Yesterday a woman asked me, "Why did he die?" Her son-in-law, a relatively young man in his 40's, died just months after falling ill with lung cancer. Many Believers prayed for him, earnestly and faithfully. Still he died! This woman was not in a crisis of faith, but she wondered, like we all do, why did God let it happen? When I honestly told her, "I don't know," I think it surprised her at first. For some reason, many Christians think they have to defend God and offer all kinds of 'explanations' for life's developments when the truth is that they do not have a clue. I could have guessed at a reason. The man did smoke heavily for years. Is that why he died? Scientifically, we know it was a factor. I could have opined about 'greater good' and that 'God is using this tragedy to call his family closer to Himself,' which is possibly true as well. But the genuine truth is, I do not know, nor does anyone else, exactly why the Sovereign Lord of the Universe does what He does. Being honestly humble is the best choice when we face the big questions of life. The truth is complex and God operates in a plane so far above our finiteness. Without a deep love for Him, a simple "trust me," which is what He often asks, goes down hard!
It's comforting, in a strange way, to point to this or that as a cause, to something else as a reason for what we are experiencing. The sense that we 'know' gives us assurance that we can avoid choices that would produce suffering and align ourselves with paths that always lead to happiness. Our attempts at 'knowing' can lead us, sometimes anyway, into the realm of myth rather than truth! Paul warned Timothy that there would be those who would "no longer listen to right teaching. They will follow their own desires and will look for teachers who will tell them whatever they want to hear. They will reject the truth and follow strange myths." (2 Timothy 4:3-4, NLT)
In our age of self-constructed spiritualities, superstition and assumption becomes the basis for much religion, and tragically, too often, even for Christian doctrine and practice. Lives that are built on such shifting foundations of sand are subject to collapse when intense storms blow. As much as I find people's stories interesting and even encouraging, I will not build my life on someone's recounting of their 'spiritual' experience. As compelling as some stories may be, those stories cannot be the cornerstone of faith's house. Too often, in the telling, such testimonies assume mythical proportions.
We must build our lives on Christ and the Word. That is Truth and a solid Rock foundation! Paul uses the phrase, 'we know,' many times in his letters, to underscore his faith in Christ Jesus. He built his hope in life, on one unchanging fact - that in Christ he was set free from the curse of sin and death and that because Christ was raised from the dead to life eternal, all those who hope in Him will live also. He did not need simplistic explanations of God's ways to lessen his anxiety about the experiences of difficulties he ran into from time to time. He chose, instead, to rest on his sure knowledge that God was in charge, that God was all-wise, and that God held an eternal home in trust for all those who lived in faith. What a confident life he lived as a result of this foundation! His words to a younger and sometimes timid Timothy vibrate with confidence, not from some 'hope so, could be' conclusion, but from his total assurance of eternal life. Take a look.
"For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. So do not be ashamed (embarrassed by unexplained events) to testify about our Lord, ... join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God, who has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. And of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher. That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet I am not ashamed, (have no regrets about my choices) because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day." (2 Timothy 1:7-12, NIV)
On what and in whom have you set your trust and faith?
Choose Christ, not some myth, nor some fanciful explanation that is appealing in it's simplistic conclusions about a complex world.
He is a Rock solid foundation, immoveable, trustworthy because He is "the same yesterday and today and forever!"
________________________________
No comments:
Post a Comment