Tag: scripture

Is God evil?

January 28, 2010 / / 0 Comments

Is God evil?

Of course not.  Well…most would agree that He’s not.

But does God allow evil things to happen?

Take a peek into a conversation that Job had with his wife:

Then his wife said to him, “Do you still hold fast your integrity?  Curse God and die.”  But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women would speak.  Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?”  In all this, Job did not sin with his lips. (Job 2:9-10)

Did God cause this evil to happen to Job?  No.  The verses prior say

So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord and struck Job with loathsome sores… (Job 2:7-8)

We are quick to praise God for the good things that happen to us, and give Him credit for all of the blessings we receive.

But aren’t we also quick to shake our fists at God when things don’t go as we would like?  When we don’t get that promotion.  When we get sick.  When our children get sick.  When our marriage isn’t what we want it to be.  When all of our efforts fall flat.  When we strive with all of our might, yet get nowhere.

I don’t presume to know why God does what He does.

But this passage says that God allows evil things to happen.  And if you read through the first few chapters of the book of Job, you get some insight into how God worked, and how He allowed Satan to work on a short leash.  God didn’t cause evil.  But He allowed it with a purpose.

So if God allows evil to exist, does that make Him evil?  That’s a question you need to wrestle through yourself.  I’ve wrestled through it.  Last week, I was sick.  Not deathly sick.  But sick enough to stay home from work.  I felt rotten.  I had some sort of mild case of the flu, mixed with an ear infection, an eye infection, a sore throat, a sinuses that were trashed.  I also lost my voice.

And last week was one of the most important weeks for me in my job at Grace. I needed my voice.  And I needed to be at 100%.

So why would God allow me to be sick?  Here are a couple of reasons I came up with.  For purpose of generalization, I’ll call it “suffering.”  Some of you may laugh at this being called suffering, and honestly, I would, too, but suffering has varying ranges.  Bear with me.

A Non-exhaustive list of reasons God allows suffering

1. Suffering slows us down.  Our lives race on at such a fast pace that sometimes we just need to slow down.

2. Suffering causes us to think less of this life on earth and long for a better life.  When you’re going through suffering, life on earth isn’t as much fun.  We don’t value it as much as when everything is rosy.  We long for something better.

3. Suffering gives us time to reflect and evaluate.  What does your relationship with God look like when you’re falling apart physically?  Do you only praise God when everything is perfect?  Job was a great example of a man who praised God in the good times and in the bad. (Job 1:20-22)

4. Suffering puts the most important things in perspective.  When we are going through suffering, perishable things don’t matter as much.  We tend to devalue those things that are temporary.

5. Suffering allows us to be comforted by others.  If you never suffer, you can never receive the blessing of being encouraged and comforted by others.

6. Suffering reminds us we’re not in control.  When everything is going our way, we can slide into the thought process that we’re really controlling our future.  Suffering brings us back to the reality that we really have very little control.

7. Suffering allows us to be healed.  God is the ultimate healer, and we would never get to see that aspect of God, and receive that great blessing, if it weren’t for suffering.

8. Suffering, and recovering, helps us to comfort those whom we will come in contact with who suffer similarly.  Although suffering tends to make us quite self-centered, I believe one of it’s main purposes is so that, after God (and others) comforts us, we can extend that same love and care to others. (2 Corinthians 1:3-7)

9. Suffering gives us the chance to see who our real friends are.  Job had some pretty rotten friends (Job 4-25, 32).  Those who truly love us will stick by in good times and in bad.  And ultimately they want what’s best for us.

10. …

What would you add?

 

Living Gray

July 29, 2009 / / 5 Comments

There are some decisions in our lives that are black and white.  “I need some new clothes, so should I buy them or steal them?”  This is one of those decisions that’s not all that difficult for most people, right?  There’s a right choice and a wrong choice.  A choice that honors God and one that dishonors Him.  How about, “Hey, I think I might go out and lie to somebody today…does that sound like something you might like to do with me?”  Clear choice.  Right and wrong.

Something that is “gray” is neither black nor white.  It’s somewhere in the middle…maybe a little more black, maybe a hint more on the white side, but still, it’s “gray.”  Differing shades, but gray nonetheless.  And isn’t this where lots of our lives operate?  We’re not often faced with decisions that are blatantly right or wrong…there’s a hint of gray involved.  So how do we make decisions when we don’t have a definitive answer on a given issue?

My barometer is Scripture (though I acknowledge that many people have differing gauges) for matters of faith and practice.  If Scripture declares that a thought, a motive, or an action is wrong, then it is wrong…not just for me, but for everybody.  If Scripture declares that a certain action is right, or good, then not even the law of the land trumps.

So what determines what is right and what is wrong (for the purpose of this blog, lets focus on things which are not prohibited by law, and which God through Scripture has not spoken clearly on).  To get us on the same page, think about things like smoking a cigarette, watching a rated R movie, spanking your children, or getting a tatoo.  How about things like drinking alcohol in moderation, watching TV, or drinking coffee.  What about saying curse words (excluding those said in anger), sending your children to private Christian school, or listening to secular music?

How do you discern what is right and wrong?  Is it your own conscience?  In other words, if you’re not convicted that a certain action is wrong, it’s ok to do it?

Or are these gray areas things that all Christians should stay away from?  Maybe your mantra is, “If it’s gray, stay away.”  Are these things that, when we stay away from them, witness to others of our relationship with Christ?

I’ll post my thoughts on this soon, but I wanted to open up a discussion before I chimed in.  Let me know what you think.

 

Is “both” too much to demand?

July 1, 2009 / / 4 Comments

I hate the expression, “You can’t have your cake and eat it, too.”  I want both! I recently posted this to Twitter:

Would U prefer 2 sit under a pastor who knows Scripture really well but communicates poorly or who’s a gr8 speaker but knows less Scripture?

I received lots of feedback, ones that brought up more questions:

Which is easier to learn, Scripture or speaking?

What is our faith really built upon?  Polished speaking or sound theology?

Isn’t that why God made a concordance? (personally, this question made me laugh)

Here’s my thought.  Is “both” too much to demand?

Is the Gospel not worth our every ounce of effort to “get it right?”  Should we not study historical theology, systematic theology, original languages, multiple translations, other pastors, commentaries, dictionaries, surveys, hermeneutics, biblical theology, all with the end goal of communicating the “correct” Gospel?  What we believe is so important.  Paul rips the Galatian Christians because of their wrong belief:

I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. Galatians 1:6-7

What we believe, and what we lead others to believe, is highly important.  We owe it to those we are leading to get it right!

On the other side of the coin, is the Gospel not worth every ounce of our effort to communicate it effectively?  If we communicate poorly, we are really saying, “The Gospel is not valuable enough to me or for you for me to work on my communication skills.”  It’s not enough to just “get the Gospel right” because the Gospel was never meant to stay with you, but was meant to spread to the ends of the earth.  How does that happen?  (hint: It doesn’t spread through the water).  We need to continue to improve the way that we articulate it, thinking through the way that it lands on those to whom we are preaching.  Are you communicating in a way that leaves people offended at the Gospel (which is, by nature, offensive…you’re telling somebody that they’re a sinner, can’t do any good for themselves, and need someone to rescue them!), or offended that you continue to harp on your “pet” sins, elevating gray issues and condemning those who don’t have the exact same convictions?  Are people left more confused about God than when they came?  Or do they walk out left with a real choice, knowing full-well the meaning and implications of your message?  I’m not talking about the Gospel needing your eloquent speech (1 Corinthians 2:1-5).  I’m talking about the Gospel deserving a clear explanation, given in a way that people can understand and digest.

So, is it too much to ask for the true Gospel to be communicated well?  I don’t think so.

Proclaim Christ.  Proclaim him often.  Proclaim him well.

 

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