Consider those chacteristic foibles of yours. Those imperfections. Attributes and quirks so small they are are often imperceptible; so small they are excused; so small they cannot be captured long enough to catagorise or expore enough to give a diagnosis, let alone a cure... Is it the case that we are riddled with issues and 'problems' that will remain unchecked, undiscovered, uninvestigated, unfaced-up-to until they make a documentary about people who have it? Eating disorders, bad body image, poor self-image, bad fashion sense, addictions, use of porn, attitude to global climate change, debt and the endless list goes on. We're all aware of the role of TV in feeding our wrong attitudes; but perhaps TV, if you watch a different type of programme, is a councillor to us - asking difficult questions of our introspection. Perhaps it has assumed a role that in a godly society the Bible would take - that of illuminating areas of our lives that are not right, and that we may not have realised - or broached with ourselves, had we not read it. Only thing is... we can't trust TV to give us answers to build and remodel our lives based on.
Too often we think of the Bible as like the annoying boy at school who was just brilliant at everything - because it is the Holy Spirit-breathed word of God we assume it is all rosiness and moral high ground. We miss the point that while it does briefly paint a picture of what perfect life was (few Ch at start of Genesis), and one day will be (some prophesies; some of Revelation?), it is actually a little vague - not vague exactly - more ambiguous. Intentionally I would suggest...
1. The Bible is actually a surprisingly frank critique of the human psyche - it merely gives us insight into the stupidity; unpredictably; weakness; strength and beauty of the human soul. It rarely gives commentary on why, just how we deviate and succeed in following God's design for life. It is not meant to be a list of things to do if you want to be perfect. It gives us councel on the mistakes others have made and advice on mending our own weaknesses; perfection will therefore be an exciting new territory to discover for each of us, if we follow the advice and allow the Holy Spirit to change us. We must love the stories of all the fools in the Bible - because they reflect our own stupidity and show us who we must try to change and let God change us.
2. So often the thought of perfection seems so... obvious. Archaic. Quaint perhaps. No hunger; (will we be hungry in heaven?) No war, no disease... all the topical, typically accepted evils. No paedophilia. Ah now we're getting warmer - paedophilia is a very personal evil. If there's to be none of it (and other things) when God makes the earth new (and perfect) are these people to be wiped out? Yes, if they don't turn to God's forgiveness. ...So what about all my personal evils? Am I to be wiped out? Yes, if I don't turn to God's forgiveness. And if I do? If they do? Then we are called and ARE righteous, but a process of turning us into what we are is necessary. God's plan of redemption of the earth extends to our own behaviour, he teaches us to say no to ungodliness. He illuminates wrongs in our characters; helps us to start straightening them out.
So what? Well, I guess we need each other - not just it is easier to pray in a group and because we are "the beautiful bride" but because we show each other weaknesses that we would miss about ourselves on our own. God is so involved in the details. So many areas of life we assume God has no part in. Rubbish. If he's committed to transforming us and our world back to perfection at some point in the future that includes inner hurts about comments people made in primary school. It involves fears of irrational things. It involves your modest habit of comfort eating. It involves being too pinickety about silly things. It involves your occassional irreverence. Your duplicity when you meet up with old friends. Your propensity to greed. And envy. Your anger that only comes out when that particular button in you is pressed... I don't believe it is as simple as a) we die, b) armaggeddon ends the world, c) God annihilates the wicked and d) suddenly we who trusted God's word are magically perfect and e) drift about in a newly created world and heaven that simply does not know wrong doing or weakness or insecurity.
The current state of the world is birth pains. God will take as long as it takes to create in us a pure heart and clean hands that HAVE BEEN EARNED. What is the point of all this if at some point God ends it all and turns us into robots to worship him in a new heaven? He avoided that in the first place - giving us free will. That free will must be mastered by our own efforts in the power of the Holy Spirit and the grace of a merciful God. That will be a perfect world worth having. When humanity has overcome evil in the physical; by the victory God wins in the spiritual realm... An earth that is pure and free from sin and death and disease and war and famine and lust and deceit and all kinds of anger and wrongs and natural disasters. - and also characyeristic foibles, quirks, stupidities, weaknesses, laziness... but because God has overcome and transformed us, by our own choices to buy into it, into the royal priesthood we are already called by name.
Imagine standing in the garden of Eden. Perfect world. And there's the tree. That flipping tree. And here comes the snake to trick us. But we know. This time we don't make the mistake because we've seen this before - we know how it goes, we have learned from Adam and Eve. So we don't fall. What an awesome heaven to be in - Adam and Eve fell because they didn't know the alternative - they were inquisitive - In the new heaven and earth we will be aware of the truth of sin and death and won't do that stuff; won't fall. How amazing! That would definately keep me worsipping an almighty God for all eternity. I'll walk past the trees in the garden of Eden every day on my way to work, I'll look at them and know I shouldn't, so I won't. I'll go about worshipping God through being creative, working hard and singing and praying. For ever. And it'll be great.
I know no one person will live long enough to see it all as it unfolds but wouldn't it be cool - to live through all the tribulations of nuclear meltdown or whatever it is - the coming of the dragon (from Revelation) whatever form that takes and blah blah and watch as every nation and culture and people group gradually hears the gospel (whether or not they respond) - maybe that'll be through the internet; then see Jesus return and watch him help redeem the world... Watch as people's inner turmoil, worries and stuff are actually put behind them by a church that works. A thousand years is it? Wars ending and peace breaking out; people responding to God and diseases being cured by science and miracles as God informs and resources all our efforts; maybe global warming will have to be reversed or something, and we'll manage it - people will get on with each other; respect; learn how to parent properly; how to use media to bring up young people healthily, there'll be loads of great role models, no footballers will dive and cheat in the Premiership, bank CEO's won't get multi million pound pensions. Come to think of it, they will be praying about their decisions anyway so they won't be screwing it up anyway - trade will be fair; wages good for all; decent living standards right through Sao Paulo, Nairobi and Bangladesh will have huge sea defenses (but there won't be crazy weather either). The closer it gets to perfection the more exciting it would be to watch...! To watch all the crap ending and disappearing. Brilliant. We limit what God can and is doing and is... don't we?! That'll be another thing to go...
Too often we think of the Bible as like the annoying boy at school who was just brilliant at everything - because it is the Holy Spirit-breathed word of God we assume it is all rosiness and moral high ground. We miss the point that while it does briefly paint a picture of what perfect life was (few Ch at start of Genesis), and one day will be (some prophesies; some of Revelation?), it is actually a little vague - not vague exactly - more ambiguous. Intentionally I would suggest...
1. The Bible is actually a surprisingly frank critique of the human psyche - it merely gives us insight into the stupidity; unpredictably; weakness; strength and beauty of the human soul. It rarely gives commentary on why, just how we deviate and succeed in following God's design for life. It is not meant to be a list of things to do if you want to be perfect. It gives us councel on the mistakes others have made and advice on mending our own weaknesses; perfection will therefore be an exciting new territory to discover for each of us, if we follow the advice and allow the Holy Spirit to change us. We must love the stories of all the fools in the Bible - because they reflect our own stupidity and show us who we must try to change and let God change us.
2. So often the thought of perfection seems so... obvious. Archaic. Quaint perhaps. No hunger; (will we be hungry in heaven?) No war, no disease... all the topical, typically accepted evils. No paedophilia. Ah now we're getting warmer - paedophilia is a very personal evil. If there's to be none of it (and other things) when God makes the earth new (and perfect) are these people to be wiped out? Yes, if they don't turn to God's forgiveness. ...So what about all my personal evils? Am I to be wiped out? Yes, if I don't turn to God's forgiveness. And if I do? If they do? Then we are called and ARE righteous, but a process of turning us into what we are is necessary. God's plan of redemption of the earth extends to our own behaviour, he teaches us to say no to ungodliness. He illuminates wrongs in our characters; helps us to start straightening them out.
So what? Well, I guess we need each other - not just it is easier to pray in a group and because we are "the beautiful bride" but because we show each other weaknesses that we would miss about ourselves on our own. God is so involved in the details. So many areas of life we assume God has no part in. Rubbish. If he's committed to transforming us and our world back to perfection at some point in the future that includes inner hurts about comments people made in primary school. It involves fears of irrational things. It involves your modest habit of comfort eating. It involves being too pinickety about silly things. It involves your occassional irreverence. Your duplicity when you meet up with old friends. Your propensity to greed. And envy. Your anger that only comes out when that particular button in you is pressed... I don't believe it is as simple as a) we die, b) armaggeddon ends the world, c) God annihilates the wicked and d) suddenly we who trusted God's word are magically perfect and e) drift about in a newly created world and heaven that simply does not know wrong doing or weakness or insecurity.The current state of the world is birth pains. God will take as long as it takes to create in us a pure heart and clean hands that HAVE BEEN EARNED. What is the point of all this if at some point God ends it all and turns us into robots to worship him in a new heaven? He avoided that in the first place - giving us free will. That free will must be mastered by our own efforts in the power of the Holy Spirit and the grace of a merciful God. That will be a perfect world worth having. When humanity has overcome evil in the physical; by the victory God wins in the spiritual realm... An earth that is pure and free from sin and death and disease and war and famine and lust and deceit and all kinds of anger and wrongs and natural disasters. - and also characyeristic foibles, quirks, stupidities, weaknesses, laziness... but because God has overcome and transformed us, by our own choices to buy into it, into the royal priesthood we are already called by name.
Imagine standing in the garden of Eden. Perfect world. And there's the tree. That flipping tree. And here comes the snake to trick us. But we know. This time we don't make the mistake because we've seen this before - we know how it goes, we have learned from Adam and Eve. So we don't fall. What an awesome heaven to be in - Adam and Eve fell because they didn't know the alternative - they were inquisitive - In the new heaven and earth we will be aware of the truth of sin and death and won't do that stuff; won't fall. How amazing! That would definately keep me worsipping an almighty God for all eternity. I'll walk past the trees in the garden of Eden every day on my way to work, I'll look at them and know I shouldn't, so I won't. I'll go about worshipping God through being creative, working hard and singing and praying. For ever. And it'll be great.I know no one person will live long enough to see it all as it unfolds but wouldn't it be cool - to live through all the tribulations of nuclear meltdown or whatever it is - the coming of the dragon (from Revelation) whatever form that takes and blah blah and watch as every nation and culture and people group gradually hears the gospel (whether or not they respond) - maybe that'll be through the internet; then see Jesus return and watch him help redeem the world... Watch as people's inner turmoil, worries and stuff are actually put behind them by a church that works. A thousand years is it? Wars ending and peace breaking out; people responding to God and diseases being cured by science and miracles as God informs and resources all our efforts; maybe global warming will have to be reversed or something, and we'll manage it - people will get on with each other; respect; learn how to parent properly; how to use media to bring up young people healthily, there'll be loads of great role models, no footballers will dive and cheat in the Premiership, bank CEO's won't get multi million pound pensions. Come to think of it, they will be praying about their decisions anyway so they won't be screwing it up anyway - trade will be fair; wages good for all; decent living standards right through Sao Paulo, Nairobi and Bangladesh will have huge sea defenses (but there won't be crazy weather either). The closer it gets to perfection the more exciting it would be to watch...! To watch all the crap ending and disappearing. Brilliant. We limit what God can and is doing and is... don't we?! That'll be another thing to go...
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