Attempts at Honesty

Reflections on the interplay of the Bible and Culture

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Abandoned by God – 1 Samuel 15:35

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1 Samuel 15:35 (ESV)

35 And Samuel did not see Saul again until the day of his death, but Samuel grieved over Saul. And the Lord regretted that he had made Saul king over Israel.

Saul had abandoned God and as a result, God abandons Saul.

Someone once said that we have two options which determine our eternal destiny. Either we say to God, “your will be done” or God says to us “your will be done.” The result of the former is that we conform to God’s will and accept the provision he has made for us. The result of the latter is that God allows us to go our own way and live as if God does not exist. One leads to eternal blessing, the other to eternal damnation.

Paul speaks of this in Romans 1 where he repeats the phrase, “God gave them over.” This is what happened to Saul in the passage quoted above. God determined to let Saul alone and Samuel no longer came to Saul with a word from the LORD.

We do not have to look very hard in this media rich culture to see examples of people that have gone their own way, flaunting their rejection of God, yet living a lifestyle that is the envy of many. They seem to have everything going their way and have money and fame. These have sought to be free from God and God has granted them their desire – for a time.

Contrast these to saints through the ages who have sought self denial and spiritual discipline and yet have suffered at the hands of their fellow men.

How does it work out in God’s economy that those who reject him prosper and those who earnestly seek God earn suffering as their wages? Jesus tells us that those who mourn are the ones that are truly blessed. To have the prophetic voice in our ears and the pointing finger in our face is not enjoyable, but it is necessary for our relationship with God to deepen. The largest benefit of the reading of Scripture is that it shows us our deficiencies and teaches us to rely on God for our growth.

Like Saul, I have a choice to be open to the prophetic voice and repent when I am busted, or I can reject it and go on my merry way. The danger in the latter is that God eventually stops sending prophets.

Genesis 50:20 – The Proper Understanding of Evil

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EvilGenesis 50:20 (ESV) As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.

Life in a fallen world requires a response to pain and suffering. Bad news is all around us. Whether it is directly or indirectly perceived, evil cannot be ignored.

The most difficult evil of all is when people who are supposed to love and care for us fail in this responsibility or are cruel or abusive.

In this verse, Joseph reminds us that God is in control even we are victims of those who actively perpetrate evil.

Knowledge that God is in control does not make the evil any more palatable but it does help us grasp that it is not permanent and we will be able to move beyond it. This knowledge provides a context and a means for getting through the difficulty.

I see that God has used the most difficult people and events in my life to teach me dependence upon himself. I have also begun to learn a little of patience when my situation is beyond my ability to control.

God is My Fortress

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Psalm 59:16b (ESV)

For you have been to me a fortress
and a refuge in the day of my distress.

Matthew 10:28 (ESV)

28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.

In reading Psalm 59 this morning, I notice that David twice describes God as his fortress.  A fortress is a place of protection. In a physical sense I visualize impenetrable walls and a defensible location when I think of a fortress. When under attack, I want my body protected.

Fortress

Is David merely using symbolism in this description? Perhaps not.

The verse that came to me as I considered this was Matthew 10:28. There Jesus reminds me that God is the only one that has authority over my true self, my soul. Governments and thugs (sometimes two different groups, sometimes not) can kill my body but my soul is protected by God.

Perhaps David, the man after God’s own heart, had this in mind when describing God as his fortress. Saul, who was pursuing David at the time, could kill David’s body, but David’s soul was protected by his relationship with God.

The Fellowship of the Obtuse

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Luke 18:34 (ESV)

34 But they understood none of these things. This saying was hidden from them, and they did not grasp what was said.

You Just Don't Get ItTwo lines of thinking present themselves to me in reaction to this verse.

First, I am comforted that the men who God used to turn the world upside down had moments when they just did not get it. They, at times, were just as obtuse and blind as I often am. I feel as though I am in good company and take encouragement from it.

My second thought is concerning the veracity of the Gospel accounts. One of the lines of argument of atheists is that the New Testament was compiled by church leaders in later centuries to support the claims of the faith. In other words, the leaders made up stories to support their theological positions.

If I were making up stories about the men from whom I inherited my authority, I don’t think that I would include any statements that would denigrate those men.

Why would Luke include this statement in his Gospel? The only logical answer is because it was true and shows that the spread of the Gospel is not due to the incredible wisdom of the Apostles. They were regular men, just like you and I. They had the same periods of stupidity and struggled in their faith like we do.

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