The bible says many things which are simple to understand. Often the greatest difficulty understanding the bible is that we wish to fit scripture into our theological system rather than create a theological system around scripture.
The issue which makes theology difficult is that scripture is highly rational and also highly paradoxical. Throughout the bible there is a large amount of rational argumentation appealing to reason. There are also many paradoxes and tensions in scripture.
You see at many times especially in the teaching of Jesus ideas held in tension. There is no contradiction in scripture, but the nature of reality is that many truths are a balance between two extremes which are errors.
We often get scripture wrong because we expend massive effort to simplify it's teaching into a rational system with no tension or paradox. Scripture actually is far easier to understand on its own terms: a system of highly rational belief which also has many tensions and paradoxes within.
It is always the call to wisdom which appears in scripture. You see there is a great nuance to life. You cannot go out and live ethically based on a set of rules without thought and prayer and discernment.
We are often such poor readers of scripture because we come to scripture to learn. We have a certain way we learn. And we fit scripture into our patterns of learning.
Rather we need to first come to scripture to learn how to learn. We must base our efforts to learn around the way in which the bible wishes to instruct us. The bible often does not like easy answers to certain questions, so we must too not like easy answers to questions.
What the bible finds important we must find important. Where the bible offers liberty we must offer liberty. You see the bible is right even when we think it is wrong. We must seek understanding by faith.
Showing posts with label paradox. Show all posts
Showing posts with label paradox. Show all posts
Monday, May 26, 2014
Wednesday, April 23, 2014
Christianity and Paradox
What is paradox? Paradox is something which is above human understanding. It is not in conflict with human understand but above it.
It stands in contrast to contradiction which is clearly wrong. Paradox stands in a realm where we cannot grasp the truth of paradox but we cannot see that paradox is wrong.
The Christian faith often stands in this realm. Ideas are often above our understanding and we meet realities which are difficult to comprehend.
You see when man meets God he finds a person and being who is different not just in quantity but also quality from himself. God is above the human ability to understand.
In the person of God we meet many paradoxes. He is one God in three persons. He sets the weak in a higher place than the strong. To be first one must be the servant of all.
I could go on but you see God upsets the natural order of things at all times. He always confronts the order of life in this world.
You see any church that fits comfortably into this world had not really grasped the bible. That does not mean any church which is in opposition to the world grasps the bible necessarily as the opposition may not be biblical.
But always the Christian God stands to critique the ways of man. A church with no critique of mankind has not understood the bible.
God's ways our not ours and he has a message to shake up the way man does things. The bible has many messages which shake up the way men prefer to do things.
Not all messages are equally relevant to each day and age, but some message more relevant to certain times and places. But all messages are relevant to mankind.
The modern man is not as unique and advanced as he likes to think. That he thinks he is unique and advanced simply shows he has no perspective on himself and history and he is in need of a lesson from God.
It stands in contrast to contradiction which is clearly wrong. Paradox stands in a realm where we cannot grasp the truth of paradox but we cannot see that paradox is wrong.
The Christian faith often stands in this realm. Ideas are often above our understanding and we meet realities which are difficult to comprehend.
You see when man meets God he finds a person and being who is different not just in quantity but also quality from himself. God is above the human ability to understand.
In the person of God we meet many paradoxes. He is one God in three persons. He sets the weak in a higher place than the strong. To be first one must be the servant of all.
I could go on but you see God upsets the natural order of things at all times. He always confronts the order of life in this world.
You see any church that fits comfortably into this world had not really grasped the bible. That does not mean any church which is in opposition to the world grasps the bible necessarily as the opposition may not be biblical.
But always the Christian God stands to critique the ways of man. A church with no critique of mankind has not understood the bible.
God's ways our not ours and he has a message to shake up the way man does things. The bible has many messages which shake up the way men prefer to do things.
Not all messages are equally relevant to each day and age, but some message more relevant to certain times and places. But all messages are relevant to mankind.
The modern man is not as unique and advanced as he likes to think. That he thinks he is unique and advanced simply shows he has no perspective on himself and history and he is in need of a lesson from God.
Sunday, November 24, 2013
Humility before God
Often when we sit before the teaching of God we need to have humility. Often we see texts which are difficult to reconcile. Is God angry and sin and grieving about the sinners in the same instance. Yes.
Is God sovereign and man free and responsible. Yes.
You see we always make the teaching of scripture more complicated that it is. God simply tells us the way the world is.
However you see we in our smallness wish to figure out how it all fits together. We try to loop the teaching of scripture into a coherent form that we can understand.
This is the error of course is that we are small and we are weak and limited and cannot understand the breath and depth of the knowledge of God.
Often we just need to be humble before scripture and trust that it makes sense even though we do not understand. You see there is a certain sort of trust in paradox that is not irrational.
Many theologians have spoken of faith seeking understanding. This is the way we should live we should have faith and say yes to all elements of scripture.
You see scripture is always right even when it seems wrong. We are just a few steps down our eternal journey of learning about God and it is not surprising that our minds cannot grasp the infinite God.
What is surprising is our great confidence that we can know God and grasp his mind. Or even more surprising that some in the church thing that they know better than God.
You see it is our sin and pride which makes us want to put the Christian religion into a box. It is all too complicated and we do not like that understanding is easy and we have not gotten and will not in this life get past faith.
Is God sovereign and man free and responsible. Yes.
You see we always make the teaching of scripture more complicated that it is. God simply tells us the way the world is.
However you see we in our smallness wish to figure out how it all fits together. We try to loop the teaching of scripture into a coherent form that we can understand.
This is the error of course is that we are small and we are weak and limited and cannot understand the breath and depth of the knowledge of God.
Often we just need to be humble before scripture and trust that it makes sense even though we do not understand. You see there is a certain sort of trust in paradox that is not irrational.
Many theologians have spoken of faith seeking understanding. This is the way we should live we should have faith and say yes to all elements of scripture.
You see scripture is always right even when it seems wrong. We are just a few steps down our eternal journey of learning about God and it is not surprising that our minds cannot grasp the infinite God.
What is surprising is our great confidence that we can know God and grasp his mind. Or even more surprising that some in the church thing that they know better than God.
You see it is our sin and pride which makes us want to put the Christian religion into a box. It is all too complicated and we do not like that understanding is easy and we have not gotten and will not in this life get past faith.
Saturday, October 19, 2013
Moving past Systematic Theology
Systematic Theology attempts to unify scripture into a system of beliefs. A major issue is that at the core of Christianity is paradox.
Paradox is not contradiction. Paradox is difficult to understand and has a tension within but it can be seen to be potentially true.
The heart of the problem with systematic theology is the nature of God one of the studies of theology eclipses the grasp of the human mind to grasp.
Certain well known paradoxes such as the trinity and nature of Jesus as fully God and fully man are handled well in systematic theology.
Usually systematic theology tends to miss many central paradoxes of Christianity such as the freedom of man and sovereignty of God.
Typically this is a major divide in systematic and shifts theologians into a category. It is as if it could not be another paradox of scripture that man is free and God is sovereign.
The reality is that often Christianity exists in the both/and state and not the either/or. We pit the bible law against human happiness when the law is for human happiness.
Always the bible says something which is difficult to understand. Here a set of commandments and these commandments are in place to protect your happiness.
The nature of man always buckles against God. It cannot be as it is said.
The law clearly is a kill joy, but alas in the stream of broken marriages and heartbreak the comes from lawlessness if we are truthful we will find much of the bibles teaching in fact aims to protect happiness.
I suppose the bible is always terribly offensive like this. It tells us we do not know how to conduct our lives and suggests that it knows better than we do.
It is offensive to man that he does not know how to live in this world and how to be happy. I suppose we could dismiss the bible outright if it does not in fact appear that mankind has no sense of how to live well or to exist happily.
Men are often happy and yet throw it all way frequently at the drop of a hat. It is often that men meet their great demise in the midst of going against the suggested order for human happiness.
The bible always claims that it is on man’s side. God has seen the state of man and wishes to make peace with him and invite him into everlasting happiness.
God sits and looks and man and cries and wishes to reach out his hand to help and invite man into everlasting happiness.
Again it is always so offensive to ourselves. God meets us and suggest that we are not happy or not as happy as we should be and we are lost and need something.
Man always feels he is not in need and could not be in need. This is the heart of the problem. The first sin of man.
We do not need God and we suspect he is withholding something from us which is good. But always it is our search from good apart from God which is the issue. It is happiness found in God which is what is good.
Paradox is not contradiction. Paradox is difficult to understand and has a tension within but it can be seen to be potentially true.
The heart of the problem with systematic theology is the nature of God one of the studies of theology eclipses the grasp of the human mind to grasp.
Certain well known paradoxes such as the trinity and nature of Jesus as fully God and fully man are handled well in systematic theology.
Usually systematic theology tends to miss many central paradoxes of Christianity such as the freedom of man and sovereignty of God.
Typically this is a major divide in systematic and shifts theologians into a category. It is as if it could not be another paradox of scripture that man is free and God is sovereign.
The reality is that often Christianity exists in the both/and state and not the either/or. We pit the bible law against human happiness when the law is for human happiness.
Always the bible says something which is difficult to understand. Here a set of commandments and these commandments are in place to protect your happiness.
The nature of man always buckles against God. It cannot be as it is said.
The law clearly is a kill joy, but alas in the stream of broken marriages and heartbreak the comes from lawlessness if we are truthful we will find much of the bibles teaching in fact aims to protect happiness.
I suppose the bible is always terribly offensive like this. It tells us we do not know how to conduct our lives and suggests that it knows better than we do.
It is offensive to man that he does not know how to live in this world and how to be happy. I suppose we could dismiss the bible outright if it does not in fact appear that mankind has no sense of how to live well or to exist happily.
Men are often happy and yet throw it all way frequently at the drop of a hat. It is often that men meet their great demise in the midst of going against the suggested order for human happiness.
The bible always claims that it is on man’s side. God has seen the state of man and wishes to make peace with him and invite him into everlasting happiness.
God sits and looks and man and cries and wishes to reach out his hand to help and invite man into everlasting happiness.
Again it is always so offensive to ourselves. God meets us and suggest that we are not happy or not as happy as we should be and we are lost and need something.
Man always feels he is not in need and could not be in need. This is the heart of the problem. The first sin of man.
We do not need God and we suspect he is withholding something from us which is good. But always it is our search from good apart from God which is the issue. It is happiness found in God which is what is good.
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