FRONT PAGE - here you will find the last 20 postings about recent conversations. Please pray for these people!

Holy Jealousy

3/19/16                         Frank                        about 25
In a sidewalk outreach conversation, a man named Frank told me he believes in the general idea of a Higher Power which he described as being like the Buddhist idea of “karma” or what is often referred to as “Mother Nature”. He said he constantly seeks the truth about a Supreme Being, but has ruled out the God of the Bible as being too “anthropomorphic” – too human. Instead of believing that God has created man in His image, giving us godly characteristics so that we might be able to relate to Him, Frank believes that the writers of the Bible have created an imaginary God in man’s image, based on human characteristics. He says he can’t believe in a Higher Power that would have our human flaws.
On the surface, this might sound logical. Greek and Hindu myths are full of stories of gods with petty human flaws and are far less than admirable. In the Bible, God reveals Himself, through human language, to have emotions we can relate to, including what we think of as positive emotions like love, joy, pleasure, and laughter. He also displays grief, anger, vengeance, and hate. But even though these are emotions that often reveal pettiness, vanity, or weakness in humans, they must not be judged by a human standard when it comes to God.
As an example, I talked with Frank about a characteristic of God that is possibly the most misunderstood – His jealousy. The fact that God gets jealous is mentioned multiple times in the Bible. Exodus 34:14 says “Do not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.” It is usually seen as a sign of weakness and vanity in humans, because when we are jealous we often consider ourselves to be far more important and deserving of respect in the lives of others than we really are. In fact, there is no created thing or being in all of creation that is deserving of complete loyalty, respect, honor, and obedience. But God is no created being. He is holy, set apart, not only the Creator but the Sustainer of all that is and ever will be. He deserves our complete allegiance, and is completely right and good to demand all glory and honor. In fact, it would simply be wrong for God not to require such glory for Himself and instead to allow it to be given to some lesser, created being, such as ourselves.
So the jealousy which is so petty and inappropriate in humans is completely right and good in God when He is not given the glory He so rightfully deserves. Frank responded to this explanation by saying “There you go, always having to make excuses for your God!” I wish – and pray – that he could realize that what is truly “anthropomorphic” is his judgment of God by mere human standards. It just isn’t logical or reasonable - or wise - to try to evaluate the Creator by the same standards as His creation.

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