Back to Square One
Okay,
back to the beginning today. Genesis
1. Here’s a story we are all familiar
with. There’s lots of “good.” But there are several things that jumped out
at me that I would like to ponder on.
Light Versus Dark
First,
notice in the first verse we hear that God calls the light good. God does not call the darkness good. I find this in complete and total agreement
with what we just finished up reading in Revelation. In the end – after the
world has been judged, God will be the light.
There will be no more darkness.
Only light will remain, and the light will be from God. I find it very reassuring to hear that same
line of thinking even in these first five verses of Genesis.
The
light is good. The light that comes from
God is even better still. And this
really makes sense. How many times in
the Bible are we warned that those things with which we think we get away with
doing in the darkness will be revealed by God’s light? How many times are we told to live in the
light of God, or by the light of God, or to work according to the light we have
received from God? As followers of God,
we are to live in and appreciate the light.
The Rest of Creation
Allow
me to go back and pick up something that I stepped over in jumping to the light
and the dark contrast. We also have a
great contrast between order and chaos.
In the beginning, creation was formless and a void. Out of the chaos, God brings order. Into that order, God infuses life: plants,
animals, mankind. God is the one who
brings order and life.
In
the story of creation we also see sets of rhythm:
- Days 1-6 are creation, Day 7 is resting
- Within each day there is a rhythm of God speaking, creation happening, and then there is a process of naming.
- Within each day we have evening and then morning
What
we can learn from this is that God is truly a God of order. A part of that order is rhythm. When we as human beings learn to understand
the rhythms of our life – and even better, facilitate those rhythms – our life
is inherently better. We are not a
people designed to live in the chaos. We
are a people designed to live in the order of rhythm.
Unity Among Human Creation
Another
interesting thing that really jumped out at me was the unity of the creation
story of mankind. This story is so
vastly different in theme than the story to come in Genesis 2. Here the story is about unity. “Male and female He created them…
God blessed them… God said to them …” How many times do we
hear God speaking to them? The focus of Genesis 1 is not the difference
between man and woman but what they are called to do together and in
unity. I have really come to appreciate
the focus of Genesis 1 on the unity of the whole creation and specifically the
unity in how God acts towards both man and woman. In Genesis 1, there isn’t an “us versus them”
portrait of the sexes. There is a
unified whole that God has called to work within His creation.
I
think we really have lost a good bit of that in today’s religion. In conservative Christianity we want to hear
about the differences between man and woman and how Genesis 2 supports the
distinctness of the genders. In truth I
have always found that at odds with Paul’s writings in the New Testament –
especially where he says in Galatians that “There is no longer male or
female…” To me, when Paul says those
words he is speaking more to a Genesis 1 understanding of how God desired us to
interact as humans. Rather than
illustrate the roles of each, we are to find ways to act in unity. Yes, we have our obvious differences. But our focus should be to bring those
differences to God and allow Him to work unity through us regardless of our
gifts and differences.
Of
course, you can push that too far. In
today’s liberal Christianity we have a complete blurring of the lines. In fact, in many of the most liberal places
we even have the redefining of marriage so as to not even need opposite
genders. I think that pushes too far as
well. God clearly made man and woman and
blessed “them together.” Genesis 1 does
not want us to ignore the genders completely and consider them arbitrary. Rather, God created man and woman and blessed
their togetherness.
When
we lift one above the other or focus too much on the differences then we fail
to see what God blessed here in Genesis 1.
When we ignore the differences altogether we also miss what God is doing
here in Genesis. God blessed the
togetherness. God blessed their
union. God gave their union dominion. God gave the whole of creation to their union. God did not give it to man, nor to
woman. Nor did God arbitrarily give it
to a group of women or a group of men.
God gave dominion to a pair of people who were different in gender but
who were united in togetherness.
Okay, your sermon hit your blog on the nail head. Light is good and darkness is not. Keeping our minds on worldly things is being in the dark and following the light is to follow(Jesus.)
ReplyDeleteAmen, Linda. But when we step into the light we do not only see the right path but also the parts of us that pull us onto the wrong path. Stepping into the light is just as much about repentance/forgiveness as it is about righteousness. Only those who have gone through the process of purification (through Christ, of course) can arrive at the righteousness of Christ.
ReplyDeleteGood observation with the light comment. I love the fluidity and the consistency of the Bible. It is one of it's major perks :) This whole light concept should be easy for us humans. God says "I am the light of the world". Light is an easy concept for us. He also says do not stray into the darkness. Darkness is also an easy concept for us. We do not look at something and wonder, huh, is that light, or is that dark, I don't really know. Of course we know.
ReplyDeleteNow, contrast that with God being light and the devil being dark. We don't want to go near the dark. Why is it so hard for us to determine if something is light (God, good) or dark (Devil, bad). And the even scarier part is that the devil is so dang good at what he does that he can disguise darkness as light (obviously not true light, but he can make it seem that way). Just to put it into perspective, we are dealing with an enemy that can be one of the most obvious things (dark and light) appear to be the exact opposite of what it really is.
Hopefully someone followed that thought process, that's my two cents the first chapter.
As I read your comment, I thought about Romans 7 immediately. It is one of the most confusing passages to read as it is written, but there is so much truth within it. Starting with v. 14 we have:
ReplyDelete"For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me."
On one hand I hear Paul saying "I know I want to do good," which is roughly equivalent to the same comment you make in "we should be able to tell what is light and therefore what is good (and also what is not good). Yet on the other hand Paul confesses that although he can see what is light, he cannot do it without the Spirit's help. Unfortunately I think the issue you so rightly raise is an issue of human nature. Logically, we should be able to walk in the light. Realistically, we so seldom ever do...
I also really like what you say about the scariness of the devil. First, I find far too few people willing to speak of the devil as a real enemy. Instead they speak of the devil as some figment of mankind's creation or some far-off evil genius. I personally think one of the steps to struggling with these "light/dark" and "where's the devil" kind of issues is stopping to identify the players in a meaningful way.
Second, I like how you identify his nature. Deceiver. Master of deception. Capable of making that which is not light appear as though it is light. Also capable of casting that which is light in such a way as we perceive it as shrouded in darkness. That in a nutshell is one of the core problems of Genesis 3 - "Did God really say ...?" I think this is why Satan is given the name "Prince of this world" in the New Testament. God is ultimately in control, but Satan has a good amount of tangible power over how things in this world appear.
Any thoughts along these lines?
Well I think that we can attribute some of the unwillingness to refer to or even recognize the Devil as what he is because the Devil is doing a good job in society and has desensitized his name and his "home" to the common ear. We say, "What the hell was that, go to hell, that place is like hell on earth." None of these things can even compare to that real Hell. There is a new Brad Paisley song out called A Man Don't Have To Die. The phrase from the chorus is, "A man don't have to die to go to hell". Songs like that just desensitize us to what hell really is. Again, I believe that is part of the devils plan to do that.
ReplyDeleteAnother thing along with that, you know Halloween can be controversial but during that time, and even at other times we dress up like the devil, we "cartatoonize" the devil, we make it something very lovey dovey. Oh look at that cute little 5 year old boy dressed up in a black cape and horns posed as the devil.
I believe Hell and The Devil has lost it's scariness in society. They no longer see Hell as a real place of eternal torture and the Devil as your worst enemy. ETERNAL torture, eternal TORTURE. If that is not reason enough to tell every single neighbor the Good News of Jesus Christ, I don't know what is.
CAUTION: LAW HEAVY STATEMENT
Sorry to ramble on long, but a final question for you who are reading, and please someone give me an answer...How much do you have to hate someone to not tell them about Jesus, God's Grace, and the Good News. If you really believe in the stuff discussed above, how much do you have to hate someone and want them to suffer eternal torture to not tell them the Good News?
In His Grip,
Adam
You make some great points about the devil and his commonality in our day and age. For the record, I would add that the same tactic is at work against the seriousness with which people think about God. Everytime I hear anyone say "Oh my God" my skin crawls (you know, unless it happen to be the one in a thousand chance where the person is actually intending to address our God). Just like "hell" has become a meaningless word, in many cases so has "God." So you make an excellent point in what you say.
ReplyDeleteAnd for the record, I likewise think God has lost His scariness, too. What does the Bible say? The beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord? Not that I want us to cower in fear from God - nor cower in fear from Satan, either. But what I hear you saying and fully agree with is that we could use a healthy dose of awe regarding the power that both God and Satan have over this world.
As to your question at the end (which is well stated and I don't have any problem with it at all) ... is it hate or is it apathy? I mean, certainly it can be hate. If I hate someone (and ignore Jesus' advice to love my enemies) then I will hate them by not sharing Christ with them. I will hate them by knowing they will spend an eternity in the torment that comes from an eternal seperation from God.
But is that really the problem? Or is the problem how many of us are apathetic towards Jesus and our understanding of Christian communion (in this case I don't mean communion as Eucharist but rather community)?
For me, the question of apathy is scary because if I am so apathetic towards Christ that I am not compelled to make disciples ... then I must ask if Christ is really in me at all. And there's a thought that'll keep you awake at night, too! Hate or apathy ... both lead to a necessary question to ask about out desire to proclaim Christ to the world.
Great comments Adam and John. I really like this topic, and wanted to weigh in.
ReplyDeleteAs far as light, I'd mention that in 2 Cor 11:14 we are told that "And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light." Reading right before and after, this paragraph (vv 12-15) is about people pretending to be light for evil's purpose. So, discernment is absolutely required. It's not normally the "good" and "bad" things that trip alot of folks up from my experience, its the gray. The gray leads to black, but when you first start into it it's just a little bit black, so little we don't notice. For example, a "white" lie to a friend. A harsh word hidden in a joke. It's so very easy to get caught into gray, and from gray to black.
Personally, I believe The Holy Spirit can help us in this, as He knows the adversary and his ways. We, however, need to listen to Him and be sensitive to him. So, pure light and pure dark are easy, it’s the middle that humankind will probably always struggle with while on earth.
On your great question Adam: "If you really believe in the stuff discussed above, how much do you have to hate someone and want them to suffer eternal torture to not tell them the Good News?" I like John's thoughts on apathy verses hate. I'd add that either way we take it, like the gray of above this isn't so simple in my mind. We should share the Good News in our actions, and in our Testimony. If we do those two things, the Spirit will minister to the unbelievers in our midst. When that person is ready, I believe they will seek [see:Matt 7:7-8] the Truth and find it for themselves. It may be from us who witnessed by action and behavior because they approached us, or from another believer, the harvest is to the Lord.
ReplyDeleteI fear too often we "tell" others without first building a relationship of trust. In America, at least for an adult, it’s unlikely that anyone hasn't "heard" the message, yet many have not responded. Why? It's my belief that in our zealousness to help others, we sometimes come across as arrogant and overpowering. In this way, we turn them off through our sincere desire for them, and do more damage than good. This speaks to the hate/apathy -- sometime too much love if unrequited can have the same effect! (That's a radical thought -- that love of the lost can be a problem, but when not managed I fully believe that and have see it... allow me to explain...)
I don't want anyone to suffer (as you state), but I don't want to "push" a message either out of any love/apathy/hate. I believe if I act as I should, and simply answer questions honestly that the Lord's power is maximized. (for example recently I was asked why I'm not eating -- I said because I was fasting in order to draw closer to God. This lead to a great follow on dialog with a receptive person). This approach also leads me to trusting God to work His plans, and not trying to "take over". It also avoids the plank warning in the Matt 7:3-5.
An expression I like is "People don't care what you know, until they know that you care." If we were to witness using our caring and demonstrating the love of Christ, I believe it is such a compelling thing to a non-believer that when the Holy Spirit has prepared their heart the message will have moist and good soil to grow in. If we sow too quick, the ground of the heart is not yet ready, and the seed will not grow.
I appreciate your input into this, Tom. I also like what you said about relationships being the key. For me, that is always one of the necessary (and frustrating) aspects of true proclamation. I just takes so darn long to truly proclaim the message properly. But it is the right way - as frustrating as it might be.
ReplyDeleteA great example of this is Jesus. If He wanted to tell the whole world about God, it seems like He sure chose a stupid method. He spent 3 years doing intense training with 12 people. Not much coverage of the world in that process. What's worse is that when those 12 - or should I say 11 - got it ... He left them! {No, I don't mean to forget about the coming of the Holy Spirit, just making a point.}
However, those 12 went out and made a few more disciples. Then those disciples made more. This continues into the present, where the whole world - or at least a substantial part of it - is familiar with the message. I'm not saying that they believe it or not, but they have at least heard it.
On of my favorite mathematical exercises is to ask the question: "What if there was one Christian in the world who set his heart on making one disciple a year. The next year, those two Christians each set their heart on making a single disciple each. How long before the world is evangelized?" {I know, the math is perfect, it breaks down in practice.}
I leave whoever is reading this to crank out the answer. But I guarantee you ... the amount of time required will be a surprise to you. Even if we were to say "What if a single person took 3 years to make a single disciple, then those two took 3 years to each make a disciple, etc." The amount of time involved in that process is still amazing.
Hint: Amazingly small, that is...
So yeah, establishing relationships is a very signifcant part of the proclamation process.