in my sinful nature a slave to the law of sin. (Romans 7:21-25) And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising,

then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve. (2 Corinthians 11:14-15)

Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. (Ephesians 6:11) If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we

confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his

word is not in us. (1 John 1:8-10)

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to

live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the

17

air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived

among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. But because of his

great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. (Ephesians 2:1-5)

SUGGESTIONS FOR FINAL QUESTIONS: [These are some questions you may choose to ask in order to spark conversation.]

Did any of the beliefs or perspectives surprise you? If so, which ones and why?

We’ve looked at a small selection of Bible verses that reference the existence of evil. What stands out to you in these verses? Is there anything that doesn’t make sense to you? Is there anything that makes more sense now that we’ve had this discussion?

Do you feel as if any beliefs featured in this episode of The Story of God weren’t accurately represented?

In light of the stories in the documentary and the cross section of Bible verses, what final thoughts or questions do you have about the existence of evil?

This discussion guide based off of National Geographic’s series The Story of God is written by Jacob Eckeberger, edited by Heather Campbell, and digitally published by Youth Specialties.

For more great youth ministry resources, visit: http://YouthSpecialties.com

http://youthspecialties.com/

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