Questions

Our table group discussion last night was challenging. It is difficult and yet good to be sharpened and honed by fellow believers. The points discussed were hard, but brought good questions, many that I’m not sure there is an answer too. I want to reflect on some of those questions, though they will not be answered here.

How am I to be a Christian, a follower of Jesus Christ, believing in what He says, and standing for His truth while loving others, even those that disagree with or hate Him? How can I exhibit the attributes of grace to other people and be with them in their circumstances while remaining obedient to Christ’s character? How can I love Him, passionately and whole-heartedly, and continue to love my unbelieving neighbor as myself?

Here is the direction these questions take me. In my reading of the gospels this last year, I have seen Christ’s deep and abiding love for people. This kind of love is difficult to grasp – I can begin to see its edges, but knowing the height, depth, width, and breadth is beyond my comprehension. As Gire states: you can love completely without complete understanding. I can also be (and am) loved completely without knowing why or how. And in the same way that I know Christ loves me, given my knowledge of myself, so He loves others. How many times have I thought – if He really knew me, He would walk away? The truth is that He does know me – and that is both wonderful and frightening. It is a fearful thing to fall into His hands. It touches on King Kong – one might be afraid of him (and for very good reason). But Ann surrenders to his touch. It is hard to describe the magic of the moment when time stood still as Ann approached him in New York and a giant, angry beast grew soft and tender. His gaze changed and happiness settled in. There was peace. It is in trust that when I fall into His hands, and fallen I have and am, that I remember His deep love for me. He is crazy over me. Kong tore apart a city in search for Ann; God took off His glory, became a man like me, and died, in His pursuit of me. When I am in His hands, there is peace and security, safety and contentment. But for one who does not know Him, the hand of God is fearful – just as the hand of Kong was to those in New York. For the one he loved, the hand was all that tenderness and love holds.

How does this apply to the table discussion last night? As I grow to know and love God, I think my heart will grow to love the people He loves. That is one of the interesting things about love – the desires and passions of the beloved become shared joys for the one loving. Because what often becomes more important than what is done is that it is done together. In many cases, the happiness experienced between two lovers is the presence of one another. The other thing about the passion of the beloved is that it reveals to you a deeper knowledge of him or her. My favorite question – why – is one that fits so well here. Why does this person or thing evoke such a deep sense of passion inside him or her? What does it tell me about my beloved? To bring it back to God, what does God’s deep passion for me and for people tell me about Him? And in taking those steps to know Him a little more, His passion for people, His love for others, and His heart for creation are planted and grown in my heart.

How do I relate this to others? By remembering that once, the hand of God was a frightening place for me. The roar of Kong is a scary sound to those who do not know Him, but to Ann, it is a call, a cry, a search, for her. Once I was against Him, but I did not really know Him. And am only beginning to know Him in a life-long relationship with Him.

How difficult a thing it is to see people reject or hate God. But, just as I once did not know Him, so too they do not know Him. They fight the very one they most need. How can I model His love for them, while abiding in Him? How can I obey Him while being a light to those who do not know Him? In Kong, we think – if they could only see how he loves Ann, they would not want to destroy him. How challenging to communicate what we know to those that don’t.

I know I created more questions than answers. But struggle with it, meditate on it, and pray over it. But most of all, enjoy the comfort of His loving hand.

Abba

I was reflecting last week on some things in my life that have been frustrating and stressful lately and a verse came to mind. “As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him.” (I wasn't sure where the verse was) It was a verse that reached down and touched me in the present place that I was at. Our table group discussion several weeks ago had a discussion on absolutes and whether God responded to the same situation the same way (does this define His absolute nature?). I do not want to get into this right now, but I do want to note here that I believe that God deals with us individually, personally, and appropriately in each event in our lives. For example, in the times I have struggled over the distance from my dad, each time has been different – different verses, different thoughts, and different revelations. He is the same God – but in the moment, the need is met exactly how it needs to be met.

One of my favorite passages by George MacDonald then came to mind as I was reflecting on the compassionate nature of the Father (since compassion is not a word I would associate with fatherhood). This one touches the deepest places within:

“In my own childhood and boyhood my father was the refuge from all the ills of life, even sharp pain itself. Therefore I say to a son or daughter who has no pleasure in the name Father, ‘You must interpret the word by all that you have missed in life. All that human tenderness can give or desire in the nearness and readiness of love, all and infinitely more must be true of the perfect Father – of the maker of fatherhood.’” (The Heart of George MacDonald)

From the earliest days of my childhood, I could and would tell you “Jesus is God.” And still will if you ask. But what does God as Father mean, Who is Abba? As I have been slowly reading through the gospels looking at the person of Christ, one remarkable thing has stuck out to me. How compassionate and tender Christ is! And Christ is the revelation of the Father.

And then this morning, as I was praying through Psalm 103, His hand was there. For what does verse 13 say, but: “As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him.”