Plumbing the Depths of God's Love

Someone recently said to me,

"You know, I believe in God, and though I've asked, I just don't know if he would forgive me for my sins or how to start back on religion."

Below was my response and is an attempt on my part to conceptualize and vocalize the depths of God's love for us:

I've ministered in both military and prison contexts, and sometimes people who are passionately telling me their story will swear or say something they think is inappropriate. But when they apologize, I always tell them, "Don't worry, both God and I have heard worse." I think that we assume that because we are the sons of apes, that we are somehow inconsequential. That we need to "clean up" and hide our failures and our weaknesses before approaching the Divine.

If there is a God (and I think there is, revealed in the Incarnate Christ), then this God knows the deepest part of every being on every planet, in every time in the cosmos. In a billion years after you turn to dust, you will still be dear to God's heart, even as another being, in a galaxy far away also wonders if there is any greater Consciousness that really cares about its life or can give it a fresh start and new purpose.

I think this God, while so utterly transcendent that it paradoxically extends even into non-existence itself, is also so utterly imminent that it vibrates along the fundamental forces of the universe, experiences the movement of every quark, and experiences the struggle, loneliness, and joy of every sentient being. When we rejoice, God rejoices with us. When we suffer and mourn, God suffers with us.

How could a God, so cosmically transcendent that universes pop into existence and recede into nothing in the blink of an eye; and yet so imminent that it marvels at the most inconsequential carbon atom in your thumbnail, do anything other than forgive you? How could the One who has seen potentially a million civilizations across ten-thousand star systems and yet witnessed your very entry into this world as a baby, be anything but utterly enthralled by you?

Of course you are forgiven! You are forgiven for a hundred thousand deeds in the past, and a hundred thousand possible deeds to come. I really think that if there is a God even worth mentioning, then this God has already fallen so deeply in love with you that It waits in anticipation for your call, like a giddy teenager waiting by the phone.

#God #love #transcendence #imminence #forgiveness

Why Christians Should Not Give Josh Duggar a Free Pass

Below is a Facebook Note I posted on August 21, 2015, which I thought was worth posting here as well.  Also included is a link to the CNN coverage concerning Josh Duggar's fall from grace, so to speak.

"Josh Duggar: 'I've been the biggest hypocrite ever...'" via CNN

I've been reading some of the comments in the wake of Joshua Duggar's ongoing and public fall, and I've been surprised and dismayed by how many of my brothers and sisters in Christ have been trying to defend his actions.

I want to say, as clearly as possible, that Josh Duggar should be held accountable for his actions. He broke the law. He broke the trust of those closest to him. And while he worked to marginalize whole groups of people for their choices and understanding of relationship (the LGBTQ community) in a democratic society, he secretly and hypocritically undermined his own publicly-stated understanding of relationship. Especially as a public figure, he should be held accountable.

I am a Christian, and while I believe Jesus lived and taught forgiveness, he also lived and taught justice (especially for the oppressed, the disenfranchised, and the abused). Our theology should not divorce the two.

And one should not seek forgiveness just to avoid consequences, as public apologies often aim to do. A genuine appeal to forgiveness cannot deflect from the issue, but should fully engage the injustice done. Also, forgiveness is not just a “Get Out of Jail Free” card for those afraid of what may happen after death. And I believe Gehenna just isn't a far-off, supernatural hell of flame and smoke, waiting in the future. It is the consequence of broken relationship and destroyed trust, both here and now and the resulting damage that ripples through the ages, long after those who committed the betrayal are gone. It is the gulf of bitter separation we create between us and God, each other, and creation.

Instead, the purpose of forgiveness is to restore relationship and to begin the reparation of the damage caused by betrayal, but the victim of any injustice should never be compelled to forgive. If we really believe Christ redeems human beings, then we must also agree that he does so freely, and without compulsion. Likewise, if we claim to follow Christ, then we cannot expect or force others to forgive out of compulsion.

There are many who have been hurt both by Joshua Duggar's political work, and by his personal betrayal. Those who would forgive him, must do so in their own time, and have every right to grieve the injustice done to them. Since Josh Duggar's apologies have only been issued after he was caught, it is only natural to doubt the authenticity of his words.

We may desire the restoration of people and relationships, but true restoration cannot happen without acknowledging and correcting injustice. In this case, molestation of his sisters who trusted him, the betrayal of his spouse who also trusted him, and the marginalization of large groups under guise of civic law, definitely qualifies as injustice.

P.S. I also think the particular homeschooling method the Duggars use is complete bunk. There, I said it. :) #DuggarScandal #JoshDuggar