Resignation vs. Revolt

Apparently, God has me sticking with the theme of Suffering for now. I went to our local library's website to look for more books by Gregory Boyd and the one above is the only one they had on hand. If you can't see the complete title in the picture, it's Is God to Blame?: Beyond Pat Answers to the Problem of Suffering. Hmmm?! I think He's trying to teach me something.

Interestingly enough, as much as I enjoyed and felt refreshed by Repenting of Religion, within the first two chapters of this book, I was really feeling challenged. He was striking at the core of one of the foundational beliefs in our churches. It dates all the way back to Augustine and was even upheld by Calvin (if you're not a church person...hang on...there's only a few references I'll make to these two historical church theologians,)

Apparently, these two men (Augustine being the first) where popular purveyors of the theory that God has a sort of "master blueprint" for the world. This "blueprint worldview", as Boyd calls it, means that no matter what, God's will cannot be thwarted. But, Boyd points out, all it takes is a quick reading of the first few chapters in Genesis to know that Adam, Eve and the serpent were very successful at thwarting His divine will. After all, He created us to participate in His complete Love with Him. But when they decided to attempt to become "like Him" (by eating from the forbidden tree), that fellowship, that perfect divine will to live in intimate relationship with us...was broken.

Boyd also points out that to tell a mother whose child was stillborn, or a victim of brutal crime that it must somehow be "God's will" or that He "knows what He's doing" so there must be "some grand purpose" is not only ignorant...it's cruel. If you believe either of these, then you must not believe in the True Character of God as revealed in Jesus, His Son.

And Jesus never pointed fingers at why something tragic happened. Rather, He always sought to apply God's Will to every situation. What is God's perfect will? As it has been since the beginning of time...it is to live in loving relationship with us. So Jesus always sought to apply Love to the crippled, the leprous, the blind, the adulteress, the woman who'd been married five times and now living with a sixth man, the mother of a dead son, the demon-possessed...and on and on. He never answered "why" these things happened...He simply chose to apply God's Love to each and every one!

Boyd proposes (with numerous Scripture references that I cannot adequately replicate here!) that Jesus instead embraced a "warfare worldview". Since satan is the "ruler of this world", the "god of this world" and angels and humans both have freewill (freedom of choice) to choose the opposite of God's will...there is an "infinite chain" of choices and decisions that can influence any situation. To point to just one and say it is the cause is actually an attempt to know the mind of God...which is arrogant and wrong. If you've ever heard about the "butterfly effect", this is similar to what he's referring. This doesn't abdicate our responsibility for our choices, we just can no longer honestly blame God for tragedies and horrible things that happen.

Whether we want to face it or not, satan is the "ruler of this world" and every natural disaster, every awful tragedy, every "nastiness" that happens is to be laid at his feet.

Are you depressed yet? Don't be...'cause here's the good news:

The sacrificial death of Jesus, the Messiah, God-in-flesh was a declaration of WAR!

And satan has been honked-off ever since!!

In Repenting of Religion, Boyd compares our lives on earth to the nanosecond between flipping on the light switch and light piercing the darkness of a room. The "switch" was flipped on that Cross over 2000 years ago, the Light is permeating the darkness...but until Jesus returns there is sadly, still darkness.

When we embrace the "blueprint worldview" and tell ourselves that every awful thing that happens: death, disease, famine, natural disasters...must happen because it's the "will of God"...we are essentially wringing our hands and living in resignation. Because if it's "God's will" is there really anything we can do about it?

But, when we embrace the "warfare worldview" and choose to revolt against the powers of darkness, by applying God's Love (remember...which is His perfect will!) to the tragedies that ourselves or others experience...Jesus has promised that even the "gates of Hades will not overcome it." (Matthew 16:18, NIV) In other words...the territorial walls of God's Kingdom are expanding every time we declare and live out God's Love to a lost and dying world!

Boyd sums it up best, "The mustard seed has been planted, and the outcome of the war is ensured. Its growth and effect on specific people and in specific areas of life depend in large part on the fidelity of the church in carrying out its mission. Yet there are many battles to be fought between D-day (the cross and resurrection) and V-day (Christ's return). Hence, there are many questions Jesus' disciples must answer daily: Will we live the kingdom life God calls us to live? Will we pray as God calls us to pray? Will we love as God calls us to love? Will we die to ourselves and live in Christ, or will we give in to the self-centered materialism of our culture?

Our choices matter. Much hangs in the balance. Our freedom is God's risk and our dignity."

So get your armor on! (Ephesians 6:10-20)

If you've never heard what happened when spectators came out to watch the Battle of Bull Run in the American Civil War, trust me...learn a lesson from them. When the battle turns ugly and the spectators attempt to flee, you don't want to get caught in the bottleneck of the fleeing onlookers. You want to be a fully-armed soldier with a weapon in hand, ready to stand your ground and fight.

I always knew I was a rebel for a reason!

Mentioned in this post: