God: Modern Proverbs

Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.
- Corrie Ten Boom

God
Modern Proverbs

No topic is as crucial or controversial as that of God. Millions of lines have been written about and for Omnity. A google search for God returns, "About 2,270,000,000 results (0.44 seconds)."

Yet with all the information and opinions, clearly the job's far from done. No other area of interest, or disinterest, remains as confusing. Even for modern Christians, worldliness and doctrinal deceptions conspire with doubt and unresolved issues with God to split genuine Christianity into hundreds of denominations with various varieties of Christ and versions of the gospel.

Everything that we have—right thinking and right living, a clean slate and a fresh start—comes from God by way of Jesus Christ.

- 1 Corinthians 1:30 MSG

God
Modern Proverbs
by Robert R. Pennington

If God was born in a feeding trough and died on a cross, what place is their for complaints or boasts?

Perhaps the incarnation was the Godhead collapsing in on itself from the mass of its love for man, and forming a “white whole.” Instead of Christ emptying himself of divinity, with the perfect symmetry of a neutron star, it was concentrated, the fullness of the Godhead dwelling in him bodily.

It would a good sign if cats were proof of God's sense of humor.

One can only intelligently reason for, not against, "intelligent design." While a thing can be too complex for chance appearance it can hardly be too complex or too simple to have been the work of God. This being clear such arguments made be learned men clearly reveal deeper hidden motives and/or objections.

Man is obsessed with the pursuit of woman for she is his glory. Sadly, God seems less consumed with pursuing man.

God, why so distant and silent? In its fallen form Creation speaks of You but not for You. At least not well. Unfortunately the same might be said of Churchianity.

The question as to the goodness of God is the greatest riddle ever placed before mankind. Yet where are the qualified willing to search out satisfactory answer?

I greatly prefer praying outside because that's were the clues are.

Are our lives ours? Did we create ourselves and our environment? Do we sustain ourselves? Can we prevent death? Having little control in life what awaits in eternity?
Embezzlement is the chief sin of atheism. You shouldn't gamble what isn't yours

In Jesus' story of the Prodigal Son the older brother' complaint of never having been given so much as a young goat to make merry with with his friends raises reasonable questions. Did the Father offer or did the son ask? If not, why?

Every one of the 100 - 200 billion galaxies has a supermassive black hole along with many smaller stellar ones. That of our Milky Way is estimated to be 3 million solar masses while that of Andromeda is 10 times larger. A far larger galaxy has a super massive black hole a thousand times that of our own. These are thought to have compressed at the center of massive stellar hydrogen clouds, the heat-energy of each igniting billions of stars. From ultimate darkness...Light!

Creation's astronomic age and dimensions, size and violence should cower men into humility and reverence for it and its Creator. Yet we puny soulish bloody meat-cycles on skeletal sticks are far too busy loving and lusting, building and reeking havoc everywhere and on everyone to notice much less care.

Neither old Earth of young do much if any violence to scripture. The same may not be said for Christian tradition. Creation implies a Creator and given the immensity and complexity of even the tangible Universe, creation in six days or 16,000,000,000 years are equally impressive. I suspect the latter which would definitely prove more interesting and much more revealing about God and man's place in His plans than "poof!"

Jesus' and His disciples emphasis on healing the sick served far greater purposes than healthcare. Such miracles revealed the glory of God and evidenced His imminent goodness through intimate care of individuals, families and communities. Charismatic shenanigans aside, with billions of souls lost and in pain, at risk of tribulation and Judgment, today's need for such demonstrations and experience is exponentially greater.

Two-Thirds of God is Go.

American academia's problem with Intelligent Design is hardly with a lack of theoretical evidence. Rather the difficulty is it's necessitating a Designer. An inconceivable concept for even the brightest of Earth's estranged minds.

Clearly creation is proof of a Creator. But Whom? Evidence suggests only two choices. Agnosticism, or religions more or less offshoots or Christianity. The former leaves us to live and die alone. While a fearful and hope-less prospect it remains possible. The latter, in its Biblical form, confirms and heightens man's fearful and hopeless state yet introduces the awful (glorious - dreadful) Christ into the equation.

The existence of God is certain yet unfortunately for humanity His identity is hidden and thus is left a matter of deduction by evidence. Seen in this light theology deserves the best research money can buy. Yet, the reverse is much closer to the truth. From this vantage point at best "blind faith" is a poor excuse for apathy and at worst a mass opiate.

Mankind's number one complaint against God is His silence. To greater or lessor degrees all religious and nonreligious wonder at, excuse and suffer under the silence of God. As evidenced by a whole host of indicators Christians too live with this burden. While scriptures provides invaluable aid few today study them exhaustively, much less are studied by them. While a tremendous blessing having a Bible available hardly equates to being personally or even corporately "on line" with God.

Eternity has an affinity for children.

Man is left guessing to the degree God is silent. Modern educated guesses leave much to be desired.
While the Holy Spirit's presence is ubiquitous it seems quite diminished, almost to the point of absence, within modern man. Truly a sad observation.

Clearly wisdom's cries in the streets go unheard, ignored or misunderstood. Largely falling on deaf ears, even those stopping to listen too often mistake its message.

Quantumly, those diligently seeking God rarely find Him. Not waking or dreaming. Not in churches or homes, quietly or on busy streets. Not in the city or country, not in the forest or mountain top. Not by the sea or on it. Not in the sky or in it. Even in the heavens He hides Himself from man's senses. Yet we shall all meet Him soon enough, though then without remedy.

Today much is written. spoken and sung on the topic of fulfillment and intimacy with God. Yet lifestyles of sin and excess suggest otherwise. Even so, perhaps the Lord takes moments of pleasure with some now and again. Still, given the stunning lack of maturity in the best of us I imagine it less like Him embracing a lover, disciple or child and more like one holding kittens. Cute and furry, cross eyed and curious, willing to submit to His gaze and caress for only a moment before meowing, biting and scratching to be put down. Like kittens we draw blood. The question is will we be tamed or remain ferrel?

From Lucifer's rebellion to humanities fall, from priest sexual abuse scandals to the misuse of power and violence, it would seem to the trained eye God has much in common with the Old Testament high priest Eli whom He rejected for failure to discipline his sons. Seeing God's holiness and goodness are beyond reproach this issue deserves careful consideration.

"The silence of God, with all due respect to Sir Robert Anderson's article of the same name and Philip Yancey's fine book, "Disappointed With God" raises great questions far from satisfactually answered. All the more considering the literally ""deafening effect"" His silence has on His Church, Particularly in the 1st World. Clearly His sheep are having a devil of a time hearing His voice.

God, like our sun, seems most beneficial and benevolent at a distance.

"God is at once the Great Question and Answer. All people in all times and places, of all faiths and creeds, in life and death are captured by the gravity well of this singularity, "
"Is God Good...enough?"

"Interesting that phonetically the letter "Y" denotes the great question as well as and an abbreviation for both Yahweh and Yeshua. La pagunda y la espuesta.

Of late how many have summited Everest and K2 compared with the Mountain of the Lord. Few there are who can even find it much less even reach base camp.
Oddly, the more skill one develops handling the whole counsel of God the fewer unanswered questions remain, yet those that do are often of a far greater order of magnitude.

The Great Question of human existence is the goodness of God. Unfortunately, meaningful discussion is impossible outside of Christianity and largely taboo within the Church. A sorry state seeing all mankind groans and travails for a satisfactory and experiential answer.

With the Godhead fully indwelling Jesus, His earthly ministry was clearly the Tri-Omni God seeking to save that which was lost. Yet the story of the Prodigal Son is telling. Notice the Father does not run after His wayward child but rather awaits his return to sanity and His home. Many emphasize the lavish love of the Father who scanning the horizon notices the lost son a long way off. Further, He runs to him, falling on him with affection. At this point the son begins the confession he has purposed within himself to live out. While the Father cuts him short, and bestows on him the full rewards of sonship, He does so only after seeing his son has indeed come home from a far country. Is there a message here for the few, too few, diligently seeking national and/or global repentance and revival? Might we prodigals need to find a way to come to our senses, prostrate before God in abject humiliation, before we find ourselves wearing new clothing, wielding the family crest and feasting on fattened calf?

God's identification with the suffering is complete. He extends His compassion to fully encompass the poor, hungry, sick, imprisoned and victimized. So much so that whatever is done or left undone in their service is attributed as service to Himself, or lack thereof. For this reason the scriptures elevate serving one another above simply speaking of, or singing about, our love for God.

Does God's Omnity reduce even the multi-universe to a divine virtual reality experience (VRE). Does omnipotence and particularly omnipresence locate this VRE as much within the very being of God as apart from Him. How might this effect the study of physics not to mention the inviability reasoning of pro-abortionist?

As the "Suffering Servant" Jesus is the shining example of God 's preoccupation with the needy. Even in the face of persecution and martyrdom by the Church of His day. From incarnation (no small feat) to a lowly birth in a feeding trough (manger) his identification is complete. From decades of obscurity to volatile public denouncements of the religious establishment He sets the stage for His final act of service to a vast and downtrodden public. In His healings and final Passion is reflected God's ruthless and undying obsession to help and save the hapless and helpless. God's devotion for the poor is so relentless Christ declares, ""blessed are the poor for theirs is the kingdom of heaven"" and asks ""how hard is it for a rich man to enter heaven?"" Citizens, particularly Christians, residing in the 1st World Nations would do well to ponder the full meaning of Christ's message.

Some have rightly noted certain protocols are wise to keep when coming before great rulers. Much more may be required when coming before the King of kings and Lord of lords. Some have noted that if worship and offerings are required when asking favor of earthly monarchs, how much more so the heavenly. A few also suggest supplicants should ask only that which furthers the dominion of the Ruler. While all this is true, one does well remember that the Tri-Omni God is from Everlasting, having always had and has today all power and authority.

Seeing that nothing + nothing = nothing, the existence of God seems certain. This is because self existence, along with Omnitity (omniscience, omnipotence and omnipresence) coupled with immutability (being without change) are requirements for God. So it is evident the thoughtful observer that such a symphony of outer and inner space supporting such amazingly simple and complex life requiring such grand implementation and fine tuning serves as proof of a Creator.

The simple argument that the existence of anything, much less everything, serves as proof of a Creator renders the basic tenants of atheism moot. The fundamental question then becomes "who" rather than "how." The theory that given enough moneys, typewriters and time the works of William Shakespeare could be produced without a God or even intelligent design is revealed as fundamentally flawed given that without a self existent Omni-Being there could be no monkeys, typewriters or time.

Agnostic evidence demands a verdict.

When God sovereignty moves in history His power and glory shines through the darkness with the brilliance of the sun. Unfortunately, like the blazing stars of heaven, the space-time and vacuum between is as great and inhospitable as it is cold and empty.

It is quite a reasonable argument that the silence and distance of God so universally experienced day in and day out by mankind is a matter of divine transcendence. So persuasive is this line of reasoning that regardless of religious belief humanity is in many ways relegated to, at best, practical agnosticism. Were it not for the Bible’s numerous passages offering the potential for better I would quickly succumb to this wisdom.

If the scriptures are trustworthy, saying what they mean and meaning what they say, there is likely a whole Kingdom of relationship with God and one another Western Christianity is missing.

Christians will note that scripture is replete with advice on dealing with the human condition and every trouble common to man. Its pages are filled with directives on how to recognize, avoid and/or overcome temptation as well as insights and incentives on approaching God in time of need to obtain help. Unfortunately, on an experiential and individual level, evidence abounds that we have little access to the kind of authentic and transcending relationship with God the Bible describes.

Good is God with an extra "o".

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