Skip to main content

Thy Will Be Done


What then? What the people of Israel sought so earnestly they did not obtain. The elect among them did, but the others were hardened, as it is written: 
“God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that could not see
    and ears that could not hear, to this very day.”
And David says:
“May their table become a snare and a trap,
    a stumbling block and a retribution for them.
10 May their eyes be darkened so they cannot see,
    and their backs be bent forever.” (Romans 11:7-10)

“There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, ‘Thy will be done,’ and those to whom God says, in the end, ‘Thy will be done.’” C.S. Lewis, The Great Divorce

          In reading today’s passage, some people might think God is harsh. He gives some people what they sought earnestly, and others He gave a spirit of stupor, eyes that couldn’t see, ears that couldn’t hear, and a table that became a snare, a trap, a stumbling block and a retribution. It’s not fair for God to withhold Himself from some people.
          Those people should back up, historically speaking. In Genesis 3, Adam and Eve chose to eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil because they wanted to be “like the Most High.” God gave mankind what we wanted. Some may claim it’s not fair that Adam and Eve chose for all of mankind, but how could they teach what they didn’t know? How could they bring up their children to be what they could not be themselves? At that point, God gave us all spirits of stupor, eyes and can’t see and ears that can’t hear. God doesn’t draw lots when we’re conceived and inflict those things on this person, but not that person. What do you think would happen if part of a population was perfect and the other part sinful? I think that before long, the perfect ones would be dead, and the human race would be back in the same situation we’re in now.
      The problem is even though Israel earnestly sought, they earnestly sought in the wrong direction. They still do, and so do we. I think Mr. Lewis was incorrect in his statement from The Great Divorce. There is only one kind of person in the world, the sort to which God says, in the end, “Thy will be done.” That has been God’s message since Genesis 3. Some people’s will is to do God’s will. They might not be good at it, but it is their choice. Most will not to do God’s will.
          Curiously, the people who complain that it’s not fair that God doesn’t over-rule their will are the same folks who reject God’s will and ridicule or pity those who do choose to live according to God’s will. “Poor me, I’m not part of the elect, but who would want to be?” The things that get in the way of our wanting to do God’s will aren’t God, they are our table (our appetites), the things we want more than God, so that the light of our eyes, our focus, is on the table. We might complain that God made us that way, but the truth is that most of us wouldn’t have it any other way, and consider those who would to be the foolish ones.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Saved?

  I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.” (John 10:28-30) “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, “I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ ” (Matthew 7:21-23) Not at all! Let God be true, and every human being a liar. As it is written: “So that you may be proved right when you speak and prevail when you judge.” (Romans 3:4)   What conclusion do you draw when someone who was raised in a Christian family and church, perhaps even playing a significant role in a chur...
Post a Comment
Read more

Meditations of the Heart

  May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer. (Psalm19:14)           As I started writing this post, I noted that the meditations of my heart are all over the mental landscape, from a hub where eight superhighways come together to a lunar or nuclear landscape. Do you see my error? The moment I read the word meditation , I think about thoughts. But what’s described here is the meditations of our hearts ; our wills.           While the meditations of our minds may be all over the place, the meditations of our wills tend to be a little more stable by the time we are adults. We no longer tend to want to pursue the ten separate careers we did in any given day as children. Part of this is humble acceptance of reality. We come to understand that we can’t do it all. I think another part of it is disappointmen...
Post a Comment
Read more

Listen To Him

              The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him . (Deuteronomy 18:15)           Today, we switch from Jesus’ claims of “I am” to prophecies made about Him. My Bible platform is starting in Deuteronomy. I’d start in Genesis, where we would learn that the one who would save us would be a descendant of Eve (Genesis 3:15), of Noah (by default), Abram and Sara(Genesis 12:1-3). Isaac (Genesis 17:19), Jacob (Genesis 25:23), Judah (Genesis 29:8), and David (II Samuel 7:12-16). There were also references to a new covenant (Jer. 31:31-34; Ezek. 36:22-32). In addition, there were prophecies about when and where the prophet/Messiah would be born and what would happen to him.           Of course, naysayers will claim that Jesus’ life was retrofitted or reverse enginee...
Post a Comment
Read more