Been trying to think of ways to put this and I definitely want to do some more research concerning this topic but here goes ...
As I imagine it, if you were to draw a soteriological line and look down that line from say creation in the Old Testament towards the second coming you would not be able to see the future Eschaton without looking directly through Jesus. But when people stand, as New Testament believers, and look back towards the ontological end(Old Testament) of this line we see God in the Old Testament kicking ass and taking names. He is commanding armies to kill and He is using acts nature to judge sin. However, in order to apply that theology to the identity of God in Jesus I feel that most people are abandoning the same Jesus that they viewed the Eschaton through in there attempts to peer back into the Old Testament; as if God still uses weather and militaries to enact his judgement and wrath on mankind. It deeply saddens me that people hear of an earthquake, or a tsunami, and say "God is judging them for their sin!" Its hard to reconcile that within the person of Jesus, who died for all sin- past, present, and future.
I think Jesus changed things and when we move the interaction of God with His creation in the Old Testament and try to reconcile that to the present day, post-calvary, Kingdom come, etc. and say that God is STILL doing that I feel that we have abandoned Jesus in that assessment.
Jesus changed things ... don't you think?
Well I see you don't mind tackling giants right out of the chute! One component of this is our reading of the OT. Just because stuff is recorded doesn't mean that the text is teaching us to do the same. . . we're used to this in other literature. What's a better anti-war message than that delivered by, say, Apocalypse Now. Which is itself full of war, but the message is not. Just something to chew on . . .
ReplyDeleteGreg Boyd once said that we are so comfortable acclimating violence to God's character that we often miss the point of the text. He was speaking on Abraham and Isaac. Very interesting point. Ill keep that in mind, Dru.
ReplyDeleteSeth, one of the things that is different in the Old Testament is that God was preserving a people group, until such a time as he would make a way for a new covenant. We screwed it up from the beginning, (fall of man), then he intended relationship with us but instead we had to have intercessors (priests and sacrifice). So, to look at God's character in the OT and say he is completely different than Jesus is not doing due diligence in carefully reading the text. I agree with Dru's comment, but I would like to add that God's character is one of justice as well, and we often want to measure what is just by our feelings of what is right and wrong. Judging and assessing things out of our realm and control often distracts us from pursuing the kingdom work that God has put before us. As well as many of these arguments arise out of trying to rationalizing instead of trusting. (I know I beat the trust drum a lot!)
ReplyDeleteGreat topic. Becuase we do not want to be uncritical fundamentalists in regards to seemingly apparent tensions between "Testaments", I think it is right and proper to ask such questions. I myself refuse to try to harmonize the apparent tension, even some would say, blatant contradiction between the two. I myself think the answer lie in eschatology; God is seen acting in accord with one age (sin and death), while God through Jesus is acting in accord with another. Since God is not Aristotle's "unmoved mover" God is free to act, well, in quite unexpected ways. In addressing the Tsunami as "judgement" talk, I think this is in accord with the old age; God has dramatically acted in an unexpected way for sinners at Calvary and we are called to the same. Great blog.
ReplyDeleteBen, I agree with you. I was not trying to say that God in the OT and Jesus in the NT are 'completely different' I am trying to say that the cross changed things. To look back at the past and see how God worked and apply that to the present without gauging it against the cross seems to be quite harmful for a number of reasons. I think you are dead on with your assessment of Justice. We have to remember to seek first the kingdom of God, thanks for reminding me of that. Thanks Ben!
ReplyDeleteLarry, I agree that the harmony between the 2 exist more so from within an eschatological framework. The danger I am seeing is that people often view the "old age" to the "new age" (gosh that words give me the creeps) acclimating violence to God immediately and in so doing the cross has gotten the boot from our framework. Great thoughts, Larry! Thanks again for everything, brother. #likeminded
Seth, I'm still chewing on the new perspective that your "line" analogy gives - from the beginning of the line compared to in the middle of it. I think you are on to something good. I still struggling to get my mind around it.
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