While I was watching the movie "Avatar" recently, I couldn't help thinking that Jesus was the ultimate avatar.
An avatar is a representation of a real person in an environment or world different from, but parallel to, their own. The avatar takes on the likeness of those in the parallel world, living with them and as they do, yet remains connected to and controlled by their real self. That real self remains invisible to the people of the other world and connects with them solely through the avatar.
In "Avatar", Jake Sully, though an invalid in his real world, is able to live a full and heroic physical life through his avatar in the world of Pandora. His avatar was able to do anything that Jake required of it by being controlled through Jake's thoughts and ambitious plans.
(We also have avatars in the computer world which are small images used in internet forums and larger ones used in video games to represent and identify their members and players.)
Jesus was God's avatar on earth, the parallel world he created. The only way God could save humankind was to come to earth as a human, live as a perfect human, pay the death penalty for humankind's sin as a human, and rise from the dead - the ultimate avatar in the world of humans.
It was clear, not only from what he said, but from what he did and how he did it, that Jesus was indeed God in avatar (human) form.
Paul reveals that "The Son is the image of the invisible God" (Colossians 1 : 15) and " in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form." (Colossians 2 : 9).
John, in introducing his gospel, said, "No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known." (John 1 : 18).
In a similar way, the author of Hebrews in his introduction says, "The Son is the radiance of God's glory, and the exact representation of his being ... " (Hebrews 1 : 3)
All of these echoed Jesus' own admissions that he and the Father were one (John 10 : 30) and that those who had seen him had seen the Father as well (John 14 : 9).
And so God lived with us in our world, doing for us what we couldn't do for ourselves, and thus created the gateway for all of his creation to eventually live in fellowship with him forever.
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Sunday, May 16, 2010
The Roman Road
When I was much younger I learned "The Roman Road" as a tool for personal evangelism.
A small selection of verses from Romans was used to explain the gospel story to those who would listen. I had a small, black New Testament with these verses highlighted and my listener and I would read through them, discussing what they meant, in the hope that my listener "would be saved".
There were several stopping-places along the road sign-posted by the following verses .....
Romans 3 : 23
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. [TNIV]
We would discuss the tragic state of the human race and our personal predicament before God.
I would then invite my listener to admit they were a sinner.
Romans 6 : 23
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. [TNIV]
This verse opened discussion on the nature of death that was the consequence of our being sinners, and the sort of life God was providing as a free gift through Jesus.
I would help my listener see that they deserved death; but there was a way out of this by reaching out and accepting God's free gift of salvation, forgiveness, new life.
Romans 5 : 8
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. [TNIV]
We would then discuss God's unconditional love for all of his creation and his plan to save and forgive us. Jesus' obedience to the Father and the significance of his death on the cross were discussed to demonstrate how these provided the solution to the world tragedy and our own predicament.
I would invite my listener to agree that it is God's love, demonstrated in Jesus on the cross, that saves us, and that nothing else does or can.
Romans 10 : 13
Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. [TNIV]
Having previously agreed with me that they were included in the sinners group, I now assured them that they are equally in the group that is qualified to call out to the Lord and be saved.
Romans 10 : 9, 10
If you declare with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and be saved. [TNIV]
At this point I would usually check on my listener's understanding of all we had discussed and invite them to repent of their sin, confess Jesus as Lord and invite Jesus into their heart.... and so be saved and empowered to live this new life.
The conversation was usually a successful one. Listeners would be convinced of the Biblical facts and suitably disturbed by the consequences of continuing to live without forgiveness, and so make "a decision for Christ".
So what's happened to me and the Roman Road since those days? Lots really.
Since those days of using the Roman Road to "get people saved" in this way, I have enriched my understanding of some of these verses, discovered that Romans goes way beyond chapter 10, and also found other stopping places along the "old" part of the road that I hadn't noticed before.
For example, I had completely missed Romans 5 : 19.
For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous. [TNIV]
Just about every mainstream Christian or church I know believes the first part of this verse and rejects the second. Amazingly they believe that Adam, the first "one man", made us all sinners; yet do not believe that Jesus, the second "one man", will make us all righteous. In other words, the mainstream believes that Adam was much more successful in producing the curse than Jesus was in providing the cure - that what Adam did affects all humankind, but what Jesus did affects only a small minority.
Apart from the fact that this position totally contradicts what the Bible says here, I can't believe that God, through Jesus Christ will be less effective than what Adam, his first human creation, was. The creature more effective and influential than the Creator seems untenable. The disobedient one more effective than the obedient One doesn't fit God's way of doing things.
( By the way, Paul also expresses the same thought when writing to the Corinthians. He says in 1 Corinthians 15:22, For just as through union with Adam all die, so in the same way, through union with Christ all will be made alive. [BT] Again to suggest that Christ's action does not affect the same "all" that were affected by Adam's action is stripping this verse from our Bibles also. )
If we are to believe Romans 5:19, as well as the other verses on the "old" road, we must also come to the conclusion that if everyone is to be made righteous, then everyone is going to have to repent, call out to the Lord and so be saved. And since we see that this doesn't happen to everyone while they are alive on this planet, we can only conclude that God will still be seeking and finding his lost sheep beyond life here, until the very last of them is found.
By the way, right next door to Romans 3 : 23 is another statement very similar to Romans 5 : 19 and 1 Cor 15 : 22. In fact verse 24 is the conclusion of the same sentence that verse 23 is a part of. Let's read the whole sentence.
Romans 3: 22b - 24
There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Jesus Christ. [TNIV]
The 'all' who sinned are the same 'all' who are freely justified. Isn't it amazing how we have become so adept at taking only a small part of a sentence to make our point, yet neglect other parts of the same sentence that don't support the point we wish to make.
Now what lies beyond our "old" Roman Road - beyond chapter 10?
Romans 11 : 32
For God has consigned everyone to disobedience in order to have mercy on them all. [BT]
God has arranged for all of us to be disobedient just so he can show his mercy and kindness and grace to every single person.
So, I have now discovered the road is much longer than I had previously thought and that there are other interesting stopping places along the roadside that I had not seen before.
These haven't changed my message of hope for a lost sinner so much, but rather enhanced it dramatically. I still hope to bring the message of salvation to those who will stop to listen to me now, but I also have the wider hope that everyone will come to this knowledge and position in Christ eventually.
And Paul must have had that hope too. He not only mentioned it in his letter to the Romans but also in his letter to the Corinthians, the Colossians and the Philippians. He must have been pretty sure of it to keep talking about it.
Overall, the Romans Road is a road of tremendous hope and one which everyone one of God's children will travel at some time in some way. This was, and still is, God's incredible plan and purpose that he conceived before the ages began and implemented through the death and resurrection of his son, Jesus Christ.
Paul celebrates it this way:
Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!
“Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?”
“Who has ever given to God, that God should repay them?”
For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.
Romans 11 : 33 - 36 [TNIV]
A small selection of verses from Romans was used to explain the gospel story to those who would listen. I had a small, black New Testament with these verses highlighted and my listener and I would read through them, discussing what they meant, in the hope that my listener "would be saved".
There were several stopping-places along the road sign-posted by the following verses .....
Romans 3 : 23
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. [TNIV]
We would discuss the tragic state of the human race and our personal predicament before God.
I would then invite my listener to admit they were a sinner.
Romans 6 : 23
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. [TNIV]
This verse opened discussion on the nature of death that was the consequence of our being sinners, and the sort of life God was providing as a free gift through Jesus.
I would help my listener see that they deserved death; but there was a way out of this by reaching out and accepting God's free gift of salvation, forgiveness, new life.
Romans 5 : 8
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. [TNIV]
We would then discuss God's unconditional love for all of his creation and his plan to save and forgive us. Jesus' obedience to the Father and the significance of his death on the cross were discussed to demonstrate how these provided the solution to the world tragedy and our own predicament.
I would invite my listener to agree that it is God's love, demonstrated in Jesus on the cross, that saves us, and that nothing else does or can.
Romans 10 : 13
Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. [TNIV]
Having previously agreed with me that they were included in the sinners group, I now assured them that they are equally in the group that is qualified to call out to the Lord and be saved.
Romans 10 : 9, 10
If you declare with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and be saved. [TNIV]
At this point I would usually check on my listener's understanding of all we had discussed and invite them to repent of their sin, confess Jesus as Lord and invite Jesus into their heart.... and so be saved and empowered to live this new life.
The conversation was usually a successful one. Listeners would be convinced of the Biblical facts and suitably disturbed by the consequences of continuing to live without forgiveness, and so make "a decision for Christ".
So what's happened to me and the Roman Road since those days? Lots really.
Since those days of using the Roman Road to "get people saved" in this way, I have enriched my understanding of some of these verses, discovered that Romans goes way beyond chapter 10, and also found other stopping places along the "old" part of the road that I hadn't noticed before.
For example, I had completely missed Romans 5 : 19.
For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous. [TNIV]
Just about every mainstream Christian or church I know believes the first part of this verse and rejects the second. Amazingly they believe that Adam, the first "one man", made us all sinners; yet do not believe that Jesus, the second "one man", will make us all righteous. In other words, the mainstream believes that Adam was much more successful in producing the curse than Jesus was in providing the cure - that what Adam did affects all humankind, but what Jesus did affects only a small minority.
Apart from the fact that this position totally contradicts what the Bible says here, I can't believe that God, through Jesus Christ will be less effective than what Adam, his first human creation, was. The creature more effective and influential than the Creator seems untenable. The disobedient one more effective than the obedient One doesn't fit God's way of doing things.
( By the way, Paul also expresses the same thought when writing to the Corinthians. He says in 1 Corinthians 15:22, For just as through union with Adam all die, so in the same way, through union with Christ all will be made alive. [BT] Again to suggest that Christ's action does not affect the same "all" that were affected by Adam's action is stripping this verse from our Bibles also. )
If we are to believe Romans 5:19, as well as the other verses on the "old" road, we must also come to the conclusion that if everyone is to be made righteous, then everyone is going to have to repent, call out to the Lord and so be saved. And since we see that this doesn't happen to everyone while they are alive on this planet, we can only conclude that God will still be seeking and finding his lost sheep beyond life here, until the very last of them is found.
By the way, right next door to Romans 3 : 23 is another statement very similar to Romans 5 : 19 and 1 Cor 15 : 22. In fact verse 24 is the conclusion of the same sentence that verse 23 is a part of. Let's read the whole sentence.
Romans 3: 22b - 24
There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Jesus Christ. [TNIV]
The 'all' who sinned are the same 'all' who are freely justified. Isn't it amazing how we have become so adept at taking only a small part of a sentence to make our point, yet neglect other parts of the same sentence that don't support the point we wish to make.
Now what lies beyond our "old" Roman Road - beyond chapter 10?
Romans 11 : 32
For God has consigned everyone to disobedience in order to have mercy on them all. [BT]
God has arranged for all of us to be disobedient just so he can show his mercy and kindness and grace to every single person.
So, I have now discovered the road is much longer than I had previously thought and that there are other interesting stopping places along the roadside that I had not seen before.
These haven't changed my message of hope for a lost sinner so much, but rather enhanced it dramatically. I still hope to bring the message of salvation to those who will stop to listen to me now, but I also have the wider hope that everyone will come to this knowledge and position in Christ eventually.
And Paul must have had that hope too. He not only mentioned it in his letter to the Romans but also in his letter to the Corinthians, the Colossians and the Philippians. He must have been pretty sure of it to keep talking about it.
Overall, the Romans Road is a road of tremendous hope and one which everyone one of God's children will travel at some time in some way. This was, and still is, God's incredible plan and purpose that he conceived before the ages began and implemented through the death and resurrection of his son, Jesus Christ.
Paul celebrates it this way:
Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!
“Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?”
“Who has ever given to God, that God should repay them?”
For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.
Romans 11 : 33 - 36 [TNIV]
Monday, April 26, 2010
Age versus Eternity
In our word studies, we have shown that "olam" (or "oulm") in Hebrew means hidden or distant, without necessarily implying endless, perpetual, forever or eternity.
Similarly, "aionios" in Greek has the meaning of age-lasting or age-during, or pertaining to the age or belonging to the age, or some similar age-related connotation, rather than eternal or everlasting.
Regardless of the outcome of these word studies, the Bible itself gives us some good examples of how "forever" or "eternal" are poor and misleading translations of olam in Hebrew and aionios in Greek.
There are many cases where olam or aionios is translated forever in many English Bibles, but the Bible record shows that the situation being described did not last forever, but was only age-lasting.
Please have a look at these examples.
a. Sodom's fiery judgment is called "eternal" in Jude 7, but God promises to restore the fortunes of Sodom in Ezekiel 16:53-55, so the judgment was only to be age-lasting.
b. Ammon will be a "wasteland forever" or a "perpetual desolation" in Zeph 2:9, (also described in Jeremiah 25: 27 as falling to rise no more), but God promises to restore the fortunes of Ammon in Jeremiah 49:6, so the wasteland was only to be age-lasting.
c. The Aaronic priesthood was to be "everlasting" in Exodus 40:15, but was superseded by the Melchizedek priesthood in Hebrews 7: 14-18, so the Aaronic priesthood was only to be age-lasting.
d. God was to dwell in Solomon's temple forever in 1 Kings 8:13, but clearly this was only for an age, since it was destroyed by the Babylonians.
e. The law of Moses was to be an everlasting covenant (Leviticus 24:8) but we know it was abolished and a new covenant introduced.
f. Jonah was imprisoned under the sea forever (Jonah 2:6), but he was only there for 3 days and 3 nights (Jonah 1:17), a very short age.
It seems to me that whatever any expert might say about the meaning of these words, their use in the Bible can only mean a period of time, the length of which is determined by the context of the discussion.
As an aside .....
Some of the more recent English translations, like NIV and TNIV, seem to be addressing these more accurately ..... when it suits them.
In Exodus 21:6, a slave is to serve his master "forever" in older translations, but more sensibly translated as "for life" in the newer ones.
Indeed, just looking at Exodus alone and its translation of olam or oulm reveals some interesting insights. This Hebrew word is used 17 times in Exodus*. In the older translations it is always translated as forever or perpetual or everlasting. But in 10 of these ^, the NIV and TNIV change the translation to "lasting" or "for life" (in the case of the slave) or "for generations".
But these corrections only seem to occur when the context makes forever or everlasting ridiculous or when the theology of the translators is not threatened.
It's amazing to me how often our English translations are influenced by the doctrinal position of the translators.
* Ex 3:15, 12:14, 12:17, 12:24, 14:13, 15:18, 19:9, 21:6, 27:21, 28:43, 29:9, 29:28, 30:21, 31:16, 31:17, 32:13, 40:15.
^ Ex 12:14, 12:17, 12:24, 21:6, 27:21, 28:43, 29:9, 30:21, 31:16, 40:15.
Another aside .....
This is not relevant to our discussion on the 'age versus eternal' translation issues, but is intriguing nevertheless.
a. In Jeremiah 30:12, Israel's affliction is said to be incurable, yet the Lord promises to restore her health and heal her wounds 5 verses later; and Samaria's sin is incurable in Micah 1:9 but the Lord will restore her fortunes in Ezekiel 16:53.
b. Moab is said to be destroyed in Jeremiah 48:42 yet will be restored in the days to come (48:47).
How do we explain these? God is forever gracious and redemptive in his purposes is the best I can do.
Actually this is a characteristic of a lover. God is love by nature and therefore is a lover.
He and we are in a love relationship. We are friends bound by love.
We discuss things together. We listen to each other and even argue back. God also feels pain - his and ours, as lovers do. When jilted, God suffers like any wounded lover. He makes threats and then backs down from them......
Gee, that might explain why God destroys and restores in the examples above.
What do you think?
Similarly, "aionios" in Greek has the meaning of age-lasting or age-during, or pertaining to the age or belonging to the age, or some similar age-related connotation, rather than eternal or everlasting.
Regardless of the outcome of these word studies, the Bible itself gives us some good examples of how "forever" or "eternal" are poor and misleading translations of olam in Hebrew and aionios in Greek.
There are many cases where olam or aionios is translated forever in many English Bibles, but the Bible record shows that the situation being described did not last forever, but was only age-lasting.
Please have a look at these examples.
a. Sodom's fiery judgment is called "eternal" in Jude 7, but God promises to restore the fortunes of Sodom in Ezekiel 16:53-55, so the judgment was only to be age-lasting.
b. Ammon will be a "wasteland forever" or a "perpetual desolation" in Zeph 2:9, (also described in Jeremiah 25: 27 as falling to rise no more), but God promises to restore the fortunes of Ammon in Jeremiah 49:6, so the wasteland was only to be age-lasting.
c. The Aaronic priesthood was to be "everlasting" in Exodus 40:15, but was superseded by the Melchizedek priesthood in Hebrews 7: 14-18, so the Aaronic priesthood was only to be age-lasting.
d. God was to dwell in Solomon's temple forever in 1 Kings 8:13, but clearly this was only for an age, since it was destroyed by the Babylonians.
e. The law of Moses was to be an everlasting covenant (Leviticus 24:8) but we know it was abolished and a new covenant introduced.
f. Jonah was imprisoned under the sea forever (Jonah 2:6), but he was only there for 3 days and 3 nights (Jonah 1:17), a very short age.
It seems to me that whatever any expert might say about the meaning of these words, their use in the Bible can only mean a period of time, the length of which is determined by the context of the discussion.
As an aside .....
Some of the more recent English translations, like NIV and TNIV, seem to be addressing these more accurately ..... when it suits them.
In Exodus 21:6, a slave is to serve his master "forever" in older translations, but more sensibly translated as "for life" in the newer ones.
Indeed, just looking at Exodus alone and its translation of olam or oulm reveals some interesting insights. This Hebrew word is used 17 times in Exodus*. In the older translations it is always translated as forever or perpetual or everlasting. But in 10 of these ^, the NIV and TNIV change the translation to "lasting" or "for life" (in the case of the slave) or "for generations".
But these corrections only seem to occur when the context makes forever or everlasting ridiculous or when the theology of the translators is not threatened.
It's amazing to me how often our English translations are influenced by the doctrinal position of the translators.
* Ex 3:15, 12:14, 12:17, 12:24, 14:13, 15:18, 19:9, 21:6, 27:21, 28:43, 29:9, 29:28, 30:21, 31:16, 31:17, 32:13, 40:15.
^ Ex 12:14, 12:17, 12:24, 21:6, 27:21, 28:43, 29:9, 30:21, 31:16, 40:15.
Another aside .....
This is not relevant to our discussion on the 'age versus eternal' translation issues, but is intriguing nevertheless.
a. In Jeremiah 30:12, Israel's affliction is said to be incurable, yet the Lord promises to restore her health and heal her wounds 5 verses later; and Samaria's sin is incurable in Micah 1:9 but the Lord will restore her fortunes in Ezekiel 16:53.
b. Moab is said to be destroyed in Jeremiah 48:42 yet will be restored in the days to come (48:47).
How do we explain these? God is forever gracious and redemptive in his purposes is the best I can do.
Actually this is a characteristic of a lover. God is love by nature and therefore is a lover.
He and we are in a love relationship. We are friends bound by love.
We discuss things together. We listen to each other and even argue back. God also feels pain - his and ours, as lovers do. When jilted, God suffers like any wounded lover. He makes threats and then backs down from them......
Gee, that might explain why God destroys and restores in the examples above.
What do you think?
Thursday, April 1, 2010
The Case of Adolf Hitler
Most people, including Christians, believe that Hitler should pay severely for his crimes against God and humanity. "God's justice demands it," they say. "Burn him in hell forever", "toss him in hell and throw away the key" and "the worst you can think of is too good for him" are commonly heard expressions.
The Christians in this group would probably change their verdict completely if they discovered that Hitler, on his death bed, repented of his sins and found faith in Christ as Saviour.
Their previous stern judgment would change to rejoicing and celebration - as long as Hitler came to this point BEFORE he died.
What about if he came to this point immediately after he died and was confronted with the same Jesus who confronted Paul on the road to Damascus?
"Too late," most of them would say.
I don't think the God of love and mercy would agree that one minute would make such a huge difference to a person's ultimate relationship with him. I don't think God's love for any of us, including Hitler, changes when our time on this planet is finished. He is still the prodigal Father waiting with open arms for his wayward children to return.
Where do we get such horrid pictures of a mean, vengeful God when the Bible describes a loving, forgiving and merciful Father who sent his Son to be the Saviour of the whole world?
Indeed, I can't help thinking that if God did torment Hitler forever, or annihilate him, then God would be acting the same way Hitler did. And that from the One whom Jesus said is our model of kindness and mercy?
It's hard to figure how Christians who have been forgiven their sins and reconciled to their heavenly Father want to limit what God will do for others whose circumstances and history are a bit different to theirs.
The Christians in this group would probably change their verdict completely if they discovered that Hitler, on his death bed, repented of his sins and found faith in Christ as Saviour.
Their previous stern judgment would change to rejoicing and celebration - as long as Hitler came to this point BEFORE he died.
What about if he came to this point immediately after he died and was confronted with the same Jesus who confronted Paul on the road to Damascus?
"Too late," most of them would say.
I don't think the God of love and mercy would agree that one minute would make such a huge difference to a person's ultimate relationship with him. I don't think God's love for any of us, including Hitler, changes when our time on this planet is finished. He is still the prodigal Father waiting with open arms for his wayward children to return.
Where do we get such horrid pictures of a mean, vengeful God when the Bible describes a loving, forgiving and merciful Father who sent his Son to be the Saviour of the whole world?
Indeed, I can't help thinking that if God did torment Hitler forever, or annihilate him, then God would be acting the same way Hitler did. And that from the One whom Jesus said is our model of kindness and mercy?
It's hard to figure how Christians who have been forgiven their sins and reconciled to their heavenly Father want to limit what God will do for others whose circumstances and history are a bit different to theirs.
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Kenneth Gentry (not Guthrie)
Hi Rog
I was wrong about the doctoral dissertation re the dating of Revelation.
The author was Kenneth Gentry, not Guthrie.
His dissertation was published as a book titled "Before Jerusalem Fell".
and read other comments on this date at .....
http://www.preteristvision.org/questions/qa_revelationdate.html
You can read some information about him at .....
https://www.kennethgentry.com/catalog/about.htm
He is a post-millenialist and writes from a reformed perspective. However his doctorate was an academic production.
Barry
I was wrong about the doctoral dissertation re the dating of Revelation.
The author was Kenneth Gentry, not Guthrie.
His dissertation was published as a book titled "Before Jerusalem Fell".
You can read his book at .....
http://freebooks.entrewave.com/freebooks/docs/html/kgbj/kgbj.htmland read other comments on this date at .....
http://www.preteristvision.org/questions/qa_revelationdate.html
You can read some information about him at .....
https://www.kennethgentry.com/catalog/about.htm
He is a post-millenialist and writes from a reformed perspective. However his doctorate was an academic production.
Barry
Universalist William Barclay
I AM A CONVINCED UNIVERSALIST
by William Barclay
Professor of Divinity and Biblical Criticism at Glasgow University and the author of many Biblical commentaries and books, including a translation of the New Testament, "Barclay New Testament," and "The Daily Study Bible Series."
I am a convinced universalist. I believe that in the
end all men will be gathered into the love of God. In the early days
Origen was the great name connected with universalism. I would believe
with Origen that universalism is no easy thing. Origen believed that
after
death there were many who would need prolonged instruction, the sternest
discipline, even the severest punishment before they were fit for the
presence of God. Origen did not eliminate hell; he believed that some
people would have to go to heaven via hell. He believed that even at the
end of the day there would be some on whom the scars remained. He did
not
believe in eternal punishment, but he did see the possibility of
eternal penalty. And so the choice is whether we accept God's
offer
and invitation willingly, or take the long and terrible way round
through
ages of purification.
Gregory of Nyssa offered three reasons why he
believed
in universalism. First, he believed in it because of the character of
God. "Being good, God entertains pity for fallen man; being wise,
he is not ignorant of the means for his recovery." Second, he
believed in it because of the nature of evil. Evil must in the
end
be moved out of existence, "so that the absolutely non-existent
should cease to be at all." Evil is essentially negative and doomed
to non-existence. Third, he believed in it because of the purpose of
punishment. The purpose of punishment is always remedial. Its aim is
"to get the good separated from the evil and to attract it into the
communion of blessedness." Punishment will hurt, but it is like the
fire which separates the alloy from the gold; it is like the surgery
which
removes the diseased thing; it is like the cautery which burns out that
which cannot be removed any other way.
But I want to set down not the arguments of
others but
the thoughts which have persuaded me personally of universal salvation.
First, there is the fact that there are things in
the
New Testament which more than justify this belief. Jesus said: "I,
when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to
myself" (John 12:32). Paul writes to the Romans: "God has
consigned all men to disobedience that he may have mercy on
all" (Rom. 11:32). He writes to the Corinthians: "As in
Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made
alive" (1 Cor. 15:22); and he looks to the final total triumph when
God will be everything to everyone (1 Cor. 15:28). In the First Letter
to
Timothy we read of God "who desires all men to be saved and to
come to the knowledge of the truth," and of Christ Jesus "who
gave himself as a ransom for all" (1 Tim 2:4-6). The New
Testament itself is not in the least afraid of the word all.
Second, one of the key passages is Matthew 25:46
where
it is said that the rejected go away to eternal punishment, and
the
righteous to eternal life. The Greek word for punishment is
kolasis, which was not originally an ethical word at all. It
originally meant the pruning of trees to make them grow better. I think
it
is true to say that in all Greek secular literature kolasis is
never used of anything but remedial punishment. The word for eternal is
aionios. It means more than everlasting, for Plato - who may have
invented the word - plainly says that a thing may be everlasting and
still
not be aionios. The simplest way to out it is that aionios
cannot be used properly of anyone but God; it is the word uniquely, as
Plato saw it, of God. Eternal punishment is then literally that kind of
remedial punishment which it befits God to give and which only God can
give.
Third, I believe that it is impossible to set
limits to
the grace of God. I believe that not only in this world, but in any
other
world there may be, the grace of God is still effective, still
operative,
still at work. I do not believe that the operation of the grace of God
is
limited to this world. I believe that the grace of God is as wide as the
universe.
Fourth, I believe implicitly in the ultimate and
complete triumph of God, the time when all things will be subject to
him,
and when God will be everything to everyone (1 Cor. 15:24-28). For me
this
has certain consequences. If one man remains outside the love of God at
the end of time, it means that that one man has defeated the love of God
-
and that is impossible. Further, there is only one way in which we can
think of the triumph of God. If God was no more than a King or Judge,
then
it would be possible to speak of his triumph, if his enemies were
agonizing in hell or were totally and completely obliterated and wiped
out. But God is not only King and Judge, God is Father - he is
indeed Father more than anything else. No father could be happy while
there were members of his family for ever in agony. No father would
count
it a triumph to obliterate the disobedient members of his family. The
only
triumph a father can know is to have all his family back home. The only
victory love can enjoy is the day when its offer of love is answered by
the return of love. The only possible final triumph is a universe loved
by
and in love with God.
[Quoted from William Barclay: A Spiritual
Autobiography, pg
65-67, William B Eerdmans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids,
1977.]
Friday, March 19, 2010
My Awakening to God's Extravagant Love and Grace
What first prompted you to consider the G.R.A.C.E. view? (God Restores All Creation Eventually)
I was confronted by 1 Timothy 4 : 10, which didn't fit my view of salvation at that point. "That is why we labour and strive, because we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Saviour of all people, and especially of those who believe."
That really shook me; it challenged everything I had been taught and everything I had taught. It also challenged me to make a fresh study of salvation and God's overall plan for his creation starting with a blank sheet of paper.
I then began to see God's plan to reconcile all people popping out from almost every page in the Scriptures. It was amazing that I had never seen such things before. Verses like
2 Corinthians 5 : 18, 19; 1 John 2 : 2; Romans 5 : 18; 1 Corinthians 15 : 22 and Romans 11 : 32 began screaming at me.
Then I began a little experiment, which included asking myself some serious questions.
I considered, on one hand, the most popular Christian vision of the future, my previous view, in which most people would be excluded from salvation for ever.
I then considered, on the other hand, the vision of eventual Christian reconciliation, in which God achieves his loving purpose of reconciling all people.
Then I asked myself ........
Which vision most strongly supports the Biblical concept of a God of love?
Which vision best describes God’s eventual victory over evil?
Which vision best honours and celebrates the victory won by the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross?
Which vision best demonstrates "grace surpassing sin" that Paul describes in Romans?
Which vision most helps us to honour and worship God?
Which vision gives the better idea of a loving Father raising and disciplining his children?
Which vision most likely inspires hope?
Which vision is more consistent with God as a model of kindness and mercy that Jesus asked us to follow?
It didn't take me too long to decide that I had been selling God short and that I had been attaching severe conditions to his unconditional love.
I was confronted by 1 Timothy 4 : 10, which didn't fit my view of salvation at that point. "That is why we labour and strive, because we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Saviour of all people, and especially of those who believe."
That really shook me; it challenged everything I had been taught and everything I had taught. It also challenged me to make a fresh study of salvation and God's overall plan for his creation starting with a blank sheet of paper.
I then began to see God's plan to reconcile all people popping out from almost every page in the Scriptures. It was amazing that I had never seen such things before. Verses like
2 Corinthians 5 : 18, 19; 1 John 2 : 2; Romans 5 : 18; 1 Corinthians 15 : 22 and Romans 11 : 32 began screaming at me.
Then I began a little experiment, which included asking myself some serious questions.
I considered, on one hand, the most popular Christian vision of the future, my previous view, in which most people would be excluded from salvation for ever.
I then considered, on the other hand, the vision of eventual Christian reconciliation, in which God achieves his loving purpose of reconciling all people.
Then I asked myself ........
Which vision most strongly supports the Biblical concept of a God of love?
Which vision best describes God’s eventual victory over evil?
Which vision best honours and celebrates the victory won by the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross?
Which vision best demonstrates "grace surpassing sin" that Paul describes in Romans?
Which vision most helps us to honour and worship God?
Which vision gives the better idea of a loving Father raising and disciplining his children?
Which vision most likely inspires hope?
Which vision is more consistent with God as a model of kindness and mercy that Jesus asked us to follow?
It didn't take me too long to decide that I had been selling God short and that I had been attaching severe conditions to his unconditional love.
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