Is Free Will Valuable Enough for God to Permit so Much Suffering?
God cannot actualize a contradiction. Man’s free will and a world without evil are contradictory states, since free will necessarily includes the freedom to choose evil. So the question becomes, “Which of these is preferable?” That means we have to look at God’s purpose for creating man.
Dr. William Lane Craig has said, "The chief purpose of life is not happiness per se, but the knowledge of God. One reason the problem of evil seems so puzzling is that we tend to think that the goal of human life is happiness in this world. But on the Christian view this is false. Man's end is not happiness as such, but the knowledge of God - which in the end will bring true and everlasting human fulfillment."
From beginning to end, Scripture tells the unfolding story of God’s desire to have a relationship with man and how that can be achieved. God’s desire is that we love Him as He loves us. That has to be a free choice. As paradoxical as it sounds, no one can come to truly love God without the absolute freedom to reject Him. Evil is born out of that freedom.
Evil and suffering can actually serve important purposes as well. I think most people would agree that certain character traits are more valuable than others. Evil and suffering allow us to develop valuable characteristics like courage and compassion. These could never be developed in a world free from evil. In addition to the development of certain positive character traits, I submit that man’s struggle with evil also prompts those who genuinely want to know God to seek Him.
Since the knowledge of God and right relationship with Him is the highest good, free will then actually is so valuable that having it and a world that contains evil is preferable to a world in which man is essentially an automaton. It is the only world in which true love can flourish and man can cultivate a nobility that faintly resembles the Creator by developing positive character traits in response to evil and suffering. Here it is also important to remember it is not God’s fault if we abuse our free will; we can use it for good. And that possibility makes the risk of abusing it worthwhile.