December 18, 2002
A couple years ago at a writer’s conference I met a man whose speech was difficult to understand. English was not his first language. His accent added to my difficulty. To make things worse, when I told him I could not understand him, he repeated it — but exactly the same way he said it the first time. Then he smiled and nodded as if it was clearer to him. However, he seemed unaware that I could not grasp even the gist of what he said.
At one time, I thought “understanding and being understood” were universal needs. This man upset my convictions, yet this remains a firm need in my life. Even more important is that others understand what I am saying to them.
A child’s curiosity is based on this desire to understand. Our grandson often takes things apart just to figure out how they work. Even though he was reprimanded for constantly fiddling with radios or other technical appliances, at eighteen his curiosity remains strong.
Children also want to be understood. At two, our son knew “lellow” and “blana” were not quite right, so he practiced until they came out “yellow banana.”
Conversations like the one with that man at the conference are frustrating. One side thinks their speech is clear, but the listener is not hearing them clearly. Dare we be polite and pretend we understood?
A friend died but before she did, her daughter told the doctor her mother was a Christian and “ready to die.” The doctor understood her words, but not what she intended. He watched the mother put up a good fight to live. He didn’t believe she was ready at all to die.
The problem was not an issue of readiness, but of understanding and being understood. Christians who are ready to die have made peace with God. They know their sin is forgiven. They also have assurance of eternal life through their faith in Christ. Death is not a fearful thing. However, being ready to die does not mean that we hate life. After all, the Bible calls death an enemy. While Jesus conquered it (and we will too), being ready is not the same as simply giving up when death comes calling.
In thinking about the desire to understand and be understood, I’d have to say God perfectly models both. The Bible reveals how He understands us: “Oh Lord, you have searched me and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar . . . You are familiar with all my ways . . . such knowledge is too wonderful for me.” David, who wrote this psalm, worshiped God for His great understanding. He was not afraid of being known like this; it satisfied this deep desire to be understood.
David also sought to know and understand God, but the Bible says such a desire is not natural: “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God.” The Bible explains this lack of desire to know God. It says each of us “turn to our own way.” We are quite happy to know our own minds, desires, and attitudes. We are content with our own understanding of things, and convinced that is enough. The Bible also says that this determination to do our own thing is what keeps us blind and deaf to the reality of God. Because we don’t want to know, we can’t understand.
To make matters worse, in our blindness we make up our own version of God, our own version of spirituality, our own version of religion. No wonder there are so many “faiths.”
God is willing to reveal Himself to anyone. We need to be willing to know and understand Him as He reveals Himself. Those who are content with their own understanding has no idea what they are missing!
Showing posts with label God reveals Himself. Show all posts
Showing posts with label God reveals Himself. Show all posts
Friday, July 20, 2018
Wednesday, November 22, 2017
Understanding God .......... Parables 670
May 18, 2000
Millions of businesses use the Internet to advertise and sell products. Millions of ordinary folks use it to find information and to communicate with friends all over the world.
The Internet started as a convenience for government agencies. Soon other organizations saw its potential. Since the 1994 advent of Internet browsers, the number of web servers who feed information into cyberspace has exploded from a few thousand to over several million. They host uncountable personal and corporate web sites. With such rapid growth, no one has a handle on the actual size of the worldwide web. While most of us don’t care, some ambitious people are trying to draw a map of the Internet. They want to define and catalog it, somehow wrapping their minds around its size and content.
Imagine an even greater challenge: try to figure out God. The study is called “theology” and theology books are filled with finite human attempts to understand Someone infinite, Someone greater than the Internet or even the entire universe.
Theology tries to list God’s attributes and actions, dividing characteristics into those we can share — like mercy, and those that belong to God alone — such as the ability to know all things.
Theologians devote pages describing how God reveals Himself and how we can know Him. They describe and define His names and His triune nature. Some have perplexing titles such as “Essence and Attributes” and “Defenseless Superior Power.”
Besides chapters on His character, theologians describe the way God behaves. They talk of His mercy in sparing those who deserved judgment. They describe how He takes care of His people, sometimes in miraculous ways.
However, the best way to define God is the way He defines Himself. That is, what God is like is most clearly seen in His Son, Jesus Christ. Yes, Jesus was a human being. He was born just as we were, grew up, learned, and was subject to His parents and civil law. He got hungry, thirsty and tired. He was just like us in that He had feelings, thoughts, and choices to make.
However, if we study His life, it is not long before we realize He is not exactly like us, or rather, we are not exactly like Him. We make mistakes, talk out of turn, lose our temper, and get annoyed with people. We lose patience with our own sin and the sins of others. But Jesus said and did the right things — always. He reflects qualities that belong to God and God alone. If descriptions do not convince us that He is divine, Jesus also walked on water, healed the sick, turned water into wine, fed thousands with less than what is in my pantry, and raised the dead. He read minds and forgave sins. Only God can do that.
We may not understand words like immanent and eternal, but in Christ we can clearly see that God is loving and merciful. We can also see how He hates sin but cares deeply about sinners. That is, God pulled on humanity like a pair of pants and walked among us. He knew we could not grasp His nature by mere descriptions. He knew we would stumble if all we had were stories of His interaction with Old Testament Jews. Skeptics even discredit God and those miracles by saying they were superstition, coincidences or freaks of nature.
But no one can explain away Jesus. Real people saw, touched, and heard Him. They interacted with a living person who loved them and did miracles. They watched Him give Himself up to death on a cross for human sin. Over 500 of them rejoiced to see Him alive again when God raised Him from the dead. They knew He was God in the flesh.
By studying Jesus, we can begin to understand God as described in Scripture. By putting our faith in Him, we can experience God too. He will live within us and walk beside us. We never again have to struggle with long words and vague descriptions that always fall short because, in Christ, we can not only know who He is but we can know Him as our Savior and personal friend.
Millions of businesses use the Internet to advertise and sell products. Millions of ordinary folks use it to find information and to communicate with friends all over the world.
The Internet started as a convenience for government agencies. Soon other organizations saw its potential. Since the 1994 advent of Internet browsers, the number of web servers who feed information into cyberspace has exploded from a few thousand to over several million. They host uncountable personal and corporate web sites. With such rapid growth, no one has a handle on the actual size of the worldwide web. While most of us don’t care, some ambitious people are trying to draw a map of the Internet. They want to define and catalog it, somehow wrapping their minds around its size and content.
Imagine an even greater challenge: try to figure out God. The study is called “theology” and theology books are filled with finite human attempts to understand Someone infinite, Someone greater than the Internet or even the entire universe.
Theology tries to list God’s attributes and actions, dividing characteristics into those we can share — like mercy, and those that belong to God alone — such as the ability to know all things.
Theologians devote pages describing how God reveals Himself and how we can know Him. They describe and define His names and His triune nature. Some have perplexing titles such as “Essence and Attributes” and “Defenseless Superior Power.”
Besides chapters on His character, theologians describe the way God behaves. They talk of His mercy in sparing those who deserved judgment. They describe how He takes care of His people, sometimes in miraculous ways.
However, the best way to define God is the way He defines Himself. That is, what God is like is most clearly seen in His Son, Jesus Christ. Yes, Jesus was a human being. He was born just as we were, grew up, learned, and was subject to His parents and civil law. He got hungry, thirsty and tired. He was just like us in that He had feelings, thoughts, and choices to make.
However, if we study His life, it is not long before we realize He is not exactly like us, or rather, we are not exactly like Him. We make mistakes, talk out of turn, lose our temper, and get annoyed with people. We lose patience with our own sin and the sins of others. But Jesus said and did the right things — always. He reflects qualities that belong to God and God alone. If descriptions do not convince us that He is divine, Jesus also walked on water, healed the sick, turned water into wine, fed thousands with less than what is in my pantry, and raised the dead. He read minds and forgave sins. Only God can do that.
We may not understand words like immanent and eternal, but in Christ we can clearly see that God is loving and merciful. We can also see how He hates sin but cares deeply about sinners. That is, God pulled on humanity like a pair of pants and walked among us. He knew we could not grasp His nature by mere descriptions. He knew we would stumble if all we had were stories of His interaction with Old Testament Jews. Skeptics even discredit God and those miracles by saying they were superstition, coincidences or freaks of nature.
But no one can explain away Jesus. Real people saw, touched, and heard Him. They interacted with a living person who loved them and did miracles. They watched Him give Himself up to death on a cross for human sin. Over 500 of them rejoiced to see Him alive again when God raised Him from the dead. They knew He was God in the flesh.
By studying Jesus, we can begin to understand God as described in Scripture. By putting our faith in Him, we can experience God too. He will live within us and walk beside us. We never again have to struggle with long words and vague descriptions that always fall short because, in Christ, we can not only know who He is but we can know Him as our Savior and personal friend.
Friday, November 17, 2017
What would Jesus say or do? .......... Parables 668
May 9, 2000
Madeline O’Hare, Shirley McLean and Jesus Christ are sipping lattes at Starbucks. To open the conversation, Ms. O’Hare (the most forward of the three), stoutly proclaims, “There is no God.”
Ms. McLean cringes. How can she say that? It simply ruins everyone’s self-esteem. In rebuttal, she sternly declares, “No, that is not right. You are God. I am God. We are all God.”
At that, Jesus leans back in His chair, smiles and then . . . what do you think He would say or do?
One option might be a storm cloud that fills the coffee house with thunder and lightning, stunning these two with His power. The New Testament describes a time He was in a boat with His disciples. He was having a nap while they rowed across the Sea of Galilee. As it was prone to do, the weather suddenly changed. Some of the disciples were fishermen, used to quirky storms but this was the mother of all storms. They were terrified and shook Jesus awake with, “Don’t you care that we perish?” At that, He rebuked their “little faith” and commanded the rain and wind to cease. It did. Certainly if He can stop a storm with a word, He can also start one.
Another option might be a display of His glory. He did that on a mountain with Peter, James and John as witnesses. They were struck dumb by what they saw (only Peter, who had perpetual foot-in-mouth disease, offered a few comments). All three fell to the ground in terror.
Or Jesus might respond with a sermon. He often preached from mountainsides and fishing boats, so a coffee shop is not out of bounds for a pulpit. We could guess a topic, perhaps the demands of His Law that asks for our perfect obedience. He might explain how no human would invent the Law of God because we have no reason to hold up a standard we cannot reach. Surely Jesus would include God’s grace and mercy . . . although “sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin . . . when we were still sinners, He died for us.” With that, He would explain how God loves sinners but hates sin and demands it be punished. In love, He send His Son to earth to pay our penalty for sin. Those who believe in Him are spared but those who reject His offer of salvation must themselves pick up the tab for sin.
Then again, Jesus might not preach or do a miracle. He might not reveal Himself, at least not to these people. One is an atheist who denies there is a God. For her, there is no value to faith nor is there need to consider her soul or spirit. She also denies spiritual realities such as miracles. Anything Jesus might do she would attribute to human skill and an FX crew.
The other one believes in pantheism, a belief once held by primitive people but now adopted by the sophisticated westerner. Pantheists believe that “God is all and all is God.” Each level of existence is simply a different level of God, whether it be mind, mosquito, or mud. For her, God is energy not a person. Even though she would agree that Jesus has the energy of God, even agree that He is God, it would not be because He is God but because all of us are. She would attribute whatever Jesus might do or say to the same forces that she herself lives by, but not to the power of a real and holy God. Pantheists prefer a god they can see, touch, understand, control, and that does not require admission of sin. By making “all” into god, they can worship anything they want. They may not stoop to mud and mosquitoes, but only because their favorite “god” is themselves.
Jesus might smile, finish His latte and walk away. After all, He has already spoken to these issues. Psalm 14:1 begins, “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God’” and goes on to explain that no one seeks God because sin hardens our hearts to the truth of God.
The Bible points out that we know about the Creator in our hearts but if we persist in denying our conscience, we crowd Him out. Then, because we are spiritual beings, we fill the void with lesser gods and the true God becomes an unknown.
Madeline O’Hare, Shirley McLean and Jesus Christ are sipping lattes at Starbucks. To open the conversation, Ms. O’Hare (the most forward of the three), stoutly proclaims, “There is no God.”
Ms. McLean cringes. How can she say that? It simply ruins everyone’s self-esteem. In rebuttal, she sternly declares, “No, that is not right. You are God. I am God. We are all God.”
At that, Jesus leans back in His chair, smiles and then . . . what do you think He would say or do?
One option might be a storm cloud that fills the coffee house with thunder and lightning, stunning these two with His power. The New Testament describes a time He was in a boat with His disciples. He was having a nap while they rowed across the Sea of Galilee. As it was prone to do, the weather suddenly changed. Some of the disciples were fishermen, used to quirky storms but this was the mother of all storms. They were terrified and shook Jesus awake with, “Don’t you care that we perish?” At that, He rebuked their “little faith” and commanded the rain and wind to cease. It did. Certainly if He can stop a storm with a word, He can also start one.
Another option might be a display of His glory. He did that on a mountain with Peter, James and John as witnesses. They were struck dumb by what they saw (only Peter, who had perpetual foot-in-mouth disease, offered a few comments). All three fell to the ground in terror.
Or Jesus might respond with a sermon. He often preached from mountainsides and fishing boats, so a coffee shop is not out of bounds for a pulpit. We could guess a topic, perhaps the demands of His Law that asks for our perfect obedience. He might explain how no human would invent the Law of God because we have no reason to hold up a standard we cannot reach. Surely Jesus would include God’s grace and mercy . . . although “sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin . . . when we were still sinners, He died for us.” With that, He would explain how God loves sinners but hates sin and demands it be punished. In love, He send His Son to earth to pay our penalty for sin. Those who believe in Him are spared but those who reject His offer of salvation must themselves pick up the tab for sin.
Then again, Jesus might not preach or do a miracle. He might not reveal Himself, at least not to these people. One is an atheist who denies there is a God. For her, there is no value to faith nor is there need to consider her soul or spirit. She also denies spiritual realities such as miracles. Anything Jesus might do she would attribute to human skill and an FX crew.
The other one believes in pantheism, a belief once held by primitive people but now adopted by the sophisticated westerner. Pantheists believe that “God is all and all is God.” Each level of existence is simply a different level of God, whether it be mind, mosquito, or mud. For her, God is energy not a person. Even though she would agree that Jesus has the energy of God, even agree that He is God, it would not be because He is God but because all of us are. She would attribute whatever Jesus might do or say to the same forces that she herself lives by, but not to the power of a real and holy God. Pantheists prefer a god they can see, touch, understand, control, and that does not require admission of sin. By making “all” into god, they can worship anything they want. They may not stoop to mud and mosquitoes, but only because their favorite “god” is themselves.
Jesus might smile, finish His latte and walk away. After all, He has already spoken to these issues. Psalm 14:1 begins, “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God’” and goes on to explain that no one seeks God because sin hardens our hearts to the truth of God.
The Bible points out that we know about the Creator in our hearts but if we persist in denying our conscience, we crowd Him out. Then, because we are spiritual beings, we fill the void with lesser gods and the true God becomes an unknown.
Friday, September 22, 2017
Finding God .......... Parables 644
July 13, 1999
Remember the mystics who climbed a pole and sat there for weeks hoping to find God? Or remember a Christian bumper sticker that proclaimed “I found it” meaning they found God? The stickers did not imply climbing a pole. What did they do to find God?
Some assume God is lost but that cannot be. The problem is that God is spirit. We cannot perceive Him with our physical eyes. We have a blind spot to His reality. Since is God invisible, looking for Him is a perplexity. In the first place, how can anyone know He is real? Could God be a figment of the imagination?
Certainly, the pagans made up gods. For every phenomena they observed and all the forces they could not control, they named a deity. The sun gods controlled the seasons. Fertility gods controlled their crops and childbirth. Other gods controlled the weather or circumstances. Some say the ancient Jews fabricated their idea of one God in the same way. They did not understand lightning storms and mold on their bread so invented a greater power to explain their mysteries.
I am convinced pagan gods are imaginary. I am equally convinced that the God of the Jews is real. Why am I so certain? How did I find God?
One fall afternoon over twenty-five years ago, I sat in my living room with my nose in a book about pagan gods and gods from outer space. I came across a verse from the Bible. As I read it, suddenly the room seemed brighter. At once, I knew God existed. I also knew that Jesus Christ is God in human flesh. The book did not say it. No one told me. I simply knew.
I knew too that Jesus died for my sins, was buried but is now alive. I also knew that I needed to surrender my life to Him. From that point on, He began to change me.
Later, I realized that the God of the Jews makes Himself known by “revelation.” We do not find Him but He reaches out to us. He gets our attention by speaking to us: “In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son.”
As that verse suggests, God speaks several ways. First, His “word” to the Jewish prophets is recorded in the Bible for people to read. Second, His “word” took on human nature and became a man for people to hear, see and touch. People can find God through His “word.”
I know now that a book about pagan gods did not show me the true God. Rather, He revealed Himself to me through that one verse of Scripture from His Word. As Isaiah 65:1 says, “I revealed Myself to those who did not ask for me; I was found by those who did not seek Me.”
After learning all this, I also know that finding God is not a passive activity. We do not sit waiting for a bolt of light from heaven. Instead, Scripture paradoxically says that we will find God “when we seek Him with our whole heart.”
A “whole heart” implies complete openness, nothing held back, no intention of resisting Him in any way. This is very important for those who search for God. He resists and holds Himself back from the proud but He gives grace and truth to those who humbly yield to Him.
This is because a proud person cannot understand the gospel message. We need to yield. It was after the Apostle Paul fell on His knees before Christ, that the “mystery of salvation by grace was revealed to him” by God. Without humility, God’s revelation seems incomprehensible and even foolish to us. We cannot see the revelation.
Each person may have a different experience of finding God, yet everyone who does find Him knows both the value of humility and of His revelation. We know that unless He had revealed Himself, we would still be in the dark.
Remember the mystics who climbed a pole and sat there for weeks hoping to find God? Or remember a Christian bumper sticker that proclaimed “I found it” meaning they found God? The stickers did not imply climbing a pole. What did they do to find God?
Some assume God is lost but that cannot be. The problem is that God is spirit. We cannot perceive Him with our physical eyes. We have a blind spot to His reality. Since is God invisible, looking for Him is a perplexity. In the first place, how can anyone know He is real? Could God be a figment of the imagination?
Certainly, the pagans made up gods. For every phenomena they observed and all the forces they could not control, they named a deity. The sun gods controlled the seasons. Fertility gods controlled their crops and childbirth. Other gods controlled the weather or circumstances. Some say the ancient Jews fabricated their idea of one God in the same way. They did not understand lightning storms and mold on their bread so invented a greater power to explain their mysteries.
I am convinced pagan gods are imaginary. I am equally convinced that the God of the Jews is real. Why am I so certain? How did I find God?
One fall afternoon over twenty-five years ago, I sat in my living room with my nose in a book about pagan gods and gods from outer space. I came across a verse from the Bible. As I read it, suddenly the room seemed brighter. At once, I knew God existed. I also knew that Jesus Christ is God in human flesh. The book did not say it. No one told me. I simply knew.
I knew too that Jesus died for my sins, was buried but is now alive. I also knew that I needed to surrender my life to Him. From that point on, He began to change me.
Later, I realized that the God of the Jews makes Himself known by “revelation.” We do not find Him but He reaches out to us. He gets our attention by speaking to us: “In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son.”
As that verse suggests, God speaks several ways. First, His “word” to the Jewish prophets is recorded in the Bible for people to read. Second, His “word” took on human nature and became a man for people to hear, see and touch. People can find God through His “word.”
I know now that a book about pagan gods did not show me the true God. Rather, He revealed Himself to me through that one verse of Scripture from His Word. As Isaiah 65:1 says, “I revealed Myself to those who did not ask for me; I was found by those who did not seek Me.”
After learning all this, I also know that finding God is not a passive activity. We do not sit waiting for a bolt of light from heaven. Instead, Scripture paradoxically says that we will find God “when we seek Him with our whole heart.”
A “whole heart” implies complete openness, nothing held back, no intention of resisting Him in any way. This is very important for those who search for God. He resists and holds Himself back from the proud but He gives grace and truth to those who humbly yield to Him.
This is because a proud person cannot understand the gospel message. We need to yield. It was after the Apostle Paul fell on His knees before Christ, that the “mystery of salvation by grace was revealed to him” by God. Without humility, God’s revelation seems incomprehensible and even foolish to us. We cannot see the revelation.
Each person may have a different experience of finding God, yet everyone who does find Him knows both the value of humility and of His revelation. We know that unless He had revealed Himself, we would still be in the dark.
Wednesday, June 7, 2017
Recognizing God ................ Parables 598
June 2, 1998
Dad “works better” with Mom around. They have been partners for nearly sixty years. Together they are much stronger than they are apart.
This is particularly true in the past few years. My mother has Alzheimers and my Dad has legs that will not work. He has been her mind and she his body. Now, both are struggling. Although they need each other, neither one is much help, either with memory or physical activity.
Since February, Dad has been separated from Mom because he needed nursing care. It is only across the street from her senior’s lodge, but life is frequently confusing for him. His memory plays tricks. Some days he thinks he sees my mother but it is someone else. Does he forget what she looks like? I don’t think so. When she visits, he recognizes her instantly. Whatever goes wrong when she is not there seems to work just fine when she is with him.
Their situation is sad, yet they enjoy small delights and are always thankful. They remind me constantly of things God is teaching me. Like them, I do better with others around, most of all God. He has been a faithful partner, even when my mind and body do not do whatever I want them to do. There are days when I am unsure of His presence, but others when I recognize Him instantly. No matter what goes wrong in my life, I know He is always close, whether I sense it or not. Because of Him, I enjoy small delights and am thankful.
For myself and others who believe in Christ, recognizing God is not a problem, yet it was for people in the first century. When Jesus came to earth, the Bible says, “the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.”
Odd that His own (referring to the Jews) would not know Him. Their relationship with God went back several centuries. Didn’t He act like the God they thought they knew? Didn’t He look familiar? Or were they having problems with their eyesight?
At that time in history, the Jewish people were under the thumb of Rome, humiliated by both military and economic defeat. The Romans tolerated their presence but life was not easy. For years, God had promised a Messiah, a great deliverer. Most people were certain He would come as a man of war.
However, Jesus was anything but that. Besides, He didn’t act like the God of the Old Testament who helped them battle their enemies. How could this Jesus be God? If He showed anger, it was not against Roman oppressors but against self-righteous Jews.
Once He made a whip and drove them from the temple, accusing them of greed and turning His Father’s house into a “den of thieves.” He even accused them of violating the laws of God, pointed out other sins but mainly condemning them for not believing God had sent Him to redeem them. A few realized who He was and followed Him. Those who refused to admit their sin and rejected all that Jesus offered them were the same people who did not recognize Him.
According to Scripture, these rejecters had “eyesight problems.” They were blind to the identity of Jesus because their sin kept them from seeing reality. Their lack of vision was correctable. All they needed to do was acknowledge that Jesus was no ordinary man and seek His true identity. If they admitted they were sinful, God would have cleansed them and opened their eyes. In refusing to do this, they missed their opportunity to know God through Christ.
For all who want to know Him today, the same principle applies. We too must acknowledge our sin, admit our helplessness, and keep our eyes open. God will reveal Himself. He will forgive and cleanse our sin. He will give us a new understanding of reality. And when He does, we will never forget what He looks like.
Dad “works better” with Mom around. They have been partners for nearly sixty years. Together they are much stronger than they are apart.
This is particularly true in the past few years. My mother has Alzheimers and my Dad has legs that will not work. He has been her mind and she his body. Now, both are struggling. Although they need each other, neither one is much help, either with memory or physical activity.
Since February, Dad has been separated from Mom because he needed nursing care. It is only across the street from her senior’s lodge, but life is frequently confusing for him. His memory plays tricks. Some days he thinks he sees my mother but it is someone else. Does he forget what she looks like? I don’t think so. When she visits, he recognizes her instantly. Whatever goes wrong when she is not there seems to work just fine when she is with him.
Their situation is sad, yet they enjoy small delights and are always thankful. They remind me constantly of things God is teaching me. Like them, I do better with others around, most of all God. He has been a faithful partner, even when my mind and body do not do whatever I want them to do. There are days when I am unsure of His presence, but others when I recognize Him instantly. No matter what goes wrong in my life, I know He is always close, whether I sense it or not. Because of Him, I enjoy small delights and am thankful.
For myself and others who believe in Christ, recognizing God is not a problem, yet it was for people in the first century. When Jesus came to earth, the Bible says, “the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.”
Odd that His own (referring to the Jews) would not know Him. Their relationship with God went back several centuries. Didn’t He act like the God they thought they knew? Didn’t He look familiar? Or were they having problems with their eyesight?
At that time in history, the Jewish people were under the thumb of Rome, humiliated by both military and economic defeat. The Romans tolerated their presence but life was not easy. For years, God had promised a Messiah, a great deliverer. Most people were certain He would come as a man of war.
However, Jesus was anything but that. Besides, He didn’t act like the God of the Old Testament who helped them battle their enemies. How could this Jesus be God? If He showed anger, it was not against Roman oppressors but against self-righteous Jews.
Once He made a whip and drove them from the temple, accusing them of greed and turning His Father’s house into a “den of thieves.” He even accused them of violating the laws of God, pointed out other sins but mainly condemning them for not believing God had sent Him to redeem them. A few realized who He was and followed Him. Those who refused to admit their sin and rejected all that Jesus offered them were the same people who did not recognize Him.
According to Scripture, these rejecters had “eyesight problems.” They were blind to the identity of Jesus because their sin kept them from seeing reality. Their lack of vision was correctable. All they needed to do was acknowledge that Jesus was no ordinary man and seek His true identity. If they admitted they were sinful, God would have cleansed them and opened their eyes. In refusing to do this, they missed their opportunity to know God through Christ.
For all who want to know Him today, the same principle applies. We too must acknowledge our sin, admit our helplessness, and keep our eyes open. God will reveal Himself. He will forgive and cleanse our sin. He will give us a new understanding of reality. And when He does, we will never forget what He looks like.
Monday, October 17, 2016
Where is God when life hurts? .......... Parables 498
January 2, 1996
A teenage girl is beaten by her dad and screams, “There is no God.” A purse snatcher robs a senior of her savings and she sobs, “There is no God.” A man befriends a young couple, convinces them to invest in his company, then disappears with their funds. They cling to each other and cry out there is no God.
Sometimes unthinking Christians respond to these tragedies with a line from Scripture that declares, “Only a fool says in his heart there is no God.” We don’t know what is in their heart. Perhaps a kinder and wiser option is speaking and living in a way that demonstrates to them that there is indeed a God.
People can do it. According to Genesis, God created us in His own image. In some ways we are like God. We are not reflections of His physical likeness (He is spirit) and we cannot be everywhere at once nor do all things. We are like Him in our creativity, emotions, capacity to think, to love and to make decisions. Also, He intended we reflect something of His wisdom, goodness and generosity. He created us so we would magnify His glory.
It is not that people are blind to God’s glory from other revelations. The psalmist says, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands.” Nature reveals God’s power and creativity. If cats and dogs and grass and thunderstorms can declare the glory of God, why can’t humans?
God also revealed Himself to the prophets of old. They recorded in books what He showed and told them — compiled into what we call the Bible. Scripture is a written record of everything God has revealed about Himself. Reading its pages with an open mind opens our eyes to the truth of Who He is. If we can see God in a book, why can’t we see Him in each other?
The point is, whether people believe in God or not, all are image-bearers — but not all are doing the job. The mirror is dirty. God’s image is muddied by abuse, greed, power trips, stealing, extortion, adultery, gossip, hatred, murder, jealousy and selfishness. When we look at the downside of humanity, we are almost justified in saying, “There is no God.”
Even if we take an honest look at the positive or good things people do, we have to admit the goodness in people points to a higher good. Yet we fail there too. We prefer to give ourselves credit for our goodness. In doing so, we contribute to the notion that there is no God.
With all those ways we mar the image of God, I am glad God gave a greater revelation of Himself: “In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son... the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His being....”
The Lord Jesus Christ is God’s perfect revelation of His love and holiness. As He said, “He who sees me sees the Father.” Yet take note, God chose to reveal Himself in a human being. Jesus needed sleep, food and drink and was tempted by sin just as we are. He had all the limitations of being human but was different in that He did not sin. He proved that sin is not essential to being human because it was in being human that Jesus accomplished what we fail to do. He perfectly reflected the image of God.
Through this remarkable God-man, we are offered forgiveness and cleansing of our sin. He can polish our mirror and restore the image of God in us.
Everyone, including people who suffer and those who torment them, need to see that God indeed exists. The compelling evidence may not be a lecture, sermon or thunderstorm. They might see Him in someone who thinks, talks, and acts like Jesus.
A teenage girl is beaten by her dad and screams, “There is no God.” A purse snatcher robs a senior of her savings and she sobs, “There is no God.” A man befriends a young couple, convinces them to invest in his company, then disappears with their funds. They cling to each other and cry out there is no God.
Sometimes unthinking Christians respond to these tragedies with a line from Scripture that declares, “Only a fool says in his heart there is no God.” We don’t know what is in their heart. Perhaps a kinder and wiser option is speaking and living in a way that demonstrates to them that there is indeed a God.
People can do it. According to Genesis, God created us in His own image. In some ways we are like God. We are not reflections of His physical likeness (He is spirit) and we cannot be everywhere at once nor do all things. We are like Him in our creativity, emotions, capacity to think, to love and to make decisions. Also, He intended we reflect something of His wisdom, goodness and generosity. He created us so we would magnify His glory.
It is not that people are blind to God’s glory from other revelations. The psalmist says, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands.” Nature reveals God’s power and creativity. If cats and dogs and grass and thunderstorms can declare the glory of God, why can’t humans?
God also revealed Himself to the prophets of old. They recorded in books what He showed and told them — compiled into what we call the Bible. Scripture is a written record of everything God has revealed about Himself. Reading its pages with an open mind opens our eyes to the truth of Who He is. If we can see God in a book, why can’t we see Him in each other?
The point is, whether people believe in God or not, all are image-bearers — but not all are doing the job. The mirror is dirty. God’s image is muddied by abuse, greed, power trips, stealing, extortion, adultery, gossip, hatred, murder, jealousy and selfishness. When we look at the downside of humanity, we are almost justified in saying, “There is no God.”
Even if we take an honest look at the positive or good things people do, we have to admit the goodness in people points to a higher good. Yet we fail there too. We prefer to give ourselves credit for our goodness. In doing so, we contribute to the notion that there is no God.
With all those ways we mar the image of God, I am glad God gave a greater revelation of Himself: “In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son... the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His being....”
The Lord Jesus Christ is God’s perfect revelation of His love and holiness. As He said, “He who sees me sees the Father.” Yet take note, God chose to reveal Himself in a human being. Jesus needed sleep, food and drink and was tempted by sin just as we are. He had all the limitations of being human but was different in that He did not sin. He proved that sin is not essential to being human because it was in being human that Jesus accomplished what we fail to do. He perfectly reflected the image of God.
Through this remarkable God-man, we are offered forgiveness and cleansing of our sin. He can polish our mirror and restore the image of God in us.
Everyone, including people who suffer and those who torment them, need to see that God indeed exists. The compelling evidence may not be a lecture, sermon or thunderstorm. They might see Him in someone who thinks, talks, and acts like Jesus.
Wednesday, August 17, 2016
God’s Creation Reveals Him .......... Parables 472
June 6, 1995 & July 4, 1995
According to Michael McIntosh, author of an article about doves in “Wildlife Art,” male doves are the only males in the animal kingdom that excrete milk for their young. A few days before the eggs hatch, the walls of daddy dove’s crop thicken and his glands secrete liquid. It is whitish, creamy, and rich in calcium and vitamins A, B, and B1. The female doves also produce milk but not as much as the males. McIntosh does not explain it.
Research into the realm of living creatures reveals all kinds of perplexing oddities. Certain spiders that breathe oxygen can live underwater by taking a bubble of air down with them. Skunks are totally defenseless yet survive because of a powerful spray-on scent.
Even more novel is the platypus. It has a bill and webbed feet like a duck, a flat tail like a beaver, thick fur like a mammal and lays eggs like a reptile. This marsupial’s bill is not hard like a duck’s but soft and rubbery and used to feel around in the mud for food.
Getting back to the male dove, perhaps the Creator made this bird with the unique ability to produce milk because He intended to use it as a symbol for the Holy Spirit. The dove feeds his young with milk from its body; the Spirit feeds His newly-born children with truths that the Bible calls “milk.” 1 Peter 2:2 tells us, “Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation.”
Animal and plant life, and even inanimate natural objects, often illustrate spiritual truths that the Bible describes. God shelters the helpless under His wings or speaks with a roar like thunder. Little wonder David wrote, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge.” (Psalm 19)
All of creation bears the signature of the Creator. The psalmist says everyone can see His glory in what He has made and therefore concludes: “There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard (that is, the voice of the heavens). Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.”
David recognized how God’s creation demonstrates that God can be known by openly observing what He has made, at least in some measure. The Apostle Paul agreed. At the beginning of the New Testament book of Romans, he wrote: “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities – his eternal power and divine nature – have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.”
That last phrase means we are accountable for what we can see in nature’s revelation. Paul says it should cause everyone to honor God as God and be thankful. This implies exalting Him. Whenever and whatever God speaks, we should listen and do what He says.
However, many people do not want to honor God as God, never mind obey Him. Our ingratitude and our sinful natures pull us away. Like Isaiah says, “We like sheep have gone astray. We have turned each to his own way.”
Unfortunately, just knowing there is a God by observing creation is not enough to turn us back. It may be easy to feel “spiritual” out in the great outdoors, but God says feeling spiritual will not satisfy Him. Instead, He asks that we look at and submit to One who is a greater revelation, His Son. Peter wrote of Jesus: “He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake.”
Baby doves benefit more from dove’s milk than we do. For us, His use of a dove as a symbol for His Spirit is somewhat helpful, but God’s ultimate revelation goes beyond creatures, rocks, trees and even symbols. We get a fuller picture when we see Jesus.
According to Michael McIntosh, author of an article about doves in “Wildlife Art,” male doves are the only males in the animal kingdom that excrete milk for their young. A few days before the eggs hatch, the walls of daddy dove’s crop thicken and his glands secrete liquid. It is whitish, creamy, and rich in calcium and vitamins A, B, and B1. The female doves also produce milk but not as much as the males. McIntosh does not explain it.
Research into the realm of living creatures reveals all kinds of perplexing oddities. Certain spiders that breathe oxygen can live underwater by taking a bubble of air down with them. Skunks are totally defenseless yet survive because of a powerful spray-on scent.
Even more novel is the platypus. It has a bill and webbed feet like a duck, a flat tail like a beaver, thick fur like a mammal and lays eggs like a reptile. This marsupial’s bill is not hard like a duck’s but soft and rubbery and used to feel around in the mud for food.
Getting back to the male dove, perhaps the Creator made this bird with the unique ability to produce milk because He intended to use it as a symbol for the Holy Spirit. The dove feeds his young with milk from its body; the Spirit feeds His newly-born children with truths that the Bible calls “milk.” 1 Peter 2:2 tells us, “Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation.”
Animal and plant life, and even inanimate natural objects, often illustrate spiritual truths that the Bible describes. God shelters the helpless under His wings or speaks with a roar like thunder. Little wonder David wrote, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge.” (Psalm 19)
All of creation bears the signature of the Creator. The psalmist says everyone can see His glory in what He has made and therefore concludes: “There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard (that is, the voice of the heavens). Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.”
David recognized how God’s creation demonstrates that God can be known by openly observing what He has made, at least in some measure. The Apostle Paul agreed. At the beginning of the New Testament book of Romans, he wrote: “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities – his eternal power and divine nature – have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.”
That last phrase means we are accountable for what we can see in nature’s revelation. Paul says it should cause everyone to honor God as God and be thankful. This implies exalting Him. Whenever and whatever God speaks, we should listen and do what He says.
However, many people do not want to honor God as God, never mind obey Him. Our ingratitude and our sinful natures pull us away. Like Isaiah says, “We like sheep have gone astray. We have turned each to his own way.”
Unfortunately, just knowing there is a God by observing creation is not enough to turn us back. It may be easy to feel “spiritual” out in the great outdoors, but God says feeling spiritual will not satisfy Him. Instead, He asks that we look at and submit to One who is a greater revelation, His Son. Peter wrote of Jesus: “He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake.”
Baby doves benefit more from dove’s milk than we do. For us, His use of a dove as a symbol for His Spirit is somewhat helpful, but God’s ultimate revelation goes beyond creatures, rocks, trees and even symbols. We get a fuller picture when we see Jesus.
Friday, May 27, 2016
Atheists, agnostics and knowing God .................. Parables 437
September 6, 1994
A person professing to be an atheist was flattered when someone suggested to him, “You must be extremely knowledgeable.”
He responded that he felt he was definitely intelligent and well informed. To that, the other person responded, “You must know everything there is to know.”
The atheist said, “Well, no, I have to admit that I do not. Actually, no one can know all there is to know.”
The next response was more unsettling: “I am surprised. Being an atheist requires knowing all there is to know about everything. The reason you have to be so knowledgeable is simple: if you don’t know everything, then God could exist in a realm of which you are completely ignorant.”
At that, and somewhat to his credit, the person who called himself an atheist changed his label. He said perhaps he was really an agnostic. The Bible says, “Only a fool says in his heart there is no God.” This man at least decided not to be a fool.
An agnostic position is somewhat like atheism, however. Agnostics believe ultimate reality (usually God) is unknown and unknowable. They seldom insist there is no God but say no one can know for sure.
Strangely, the Bible never argues for the existence of God. Instead, it treats the issue as self-evident. Concerning creation, no one finding a grand piano in the middle of a jungle would suppose the ebony trees fell in just the right configuration, ivory tusks from elephants over a period of years arranged themselves in order and were polished smooth by the rains, and copper ore was buffeted by the elements until it became piano wire. Because of the intricacies of creation, an intelligent Creator is assumed.
As for accountability, the Bible also assumes every man realizes that one day he will die and face judgment. This common fear is evident in the way people from every culture and era try every possible means to either escape death or appease the “ultimate judge” regarding their obvious imperfections.
A few decide the most rational choice is to declare God dead. If there is no God, there can be no judgment. Others imagine a god (or gods) that would approve of their lifestyle. Still others make idols to represent the gods they fear and offer sacrifices of various sorts hoping this will make their gods treat them favorably in the afterlife.
The religions of the world have in common the notion of some sort of ultimate reality but only one holds there is one God, the Lord Jehovah, creator of the universe and sovereign over His creation. This God revealed Himself to a people-group, the Hebrew nation, who recorded that revelation in a collection of books known as the Old Testament.
Then, two thousand years ago, He revealed Himself more fully by pulling on humanity (like a suit of clothes) and becoming one of us. In Jesus Christ, we can see what God is like: He loves us, but hates sin — so much so that He became our sacrifice for it. His story is in the New Testament.
As for the atheist’s requirement to know everything and the agnostic’s insistence one cannot know, Christ declares God is knowable. Those who follow Christ enjoy an intimate, personal relationship with Him. The reality of that relationship is so incredible that we are satisfied not to know everything else.
A person professing to be an atheist was flattered when someone suggested to him, “You must be extremely knowledgeable.”
He responded that he felt he was definitely intelligent and well informed. To that, the other person responded, “You must know everything there is to know.”
The atheist said, “Well, no, I have to admit that I do not. Actually, no one can know all there is to know.”
The next response was more unsettling: “I am surprised. Being an atheist requires knowing all there is to know about everything. The reason you have to be so knowledgeable is simple: if you don’t know everything, then God could exist in a realm of which you are completely ignorant.”
At that, and somewhat to his credit, the person who called himself an atheist changed his label. He said perhaps he was really an agnostic. The Bible says, “Only a fool says in his heart there is no God.” This man at least decided not to be a fool.
An agnostic position is somewhat like atheism, however. Agnostics believe ultimate reality (usually God) is unknown and unknowable. They seldom insist there is no God but say no one can know for sure.
Strangely, the Bible never argues for the existence of God. Instead, it treats the issue as self-evident. Concerning creation, no one finding a grand piano in the middle of a jungle would suppose the ebony trees fell in just the right configuration, ivory tusks from elephants over a period of years arranged themselves in order and were polished smooth by the rains, and copper ore was buffeted by the elements until it became piano wire. Because of the intricacies of creation, an intelligent Creator is assumed.
As for accountability, the Bible also assumes every man realizes that one day he will die and face judgment. This common fear is evident in the way people from every culture and era try every possible means to either escape death or appease the “ultimate judge” regarding their obvious imperfections.
A few decide the most rational choice is to declare God dead. If there is no God, there can be no judgment. Others imagine a god (or gods) that would approve of their lifestyle. Still others make idols to represent the gods they fear and offer sacrifices of various sorts hoping this will make their gods treat them favorably in the afterlife.
The religions of the world have in common the notion of some sort of ultimate reality but only one holds there is one God, the Lord Jehovah, creator of the universe and sovereign over His creation. This God revealed Himself to a people-group, the Hebrew nation, who recorded that revelation in a collection of books known as the Old Testament.
Then, two thousand years ago, He revealed Himself more fully by pulling on humanity (like a suit of clothes) and becoming one of us. In Jesus Christ, we can see what God is like: He loves us, but hates sin — so much so that He became our sacrifice for it. His story is in the New Testament.
As for the atheist’s requirement to know everything and the agnostic’s insistence one cannot know, Christ declares God is knowable. Those who follow Christ enjoy an intimate, personal relationship with Him. The reality of that relationship is so incredible that we are satisfied not to know everything else.
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