Today’s Scripture Reading (April 8, 2017) Ezekiel
18
There is somehow this idea that
the God of the Hebrew Bible was one of vengeance. The B.C.E. God is supposed to
be more like the rocking chair God who sits in heaven and can’t wait for us to
mess up. Armed with his
lightning bolt gun, he can’t wait to shoot us down. In contrast, the God of the
Christian Bible is more forgiving. Often
this God is seen as a buddy and a friend. This God is a being that wants more
than anything else for people just to like him
and be in a relationship with him. It is
a battle between a God that resembles a stern grandfather and the God who is in
possession of a pet that he loves and spoils. (I know, neither sounds very appealing – at least, not to me.)
The problem is that neither are
an accurate representation of God. God is truly holy and other – he is
not like you and me. The
idea of God as a buddy is a recent development. And often not a popular one.
Hymn like “What a Friend We Have in Jesus” have been
criticized for their overt sentimentality, which some believe to be the disease of the modern church.
However, God is, at his core, all about love and forgiveness. And even in the
Hebrew Bible, we see the image of the
Christian God. He is not glad when we mess up – instead he continually offers
us ways to come back to him. The truth is found
in the balance. He cheers us on to do better things with our lives, and he rejoices when we decide to make a
positive impact on the world around us.
But God is also other. The word
that the Bible often uses is holy. He is different. He is a God of justice that
is coupled with mercy who sees this world
differently than we do. And that is okay. We honor God because he is holy – but
when you mess up (and we all do), he will
offer you a way to turn back and live. He
always does. It is just who he is.
Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Ezekiel 19
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