Thursday, September 29, 2005

America's God

What kind of portrayal of God would one get if their only perceptions were off of American television?

•• He is to be praised for touchdowns, home runs and game-winning shots
•• He is to be thanked for acquiring fame, wealth or success by the world's standards. If you're a female, this generally pertains to having the magazine look. Male attainment of success comes in a variety of forms: business suit (business or political bigwig), physical prowess (athletes, models, entertainers), money (corporate successes).
•• He is to be doubted and questioned when anything bad happens
• He is not very relatable to the common man. The crowds of Jesus' day followed Him. The miracles Jesus performed affirmed He was from God and of God, and caused hunger for teaching on the Kingdom as well. Jesus was an ordinary man, with dirty feet and rough but gentle hands. Do those who grace American television as representatives of Jesus impart the same relatability to society, in order to reach those who have not turned their hearts to God? Or is there some kind of Christian status, attainment or look required to follow Him? Something to consider. Paul said "I have become all things to all men, that some might be won to Jesus" (paraphrase of 1 Cor 9:22). We are to be relatable to others, not a cancerous group where people's first thought is 'no thanks'. True that people love the darkness and don't want to come into the light (John 3:19), but if we are walking in Him the light will/should penetrate the darkness and draw people to Him. Human beings were human beings in Jesus' day, and they were DRAWN to Him. "And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men" (Luke 2:52) Jesus grew in favor with men (mankind). Other posts have commented why more are not drawn to Him through today's American believer...
•• He is to be mocked and parodied about the notion of creation. I've got some very undiluted thoughts on this that I'll refrain from saying here, which make a conversation with an evolutionist very interesting. Suffice it to say a conversation with an evolutionist or atheist in most cases takes a predictable path for most believers. It doesn't have to...God is awesome.

"But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him." (1 Corinthians 1:27-29, Amplified Bible)

"For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength." (1 Corinthians 1:25, Amplified Bible)

"He scoffs at the scoffers and scorns the scorners, yet He gives His undeserved favor to the low in rank, the humble, and the afflicted." (Proverbs 3:34, Amplified Bible)

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