On December 31, 1999, I was at a New Year's Eve party at a friend's house. We were having a great time, but just underneath the surface of the fun was a bit of apprehension. For nearly a year, it seems that all we had heard about was Y2K, the theory that as soon as all the computers in the world needed to read "2000," they would shut down because they could only read the "0" and would not know how to interpret that information. As the clock ticked toward midnight on that night, we sat around the t.v., watching Dick Clark in Times Square, wondering if the lights and t.v.'s and computers around the world would suddenly fail. As we know, nothing happened that night, or any other night since then. The problem, however big it might have been, was fixed, and our computers were saved.
Y2K is certainly not the first time that a prediction of the end (in a big sense) has been made. It is most certainly, however, one of the least significant. Throughout time, predictions of the end of the world have been announced, and for the most part, the book of Revelation has provided the catalyst for those predictions. Here are a few of those predictions:
1) Otto III predicted that the world would end in 968 based on the occurance of an eclipse (Rev 8:12)
2) Pope Innocent III predicted 1284 as the last year by taking the number 666 (Rev 13:18) and adding that number to the year that Islam was founded.
3) The Jehovah's Witnesses predicted 1914 as the end of the world based on a prophecy in Daniel 4, which is roughly equivalent to Rev 5:12). [http://www.smu.edu/smunews/revelation/predictions.asp]
It seems that the more we try to understand the events, natural and man-made, that happen in our world, the more people turn to the Bible for answers. In many cases, we would consider this a good thing -- look to God, revealed in the Bible, for help in our times of need. In some cases, however, looking to the Bible for answers only provides more confusion, especially when we turn to Revelation to predict the end of the world as we know it. As we begin our study of Revelation, I would like to know what you have been taught about this book. What good is it? Why is it in the Bible? What can it tell us about the end times?
11.24.2007
11.15.2007
Does God have a Plan?
I am a planner. I like to know who's doing what and when, and how long it will take. In my younger days, I never needed to keep a calendar; I could simply remember what was happening and where I needed to be. After having children, however, all that has changed. I need a family calendar to remember what each member of the family has scheduled on a particular day. Now, don't get me wrong, I do like spontaneity, and I'm all for surprises. On a day to day basis, though, I pretty much like to know what's going on.
In spite of my planning, though, often it seems that the plan goes awry. For instance, every morning it is my goal to leave the house at 7:00. I get up in plenty of time to get myself and my son ready to leave by 7. But, every morning, something happens to set that plan off track -- Jonah doesn't want to get dressed, or I need to help Kayla with her hair, or I can't get into the bathroom to brush my teeth. You name it, it has happened. So, every morning, we leave the house at 7:20. Of course, usually it's not my fault that we are leaving late; it's because somebody else in the house put my plans off track :-)
I wonder sometimes if it is like this with us and God. Nearly every Christian I have ever met (and that's a lot!) has indicated that they believe, to some extent, that God has a plan for the world. If someone dies, it is "part of God's plan." If a natural disaster wipes out a city, it is because "God planned it that way." Just last night, I heard a complete stranger on her cell phone telling someone that they got a job promotion because it was in God's plan. All that being said, though, I wonder what people would say if I asked them to what extent God plans out everything that happens in this world, and to what extent they think human beings mess up God's plan.
You see, I think that in order to say that something is "part of God's plan," we presume to know what God's overall plan for the world is. In other words, by saying such a thing, we indicate that we know the mind of God. Even the Bible is not quite clear on the issue. Job 38-41 is a series of rhetorical questions that God asks Job to show that Job can never know what God knows. Adam and Eve got kicked out of the Garden of Eden for the desire to know what God knows. Ephesians 3:8-9, however, says that the church is responsible for making God's plan known to the world, yet it is not too difficult to see that "the church" does not quite agree on what God's plan is.
What do you think? Does God have a plan? If so, how can we discern the nature of the plan, or even the extent to which God plays a hand in executing the plan? Are we all just God's puppets, or do we have the ability to mess up God's plan? As we move into discussion about the book of Revelation, think about God's plan and the end of time. What do you think will happen?
In spite of my planning, though, often it seems that the plan goes awry. For instance, every morning it is my goal to leave the house at 7:00. I get up in plenty of time to get myself and my son ready to leave by 7. But, every morning, something happens to set that plan off track -- Jonah doesn't want to get dressed, or I need to help Kayla with her hair, or I can't get into the bathroom to brush my teeth. You name it, it has happened. So, every morning, we leave the house at 7:20. Of course, usually it's not my fault that we are leaving late; it's because somebody else in the house put my plans off track :-)
I wonder sometimes if it is like this with us and God. Nearly every Christian I have ever met (and that's a lot!) has indicated that they believe, to some extent, that God has a plan for the world. If someone dies, it is "part of God's plan." If a natural disaster wipes out a city, it is because "God planned it that way." Just last night, I heard a complete stranger on her cell phone telling someone that they got a job promotion because it was in God's plan. All that being said, though, I wonder what people would say if I asked them to what extent God plans out everything that happens in this world, and to what extent they think human beings mess up God's plan.
You see, I think that in order to say that something is "part of God's plan," we presume to know what God's overall plan for the world is. In other words, by saying such a thing, we indicate that we know the mind of God. Even the Bible is not quite clear on the issue. Job 38-41 is a series of rhetorical questions that God asks Job to show that Job can never know what God knows. Adam and Eve got kicked out of the Garden of Eden for the desire to know what God knows. Ephesians 3:8-9, however, says that the church is responsible for making God's plan known to the world, yet it is not too difficult to see that "the church" does not quite agree on what God's plan is.
What do you think? Does God have a plan? If so, how can we discern the nature of the plan, or even the extent to which God plays a hand in executing the plan? Are we all just God's puppets, or do we have the ability to mess up God's plan? As we move into discussion about the book of Revelation, think about God's plan and the end of time. What do you think will happen?
11.09.2007
How Much Does Heaven Cost?
On Dec. 6, 2003, my youngest sister died after a three year battle with a brain tumor. She was 27. Her death challenged me to confront my faith in a big way. All my life I had been told that if a person had faith, they would go to heaven, and while I've never really believed that a person could earn their way to heaven, I was also taught that part of being faithful was going to church on a regular basis. My sister was not a churchgoer. At the time of her death, she was into a sort of charismatic faith, but had not yet found a church home.
Now, I have no doubts that my sister is spending eternity in the presence of God. But her death brought up the burning question that often comes up at the time of death: Will they go to heaven? And, even for those of us brought up on a "faith only" criteria for getting into heaven, the answer to that question becomes complicated. Somewhere deep in our hearts we know that faith is it; because we are sinful, we are in no way capable of earning our way to heaven with our good deeds. Yet, we also live in a world of rewards and punishments. We know, for instance, that if we come to class or show up to our jobs on time, that we will be rewarded with a better grade or a promotion. We know that if we work hard on the playing field, we will get more playing time in the game. We also know that if we slack off, we will get demoted, fired, or expelled. It is only natural to apply this reasoning to matters of faith. So, if we are good here on earth, we have a better chance of going to heaven. If we are not so good, we will most certainly go to hell.
Paul, in his letters in the New Testament, says just the opposite. The first thing he reminds us of is that everyone is sinful (Romans 3:23). We are simply not capable, by ourselves, of having what it takes to climb the ladder of success right into heaven. We can't get to heaven by going to church every Sunday, or helping the poor, or paying our taxes, or even by being a martyr. Paul says that these things are good, and that the law certainly has its purpose, but it is not the ticket to heaven. Faith is. Faith alone will save us (Romans 3:28).
Of course, this statement raises many questions, but let's focus on only one of them: What does faith entail? In other words, what does faith look like in every day life? Does getting to heaven involve something more than simply saying that you believe that Jesus is the Savior? If so, what is it? In addition, if we say that faith is all it takes to get to heaven, then why do we spend so much time worrying about whether or not other people are "doing" the right things?
Now, I have no doubts that my sister is spending eternity in the presence of God. But her death brought up the burning question that often comes up at the time of death: Will they go to heaven? And, even for those of us brought up on a "faith only" criteria for getting into heaven, the answer to that question becomes complicated. Somewhere deep in our hearts we know that faith is it; because we are sinful, we are in no way capable of earning our way to heaven with our good deeds. Yet, we also live in a world of rewards and punishments. We know, for instance, that if we come to class or show up to our jobs on time, that we will be rewarded with a better grade or a promotion. We know that if we work hard on the playing field, we will get more playing time in the game. We also know that if we slack off, we will get demoted, fired, or expelled. It is only natural to apply this reasoning to matters of faith. So, if we are good here on earth, we have a better chance of going to heaven. If we are not so good, we will most certainly go to hell.
Paul, in his letters in the New Testament, says just the opposite. The first thing he reminds us of is that everyone is sinful (Romans 3:23). We are simply not capable, by ourselves, of having what it takes to climb the ladder of success right into heaven. We can't get to heaven by going to church every Sunday, or helping the poor, or paying our taxes, or even by being a martyr. Paul says that these things are good, and that the law certainly has its purpose, but it is not the ticket to heaven. Faith is. Faith alone will save us (Romans 3:28).
Of course, this statement raises many questions, but let's focus on only one of them: What does faith entail? In other words, what does faith look like in every day life? Does getting to heaven involve something more than simply saying that you believe that Jesus is the Savior? If so, what is it? In addition, if we say that faith is all it takes to get to heaven, then why do we spend so much time worrying about whether or not other people are "doing" the right things?
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