Post by krwordgazer on Feb 9, 2010 15:18:17 GMT -5
I kind of lurked on this thread during the discussion that ended a few days ago, but didn't have anything new to contribute. But with regards to this:
You're right that it takes faith. I guess I simply believe it, even if I can't read some parts of it.
We read the story of Abraham sacrificing Isaac a few nights ago, and I couldn't bring myself to say anything. I couldn't understand WHY God would have to test Abraham that way. My 6 year-old couldn't understand it either.
I realized that this thing I said in another thread might be helpful.
What I see in Scripture is a God who is all-powerful, but has given humans sovereignty in their own sphere. He has effectively tied His own hands, for the sake of free will as an indispensible good. I see a God whose interference here and now is Self-limited, but is still guiding the overall scheme of things towards a goal of ultimate love.
What this comes down to is that if God granted humans sovereignty in their own sphere, to manage their own affairs as it were-- then God is generally going to want an invitation to interfere. This is what we call "prayer."
But when it comes to going a step further-- actually Incarnating into human reality-- I see God as needing more, to interfere to that level. To actually enter the human sphere and function as one of us, God wanted a covenant with a human which gave each party certain rights-- and God wanted this covenant to even extend to the point where each party could consider it reciprocal covenant-keeping to give an only son to the other.
Hence Isaac. The offering of Isaac didn't need to be consummated, it only needed to be offered. But having been offered, God now had a "right" to actually give His own Son too.
Looked at this way, the offering of Isaac was indispensible to God's overall plan, according to the rules God had set up for interacting with humanity.
This makes more sense to me than any other reading ever has.
You're right that it takes faith. I guess I simply believe it, even if I can't read some parts of it.
We read the story of Abraham sacrificing Isaac a few nights ago, and I couldn't bring myself to say anything. I couldn't understand WHY God would have to test Abraham that way. My 6 year-old couldn't understand it either.
I realized that this thing I said in another thread might be helpful.
What I see in Scripture is a God who is all-powerful, but has given humans sovereignty in their own sphere. He has effectively tied His own hands, for the sake of free will as an indispensible good. I see a God whose interference here and now is Self-limited, but is still guiding the overall scheme of things towards a goal of ultimate love.
What this comes down to is that if God granted humans sovereignty in their own sphere, to manage their own affairs as it were-- then God is generally going to want an invitation to interfere. This is what we call "prayer."
But when it comes to going a step further-- actually Incarnating into human reality-- I see God as needing more, to interfere to that level. To actually enter the human sphere and function as one of us, God wanted a covenant with a human which gave each party certain rights-- and God wanted this covenant to even extend to the point where each party could consider it reciprocal covenant-keeping to give an only son to the other.
Hence Isaac. The offering of Isaac didn't need to be consummated, it only needed to be offered. But having been offered, God now had a "right" to actually give His own Son too.
Looked at this way, the offering of Isaac was indispensible to God's overall plan, according to the rules God had set up for interacting with humanity.
This makes more sense to me than any other reading ever has.