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So I’m reading “The Divine Conspiracy” by Dallas Willard right now. All I can say is wow, this guy is deep. I’m seriously only on page 50 and he’s already made some pretty profound (well backed) statements. I’ll post up my complete thoughts on the book when I’m done (at the rate I’m reading it will probably be a few days— I want to let this one sink in a bit). But for now let me just emphasize: this guy knows his stuff.
Anyways, onto my questions, which by the way don’t have much to do with what I’m reading, but they’ve been bothering me for a while. Becky (the wife) and I had a conversation about this a few days ago and it’s still bugging me (and probably will bug me for a while).
1. Why is it that when Jesus talks about hell, he says essentially those going to hell are the ones who aren’t “doing” worthwhile things.
We’ve been taught a faith based on grace alone, yet the words of Jesus seemingly contradict it every time He talks about hell (not necessarily the kingdom of heaven, which is accessible to all and around us as He claims)
2. Why do I never hear Jesus taught in church, why do I always hear Paul?
Yes, I know a common subject in emergent/ing circles is this idea of Paulianty, but I have yet to hear an opinion from within the church on the topic. Sometimes I just want to scream some one please take a look at what your preaching.
3. We uphold the various councils that put together what we now know as the bible, I’m fine with that, but heres what I want to know: Why do we use 2 Tim 3:16 (All Scripture is God breathed) and Revelation 22:18-19 (If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.) to encompass the whole bible as it’s known today.
Paul probably wasn’t talking about his own letters when he said “All scripture is God breathed” in fact, he probably wasn’t talking about any of the new testament at all. And as it appears, John was only talking about his own writings in Revelation when he made his statement. Yet here we are 1900 years later saying that these two statements apply to the whole of the Bible as it is known today. Why?
4. Sometimes I wonder why we accept the fact that God hasn’t “spoken” in written form in 1900 years.
Like God’s words only come from the time period before Jesus and immediately after His death? Thats a bit silly and seemingly attempts to bind God. I’m sure we all feel like God speaks today (unless you’re a deist… then I can’t really understand what you think), yet how he speaks shouldn’t be held and cherished in the same way. I’m not advocating for a study of recent Christian texts in the same way as we study the Bible, but I am advocating a questioning of why we believe what we believe.
5. Why do people never question their beliefs?
I’ve found that recently I have been immensely less frustrated with those who don’t believe what I believe, and immensely more frustrated with those who believe what they believe only because it is what was taught to them. Especially when what they believe brings no passion to their lives.
6. What does God think about us?
Does he laugh at our silly idealizations of Him? Does He feel sorry for us as we truly don’t seem to be able to grasp him at all? Does He wish to reveal more of Himself to us but we stop Him because we don’t really want to know?
7. Why do we (I guess not all of us, but some people) feel that God calls us to standards which he doesn’t hold Himself to?
We’re called to forgive, yet we supposedly have a God who’s incapable of forgiving (yet He’s capable of all things? <– reconcile that). We’re called to continue pressing and loving those who reject us, yet God can’t get over rejection of Him? Why does this last question always come to the point of “God’s ways aren’t our ways.” Give me something better than that. If we’re created in the image of God, then our ways should conform to His ways. You’d figure the ways He gives us would be His ways. If that’s true then His way is to always forgive (seven times seventy anyone?), and quite a few people have got some things wrong over the past few years.