A Caring God-- borrowed from ideas by Erwin McManus and C.S. Lewis
A lot of people ask if God exists... they wonder, how could God exist and there be so much wrong in the world. It's really a funny question, because it presupposes that if there were a God, he would be good and just.
What they really mean is, "does God care?" That is a question that stems from their deep desire to have a loving, caring God. It wouldn't even be worth knowing, if there was a God that didn't care about us. It would be just as if there was no God. But people want a God that cares! They want to know that there is a father out there that hurts when they hurt, and smiles when they are happy.
So the question becomes, "Does God Care?"
Everything God does stems from His nature--His character. God is love. So everything God does in relationship to humanity stems from love. All the pain and suffering we experience comes because it is self inflicted. It is because we do not choose to love. We are a broken humanity. We choose not to give, not to care, not to live in love. Our world is a mess, because our hearts are a mess--and God is hurt by all of this.
So then the question is, "But if God is all-powerful and all loving, then why won't he do something about it?"
The answer is, He will, but not yet. He wants to give all of humanity a chance to come to Him on their own. In the end, He will invade this world, and the sheer terror for those who do not know Him will follow. At this time, He wants us as Christians to help change the world, by changing the hearts of the people in it.
But of course, there is the matter of free will. Imagine a mother, who has the power to make her children do anything. She tells her children that they must clean their rooms while she is gone. She comes back to find toys all over the floor, and books strewn across the room. Of course she could have cleaned the room, and of course she had the power to force her children to clean, but out of free will they chose not to, and that is something the mother comes to terms with. She cannot, for their own sake, take their small hands and guide them to pick up every toy. It is a choice she leaves to them, and in turn they decide to make a mess of their room.
Much of our world is like this today. And God is actively and constantly intervening to reduce the destructive effect of our actions. He is constantly moving pieces into place so that we don't completely destroy everything. But I will say this... "Jesus wept" (John 11:35)
Peace and love.
What they really mean is, "does God care?" That is a question that stems from their deep desire to have a loving, caring God. It wouldn't even be worth knowing, if there was a God that didn't care about us. It would be just as if there was no God. But people want a God that cares! They want to know that there is a father out there that hurts when they hurt, and smiles when they are happy.
So the question becomes, "Does God Care?"
Everything God does stems from His nature--His character. God is love. So everything God does in relationship to humanity stems from love. All the pain and suffering we experience comes because it is self inflicted. It is because we do not choose to love. We are a broken humanity. We choose not to give, not to care, not to live in love. Our world is a mess, because our hearts are a mess--and God is hurt by all of this.
So then the question is, "But if God is all-powerful and all loving, then why won't he do something about it?"
The answer is, He will, but not yet. He wants to give all of humanity a chance to come to Him on their own. In the end, He will invade this world, and the sheer terror for those who do not know Him will follow. At this time, He wants us as Christians to help change the world, by changing the hearts of the people in it.
But of course, there is the matter of free will. Imagine a mother, who has the power to make her children do anything. She tells her children that they must clean their rooms while she is gone. She comes back to find toys all over the floor, and books strewn across the room. Of course she could have cleaned the room, and of course she had the power to force her children to clean, but out of free will they chose not to, and that is something the mother comes to terms with. She cannot, for their own sake, take their small hands and guide them to pick up every toy. It is a choice she leaves to them, and in turn they decide to make a mess of their room.
Much of our world is like this today. And God is actively and constantly intervening to reduce the destructive effect of our actions. He is constantly moving pieces into place so that we don't completely destroy everything. But I will say this... "Jesus wept" (John 11:35)
Peace and love.