Many Christians play at religion...
Illustration
Many Christians play at religion, prancing along the shores of the great ocean of God and
running from the waves. The prophets, however, are dragged into the sea by God's
riptide. They're beaten around by God's currents, overwhelmed and amazed by God.
This is almighty God, our Creator we deal with, not a god we select, pushing our shopping cart through the aisles that sell specks of philosophies and bits of religions. Our Creator calls us to attention and argues with us.
We can reel off all our common sense reasons why we're doing just swell, why our slip- shod faith and our hit-and-miss obedience are as good as other people's, why we've endured, despite our rotten parents and disadvantaged childhood. When we've opined that intense religious commitment isn't respectable and no one likes religious fanatics, when we've suggested that a quiet, refined, conventional religion fits us best, God has dozens more arguments to throw against us. And God, as Jesus' resurrection demonstrates, isn't in the habit of giving up.
This is almighty God, our Creator we deal with, not a god we select, pushing our shopping cart through the aisles that sell specks of philosophies and bits of religions. Our Creator calls us to attention and argues with us.
We can reel off all our common sense reasons why we're doing just swell, why our slip- shod faith and our hit-and-miss obedience are as good as other people's, why we've endured, despite our rotten parents and disadvantaged childhood. When we've opined that intense religious commitment isn't respectable and no one likes religious fanatics, when we've suggested that a quiet, refined, conventional religion fits us best, God has dozens more arguments to throw against us. And God, as Jesus' resurrection demonstrates, isn't in the habit of giving up.
