The Bungee Cord   11-16-20

Hello,

 

I suspect that for many, the thing that causes them the most trouble with the Christian faith is this, “If there is an all-loving God, why are all these terrible things happening?” Maybe you find yourself wresting with this question, too.

 

Actually, it is a question that people, believers and nonbelievers, have asked all through Biblical history. The Psalms, which were composed centuries before Jesus birth, are full of this question.  Even the disciples asked it of Jesus when they saw a man who was blind from birth.  

 

Books and books have been written trying to answer this question, and personally many of the answers that book writers give fall short of helpfulness, for me, when I wrestle with this question.  Some authors say that the terrible things that happen are God’s punishment, but that answer leaves a bigger question when terrible things happen to me, “Why is God picking on me?”  Others say that God is trying to teach us something, but that answer leaves me with a God who isn’t a very good teacher, because some things we don’t seem to learn. Others say that God has a purpose for everything, but if that’s the case I am not sure that I want to trust in a God who intends for a child to get killed by a crazily driven car.  Still others say that in order to be all loving, God has chosen not to be all powerful.  That makes me wonder, is God powerful enough for me to trust in him?  None of these answers work for me.

 

The reality of evil is so real, that sometimes evil can cast a thick veil over the reality of God.

 

This year, 2020 has been an evil filled year.  Covid 19. Racial strife.  Polarizing politics.  Climate turmoil.  International saber rattling.  Ugh!  It has been so bad that many cynically joke that we should erase it from the calendar, or hit a restart button.  And many ask, “Where has God been in all this mess?”

 

The reason that I write about this is that this Sunday is the last Sunday in the Christian calendar, and it is named “Christ the King” Sunday.  On this day we celebrate with thankfulness that Christ has been with us through the past year, and that we can step into the next year with the promise that Christ will be with us in the coming year, too.  Given what we have been through this year, should we cancel “Christ the King” Sunday?

 

To the evil that we are confronting and the darkness that it has brought to our lives, I find a verse from John 1 instructive. “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”  To me, this is the answer to the question, “If there is an all loving God, why do all these terrible things happen?”  And the answer that this verse gives is that God is equally opposed to the evil, if not more so, as you and I.  God is not one who waits at the end of the tunnel with a light and encourages us to make our way there.  When I don’t have the strength to move an inch, such a God is not of any help to me at all!  But God has shown us by the fact that he jumped feet first into our world in Jesus that he is not afraid to embattle any evil, even death.  Is there darkness in this world?  Yes, and God is charging into that darkness, and he won’t give up the fight until he has won.  And God will!

 

For Christians on Christ the King Sunday, the promise of God’s loving invanquishable power in our lives does not come from a soft and fluffy heavenly throne.  The Bible makes it clear that God’s throne is on a torturous cross, where the darkness has never been as dark, and the power of evil never seemed so strong.  And it was there that God jumped in feet first, brought evil to its knees, and then walked all over evil as if it was a bunch of dying cockroaches.  You see, the light shined in the darkness and the darkness did not overcome it!

 

So, this year, as every year, we will gather around the cross of Jesus Christ and celebrate his presence in the year that has past, and his presence in the year to come.  “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”

 

Have a great week.

God’s grace and peace, (ggap)

Pastor Jerry Nuernberger