How do you view God? Everyone has some concept of what God is like but they can be wildly different from person to person. Over the course of the next few posts I will be exploring some of the ways we view God. These are based on the work of Curt Cloninger and his film "God Views".
The first view of God is the "Cosmic Sheriff". This is where you view God as riding on His horse "Guilt" looking for anyone who has broken one of His many rules. When He finds a violator, He gleefully delivers the required punishment. This God does forgive, but only grudgingly because it is required by the law. This is the common view of God held by children. It is also held by those who have grown up in the church but drifted away as they grew up. They never learn the true nature of God.
God isn't some hard to please task master looking to rebuke us at the least little infraction. I think Christians can be guilty of fostering this view of God. We tend to focus on the image of God on His judgment throne instead of on the cross. It is true that God calls us to lead a righteous life, but He isn't waiting for us to fail so He can mete out punishment. No, God is our biggest fan. He wants us to succeed. His plans are for our success. Jeremiah 29:11 says that He has plans for us, "plans to prosper us and not to harm us...". We need to focus more on this aspect of God not the "Cosmic Sheriff".
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
What is Love?
Sorry for the long time between posts, I have been a little busy the last few weeks. I hope to be a little more regular in my updates over the next few weeks.
Love. We hear a lot of talk about love these days. People love their new shoes, love their favorite tv show, love a certain song or singer, they love a certain type of food. the word love gets thrown around a lot between people too. Often it really means little more than a warm, fuzzy feeling for someone. I think it is time to ask, "What does it really mean to love?"
The Bible says that God is love, so that seems the logical place to start looking. How did God love? God exhibited His love by sending His only begotten Son to die for us when we were yet sinners. We can take our example from that. To love is to desire someone else's long-term well being and to be willing to engage in acts of self-sacrifice to bring that about. John's Gospel puts it this way, "No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends." (John 15:13)
The next time you say you love someone, take a moment to consider. Are you willing to make sacrifices to ensure their well being? If not, you should probably find another word. Now, we are called to love one another. That takes on a whole new meaning in today's me first society. If we are to truly love one another, we are to put the well being of others ahead of our own wants. Steve Chalke put it this way, "The Christian life is all about winning by living in ways that look like you are losing."
This is based on a passage from "Christians and the Common Good" by Charles Gutenson. I am currently reading this and will probably be sharing thoughts from it over the next few days. Please indulge me while I play theologian for a few days. If you are interested in theology and the Christian's role in society, this is a good book to start with. I don't agree with all of the author's conclusions, but it is good food for thought.
Love. We hear a lot of talk about love these days. People love their new shoes, love their favorite tv show, love a certain song or singer, they love a certain type of food. the word love gets thrown around a lot between people too. Often it really means little more than a warm, fuzzy feeling for someone. I think it is time to ask, "What does it really mean to love?"
The Bible says that God is love, so that seems the logical place to start looking. How did God love? God exhibited His love by sending His only begotten Son to die for us when we were yet sinners. We can take our example from that. To love is to desire someone else's long-term well being and to be willing to engage in acts of self-sacrifice to bring that about. John's Gospel puts it this way, "No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends." (John 15:13)
The next time you say you love someone, take a moment to consider. Are you willing to make sacrifices to ensure their well being? If not, you should probably find another word. Now, we are called to love one another. That takes on a whole new meaning in today's me first society. If we are to truly love one another, we are to put the well being of others ahead of our own wants. Steve Chalke put it this way, "The Christian life is all about winning by living in ways that look like you are losing."
This is based on a passage from "Christians and the Common Good" by Charles Gutenson. I am currently reading this and will probably be sharing thoughts from it over the next few days. Please indulge me while I play theologian for a few days. If you are interested in theology and the Christian's role in society, this is a good book to start with. I don't agree with all of the author's conclusions, but it is good food for thought.
Sunday, June 3, 2012
Chest Deep
Everyone knows the story of Moses parting the Red Sea and leading the Hebrews to safety, but how many know that there is another instance of God parting the waters to allow His chosen people to cross? It can be found in Joshua chapter 3.
Moses has died and Joshua is now in charge. All that stands between the Hebrews and the Promised Land is the Jordan River. To complicate things, the river is at flood stage. God instructs Joshua to choose 12 priests to carry the Ark of the Covenant across the river. God promises that when the soles of the priest's feet touch the water, they will part. Joshua follows God's instructions and they cross into the Promised Land on dry ground.
Great story right? Well let's look a little more closely at this story. The way you carried the Ark was this. You stuck two long poles through rings on the bottom of the Ark and carry it easily. (Remember the Ark was largely made of gold and gold is really heavy.) To accommodate six men, each pole needs to be pretty long. I am guessing around twelve feet.
Now that you have a picture of how the Ark is carried, let's return to the story. These twelve men approach the raging Jordan River, remember it is at flood stage. They now obediently begin wading into the river. Now God promised that when the soles of their feet touched the water, the river would stop. Based on the way God worked in other situations, I think that means that all 24 feet had to be in the river. That means the guys in front have to wade 12 feet out into a raging river. If you are the last guy in line your feet will barely get wet, but what about the ones in front?
A lot of times you will find yourself the guy in front. You are following God's leading, but you find yourself chest deep in a raging river. You have faith that God will part the waters,but that doesn't make taking those first steps any easier. When God calls you to do something, He is calling you to go as far as you can, not just stick your toes in.
Moses has died and Joshua is now in charge. All that stands between the Hebrews and the Promised Land is the Jordan River. To complicate things, the river is at flood stage. God instructs Joshua to choose 12 priests to carry the Ark of the Covenant across the river. God promises that when the soles of the priest's feet touch the water, they will part. Joshua follows God's instructions and they cross into the Promised Land on dry ground.
Great story right? Well let's look a little more closely at this story. The way you carried the Ark was this. You stuck two long poles through rings on the bottom of the Ark and carry it easily. (Remember the Ark was largely made of gold and gold is really heavy.) To accommodate six men, each pole needs to be pretty long. I am guessing around twelve feet.
Now that you have a picture of how the Ark is carried, let's return to the story. These twelve men approach the raging Jordan River, remember it is at flood stage. They now obediently begin wading into the river. Now God promised that when the soles of their feet touched the water, the river would stop. Based on the way God worked in other situations, I think that means that all 24 feet had to be in the river. That means the guys in front have to wade 12 feet out into a raging river. If you are the last guy in line your feet will barely get wet, but what about the ones in front?
A lot of times you will find yourself the guy in front. You are following God's leading, but you find yourself chest deep in a raging river. You have faith that God will part the waters,but that doesn't make taking those first steps any easier. When God calls you to do something, He is calling you to go as far as you can, not just stick your toes in.
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