Posted: Fri Apr 15, 2011 5:14 am
The sceptic will rightly reply: very well, but He wouldn't need to appear to each of us individually, would He? He could show up right now, ring the end-of-day bell at the New York Stock Exchange, and make a speech from the podium in front of the CNN cameras.
Yes, He could do that. I even expect that to reveal Himself universally to all persons, those living and those who have died, God will do something vastly much more impressive!
But again, would that be the best sort of trustworthiness, the best act of faith on His part, the best way to show Who He is... at least, at the beginning?
A notable show of power, even a monstrous show of power, would show us only: power.
We are already far too ready to worship mere power, whether we are religious or secular. We are already far too ready to idolize the person who can merely do more than we can; and, for that matter, we are already far too ready to jealously despise and envy those people. Even if we use a name for God that means ‘good’ (as ‘God’ in fact does as a word), we are likely to think in terms of meaning only power or authority.
What God wants to do, what we need done for us, isn't simply an announcement or demonstration, as if He was a candidate for President with a platform, or MacArthur returning to the South Pacific, or Elvis opening a new show in Las Vegas after all these years.
Even dropping out of the sky on clouds and rolling up the heavens as a scroll, to sit in judgment upon a Jerusalem throne--or upon a Chinese Mountain of Heaven--isn't all we need, as individual people, because if power is all that is shown by God, then we will worship only power. I do expect an ultimately obvious reign of power to happen someday, too; but because God wants to help us best, He must do something else, too... something else, first.
We need to see the truth that He is a person, first and foremost, for us--for us, and with us.
Yes, He could do that. I even expect that to reveal Himself universally to all persons, those living and those who have died, God will do something vastly much more impressive!
But again, would that be the best sort of trustworthiness, the best act of faith on His part, the best way to show Who He is... at least, at the beginning?
A notable show of power, even a monstrous show of power, would show us only: power.
We are already far too ready to worship mere power, whether we are religious or secular. We are already far too ready to idolize the person who can merely do more than we can; and, for that matter, we are already far too ready to jealously despise and envy those people. Even if we use a name for God that means ‘good’ (as ‘God’ in fact does as a word), we are likely to think in terms of meaning only power or authority.
What God wants to do, what we need done for us, isn't simply an announcement or demonstration, as if He was a candidate for President with a platform, or MacArthur returning to the South Pacific, or Elvis opening a new show in Las Vegas after all these years.
Even dropping out of the sky on clouds and rolling up the heavens as a scroll, to sit in judgment upon a Jerusalem throne--or upon a Chinese Mountain of Heaven--isn't all we need, as individual people, because if power is all that is shown by God, then we will worship only power. I do expect an ultimately obvious reign of power to happen someday, too; but because God wants to help us best, He must do something else, too... something else, first.
We need to see the truth that He is a person, first and foremost, for us--for us, and with us.