Thursday, January 7, 2010
Saturday, January 2, 2010
The Problem With the Problem Of Evil
Mention "The Problem of Evil," and you will get differing reactions. Some will just move on to other topics. Others will discourse at length about all the current philosophical buzz on the subject of evil. Still others will defend atheist or agnostic views with some adamance. What Christian views have you heard expounded?
In my observations of the Problem of Evil, I noticed that people mostly want to address evil from an "out there" kind of perspective. That is, they don't see themselves as part of this problem. But yet, humans perpetrate evil all the time.
There are some objections which can be raised almost immediately even to the phrase. First of all, if the goal is to justify the existence of a benevolent God, who in the world are we to sit in judgment on such a lofty notion? It is just that we remain oblivious to the most obvious fact in the universe: God.
The first temptation of Eve and Adam can be seen as a test. I believe it is a real occurrence in time and space, that speaks to a reality beyond time and space.
Have you ever "tested" your parents as a kid? Done something wrong just to see what they would do? Such a "testing" is wrong for us, but God is, at another point, spoken of as "leaving" a king to test him. This, however, does not make him wrong. The objections howl at this point "How can you say that it is wrong for us to test God, and yet he tests us?"
So we are back to the finite trying to understand the infinite again. There is a way for a sovereign God to test people, yet remain utterly holy and perfect in all attributes. Do you want to figure that out? Mathematically, I would say, you can sooner find, count, and use infinity practically (can you bear an infinite amount of weight?), than you can understand the infinite.
Back to faith and desire again...We always choose (act, thought, attitude) in accordance with our greatest desire at the moment of choice (Edwards). We have a biblical record, believed in and died for for centuries and milennia, or whatever you want to believe in the end.
OK, objectors...show your desire.
In my observations of the Problem of Evil, I noticed that people mostly want to address evil from an "out there" kind of perspective. That is, they don't see themselves as part of this problem. But yet, humans perpetrate evil all the time.
There are some objections which can be raised almost immediately even to the phrase. First of all, if the goal is to justify the existence of a benevolent God, who in the world are we to sit in judgment on such a lofty notion? It is just that we remain oblivious to the most obvious fact in the universe: God.
The first temptation of Eve and Adam can be seen as a test. I believe it is a real occurrence in time and space, that speaks to a reality beyond time and space.
Have you ever "tested" your parents as a kid? Done something wrong just to see what they would do? Such a "testing" is wrong for us, but God is, at another point, spoken of as "leaving" a king to test him. This, however, does not make him wrong. The objections howl at this point "How can you say that it is wrong for us to test God, and yet he tests us?"
So we are back to the finite trying to understand the infinite again. There is a way for a sovereign God to test people, yet remain utterly holy and perfect in all attributes. Do you want to figure that out? Mathematically, I would say, you can sooner find, count, and use infinity practically (can you bear an infinite amount of weight?), than you can understand the infinite.
Back to faith and desire again...We always choose (act, thought, attitude) in accordance with our greatest desire at the moment of choice (Edwards). We have a biblical record, believed in and died for for centuries and milennia, or whatever you want to believe in the end.
OK, objectors...show your desire.
Friday, January 1, 2010
2010: Wisdom Wanted
I have been struck with a notion on this first morning of 2010. How many times in the books of Kings that phrases like "...said to the king," and "...if it pleases my lord the king." It seems that the king, whoever it was, was always getting advice from someone. But how much of that advice was wise?
As regenerates, we have a mighty responsibility. We are responsible to make wise decisions regarding money, children if we have them, and time. We have a sort of "rulership" over some sphere of life. And this is why I am thinking of a new kind of resolution when major issue advice is given to me, something like: "If you feel like you must give me advice, be sure you are praying for me as well." That way, we can both get a hold of real wisdom.
As regenerates, we have a mighty responsibility. We are responsible to make wise decisions regarding money, children if we have them, and time. We have a sort of "rulership" over some sphere of life. And this is why I am thinking of a new kind of resolution when major issue advice is given to me, something like: "If you feel like you must give me advice, be sure you are praying for me as well." That way, we can both get a hold of real wisdom.
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