total depravity

1. Can good exist without evil? In other words, was good supposed to exist without evil before the fall?

OR

2. Can evil exist without good? I.e. if man is corrupted/guilty upon birth (because of the fall) does that mean all good has vanished within his nature, or does some good remain because we are fashioned in God's image?

Steve answers:
1) Good can and did exist without evil. Prior to the Fall, there was another fall – the fall of Lucifer and a significant portion of the angels, but going back even farther than that, there was a state of perfection. Between the creation of time and the creation of the physical universe (an unknown span of time), before the angels fell, there was good unmixed with any evil. Even before any creation had taken place, the Triune God existed in a state of perfect peace and fellowship. All that to say, yes – good can and did stand alone. The idea that evil is necessary is a form of dualism. Interestingly, the concept of free will carries with it the possibility that evil can be created. Lucifer and all the angels were created good, but exercised their free will in rebellion against God and became evil. This is an enormous theological and philosophical subject, so your question opens up a can of worms, so to speak. That’s why I said “hopefully I can help” J

2) All people retain a vestige of the image of God. The Fall marred, but did not destroy, the image of God in humans. I think your question relates to how “total depravity” is understood. My understanding of the biblical concept of human depravity is that without the supernatural action of God in our lives, we are always going to choose and act toward self and away from God, even if we’re moral and religious. So our inclination is away from God. How that manifests itself in an actual human life or human society varies considerably. Since we retain a vestige of the image of God, people are capable of doing good things. We are capable of acting selflessly, of creating art, of loving, of making good choices, of caring about our fellow man, etc. All good has not vanished from our nature. However, we are also capable of a wide range of evil, all the way to a complete inability to function morally and thepotential to commit heinous acts, either individually or corporately (Nazi Germany being an example). The fall means that most people will do some good, and all people will do some evil (evil being understood generically – acts in opposition to the will and character of God).