Stephen Fry, if only you knew God!

The famed British actor/comedian Stephen Fry recently appeared in my Facebook newsfeed for an interview he gave in which he expressed not only non-belief but utter contempt for the Christian God. The interview appeared in a British program titled The Meaning of Life, which aired on 1 February 2015.

Prompted by the interviewer, Fry imagined meeting God in the afterlife to think how he would respond. Fry’s response was to level accusations against God: “How dare you. How dare you create a world in which there is so much misery that is not our fault? It’s not right. It’s utterly, utterly evil.”

I understand and sympathize with his sentiments. Having once identified strongly with atheism, similar thoughts and feelings once surged through me as well. It’s a funny feeling, to hate that which does not exist… But rather than brush off this sentiment as absurd, I want to grapple with it seriously. I know how real that sentiment is for those who hold it.

Most importantly, I know what kind of a barrier that kind of sentiment can be to a true understanding of the true and living God. It is in the interest of tearing down that barrier, or at least putting a little crack in it, that I initiate this conversation.

If I could talk directly to Stephen Fry, or those who share his sentiments (admittedly this included myself only a few short years ago), I would say something like what I am about to write below:

Accusing God

One question to start us off… If you have a negative impression of the Christian God, where did you get that impression? A university class? An online pundit? A celebrity?

I’m going to guess right now that it’s not from actually reading the Bible. When I was an atheist, I thought I had a pretty good idea of what the Bible said about God’s character. I latched onto verses in the Old Testament that used harsh language to describe God’s triumph over the Israelites’ enemies, battle accounts, or the flood of Noah, etc., and thought that meant the biblical God was immoral. WHAT I WOULD NOT HAVE ADMITTED at the time was that these were all interpretations that were spoonfed to me by atheist commentators online or in books that I had read!

I can’t speak for everyone, but that was certainly the case for me. I want you to assess yourself seriously – is your impression of the Christian God actually based on your own first-hand inquiry into the Bible? Or is it based on the interpretations of a handful of atheist commentators?

I thought I was such an independent thinker, but really, I was just towing the same old line of accusations that have been leveled against God for centuries!

Indeed, right from the very beginning God’s enemies have been misrepresenting his character in order to discredit him. Take the story of the Garden of Eden. God commanded Adam and Eve not to eat of the forbidden fruit – but the serpent had a twist on God’s words. The very first statement out of the serpent’s mouth was a misrepresentation of God’s words: “hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” 

If Satan can malign the character of God, then he can try to prevent one or two more people from going to God for their salvation. It would seem to me that’s why so many people hate God today. They have bought into the serpent’s lie that God is a tyrant. Jesus prophesied that this would happen: “But this cometh to pass, that the word might be fulfilled that is written in their law, They hated me without a cause.” (John 15:25)

But like Adam and Eve knew the actual word of God was different from what the serpent said, YOU can know that the actual character of God is different from what the new atheist posse are saying. How? By actually reading the word of God, of course…

People tried to accuse and entrap Jesus at various points during his ministry. In one such instance, “Jesus answered and said unto them, Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God.” (Matthew 22:29)

I don’t want you to err! I want you to know the scriptures, and know the power of God!

I want you to know God.

No God? KNOW God!

How on earth could I know God? How could any of us? If God is indeed the creator of the universe, outside of our mortal constraints of space and time, how could we even begin to comprehend God?

The answer is simple. God created us to be in fellowship with him – as God said, “I will walk among you, and will be your God, and ye shall be my people” (Lev. 26:12) – and so it only makes sense that he would present himself to us in such a way that we can understand him and interact with him in a personal way! It’s built into the very purpose of his creation.

In fact, God chose to represent himself to us as a flesh-and-blood human, 2000 years ago, when he walked among us as Jesus. He lived a human life. He ate food, breathed air, occupied finite space, suffered pain, and even experienced death – just like all of us. He interacted with us, spoke with us, taught us, and laid down his life for us. JESUS is our Lord and our God! (John 20:27-29) Jesus is “the image of the invisible God” (Colossians 1:15). So, if you as a human want to know God, you must understand Jesus. As the Bible says, Jesus is Emmanuel (“God with Us”, see Matthew 1:23) who became flesh to dwell among us (John 1:1, 14).

THAT IS HOW WE KNOW GOD! We can look to Jesus! How? First by reading about what he said and did, through the Gospels. Then by talking with him through prayer, inviting him into our lives, and walking with him day by day.

When we understand God in this way, we no longer have the false impression that he is a distant and capricious authority figure. We no longer see him as someone we are obligated to do rituals for. We are no longer mere servants, but friends of God! As Jesus said, “Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.” (John 15:15)

What kind of God is God?

In Stephen Fry’s interview, he revealed rather frankly what he thought about the Christian God: “…What kind of God is he? It’s perfectly apparent; he’s monstrous, utterly monstrous and deserves no respect whatsoever.”

But what does Jesus reveal about God’s character? Unconditional love. Mercy. Patience. He is the hero of the downtrodden. He came to proclaim liberty to the captives, to give sight to the blind, and to heal the broken-hearted.

Just look at the Parable of the Prodigal Son, in which God is described as a loving father anxiously awaiting the return of his wayward child and welcoming him back with open arms and unconditional forgiveness (Luke 15). Just look at the story of the woman accused of adultery, whom Jesus forgave by uttering those famous words “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone” (John 8). Just look at Jesus healing the sick, raising the dead, and eating with the social outcasts of his day.

You’ve all heard at least something about Jesus – I mean, come on, he’s JESUS! That’s the God I know!

If you don’t know how awesome Jesus is, then seriously, crack open a Bible. If you don’t have a Bible, use a free online Bible like biblegateway.org. Start with one of the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John – I recommend John).

Get to know this Jesus guy! In other words, “taste and see that the Lord is good!” (Psalm 34:8)

Conclusion

To all who ask why God allows evil in the world… Stop and consider the fact that none of us are perfect. All of us, regrettably, have allowed evil in our own lives. So when God allows evil to exist in the world, he is also allowing YOU to exist in the world. In that sense you can appreciate God’s (temporary) allowance of evil to be a very merciful and longsuffering thing…!

God is amazingly merciful and patient with us. And he is also just. Wickedness cannot go on forever. God has promised to one day set right all that humanity has made wrong. Then there shall be no more evil, no more disease, no more death. As the Bible says, “And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.” (Revelation 21:4)

God is allowing evil to exist for a time. But one day he will destroy the wicked with the brightness of his return (2 Thessalonians 2:8). When that day comes, will you be among the accusers saying “How dare you”? Or will you be among the redeemed who have tasted and seen that the Lord is good?

God bless you.

You have 1 missed call - from God - please respond ASAP!

God is trying to get in touch with you. This is a friendly reminder to answer the call!

How do I know that God is “calling” you? God tells us so in the Bible (and certainly this has been many people’s experience who have come out of something else into Christianity). Even though my telephone analogy is obviously a new way of conceptualizing the biblical “call,” the idea that God is “calling” you is found in scripture.

“Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.” (Revelation 3:20)

A call to relationship with God

God’s call is first and foremost a call to relationship! Whatever previous image you had in your mind about God, perhaps as a distant authority figure who demands money and worship and correct adherence to rituals, I want you to put that all away and see what the Bible reveals of God’s character. The true and living God who created you and me is personal and relational.

God is calling you because he wants to have a relationship with you. The Bible uses a number of relationship metaphors to help us understand our interactions with God. For example, the Bible describes God as relating to us similar to a parent who adopts a child (Romans 8:15), a close friend (John 15:15), and a loving spouse (Ephesians 5:25).   

Indeed, in a sense you could say the whole purpose of life is relationship – with God and with our fellow people. Jesus explained that the first great commandment is to love God, and the second is to love our neighbours as ourselves (Matthew 22:36-40). God’s law is simply a revealed blueprint for perfect relationships with God and with each other (think of the 10 commandments each falling into one of these two categories), and sin is simply the violation of those laws (1 John 3:4) and thus a disruption of relationships.

If you look at the Bible as a grand narrative from creation to the defeat of evil, you can see God’s desire for relationship with you! It was there in the Garden of Eden when God walked and talked with his creation – that is, before we disobeyed God and hid from his presence (Genesis 3:8). It was there throughout the chronicles of ancient Israel when God led his people out of bondage and through a number of trials. It was there when God dwelt among us as a man in the form of Jesus Christ (John 1:14). And it is there in Revelation’s depiction of the eternities when God restores his kingdom and dwells among us in the heavenly city:

“And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.” (Revelation 21:3)

A call of grace

You do not have to be perfect to enter into a relationship with God. You don’t even have to be good. In fact, God knows that you and I are rebellious, filthy, and broken. And he loves us anyway. As I’ve said before, Christianity is not about joining a holy club where everyone can dress nice, behave properly, and look down their noses at everyone else. People who think that are missing the whole point of the Christian message: “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)

Jesus said, “They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” (Mark 2:17)

The amazing news is that God is calling you regardless of what you’ve done. In fact, he called you before he even created you. As the Bible says, God “hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began…” (2 Timothy 1:9)

Don’t ever think that one day you’ll clean yourself up, turn yourself around, and maybe be good enough for God. Just stop it. You don’t ever have to be good enough for God! God is good enough for you. No self-righteousness required, only the righteousness of God (Romans 10:3-4).

A call to come out of darkness into light

You may not think of yourself as living in darkness. Saul of Tarsus certainly thought he had his life all together – he was a religious man, perfect at keeping the law, born into a decent social standing. But when he came to know Jesus he said that was all DUNG (Philippians 3:3-9). Religion! Rule-keeping! Social status! Appearing like you’ve got it all together! All of it is worthless.

It didn’t matter what he looked like to the outside world. He was still a sinner. He still had a filthy heart. After he finally heard God’s call and became a Christian, Saul of Tarsus (now going by Paul) testified that “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.” (1 Timothy 1:15) Incidentally, you can read of Paul’s amazing conversion story in the Book of Acts, chapter 9 (if you don’t have a Bible, use a free online one like biblegateway.com).

And so, regardless of your social status, religion, ability to keep rules, or how good you look to everyone around you, I want to suggest that you may be just like Saul of Tarsus, myself, and every other sinner who has fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). And like all of us before encountering the transforming light of Jesus Christ, you may be in darkness.

The good news is that God is calling you out of that darkness (1 Peter 2:9), whatever it may be. You don’t have to fix what’s broken about you (you can’t, only God can) – all you need to do is surrender it to God. Drop your old idols on the ground right now and walk away. Renounce your old sins, addictions, secret rituals, and even your church if it keeps you from a saving relationship with Jesus Christ. God has so much more planned for you.

“Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you. And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.” (2 Corinthians 6:17-18)

“And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her [spiritual Babylon], my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.” (Revelation 18:4)

“For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light… And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them. For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret. But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light.” (Ephesians 5:8-13)

Conclusion: Answer the call

God’s call for you will be individual and personal, suited to your particular situation. But the basic pattern is the same, and is emphasized throughout the Bible. Answering God’s call is not like picking up a badge and putting it on your Boy Scout sash next to all your worldly accomplishments – it’s like picking up a cross, dying to your old self, and following Jesus Christ. This is hardly a flashy commercial for a Boxing Week sale – but it is better than that. It is Jesus’ offer of life eternal.

“He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.” (John 12:25)

“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20)

“Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.” (Ephesians 5:14)

“That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 5:21)

“And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.” (John 17:3)

God bless you!

Jian's "Tastes" - A Christian Perspective

Canadians are shocked by the recent allegations that a well-loved public figure may have engaged in a secret life of habitual sexual violence. Much is yet to be determined in the courts, but Canadians are struggling right now to understand, to interpret, to address what appears to be a devastating tragedy for a number of women. What these women described in their accounts is nothing short of horrifying, that any human being could treat another with such disregard and cruelty. Indeed, it is even worse when we realize that there is an untold number of women and men who have experienced similar horrors but who are afraid to speak out.

Just a week ago Canadians came together to mourn a terrible event in Ottawa – and now I sense a need for a collective mourning and reconciliation over this issue. But how? How do we make sense of this? How can we understand these women’s experiences? How can we help them and others like them? How can we even begin to address this? 

The courts will have their own way to address this, but for many Canadians like myself, that is not enough. It’s difficult to sit back and wait because we know that this is deeper than one man’s actions. We want to do something to stop/prevent this kind of thing... It may be as simple as a collective willingness to talk about such problems, help victims to understand that they are not alone, and perpetrators to understand that they cannot get away with abuse under the label of “kink” or “tastes.” The ensuing public conversations will no doubt raise a number of considerations.

A Christian Perspective

As a Christian I find myself reaching for my own set of cultural meanings as I struggle to understand and address this issue. I don’t know if this will make sense to you if you’re a non-Christian, but I really think there’s only one real solution to this problem: we need repentance, a turning to God.

We all know this issue is bigger than one man. I will go so far as to say it is bigger than the subset of people who gain pleasure from sexual violence. The problem is a widespread acceptance of sin, which all of us are guilty of allowing in our own lives. Have we not all had anger and lust in our hearts? We may not have had the will, the opportunity, or the means to put such feelings into practice (thank goodness), but I suspect we have each harboured a dark feeling of hatred, envy, rage of some sort, even if not of the same sort as this. In that sense, sadly, the man in question may not be so different from any of us. 

Rather than turn these things over to God for cleansing, however, this man harboured them. Kept them secret. Indulged in fantasies in his heart and mind, and then when that wasn’t enough for him, sought out opportunities to enact his fantasy. Up to this point I have tried to avoid using loaded words like perversion and evil, but sometimes you just have to call it as you see it. As I see it, hurting someone for pleasure is evil. We should stop lying to ourselves by saying it's simply a matter of taste.

This is where we can all benefit from the wisdom of Jesus. He gets right to the heart of the problem. Observe what Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount:

“Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery: But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.” (Matthew 5:27-28)


And on another occasion: “those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: These are the things which defile a man…” (Matthew 15:17-20)

These statements indict us all as sinners, whether we have actually carried out evil actions or not. The problem is not simply evil actions. Evil actions can only come as a result of evil desires and attitudes. If we want to get to the heart of what’s wrong in our society, we cannot just look at the tip of the iceberg; we have to recognize that the real problem is something much more internal, and more widespread than we’re often willing to admit. I’ve written more about this in another blog post here: http://eph1-17.blogspot.ca/2013/07/for-all-have-sinned.html
 
The Solution: God’s transforming power

The point of blaming the depravity of man is not to wallow in despair, but rather to identify the appropriate solution. Here’s the good news: God can transform a sinner from the inside out. 

How do I know? We have extensive records of people (over several centuries, all the way from the first century to today) who have claimed that Jesus has changed their lives! Walk into a Christian church today and ask people if they have been born again, and you will undoubtedly find people who have left behind lives of alcoholism, depression, debilitating guilt, idolatry, and abuse, and instead have allowed God to transform them and give them a new life with direction and purpose. Some will likely be willing to share their testimonies with you. 

We also have God’s promise stated in the Bible:

“Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.” (Ezekiel 36:25-26)

“For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another. But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour.” (Titus 3:3-6)

Whatever you have been keeping secret from others, so afraid that anyone else will find out – lusts, pornography, hatred, bitterness, racism, greed – you can lay it all down at the foot of the cross. You don’t have to let it eat you up anymore. You don’t have to just accept that that’s just the way you are, not if you know it causes pain to you and others! Not if it keeps you from a saving relationship with Jesus Christ! God has provided us a way, through Jesus. 

Jesus said, “I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.” (John 12:46)

“For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.” (John 3:17)

Concluding remarks

The purpose of this blog post is NOT to shame anyone, to rally the morality police, to call for new legislation, or to intrude in anyone’s private lives. It’s simply to articulate one perspective on recent news and encourage people to think of what I see to be the overarching problem that allows horrendous incidents like these ones to occur. Do I expect everyone to convert to Christianity? No – you all have free will and many of you will reject everything I’m saying. But if I can help establish a connection between just ONE person and Jesus, I know that it will make the world of difference to that person. Imagine how things could have been different if Jian had become a converted Jesus-follower and repented years ago. Imagine how things could be different in your own life.

I’m going to end this post with a rather long biblical passage because I think it captures the seriousness of the recent situation, and sums up the call to set aside evil to follow Jesus. 

“Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us… 

But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints; …For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience. Be not ye therefore partakers with them.

For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light: (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;) Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord.
And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them. For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret.

But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light. Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.” (Ephesians 5:1-14)

Give your life to God, my friends. Don’t delay. Pray for the victims of abuse everywhere and commit to being supportive in whatever way you can should the opportunity arise. God bless you.