Did God Really Say That?
So asked the serpent in Genesis ch3 and as is often the case, the devil is in the detail. So much of what we Christians are told we must do is not much different from the serpent’s famous words. Let’s look at a few…
- To be a good Christian, you must pray every day.
- To be a good Christian, you must read your Bible every day.
- To be a good Christian, you must go to church regularly.
- To be a good Christian, you must tithe.
Which has the underlying implication is that God will love you more (or at least be more pleased with you) if you are a better Christian.
The common theme here is the belief that our action achieves an outcome. In short, we can only be truly accepted by God if we do something. This is the basis of transactional theology, and because it is what we hear so often, we don’t question it.
The real questions we should be asking are:
- “Does God love us more if we do certain things or act in certain ways?”
- “Does God love us less if we disregard God and live for ourselves?”
- “Is God transactional?”
If God is loves you more when you are good, then God is less loving that human parents. If God requires us to do certain things to be accepted, then God’s acceptance is a transaction, and we are rewarded for working to achieve God’s approval.
Take that to it’s logical conclusion, and we have salvation that is not a gift of God to all humanity, but a reward to the diligent who work hard and jump through the required hoops. In short, we have earned our own salvation by our works. Grace doesn’t factor into the equation.
Of course, we would never say that out loud, but we might believe it in the deepest corners of our mind. I personally know two people who believed that accidents, which happened to them when they were teenagers, were because they “sinned”. For one friend, he believed that God caused his life-long ankle injury as a punishment because he was playing hockey on a Sunday. Another friend believed that God had caused a car accident (which injured her back) to teach her humility because she was a good runner and was proud of her achievement. The accident stopped her from running competitively again.
Does this look like the God portrayed through Jesus? The God-man who loved everyone equally. Who forgave everyone when he was dying on the cross. We so often read that verse (Luke 23:34) and think that Jesus is referring only to the priests and soldiers who put him to death, and miss the point that Jesus didn’t limit his forgiveness to a certain group of people. His statement was fully inclusive of all people.
The question we need to answer ourselves is “Did God really say that about everyone, including me?” Does that mean we are all forgiven? Could it be that simple? The answer is a resounding “YES”. You are included, you have always been forgiven. There is nothing you need to do, and no action or transaction that can improve your ranking or chance of achieving God’s acceptance. It has already been given without limitation or qualification.
Everyone is forgiven. Acceptance of that fact frees us to live as God has intended. It is God’s ‘plan A’ for humanity. We are loved by God because it is God’s nature to love.
- God is Hiding in Plain Sight - 10 December 2024
- Consumed by Fire - 13 August 2024
- Attitudes, Actions and Outcomes - 14 June 2024