What I Believe

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Since Wednesday, I have been responding to “What They Think of Us: God Blames Us for His Mistakes.”  I disagree completely with Gene Roddenberry’s criticism.  Here is what I believe to be a scriptural rebuttal.

1.     God did not make a mistake.  He intentionally made us as we are. (Genesis 1:1-31)

2.     He made us in His image. (1:27)

3.     He made us as we are because we must be free to choose.  God does not purpose to have the mindless obedience of robots or machines.

4.     God knew that the vast majority would reject Him.  He has declared that the few are worth the costs: a. the billions lost (Romans 1:20), and b. the life of Christ. (Luke 15:10)

5.     Those who chose God are invested with the Mind of Christ. (1 Corinthians 2:16)

6.     He is perfecting us into creatures, not Divine, but like Himself.  Our ultimate destiny is one of sinless perfection, able to judge angels (1 Corinthians 6:3), and able to exist in the presence of the perfectly Holy God.  We are being perfected (sanctified) into holiness. (Hebrews 7:25)

What They Think of Us: God Blames Us for His Mistakes

“We must question the story logic of having an all-knowing, all-powerful God, who creates faulty humans and then blames them for his own mistakes.’  Gene Roddenberry (1921, Texas, USA - 1991), American television screenwriter and producer, World War II combat pilot, police officer.  Roddenberry was the creator of the classic television program, Star Trek.  He was inducted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame and the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Hall of Fame.

This is a common criticism of Christianity from nonbelievers and it should not just be dismissed out of hand.  It assumes that God, if He exists, is flawed and imperfect, or even that He is unfair.  The challenge requires an answer.  How would you answer?

A Come to Jesus Moment

This post is about a current American idiomatic phrase: a come to Jesus moment.  I had heard this phrase used before in a sports context, then later in business and in politics.  I had an idea what it meant but decided to investigate it, so I went to the Urban Dictionary (http://www.urbandictionary.com/ )

On this website, Internet respondents can submit their interpretation(s) of current slang (popular "street" idioms).  Besides the traditional religious interpretation of the phrase, there were several fanciful, sarcastic,  and/or vulgar comments.

The most accurate interpretation of this phrase seems to be one of being called into a meeting in which one is severely criticized and possibly threatened with strict punishment for one's actions or attitudes.  The intent of the meeting is to produce an emotional response which produces a complete change in behavior and/or attitude.

This seems to play into a popular misconception of Jesus, and "religion" in general, as stuffy, unpleasant,  hypercritical, prudish, threatening, and disapproving.   This is an insulting stereotype.