The servant whom Moses (a.s.) met was called "Al Khidr" (The Green). The title "THE green" indicates that this may not necessarily be a person since a person is not usually called "the" green, rather they would be called "Green one" if it were a description. Therefore it is more than likely that "al-khidr" is a metaphor or personification of "nature" itself.
Nature (Al Khidr) is God's servant and it, like everything else, acts by following God's decree (Al Qadr). Al-Khidr said: "...and I did not do it of my own will..." [18:82]. The core message of this story is a question asked by many atheists "why would God allow natural acts of evil to happen to good people?" (e.g. one example given in this story is of "al-khidr" / "nature" killing an innocent child - which often happens in the form of diseases, accidents, wars, etc).
God addresses this sensitive issue by teaching us that everything decreed by God (including the bad things) happens for a good reason and we will only ever understand this reason if we are patient and wait to see the benefit that comes from such disastrous events. However, as human beings, we were created forgetful and may find ourselves questioning God's decree and decisions which seem unjust, wrong, forbidden and even evil (just as Moses a.s. did with al-khidr). But we must remember in these times to remain patient because God's wise plan will be revealed in good time ("...That is the interpretation of that which you could not have patience" [18:82]).
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