CHALLENGING GOD

Job 12:1-15:35; 1 Corinthians 15:29-58; Psalm 39:1-13; Proverbs 21:30-31

“Be silent now and leave me alone.  Let me speak, and I will face the consequences.
 Yes, I will take my life in my hands and say what I really think.
 God might kill me, but I have no other hope. I am going to argue my case with him.”

“So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless.”

I said to myself, ‘I will watch what I do and not sin in what I say. I will hold my tongue when the ungodly are around me.’ But as I stood there in silence—not even speaking of good things—the turmoil within me grew worse.”

“No human wisdom or understanding or plan can stand against the Lord.”

I give thanks that we have a God with whom we can fight. That may sound odd, but frankly, a God who would hide behind His holiness and remain aloof from His Creation has little personal attraction for yours truly. A Savior who will not engage His Creation cannot be love or a Savior. Holiness without compassion and empathy is a cold and brittle thing. But the Lord does engage. There are times when we need a good fight with Him, too, if for no other reason than to work off our frustration. The thing to remember is that all but the most barbaric of conflicts have some rules. For example, while the Holy Spirit does allow disagreement and sometimes outright conflict with His Will, He will not allow His Name to be profaned in the process. Before we start drawing lines in the sand or throwing the gauntlet at Christ’s feet, we’d better understand exactly how to approach Him when we’re not particularly pleased with Him.

The first rule is stay humble. We can learn a lot from the touch of the Master’s Hand, but we have to remain teachable. This is a tough assignment when I feel mad or betrayed, because my instinctive reaction is not to ask what I can learn from the situation, but to ask who I can punish or who needs to pay. That won’t cut it with our heavenly Father. As long as we continue to operate out of unreasoning fury, we can be pretty sure the Holy Spirit will just continue to let us stew in our own juices.

Second, go head’s up on Christ, one on one, man to man (or woman), but also with respect for the opportunity and the One we approach. When I feel disillusioned or hurt, I’ve noticed I spend a lot more time thinking about God than actually talking to Him. I probably talk to others more about my frustrations concerning God than I talk with Him about how to address them. Ultimately, I find it very counterproductive to try to work through things without respecting Christ’s involvement. What helps is to remind myself that anytime I approach the Father, whether in anger or joy, I move onto holy ground. By definition, no matter what I’m thinking, I am engaging in prayer any time I’m communicating with the Spirit. And no matter how I feel about it, just the ability to pray is an exceptional blessing. God gave us the right to pour out our hearts to Him, but spewing venom just to spew venom is better done outside the context of a communication to the Divine.

Third, hang onto hope. Nothing is in vain if it’s done for or about the Lord. More important, He will take pretty much whatever we give Him with respect, and He will use what we allow Him to use for good, no matter whether we think he can redeem the situation or not.

Finally, remember, the wisdom of God is just way better than our own thoughts, but we also have the ability to think with the mind of Christ. Jehovah’s ideas no longer need be so foreign to us that we cannot begin to even comprehend what God is doing or how the Spirit might work given the chance. We can discern God’s plan. Granted, it’s still not something we automatically do when questioning God. We just have to want to, and be willing to work at it. Our questions usually overwhelm His answers, at least in our own ears. If we put more effort into claiming the mind of Christ and trying to understand our Creator and His mission for us, we may find ourselves becoming more appreciative of His ways. In turn, we may also find there isn’t really all that much to fight about, either.