For the record, the post is a day late; I did do the readings yesterday. But I didn't know what to write, because some of it irritated me, or frustrated me, not sure what the correct thing to say is, but at any rate, I was befuddled. This morning I sent an email to my pastor, here's the portion that has to do with the readings:
This reading through the Bible is frustrating....So, I know the basic principle that His ways are not my ways and His Thoughts are not my thoughts.... but some things seem seriously not fair in MY way of thinking. There's Lot .... and his poor wife, and his daughters. Of the whole blinging family what we know about Mrs. Lot is the least flagrant offense (In my opinion) she looked back.... she didn't go back, she didn't stay there, she looked.... But Lot offers up his virgin daughters to the perverts on his door step (among other things) and said daughters get Lot drunk and have sex with him to "preserve the family line" Oh my goodness, I'm thinking looking back seems pretty insignificant....
And then there is Abraham dear dear Father Abraham. In last night's reading he passes Sarah off as his sister for the second time and God speaks to the poor ignorant sap and says he's gonna die because Sarah is Abraham's wife. He pleads his case of ignorance and God tells him that he knows he didn't know the real story, so Abraham will pray for him and thereby he will be spared the punishment.... WHAT where is Abraham's punishment? He was responsible, TWICE! But no he just gets to accumulate more "choice" sheep & goats and land and silver and stuff.(The second time he not only pulls the scheme, but PROFITS from it) And even if he is off the hook for the lie since she was technically his half-sister... he isn't for the rest of it. My head thinks if he is so faithful then why did he not realize that God had his back and he wouldn't be killed because God promised to make him the father of many nations... But wow, what a prayer because it accomplishes the undoing of closed wombs for Abimelech's wife and all the servants because of what happened with Sarah. I so do not get this. But who am I? Or perhaps better phrased as the questions posed to Job.... and my answer: No Lord, no I clearly was not there when you hung the moon....
So what is one to learn from these accounts? Scripture is helpful for teaching.... I don't get it.
That is my rant. But in the end I know that God is God, and I am not and I'll either have some sort of epiphany about these things, or I won't. However if I am supposed to be gleaning something I wish it would occur to me, because I am pretty sure the message I am supposed to be getting as I read through God's word is NOT that He's unjust because scripture teaches that he is JUST. UGH
And here is the response:
I was just going to email you a nice short Monday morning message of greeting, hoping that your week was off to a quiet and calm beginning, and before I could do so, you had already sent me a challenging and difficult theological and biblical dissertation to which I have no real answers, other than what I have already learned from you, that being – “He’s God and we’re not!”
I wish I could simply say “Now hear this!” and then proceed to give you a black and white response that would take care of all your concerns. Obviously, I can’t do that. Maybe you ought to balance your reading with a little gospel, along with some of those law passages. At least that might make you feel better. I’m sure if you were here we could have a nice long chat about this, and probably still not come up with a satisfying answer. God doesn’t expect us to understand everything (good thing!) but I know it’s still frustrating and difficult when His ways don’t seem to be as just and fair as He says He is (and we do know that He really is, even if we can’t see it from our standpoint).
Anyway, as usual, I don’t have an answer. Sorry, my dear friend.
Actually I am a bit relieved that there isn't some pat answer that I just wasn't bright enough to pick up on....
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