Skip to main content

Understanding the Work of God

             As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the body is formed in a mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things. (Ecclesiastes 11:5)

At the time this was written, how a body is formed in the womb was a mystery to at least 99% of the people in the world. In spite of advances in science and claims of knowledge, the percentage is probably still correct. Oh, we may cite such things as germinal stage, embryonic stage, and fetal stage, or claim that something doesn’t happen until week Q, but even much of that involves arbitrary distinctions and nearly “magical” handwaving.

This is the same problem with those scientific “experts” who so often issue dire warnings about the environment. Much of what we think we understand simply scratches the surface, yet they pronounce that all matters are clearly understood, and their list of actions is the only possible solution. But I have seen “scientific” solutions to ecological problems cause greater problems than they solved.

If this is true of our understanding of the universe, we should be cautious in our claims of knowledge of God. Curiously, the individuals who seem to receive great attention in their pronouncements about God tend to be atheists and “scientists.” Stephen Hawkings, a brilliant scientist, was also a good marketer. He knew that if he used the word “God” in the title of his books, they’d sell. Richard Dawkins, likewise, found it much more profitable to champion evolutionary biology than to study and teach it.  Now, astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson is taking the same profitable course.

          Christians are sometimes just as bad, claiming to know the mind of God when they don’t. They sometimes also claim to not know the mind of God about matters that God has made clear in Scripture. Jesus told His disciples plainly that even some of those who did great things in Jesus’ name may be strangers to Him (Matthew 7:21-23.)

          We can’t understand God fully and would be foolish to say that we do. However, we can understand Him in part because He has given us His Spirit, and we would be foolish to say we can’t.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The List

              Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,   through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance;   perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. (Romans 5:1-5)           Think about it. We have been justified. At least, we could be justified if we stopped insisting that our justification be based on our merits. We have peace with God, or could have peace if we stopped throwing temper tantrums. We have gained access into grace i...
Post a Comment
Read more

Listen!

  While he was still speaking, a bright cloud enveloped them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” (Matthew 17:5)            Do you like roller coasters? I don't. You spend forever climbing a hill. You get to the top and have half a second, then you race down to a low point. Sometimes the racing down involves tying your insides into knots. At the bottom, you either have to be dragged up another hill or you get off the ride. Peter's life was a roller coaster from the time he met Jesus. There would be miracles, and then Jesus would teach things that didn't always make sense, and then they'd go out and perform miracles, and return to be taught. Peter was praised for giving the right answer to "Who do you say that I am?" Jesus said that said answer came from God. Peter was at the top of the hill.            ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Prayer Lists

                 Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good. (I Peter 2:2-3)   In connection with what I wrote yesterday about the possibility that I’m wrong, I’m feeling the need to go back to basics - craving spiritual milk because somehow, I missed something. It’s a little embarrassing, craving milk like a newborn, but the truth probably is that we are newborns many times in many ways in our lives. From God’s perspective, we may never be anything more than newborns, forever needing that milk. On the other hand, being a newborn can also be exciting because so much is new. My mind is playing pinball - ricocheting from one idea to the next and through six more before it happens to hit the third again. The main topic is prayer. I have at least seven organizing structures all somewhat influenced by the movie War Room , which I’v...
Post a Comment
Read more