Mysterious

God is great and He is mysterious, yet is totally loving.

There are so many things about God and His ways we will never understand. To naively say that we know Him completely would be foolish. He gives us glimpses and insights into certain aspects of His character. He has also given us the written and living Word and His Holy Spirit to teach us more about Him.

I have been overwhelmed with His greatness. He engineers events so we can learn more. Often it is through painful circumstances we come face to face with Him, and when we meet Him, we are changed. He is so awesome and mysterious and yet He desires and delights in our company.

I was reflecting about my experiences during the past seven years. I recognize that God is taking a painful time of life and will one day turn it into something wonderful and satisfying. When we are in the middle of whatever, we can not see happiness ahead; yet God knows what's best for you and I. He always knows the big picture in the way that is not only best for us, but also the best for the people involved in our world. He has a long-range plan while we see as though we are looking through a tiny, foggy window.

At times, when we seem to be treated unfairly, we wonder about His power. Is it real? Yet He never changes, but our feelings do. We never fully know Him, yet He is always waiting for us to know Him more. It is good to reflect on God and His ways. Like the Apostle Paul said in Philippians 3:10, “I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings.”

I don’t want a shallow belief in Jesus. I want my roots to grow down deep into Him. How about you?

Why? (Part 2)

God has done something about the problem of evil and suffering. For most people the problem of evil is not an intellectual problem, but an emotional one. They want to know why God allows evil and suffering. When they can’t get a satisfactory answer, they become angry. They don’t like a God who would permit them or others to suffer. This is not an atheism of refutation, but of rejection. A child who is hurting needs reassurance, not an intellectual explanation. Atheism cannot supply this reassurance. It does not reduce suffering one bit-it just removes hope.

In an atheistic universe, there is no ultimate accountability or justice. Evil people will get away with what they’ve done. But in the Christian worldview, God has done something about evil in the person of Jesus Christ. He does not just say, “Okay, I created you. Now prepare to suffer!” He has given us a a down payment that He does have good reasons for allowing evil and that He does have a greater good in store. By appearing in human form, He showed us that we could trust Him. And what did He do while He was here? He suffered!

Jesus endured a suffering beyond all comprehension. He bore the punishment for the sins of the entire world! For all the evil that everyone of us from the beginning of our species has perpetrated, He paid the penalty. None of us can comprehend that suffering. Though he was innocent, He voluntarily took upon Himself the punishment we deserve. And why? Because He loves us. It is like He was saying, “I know you don’t understand why I permit every evil. It’s not possible for you to understand yet. But just to show you that you can trust me, I’m going to suffer with you.”

When we comprehend his sacrifice and love for us, it puts the problem of evil in an entirely different perspective. We see clearly that the true problem of evil is the problem of our evil. Filled with sin and guilt before God, the question we face is not how God can justify himself to us, but how we can be justified before Him. And it is through Christ’s payment for our evil by his death on the cross that we can be justified before God. Through Him we have forgiveness.

Many Christians will also testify that Christ provides inner resources to cope in the midst of difficulty and suffering. He promises that He causes all things to work together for good to those who love God in Romans 8:28. Ultimately, He promises victory over death, the ultimate evil. Those who genuinely choose to accept and receive his forgiveness will rise from the dead with a transformed, immortal, imperishable body to be with him forever in 1 Corinthians 15:42; 52. Death, pain and suffering have been dealt a fatal blow; they have suffered a crucial defeat.

So God is not banished because of the problem of evil, rather God himself is the solution.

Why? (Part 1)

There is no question that the world is filled with a major  amount of evil and suffering. We are impacted by this reality every day on all levels: emotionally, intellectually, and practically. As such, it is not surprising that people have a difficult time reconciling this harsh reality with the idea of an all good, all powerful God.

According to the Handbook of Christian Apologetics, the problem can be summed up by the apparent contradiction between the following four propositions:
(1) God exists.
(2) God is all good.
(3) God is all powerful.
(4) Evil exists.

If we affirm any three of these propositions, it seems we must reject the fourth. For example, if we accept that God exists, is all good and that evil exists, we must reject the idea that God is all powerful, otherwise He would put a stop to evil. Or, if God exists and is all powerful and yet evil also exists, then God must not be all good, because He wills or allows evil to exist.

The Handbook suggests five possible responses to this problem.

(1) Atheism solves the problem by denying proposition one, that God exists.

(2) Pantheism, the belief that God is everything and that everything is God, denies proposition two and allows that God could be both good and evil.

(3) Polytheism, the belief in many gods, denies proposition three, and reduces God to just one of many gods.

(4) Idealism, the belief that reality is a product of the mind, rejects proposition four and states that evil is just an illusion.

(5) Christianity, on the other hand, affirms all four principles and denies that there is any inherent contradiction between them.

How then is a Christian solution possible? Because it is always feasible that God could have a good reason for permitting evil; a reason of which we are not aware. As long as this is logically possible, there is no contradiction between the existence of an all good, all powerful God and the existence of evil. Just because we may not be able to figure out what that reason is does not mean it does not exist.

God has not left us completely in the dark. This world is clearly not the best of all logically possible worlds, but it is the best world God could create given His commitment to create genuinely free creatures like us. Free creatures are the only beings who can love and experience love. Since one of God’s main purposes in creating us was to have a reciprocal love relationship with us, God created the best of all actually achievable worlds. God cannot make people freely choose to good or freely love Him. If He makes them do it, they are not free. If they are genuinely free, then He can’t make them do it. That would be a contradiction. Therefore, the possibility of free creatures choosing evil is not something God can control without eliminating free will. And a free will is not just a nice addendum on human nature, it is an integral part of who we are. This being the case, if God were to eliminate evil, He would also be eliminating free will. And in doing so, God would be perpetrating the most horrendous evil of all: the annihilation of the human race.

How Long Shall I Cry (Part 3)

Habakkuk’s response to the answer. Verses 12-17 “Art thou not from everlasting, O LORD my God, mine Holy One? We shall not die. O LORD, thou hast ordained them for judgment; and, O mighty God, thou hast established them for correction. Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity: wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous than he? And makest men as the fishes of the sea, as the creeping things, that have no ruler over them? They take up all of them with the angle, they catch them in their net, and gather them in their drag: therefore they rejoice and are glad. Therefore they sacrifice unto their net, and burn incense unto their drag; because by them their portion is fat, and their meat plenteous. Shall they therefore empty their net, and not spare continually to slay the nations?”

If all we did was read verses 12-13a, it would look like Habakkuk accepted the answer and was content. But 13bf shows that although he accepts the answer, he doesn’t like the answer.

He begins in verse 12 by claiming that God is eternal. I think the idea of immutability (that God does not change) is included here. The fact that God does not change is important because it means God keeps His promises and He has made promises to Israel. Habakkuk knows that God will not totally destroy Israel because of his covenantal promises. That is why he says, “We will not die.”

So, he believes God and trusts God, but he still doesn’t fully understand the answer. In 13b Habakkuk knows God hates evil and is amazed that God would use a nation even more evil than Judah to punish Judah. After all, even though Judah has her problems, she is still better than the Babylonians. At least that was true from Habakkuk’s perspective.

When you read the Book of Amos you will find the whole point of the book was that Israel was worse than all the rest of the nations because she knew better. She had been given the law while the Gentiles had not. The same would apply to Judah here. They weren’t better in God’s eyes. And God’s answer indicates that things are going to get worse, not better.

When he says, they offer a sacrifice to their net. The "net" was the war machine or might of Babylon. The Babylonians thought it was their own strength which allowed them to be so successful. They gave no credit to God. Habakkuk wonders how God would allow them to continue like this. And he asks that question in verse 17.

When you are talking with someone who has just experienced a tragedy, don’t just tell them “God is good. He loves you and He will work things out for the best and quote Romans 8:28-29.”  Sometimes it’s necessary to cry with them, hurt with them, question with them. Help them work through the pain, not ignore it. Of course you don’t want to stay there indefinitely, but it is part of the process.

Too often, Christians think the questioning part of the process is wrong. People have feelings and questions. You either suppress them or express them.

There is a balance between self-pity, hopeless resignation and staying mad at God. As usual, the correct response is somewhere in the middle.

How Long Shall I Cry (Part 2)

God’s answer to Habakkuk’s question. Verses 5-11 “Behold ye among the heathen, and regard, and wonder marvelously: for I will work a work in your days which ye will not believe, though it be told you. For, lo, I raise up the Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty nation, which shall march through the breadth of the land, to possess the dwelling places that are not theirs. They are terrible and dreadful: their judgment and their dignity shall proceed of themselves. Their horses also are swifter than the leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves: and their horsemen shall spread themselves, and their horsemen shall come from far; they shall fly as the eagle that hasteth to eat. They shall come all for violence: their faces shall sup up as the east wind, and they shall gather the captivity as the sand. And they shall scoff at the kings, and the princes shall be a scorn unto them: they shall deride every strong hold; for they shall heap dust, and take it. Then shall his mind change and he shall pass over, and offend, imputing this, his power unto his god.”

God is doing something. He is lifting up a foreign nation, the Babylonians, to come and destroy Judah. He tells Habakkuk, “You would not believe if you were told.”  Why? Because they are really wicked! They were worse than the Jews.

Verses 6-11 describe just how evil they are. The reason for this description is to show that they are so powerful, no one can stop them. They will certainly destroy Judah.

a. They are powerful as a force for evil.

b. They are mighty in the tactics of battle and warfare.

c. They are extremely deadly with their horsemanship and weaponry.

d. They show no mercy or justice to their captives or their victims.

We see in verse 11 that they will be held guilty for their wickedness, but God is going to use them anyway.
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Most of us have been praying for the evil in our society hoping for revival. What if God allowed America to fall just like the Roman Empire at the height of its glory? What would you think about that answer? Would you say God didn’t answer your prayer?

God teaches us through Habakkuk that He doesn’t always give us the answers we want or expect. We usually have it in our mind how we want God to answer our prayers, but when He does it differently, how do you respond?

How Long Shall I Cry (Part 1)

Habakkuk 1:1, 2 “The burden which Habakkuk the prophet did see. O LORD, how long shall I cry, and thou wilt not hear! Even cry out unto thee of violence, and thou wilt not save!”

Have you ever finished watching the evening news with all the violence and injustice in the world and in frustration asked, “Why isn’t God doing something? Why do the wicked and the dishonest people prosper? Why do they get elected to a position of power?” Well, that is not a new feeling. A prophet named Habakkuk felt that way around 620 B.C. and wrote a book about it.

Habakkuk’s name means to “embrace” or “wrestle.” I think it relates to the fact that he was wrestling with a difficult issue. If God is good, then why is there evil in the world? And if there has to be evil, then why do the evil prosper? What is God doing in the world? Habakkuk is one of the good guys. He fears God and does what is right, but it is getting him nowhere.

Habakkuk’s question is simple-How long shall I cry? Verses 2-4 “O LORD, how long shall I cry, and thou wilt not hear! Even cry out unto thee of violence, and thou wilt not save! Why dost thou shew me iniquity, and cause me to behold grievance? For spoiling and violence are before me: and there are that raise up strife and contention. Therefore the law is slacked, and judgment doth never go forth: for the wicked doth compass about the righteous; therefore wrong judgment proceedeth.”

The HCSB Version says, “How long, LORD, must I call for help and You do not listen, or cry out to You about violence and You do not save? Why do You force me to look at injustice? Why do You tolerate wrongdoing? Oppression and violence are right in front of me. Strife is ongoing, and conflict escalates. This is why the law is ineffective and justice never emerges. For the wicked restrict the righteous; therefore, justice comes out perverted.”

Habakkuk expresses the attitude that many righteous people have. He is outraged at the violence and injustice in his society. He lists six different problems. His list is repetitious, but it emphasizes just how bad things were. There was sin, wickedness, destruction and violence, no justice in the courts, and the wicked outnumbered the righteous. Does this sound like our society?

In verse 4 he says, "The law is ignored." God's word was no longer the standard. It is now illegal to have the 10 commandments hang on the wall in a public school, so I think things are even worse in America.

Habakkuk is preaching against the evils of society, but he is having little effect. Habakkuk raises a good question. Why does evil go unpunished? Why do the wicked prosper? Why doesn’t God do something?

Look back to verse 2. Habakkuk has been praying. Evidently, he has been praying for a long time because he says, “How long, O Lord, will I call for help, And Thou wilt not hear?” He also thinks God is indifferent and inactive.

Some people think that men of faith never question God. They just sit and wait faithfully and patiently. But one thing we can learn from Habakkuk is that this is a misconception because those who trust in God can and do question God when things seem to be upside down in the world that we live in.

I Have A Vision

-I have a vision about God reviving and mobilizing grandparents.

-In my vision God will inflame the hearts of older men and women, to ignite an unquenchable zealousness within their hearts, a fire that could not be put out.

-In my vision grandparents will band together to form an army to help change the world. They will boldly lead young people to Christ, they will take them to church, and teach them Biblical values.

-In my vision grandparents will teach the younger generation how to make and manage money, how to set priorities, encourage them to work hard, teach them how to fish, how to cook, how to build fences, clean house and do laundry. They will take them swimming and go on mission trips together.

-In my vision, grandparents will play a vital role in supporting orphanages and being involved with finding homes for orphans.

-In my vision, a huge army of grandparents will be praying for the younger generation and mobilizing other grandparents to pray.

-In my vision, grandparents will adopt children who don’t have grandparents.

-In my vision, lonely latch-key kids will chat online with their adopted grandparents.

-In my vision, grandparents will encourage and teach the next generation how to be grandparents.

-In my vision, God will use grandparents to help turn the younger generation to God - and change our nations.

-In my vision grandparents who care enough will rouse themselves and form an army zealous and determined to reclaim our youth for Christ. 

-I have a vision of grandchildren sharing stories with each other about how their grandparents and older mentors encouraged them, built into their lives, and affirmed them to be and do their best. They would tell their friends about how good they feel about themselves because their grandparents urged them to follow their dreams and told them, "You can do it."

-I have a vision of grandparents who have a purpose for living.