Friday, December 19, 2008

one more time

One more time with comments on evil, and then we will move on.

One person commented:
"God would not design an entity that would punish his children for eternity if they didn't act right. This notion of a being, that we have humanized to have horns and a tail (or whatever) and reign over certain people souls for eternity doesnt fit in my logic."

My comment on that: Yes, God did not create an entity that was evil. All of creation was good. A few angels chose to rebel and become evil, just as some people choose to rebel and become evil. Hitler was not born evil, he chose a path that led there. And, Yes, we have to stop humanizing the devil and giving him powers that are equal to God.

A comment came in on this post that could not have said it better.......
"Paul's words in Romans 8:37-39 filled my mind. We are more than conquerors through him who loved us. . . nor angels. . . will be able to seperate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. I consider if Paul should or could have included "nor myself" when talking about being seperated from Christ Jesus? We are our own worst enemy or so it has been said. Peace :)"

If I hear what this brother is saying, it is that we have created theologies that sometimes give evil more room than should be there, with the result that we separate ourselves from God.

Alright, I am growing weary of thinking about all of this, which is part of my point. Christians should focus on the goodness and glory of God. His love never fails! We are in relationship with, and embraced by a loving father!

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Jeff,
I appreciate any opportunity to hear/read your thoughts on theology, even if it sometimes more difficult to talk about some of the "scarier" points. In trying to understand God, we sometimes try to figure out how to fit Him into human logical framework, as though God would never do something that defies human reason. But the Bible and my own experience tells me that human reason is limited and flawed, while God is limitless and perfect. God is Just and we are Unjust. That is reason to tremble in fear of a God that is not approachable -- right up until we consider that this same God loved us enough to take on human form and balance the scales of justice once and for all. That is why we celebrate God's grace, and the value of grace is diminshed without an understanding of the price that He paid -- a price we cannot afford.