Tuesday, June 26, 2012

It Depends On Your Perspective

Numbers 16:20-35
Psalm 146
Clearly not all the stories of the Bible are pleasant ones. There are some that we generally do not read to children, and that even adults prefer to skip over. Our reading from Numbers today is one of those uncomfortable passages for many people. “As soon as [Moses] finished speaking all these words, the ground under them was split apart. The earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up, along with their households - everyone who belonged to Korah and all their goods. So they with all that belonged to them went down alive into Sheol; the earth closed over them, and they perished from the midst of the assembly” (Numbers 16:31-33). How could God do such a thing? How could the source of all love and light cause the earth to open up and swallow entire families? And Numbers is not our only reading today that speaks of God’s judgment. The psalmist speaks in similar terms, saying “The Lord watches over the strangers; he upholds the orphan and the widow, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin” (Psalm 146:9).

But what does God’s judgment mean if there are no consequences to it? How do we take God seriously if there are no ramifications otherwise? To be in relationship with God is to trust God’s guidance, God’s care, God’s providence. We seek God’s active presence in our midst. But God is not a good luck charm or a mascot. God is real and as such has real demands of us. So we could focus on God’s anger, on the acts of retribution that God performs, or we could recognize the grace that plays a far greater role in what God is doing. God had warned Adam and Eve that they would die on the day they ate of the fruit of a particular tree, but when they ate it they did not die; indeed God helped them prepare for life outside the garden. Because of human sinfulness God was determined to destroy all of creation, but then God remembered Noah and relented. Abraham asked God to spare the lives of some who lived in Sodom and Gomorrah and God did. More than once God had the inclination to destroy the Hebrew people in the wilderness but in each case Moses convinced God to let the people live. Finally, when God might have put an end to human life, God instead sent Jesus Christ to die for us. Time after time God has shown more mercy than we deserve, yet God’s judgment remains very real.

So in terms of God’s love we could see the glass as half empty––with lives brought to a sudden end––or we could see it as half full, with even sinners such as you and me given the opportunity to find forgiveness and be restored in our relationship with God and with one another. Personally, I rejoice in the good news of God’s grace.

Prayer: Lord, help us to embrace your love and to recognize your grace in our lives. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

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