Scripture has a lot of stuff that ... well ... makes a lot of sense, but there are some things that are ... jarring, to say the least. Look at a few of them.
Jesus told the skeptical Jews, "You do not believe because you are not of My sheep" (John 10:26). Clearly, Jesus made a mistake. "We become one of His sheep by believing, don't we?" No ... that's not what Jesus said. Jesus said that in order for you to believe, you must first be one of His sheep. Paul wrote, "A natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised" (1 Cor 2:14). That's "cannot." "But we know better, don't we? Anyone can understand the things of God." Apparently not. John wrote, "No one who is born of God practices sin, because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin, because he is born of God" (1 John 3:9). There it is again ... "cannot." A person born of God cannot make a practice of sin. That doesn't mean "cannot sin," but it does mean that the person born of God cannot just sit in it. Paul, quoting the Psalms, wrote, "None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one" (Rom 3:10-12). "Now, come on, Paul. We all know people who seek for God. It's fairly common. And everyone does good. If that's hyperbole, it's really bad hyperbole." And, yet, there it is. Jesus said, "If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple" (Luke 14:26). "What? What?! Hate his father and mother?" Tied again to a "cannot" ("he cannot be My disciple."), it's clear that our normal thinking is being challenged here again. In John's Gospel, he wrote about how the Jews weren't believing (John 12:36-41) (right after witnesses clearly saw Lazarus raised from the dead). John quotes Isaiah (John 12:38; Isa 53:1 and John 12:40; Isa 6:9) and argues that the Jews did not believe because God blinded them. "Now, that can't be right." Well, that's what it says.
Some of these texts are so disturbing that we cover them up or ignore them or rewrite them in our own image, so to speak. You have to decide. Is God just like you and operates on the same basis that you do, or is He something else? Is He like us or "not a man" (Num 23:19)? Does He think like us or not (Isa 55:8-9)? I would suggest we let God speak for Himself and realign our thinking to His rather than trying to stuff Him into one of our little boxes.
Another one is the hardening of Pharaoh's heart. God loves everyone equally and wants everyone to be saved, so He'd never prevent it. Or, God raised up Pharaoh for the purpose of displaying His glory. Judas was the son of perdition from the beginning in order to fulfill Scripture, except again, God wants everyone to be saved. "Jacob I loved and Esau I hated." But that can't be true because God loves everyone equally.
ReplyDeleteYou're right, either we take God at His Word, or reinterpret it to our liking.
That one was also on the tip of my fingers as I wrote. The entire 9th chapter of Romans is really tough to read from our standard worldly perspective. Believe it or jam it. I choose to believe it and rethink my own ideas.
DeleteYou are right that there are some “surprising sayings” in the Bible and many hard-to-understand verses; of course, entire books have been written with the goal of helping to clarify them (I own a few of them myself). I spent a little time today reading through all your “Hard Sayings” posts and their comments (including all 197 comments at your 10/11/06 post, “Sell All Your Possessions”!). I for one am glad you were willing to delve into some of those thorny issues--and to engage with commenters about them back then.
ReplyDeleteI realize that today’s post was moreso about our attitude and response when confronted with Bible verses that rub against our sensibilities. Rather than a response of “that can’t be right,” I must think, “I know that is right, so I must be wrong.” Actually, this sort of correction must happen constantly for the believer who is sincerely seeking God’s truth. Let God be true and every man a liar.
You might be interested to know that the "Hard Sayings -Sell all your possessions" post is my highest all-time read post. Almost 39,000 views. And I'm always glad to delve into thorny issues with commenters even when they're disagreeing ... just not when they're disagreeable. Over the nearly 20 years I've been doing this, commenters who disagree have become less interested in discussing the ideas and more concerned with name-calling and more. It's too bad. I even used to have friendly disagreements with Dan Trabue. I think discussion (rather than fighting) is profitable. And, yes, after 60+ years as a Christian, I'm still correcting my thinking over and over as Scripture rises up and slaps me in the face (where "Scripture" is simply the tool the Holy Spirit uses, I suppose).
DeleteI did know that about that post, since you mentioned that a few times in subsequent posts (I read through your past posts/comments quite regularly). I too think that “discussion…is profitable”--but probably moreso face-to-face rather than with virtual “strangers” on the Internet. I do wonder why people who are presumably seeking to know God’s truth visit random weblogs, the focus of which with they know they disagree; the comment sections of these sites are not conducive to good exchanges of ideas or even words (as many of these people possess subpar communication skills).
DeleteLike you, I have noticed that many people just seem to enjoy debating (or “fighting” as you termed it)--pursuing it relentlessly (even on topics that strike me as unimportant). Perhaps they are former high school Debate Club members or frustrated-lawyer types; perhaps it makes them feel smart (they seem to feed each other’s needs nicely that way). To me, it is mostly unprofitable talk! And it strikes me as the wrong approach to obtaining beneficial Christian instruction--as opposed to sitting humbly under good Bible teaching, pursuing personal Bible study, reading works from solid authors, enjoying stimulating Christian fellowship, visiting profitable websites and blogs, etc. (I suspect that the majority of us are actually doing those things, while the more vocal ones are not.)
I have been reading your blog since 2011 or 2012 and rarely felt inclined to “speak up” and express disagreement with something you wrote. Instead, I thought about your arguments in conjunction with other resources I employ for personal growth, giving your viewpoints neither more or less weight than was warranted--i.e. “chewing the meat and spitting out the bones.” As you know, it took many years for me to ever “speak up,” and to this day, I mostly express concurrence and affirmation for your thoughts. (Personally, I tend to be a frank and forthright person [and I do hold different views from you in some areas], and yet I can’t imagine visiting someone’s blog and behaving in the rude and ungracious way I see done by so many so-called Christians.)
In any event, as you enter your twentieth year of blogging next month, I say, “I hope you keep up the good work a bit longer.”