Good or Evil?

Is man basically good or evil?

Until now, I was absolutely positive that man was basically evil. This is what I had always heard and believed, but I found something that could contradict that. Keep in mind: I don’t have an answer for this, I’m just speculating.

Genesis chapter 1 verse 27 says, “So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.” If we were created in the image of God, then we are not evil, we are good! After all, God is the epitome of perfection and goodness. From this verse, I can conclude that man is basically good.

Unfortunately, you must look at the Bible as a whole, and not pick out just a few verses. Genesis chapter 8 verse 21 gives a different view of this discussion: “The Lord smelled the pleasing aroma and said in His heart: ‘Never again will I curse the ground because of man, even though every inclination of his heart is evil from childhood.’” This is God’s covenant to Noah after the Flood and its destruction of the earth. So God is saying that man is basically evil from the moment he is born. Doesn’t that contradict the first verse?

I know the Bible never contradicts itself, so this cannot be the answer.
The only conclusion that I can come to is that, when Adam and Eve ate the fruit from the tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, the sin that entered their lives completely wiped out the purity of mind and body that God had given them. Since they allowed sin to play a part in their lives, they fell from God’s grace, and were no longer allowed to be like Him.

I suppose this is how the human race lost their goodness. We are still made in God’s image, but when we choose the world over God, we become evil inside. Thankfully, Jesus paved the way to perfection, and this can be attained by repenting and being baptized. If Jesus had not come, there would be no hope for regaining our status of goodness.

I still am unsure of my conclusion, but I think man starts out good, but when he allows sin to enter his life, he becomes evil and the only way to become good again is by accepting Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. I could be completely wrong, and if you have another opinion, please leave a comment. These are only the conclusions of a fifteen-year-old who is not wise enough to make these speculations without some help. Please leave your opinions for me to think on and take into consideration.

1 Corinthians 11:7a: “A man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God.”