Reading for September 24
Isaiah 43:14-45:10
Hmm...here's that phrase again...
25 "I, even I, am he who blots outThese few verses not only outline the importance of original sin, making us all guilty an in need of grace, but we have that pesky little "for my own sake" in there again. We saw a few chapters back as well. Again, what benefit would it be to God, almighty creator of everything, if we were guilty of sin or not? "For my own sake." What could God gain from his forgiveness of us?
your transgressions, for my own sake,
and remembers your sins no more.
26 Review the past for me,
let us argue the matter together;
state the case for your innocence.
27 Your first father sinned;
your spokesmen rebelled against me.
We're often told as Christians to forgive. Jesus said that we should forgive someone who wronged us 490 times (70 x 7). Maybe God's grudges against humanity were taking a toll on him. His nature didn't allow him to forgive us until the life and sacrifice of Jesus. Maybe through his forgiveness he gains something "for his own sake."
Or maybe God wants to go for sushi and wants to drink sake with it.
Ephesians 3:1-21
8Although I am less than the least of all God's people, this grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, 9and to make plain to everyone the administration of this mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God, who created all things.When Paul says that the mystery of Christ was kept hidden in God for "ages" he could mean a couple things. Either God kept this mystery hidden before Christ was born or after he was born. The gospel of John infers that Jesus was with God from the very beginning, so maybe God did know about this insane thing that would happen hundreds and thousands of years after he created the earth. But then why go through all the heartache and trouble of Israel? I know - so they can grow and persevere - I'm just getting tired of that answer...
Psalm 68:1-18
5 A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows,Proverbs 24:1-2
is God in his holy dwelling.
6 God sets the lonely in families
1 Do not envy wicked men,
do not desire their company;
2 for their hearts plot violence,
and their lips talk about making trouble.
Jesus was with God and was God (I Know, crazy crazy stuff to wrap our heads around) from the very beginning, his wisdom that laid the foundations for the earth.
ReplyDeleteI think he wanted to work through Israel not just to test them, although I do think that's part of it. God seems to always choose the least likely and lowly to exalt His name, and he chose this ragtag group to reveal His light to the whole world..
Also, I think Israel had to come first because Jesus had to be a part of Israel (a Jew!) in order to fulfill God's plans to redeem the whole world, including the Gentiles, but the Jews first. Which God Himself made anyway, so why did He make it that way? Ohh mysteries!
Also, instead of going through another religious text, maybe it would be worth diving into theologians, ie someone who could help you interpret said text? I'm biased because I'm going to seminary, but maybe that would help. You could go through one of the Tom Wright "Bible for Everyone" book series, or N.T. Wright's "Simply Christian C.S. Lewis' Mere Christianity or multiple books or something like that?
ReplyDeleteThe big baffling question of course is why God allowed evil to come into the world, rather than making this elaborate plan to redeem the world through Jesus Christ through Israel...
ReplyDeleteAhh!!