Category gift

New Life

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Today (3/31) is Easter.  But the other day my husband asked–why isn’t today Easter?  Why isn’t Easter every day?  Why celebrate it just once a year?  Obviously his questions were implying is that for Christians the point of our faith is the resurrected Christ since by raising from the dead Christ defeats sin and it is sin that separates us (humanity) from God, SO as Christ followers we should have the constant confidence and attitude of victors.

Prior to Jesus the Holy Scripture was a book of history and promises.  It pointed God’s people toward a savior and recorded God’s desire and multiple attempts to have fellowship with His people.  Prior to Jesus God’s people needed to make sacrifices, and follow strict guidelines of behavior in order to enter into that relationship.  We see in the Old Testament how over and over again God reached out to humanity but we failed to keep our end of the covenant.  When God finally sent Jesus most missed it.  They had been expecting a King, a warrior, a powerful Savior who would overcome their enemies by force and set them free from governmental oppression.  In what the religious leaders and the Roman dictators thought was the end they hung Jesus on the cross.  They crucified Him thinking, a). He was not the Savior they’d been promised, or b). they actually had power over Him.  Both were wrong.  And the empty tomb on Easter morning proves it.

Sadly, most of the American Church still acts like the religious leaders of Jesus’ day, looking for a Savior who will enter the scene guns blazing and “save” us from our “enemies”–an oppressive government, a sin infested culture, a fallen world.  (Much of the “second-coming” rhetoric literally paints such a picture).  Meanwhile they continue to heap religious law on the path between us and God not realizing that Christ’s coming, His witness, His resurrection is meant to “save” us from all such religious legalism.

The gift of salvation is ours no strings attached–no special sacrifice needed, no properly worded incantation necessary.  For me no other option exists because any other option (including the requirement to repent and confess) diminishes the fact that Christ accomplished what humanity up to that point could not–Christ kept covenant with His Father.  Because Christ maintained fellowship with God, because even in the despair of feeling abandoned by God He chose to cry out to God, “My God my God, why has Thou forsaken me?” Death could not hold Him.  The gap has been bridged.  The tomb is empty.  And everyday, even today (which is now April 1) is Easter.

What If…

minnow 2 Comments

In a recent on-line discussion, spurred on originally by a response to Rob Bell’s book Love Wins, I found myself saying the following (with a few minor differences) to one of the commentors who holds to a traditional doctrine of hell:

You said, “I don’t say that non-believers go to hell… the Bible does and that is where Mr. Bell is leading people astray.” Yet the point [several of us] are making on this post is that the Bible, does not say that non-believers go to hell IF BY HELL you MEAN a literal place where they will be tormented for the rest of eternity. You tell us the Bible says it is true but you have shown no proof. On the other hand, [the author of this post] has explained very carefully how the places where the Bible uses the word hell are actually talking about a garbage dump outside of Jerusalem or the grave or a place in Greek mythology. He has also explained what is wrong with constructing the concept of hell from the parables we most often use to do so.
You told [one commenter], “If Rob Bell is correct, than he is really saying that Jesus is a fool.” But, I am not sure how believing Jesus wants us to work toward bringing heaven to earth or forgiving those who hurt (curse and reject) us is the same as saying Jesus is a fool. Nor do I understand how bringing heaven to earth negates the need for the cross. Just because everyone’s sins are forgiven it doesn’t mean we weren’t sinful to begin with. If everyone in the world broke their leg would we be able to just ignore our need for a cast or would we all still need to have our legs set in order to be healed?
We are repeatedly told things about the concept of forgiveness–to forgive those who sin against us, to love our enemies, to take the log out of our own eye before we try to take the speck out of someone else’s, to forgive without ceasing (7 times 70), to hate sin but love the sinner, or that we cannot be forgiven unless we forgive others. But we think God is a hypocrite (AKA does not do what He expects His followers to do) if we insist the only way He can be just is to torture the non-believer for the rest of eternity, no matter how he or she has lived his or her life. What if God’s love really does cover a multitude of sin? What if His love is actually able to figure out how to get what scripture says He wants—for no man to parish? What if salvation really is a no strings attached gift and not earned by us saying the right thing before we die? What if God is truly sovereign, loving, and just rather than simply vengeful by human standards? What if I am actually taking the Bible at its word more than you are?

The recent killing of Osama Bin Laden has brought out the best and worst in many of my fellow Christians.  I hesitate to write but cannot stop wondering if some of the best and worst reactions might also reflect the lines drawn between those who do believe in a literal hell and those who do not.

I have heard a lot of talk about justice finally being served from people I think would have a difficult time imagining Bin Laden standing next to them in heaven.  And while my stomach tightens every time I entertain the idea of facing the people I would personally have difficulty standing next to in heaven, I need to also reconcile how my guilt  has been covered by an innocent man, sent by a loving Creator, who willingly took my place before the judgment of Death and rose.  How can I call that “justice” no matter how well I “believe”?  My God’s love for me, my Savior’s gift to me is not justice; it is unexplainable, unconditional, life changing, love from the Sovereign Lover of my soul.

Happily Ever After

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Often in the spiritual discussions I have with friends and acquaintances the phrase “the infallible word of God” surfaces.  As soon as it does a knot begins to form in my stomach.  Another topic which causes a similar reaction in the pit of my stomach is end times prophecy.  Often these two topics go hand in hand, for as soon as I start questioning the latter I begin hearing about the former.

Now, I can agree that the Bible is infallible in that it does not fail to reveal the character of God.  Nor does the Bible fail to show God’s unconditional and unending love for His creation.  It also successfully offers  creation a part in God’s plan of reconciliation and relationship, if it chooses to participate.  Unfortunately, when most people use the phrase “the infallible word of God” they mean the Bible is inerrant, without error.  Some would even go so far as to say their favorite English translation of the Bible is without error.  And, with this point of view they preach about end times.

As my friend Clothman would say, the position that the Bible is without error is misguided at best.  Even if we all agree that God inspired the original writers of the Bible, we have none of the original writings.  We do not even have copies of the original writings.  In addition, most of us are not scholars of ancient cultures, nor fluent in ancient Greek or Hebrew.  What we hold in our hands in today’s western culture is at best, at best, a translation of copies of copies of documents that were scripted at the earliest almost 2000 years ago.  Not even all the translations agree and some do not even agree on which books to include in the single book we call the Bible.

The notion that the Bible was meant to be taken literally word for word is equally ill-conceived.  Parables, revelation, apocalyptic writing, allegories are meant to be interpreted.  They are illustrations to make a point, or symbols that carry layers of meaning.  When we understand the culture in which, or the circumstances under which, a given part of scripture was written we are better able to understand what the author’s point was and how we can accurately apply it to our own lives hundreds, even thousands of years later.  Specific letters to specific churches might not make sense in light of the rest of scripture until we realize what was happening at the time they were written which is partly what makes end times prophecy so troubling.

What is the purpose of the doom and gloom type prophecy?  To predict a future that is set in cement?  No!  At least not always.  One purpose is as a warning.  Why did Jonah not want to give God’s prophecy to Nineveh?  He was afraid the people would repent and God would then have a change of heart and not destroy them which is exactly what happened.  I can not tell you how tired I am of hearing how God is unchanging (despite evidence of a rather dramatic change toward Nineveh), that the destruction He wrecked on pockets of the world in the past He will once again wreck in the future.  Only this time He will lead the charge mounted on a white horse with vengeful fire shooting from His eyes and a sword thrust out from His mouth.  It will all end in a dramatic blaze of glorious special effects that destroys the world after the chosen have been magically transported to heaven and the POWs cast into a lake of fire where they will burn for all eternity while the rest of us live happily ever after. 

I do not know about you but unless God smites my memory I could never live “happily ever after” knowing that two-thirds of the world is always burning but never-dying.  Some of those people are people I have known and loved.  Some of them have loved me, cared for me, helped me in times of trouble, been Jesus’ hands and Jesus’ feet in my life.  A god who has the power to create such a place and the will to utilize it does not deserve to be worshiped and could never be called loving.  The god depicted by taking those images literally and applying them to a deity is not my God.

Jesus told His disciples that the Kingdom of God was at hand, not some distant dream. Sadly, most of the Church treats the Kingdom of God like a fairytale land where we will someday live happily ever after.  They use that attitude to ignore the here and now, to create a nearly impassable gulf between a us and a them, to justify spending all of their time locked up in their prayer closet and none of it meeting needs in the streets.  Jesus taught His disciples to pray that God’s will be done here just like it is done in heaven.  Then He showed them the way to reach the Father by how they lived their lives.  They were not earning their salvation through their works, even the work  of testifying to their faith.  Salvation is a gift, a gift we are to walk out.  In the world.  Making a difference.  In people’s lives. 

In Deuteronomy 30 and Joshua 24 God’s people were given a choice between life and death, blessings and curses, the God of Abraham or the gods of the land He had promised them.   They were told to choose.  I believe we have the same choice today.  We can choose the God of heaven or the gods of hell.  We can not serve both.  But if we choose to serve the God of heaven I believe He will walk with us through hell so that by our hands and our feet others might see Jesus and believe.

A Character Issue #2

minnow 2 Comments

Once again I find the need to venture into some old territory on this blog.  Over on Parchment and Pen CMP has written a post entitled “Eight Things I Hate about Christianity“.  In it he lists the number 1 thing he hates as the doctrine of Hell.  I too HATE this doctrine but unlike CMP find it impossible to reconcile the doctrine with who my God is.  Unlike CMP I can not attribute to God the creation of a place of everlasting torture for those who do not believe rightly about His son, and still call Him good or think Him worthy to worship.  But, even more importantly, unlike CMP I do NOT find this place supported unequivocally in the Bible or necessary to my Christian faith.

I believe the doctrine of hell as an everlasting place of torment evolves more from  Man’s fleshly need for revenge than through a Biblical mandate.  One need only look at the prison systems around the world to understand that Man is hardly motivated by rehabilitation, reconciliation, and redemption but much more focused on reprisal and retribution. Yes, one can find verses that are translated eternal punishment  and even some that use the word hell.  However, the Greek word in the passages for eternal  can just as easily be translated “for an age” and the Greek word for punishment  can just as easily be translated “pruning”.  Meanwhile, 12 of the 14 words translated hell  in the NIV New Testament refer to an actual place–Gehenna or the Valley of Hinnom where King Ahaz and King Manasseh sacrificed babies to pagan gods.  During Jesus’ day this same place was the garbage dump outside Jerusalem where the outcasts of society tried to subsist on any edible garbage they could find among the burning, worm infested trash.  No wonder there is the gnashing of teeth.  The only other references should actually be translated Hades  or “the place of the dead” and Tartarus  which in Greek mythology was “a place lower than Hades where angels await judgement”.*

I do not know how many times I have heard the statement, “Well if you do not believe in hell you can not believe in what Jesus accomplished on the cross.”  Such a statement should be among CMP’s “And Other Stupid Sayings”.  Truthfully just the opposite is closer to being true.  You see I believe Jesus accomplished through His death and resurrection what He set out to accomplish–the defeat of death, the forgiveness of sin, and the reconciliation of all creation to His Father. 

I find rejecting the hell doctrine, rather than embracing it, as more consistent with the revealed character of God.  Scripture tells us that His love endures forever (I Chronicles 16:34, Psalm 100:5, Jeremiah 33:10-12).  It explains that God wants all men to be saved (1 Timothy 2:3-7, 4: 9-10) and while we were dead in sin His grace was given (Ephesians 2:4-5) showing us that His forgiveness is not dependent on our behavior.  I can not believe in an hypocritical God that would ask us to do something He has not already done or is unwilling to do.  Such a God is inconsistent with the Bible.  Instead, when Jesus tells Peter to forgive without ceasing (Matthew 18:21-22) He divulges something of His own grace-filled character.   James 2:13 tells us that mercy triumphs over judgement and Zechariah 7:9 tells us that true justice is to “show mercy and compassion to one another.”  This is the God of scripture.  This is the gospel of Jesus.

Rejecting a traditional view of hell is not synonymous with rejecting Christ.  It does however pretty thoroughly do away with Calvinism, and Arminianism for that matter.  I am saddened by the harsh image of God painted by the Calvinist and Arminian traditions and confused by their willingness to suspend their understanding of how a loving Father could not only create such a place as hell but predestine that part of His creation would spend the rest of eternity in torment there.  Such an attribute in any other being would not cause it to be worthy of worship but instead would find it utterly rejected and condemned.  I chose instead to suspend my understanding of how justice can be served so completely through mercy and trust that the gift of forgiveness I have been given is enough.  May I be thankful enough to pass on the good news.

*If you want a more thorough discussion on how we derive the doctrine of hell check out my earlier posts here, here, and here or follow the Adventures of Clothman  link on my blog roll.  Once there, click other writings from the column on the left and scroll down to the bottom.  You could also try this link.  It should take you directly to his hell posts.

GETTING WHAT ONE DESERVES

minnow 26 Comments

I love listening in on the conversation my son has with some of his friends and acquaintances on Facebook.  The only time I get to do this is when he reads various posts out loud to me or when his friends comment on his status updates and it turns into a debate.  Recently I caught a discussion on the idea of what would make it so a person “deserved” hell. 

Now, we are often quick to say we do not deserve heaven  (but thanks be to God He sent Jesus so we can get there).  I completely understand and embrace that particular train of thought.  Nothing I have done, including birthing five of the best children on the planet, earns me a place in heaven.  But, why then do we seem to think what we do (or do not do) deserves hell?

When I actually stop to think about it I have to admit, I have a bit of a “works” mentality.  “I just did three loads of laundry–I deserve  a doughnut, or flavored creamer in my coffee, or…”  I was raised on works.  Growing up I heard phrases like:  “You get what you pay for” or “You made your bed, now you have to lay in it”  or “If you work hard enough you’ll get a good grade on that project” all the time.  If a teacher was not spouting this wisdom then my parents were.  And, even though I knew better (by grace not works you are saved and God loved us even while we were sinners and His love is unconditional), I still transfered a works relationship over to God.  What makes my heavenly Father different from my earthly father, anyway?

Now there’s a question to ponder.  And if you think about it long enough it’s not so different from the “what makes us think we deserve hell” question.  The truth is, we have fashioned our God after our fathers (both spiritual and physical).  If our earthly dads are legalistic so is God.  If they are works and rewards oriented so is God.  If they’d just as soon slap you down as look at you well…  It can start to look pretty ugly up there in heaven.  Our tit for tat, earning and deserving, “I’m just waiting for you to mess up” kind of thinking messes with the doctrine of unconditional love.  And, we start thinking in terms of “some one has got to pay”.

So many people who believe in the doctrine of hell tell me they do so because God is just.  Well, I say if God is just and therefore we have hell then no way in hell would any of us end up in heaven.  Seriously, how crazy is it to think that a just  God would say, “Okay, if you believe I sent my Son to die in your place then you get into heaven but if you don’t well burn in hell forever.”  Have you ever been burned?  It hurts.  A lot. Can you imagine leaving your child’s finger in the flame for one minute let alone eternity?  How is that justice?  When I ask my friends who believe in hell this question they usually say something a long the lines of, “Uhh, I don’t know.  But, He’s just and…the Bible says and well,…His ways are higher than our ways.”  I do not mind telling you, that kind of thinking makes my brain hurt. 

Rather than trying to scare the hell out of people with talk of eternal damnation why do we not try naming the good within them?  In the parable of the sheep and the goats Jesus told his listeners that whatever they did for the least of these they did for Him.  To me this parable tells us that even if we do not know we are working for God when we do good we serve God.  In Acts 17 Paul told the men of Athens that what they worshipped as unknown he knew and he went on to tell them about Jesus.  Why make witnessing about the love and presence of God so complicated?  He is good.  He is grace.  He is love.  His fruit in our lives is peace and patience and joy and self-control, kindness and gentleness and love, even if we do not yet know His name.

Love Letter: It Is Finished

minnow 4 Comments

Last year I wrote a series of blogs relating to the topic of hell. My conclusion was that scripture does not support the existence of hell as a literal place of everlasting torment. Feel free to read my arguments here, here, here, here, here, and here. After “coming out” about hell one of the comment/questions I heard most frequently was, “Why?” Why stir up that can of worms? Why not just keep your opinion to yourself? Why broadcast your heresy? So what if you “studied it out” why go there? A year ago these questions surprised me. After all, was it not important to speak the truth? Eventually however, I did quit talking about it. Other issues came up and focusing on politics—the Church’s and the nation’s–was easier. Recently an on-line friend sent me an e-mail that got me thinking about the answer to the question, “Why?” And, I would like to try to tackle it now.

Feeling like I could never “measure up” to my parents’ expectations resulted in years and years of feeling like I could never measure up to God’s standards, either. A few years ago, I had a kind of crisis of faith experience that lasted for a couple years. At one point I remember distinctly deciding that if God was holding a measuring rod to my life then He could just forget it; I was not even going to try anymore. I already knew the verdict–failure. I was failing as a wife. I was failing as a mother. I was failing as a Christian. I was not even sure I was “saved”. The thought that maybe I just was not one of the “chosen” plagued me. I honestly began to feel like I was ripping into pieces. If I had bothered to get counseling, I am certain I would have been diagnosed as clinically depressed but I was too close to total despair to care.

Shortly after my family moved back to where my husband had done his graduate work, we had dinner with our former pastor and his wife. (This is the friend I mention in my posts about hell). His words that night were like a love letter to my wounded spirit. As my friend explained why he was excommunicated (for his newly formed position on hell) an amazing transformation began to take place. God, the lover of my soul, began wooing me. As I held the gift of life I finally could open because I finally understood it was mine freely given, my spirit literally leapt for joy. When I still could not reconcile the pain and confusion of Church going with a Father who loved me He held onto me. When He corrected me, His correction was out of a place of love, not disappointment or anger. I started hearing the phrase: “Because I love you so much…” in front of everything He said to me.  I began reading the Bible again.  What had been dust in my mouth came alive.  It jumped off the page and into my heart.  Passages that had only confused me before made sense now. 

So, what had changed?  Discovering the truth about hell being man’s doctrine and not my Father’s assured me of my Father’s heart.  Realizing that His gift was for everyone, that my salvation was in His hands alone, that my failure—even my failure to have enough faith, say the right words, or do the right thing—could not take away, undo, or mess up His gift of salvation to the world, to me.  My Father loves me.  The death and resurrection of Jesus accomplished what all our professing and good works could not.  That is why I must speak the truth about hell.  Our Father loves us and His love is sufficient for salvation.