I'm reading Daring To Draw Near by John White (who is steadily rising to the top of my favorite authors list). The other books of his that I've read (all or part of) are The Fight, Eros Defiled, and The Cost of Commitment. Each one has had a profound impact on me. On my bookshelf for the future are Excellence in Leadership and The Pathway of Holiness. Anyway, now that I'm finished gushing over John White I'll get on with my post.
In the first chapter of this book he explores the interaction that Abraham has with God in Genesis 18 as the three visitors are leaving. You're probably familiar with the story, God reveals he's about to destroy Sodom, and Abraham begins to plead with God to save the city if there are some righteous people there. One of White's assertions is that God not only chooses to call us friends (John 15:15) but that he also wants us to be his partners, to have a role in his plans. White says that this is part of why God lets Abraham in on what he is about to do. He's inviting Abraham to take counsel with himself on matters of importance to him. In White's words, "God has called you to attend a celestial board meeting to deliberate with him on matters of destiny."
This argument certainly seems to be treading on thin ice to me. Would God actually involve us on that level in his purposes in the world. The part of me that is convinced of God's utter sovereignty certainly hesitates. If this is true it would drastically change my prayer life though. White points out that there is no longer room for "if it be your will" kinds of prayers because that is essentially lazy pseudoreverence. It's a cop out from struggling to find out what God's will is, or it's a "lack of faith in the character of the Invisible One who works miraculously in the face of impossible odds".
What if God really does want this kind of partnership with us? Would I feel like someone with a brand new MBA walking into a board meeting with Donald Trump? Excited to be there and contribute but scared to be fired at any minute for saying something stupid. It would definitely add a new dimension to Jesus saying that if we ask anything in his name that he will do it. I'm imagining a business owner and a young apprentice. They usually reason everything out together, and the owner always has the last call, but it's a true discussion with give and take on both sides. And when the young apprentice makes a special request that isn't clearly bad for the company the owner will grant it because of their relationship. Could this be true?
3 comments:
Hm. This makes me wonder even more about what I was asking you earlier; how do we hear God? I know this isn't the place for this, but I hoped that writing it here might make you think some more and give me some of your wisdom. :) So the opposite sides, as I see it, are these: On one side, learning God's character through His Word and using that (and other God-given tools like wisdom and counsel) to make decisions. On the other side, God speaking to us in audible sentences with complete grammatical structure: "Matt, I want you to marry that girl."
Yah, this definitely isn't the place. Oh well. Too late. :)
Interesting post. Did White mention that the Lord did better than Abraham had requested? He did not find ten righteous people - only 4 - and took those four out by the hand.
I think God tests us to fight to save our loved ones. There's a similar scene with Moses supplicating God's grace for his people in Exodux 32 and Numbers 12. I think God is challenging us to love one another, as He loves us.
I liked the CEO-apprentice analogy. It is true.
[deep voice] "Matt, I want you to give Berry $1000."
How about that?
I really think that God's Word is the primary way that God reveals himself and his will to us. Primary because it is utterly reliable (assuming we are careful to interpret correctly) and also because it is constant. I do think that we should anticipate that God would speak specifically into our lives in other ways though. But that is so hard to quantify and is so subjective. How do you argue with someone who claims to have a conversational relationship with God or with someone who honestly has desired to but has never "heard" anything? I don't think you really can but if I am honest I am a bit suspicious of the person who says God regularly speaks to them in complete, grammatically correct sentences. I want to believe them and even believe that is possible for me, but when it comes down to it, I have to use the scriptures to judge the content of those words from God which brings me back to the point that his revealed written Word is primary. Those are my thoughts right now...
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