Thursday, February 19, 2009

Hating God-Neglect

What if God was as glorious as the level of the attention that we gave Him depicted?

If that were the case then many of us would have a God who is little more than a blip on the radar screen of our lives. The fact of the matter is that God is infinitely larger and more relevant than all of the radar screens of the lives of every human being throughout history combined.

All too often God is not more than a small scoop of some foreign appetizer on the platter of life. How could this be? This God who spoke and the universe exploded into being, this God who so magnificently designed the earth and every living thing on it, this God who loves so powerfully that he became flesh and dwelt among us, this is the God that we so religiously neglect.

I can’t stand it. I hate the neglect of God in my own life and I abominate seeing it in the lives of those around me. This is especially detestable in the very religious among us, those who are very verbal about their faith but whose lives tell a much different story. This present atmosphere of God-neglect saturates our world, choking the life out of those who are designed to bear the likeness of God, and who would rather bear the likeness of the temporary and fading culture we live in. “I did it my way.”

Outrage at this cosmic blasphemy causes my blood pressure to go through the roof. This no doubt stirs up the unbearable wrath of God who does in fact have a boiling point, several devastating examples of which the earth has already witnessed, many of which are recorded in the Scriptures. For the wrath of God is being stored up against ALL ungodliness and unrighteousness of the inhabitants of this world.

“All day long I have held out My hand to a disobedient and obstinate people.” “How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not!”

Thursday, February 12, 2009

Conversion After Conviction

"And we, who used to find our rest in ourselves, yearn for the Lord. And also, on the other hand, although our iniquity deserves something quite different, this merciful Father, in his incredible goodness, then voluntarily reveals himself to us who are thus afflicted and terror-stricken. And by such means, which he knows to be helpful to us in our weakness, he calls us back from error to the right road, from death to life, from ruin to salvation, from the realm of the devil to his own realm.

To all those whom he pleases to reestablish as heirs to eternal life the Lord has ordained, as a first step, that they should be distressed in their conscience, bend beneath the weight of their sins, and moved to live in his fear. To begin with, therefore, he sets out his Law, which is what brings us to this state."

- John Calvin, Truth For All Time

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Calvin on Free Will

"Scripture often asserts that man is the slave of sin. What it means is that his mind is so far removed from God's righteousness that he thinks of, deeply desires and undertakes nothing that is not evil, perverse, iniquitous and sullied; for the heart, having drunk its fill of sin's venom, can emit nothing but sin's fruits.

However, we must not think that there is some violent necessity driving man to sin. He sins with the full agreement of his own will, and he does it eagerly and in line with his own inclinations.

The corruption of his heart means that man has a very strong and continuing hatred of the whole of God's righteousness. In addition, he is devoted to every kind of evil. Because of this he is said not to have the free power of choosing between good and evil - which is called free will."

- John Calvin, Truth For All Time

Sunday, February 8, 2009

A Heart-Breaking Reflection

Heartbreak permeates the chapter of Genesis 3 as we behold the deception that leads to devastating disobedience. Eve believes the illusion that something else could be more satisfying than a relationship with the Living God. Her husband falls next in line as he too partakes in massive disobedience.

The tremendous grief here comes not only from beholding the fall of Adam and Eve, but in their fall, beholding our own countless falls. Sure it is easy to monday-morning-quarterback these two who blew it so many years ago and imagine that we would never do such things. But such imaginations are just that, for we all have partaken of many such massive disobediences, one of which is enough to condemn us to an eternity separated from God.

Somebody once said, "A sin against the infinite God is an infinite sin and so deserves an infinite punishment." This is what we are all guilty of, and not just once but more times than we are even aware of.

This saddest chapter in Scripture does however end on a note of hope as the Creator God clothes the fallen Adam and Eve. The sinful are clothed by the Sinless, the unrighteous clothed by the Righteous. A foretaste of what was to come.

Even as I shudder at the horror seen in the mirror of Genesis 3 I'm caught by a glimpse of the sovereign mercy of God. The rest of Scripture unpacks the glorious story of salvation as God accomplishes what He alone can in order to to make right what went so terribly wrong.