Brad's commentary in the THINK section of the reading plan today is excellent. If you don't have it, you can get it here.
Instead of more commentary, I'd like to contribute a few images. Which one of the pictures below best represents the way you view life and/or your relationship with God?
So often I type one comment, get to the bottom and find I've changed my mind. And just a warning, I'm getting caught up in semantics again.
ReplyDeleteI tend to stick the NIV or TNIV versions of the Bible. The Message version often times throws me for a loop. It doesn't make sense to me about God not responding to what we do and instead us responding to what God does. To me the faith and being forgiven part of this has nothing to do with response. Response sounds to me to still be related to deeds. We have faith and then God does something and in order to get to Heaven or whatever we have to respond appropriately?
If its about faith, its about faith.
(For what its worth, I was raised that its about faith and that works have nothing to do with it)
So if I am following you, then how does one "have faith"? Maybe a better question is who doesn't have faith if we have no part? Is believing also a "deed" of sorts? In your faith tradition how does someone receive faith?
ReplyDeleteYou just do?
ReplyDeleteI wasn't reading it that way, I guess. I was thinking response as in after the fact - after we've accepted Him.
And now I'm confused.
In my faith tradition, you don't receive faith. You have it. You choose it. And I guess in that sense, it is a response to what God does. I read the Bible. I understood the stories. I believed that they were true. So then I had faith.
The more I think about it though... I will say that I "had faith" long before I accepted Him as Lord and Savior in my life, and while technically the accepting could be considered a deed done in response to what He did, for me it just didn't and doesn't seem that way. It was much more of a "I am royally screwing this up. I could really use some help" type thing.
But what He did (in dying on the cross... forgiving our sins) didn't apply to me until I believed that it did. Or maybe it did, but I guess I won't know that until I meet Him.
Either way... As far as those pearly gates go? There is no amount of work or good deed I can do to make up for the number of my sins. When God asks "do you believe?", I'll say "Yes. I do". The way I "respond" to Him in my life after I decided to believe won't make a difference one way or the other as far as His forgivness of me.
Does any of that make sense?
It makes sense to me Emma. My take on this (and that surely doesn't make it right, just mine)is that if you were stuck on the highway, broke down out in the middle of west Texas on a 115 degree day with screaming crying kids and a cell phone with a dead battery, etc... and all of a sudden someone stopped and almost magically repaired your car, calmed your kids, charged your battery, gave you food and drink, etc... you would WANT to thank them in some way. I mean you would REALLY appreciate it. Whatever you did, or not did, would be a response. (A problem with my analogy is that the problem of broke down vs. eternal damnation are enormously different).
ReplyDeleteOne morning Brad was asking what "worship" was to us. The point was that "singing" was not necessarily worship, although that is what that part of a service is called many places. Brad said that worship is our response to what the Holy Trinity has done for us. That really hit home for me. As much as I would be elated and super duper happy for someone rescuing me off the highway in west Texas, it is mind blowing what Jesus did and does for us, and yetmany times I make a bigger deal out of appreciating the things people do for us. To me the "responding" thing is all about how much you appreciate and comprehend what He did for us. It can be thoughts of gratitude, service, forgiveness, singing, etc... and I think any of it makes Him smile from ear to ear. I only wish I "responded" more and better.
Stan
So Stan, let me get this straight: Jesus rescued me from West Texas?
ReplyDeleteexactly....
ReplyDelete