Comments on: Wicked, Wicked, Wicked, Wicked…Righteous http://ceruleansanctum.com/2009/02/wicked-wicked-wicked-wickedrighteous.html Looking for the 1st century Church in 21st century America Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:03:38 +0000 hourly 1 By: Bradhttp://ceruleansanctum.com/2009/02/wicked-wicked-wicked-wickedrighteous.html#comment-43664 Brad Thu, 12 Feb 2009 03:25:06 +0000 http://ceruleansanctum.com/?p=1142#comment-43664 In regard to "righteousness", remember the chapel we had at Wheaton, "We are all like sand on the beach arguing about who's closer to the moon." :-) I liked that one.But I sure struggled with this very thing while reading Psalms 44:9-16 the other day. "You have tossed us aside ... no longer lead us... make us retreat... butchered us like sheep... scattered us... sold us for a pittance... made us the butt of their jokes...and then verse 17-18, "All this has happened though we have not forgotten you. We have not violated our covenant. Our hearts have not deserted you. We have not strayed from your path."My first reading of this passage offended my sense of fairness (and of God, really) so that my assumption became, "You SAY you haven't forsaken him, but have you really?"But then I remembered, this "accusation" was the same sin Job's friends had. And Paul quotes verse 22 in the NT, "But for your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep" Surely Paul had not "turned away" yet God said I will show him how much he must suffer. And then as others have pointed out above, we don't have to look any further than Jesus to find a righteous sufferer.The OT says, "Blessed is the man who keeps his oath even when it hurts." Sometimes our righteousness causes us to suffer. Sometimes suffering makes it hard to obey. Suffering comes to us all and tests our faith. If it were always to our immediate benefit to obey God we would be hard pressed to know if we obeyed him for his "holy handout" or because we loved him.I still don't like it. I think the only answer lies in understanding that God has not left us, but was willing to even participate in that suffering to show us his love. And I believe that in all things God ultimately works for the good of those who love him. In regard to “righteousness”, remember the chapel we had at Wheaton, “We are all like sand on the beach arguing about who’s closer to the moon.” :-) I liked that one.

But I sure struggled with this very thing while reading Psalms 44:9-16 the other day. “You have tossed us aside … no longer lead us… make us retreat… butchered us like sheep… scattered us… sold us for a pittance… made us the butt of their jokes…

and then verse 17-18, “All this has happened though we have not forgotten you. We have not violated our covenant. Our hearts have not deserted you. We have not strayed from your path.”

My first reading of this passage offended my sense of fairness (and of God, really) so that my assumption became, “You SAY you haven’t forsaken him, but have you really?”

But then I remembered, this “accusation” was the same sin Job’s friends had. And Paul quotes verse 22 in the NT, “But for your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep” Surely Paul had not “turned away” yet God said I will show him how much he must suffer. And then as others have pointed out above, we don’t have to look any further than Jesus to find a righteous sufferer.

The OT says, “Blessed is the man who keeps his oath even when it hurts.” Sometimes our righteousness causes us to suffer. Sometimes suffering makes it hard to obey. Suffering comes to us all and tests our faith. If it were always to our immediate benefit to obey God we would be hard pressed to know if we obeyed him for his “holy handout” or because we loved him.

I still don’t like it. I think the only answer lies in understanding that God has not left us, but was willing to even participate in that suffering to show us his love. And I believe that in all things God ultimately works for the good of those who love him.

]]> By: Bryan Rileyhttp://ceruleansanctum.com/2009/02/wicked-wicked-wicked-wickedrighteous.html#comment-43646 Bryan Riley Wed, 11 Feb 2009 03:12:47 +0000 http://ceruleansanctum.com/?p=1142#comment-43646 I think what makes this even more complicated is that we make a judgment about what is evil or good. We determine that the foreclosures are evil. Thus, we might conclude, with Proverbs in mind, that the people who "suffered" the evil result, were wicked. What if God, who knows all things, judges such things differently? What if for two of the 8 families, the foreclosures were good and for 6 they were bad?We should leave the judging of good and evil up to the one who has all the facts. That's why we need not be eating the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, eh? I think what makes this even more complicated is that we make a judgment about what is evil or good. We determine that the foreclosures are evil. Thus, we might conclude, with Proverbs in mind, that the people who “suffered” the evil result, were wicked. What if God, who knows all things, judges such things differently? What if for two of the 8 families, the foreclosures were good and for 6 they were bad?

We should leave the judging of good and evil up to the one who has all the facts. That’s why we need not be eating the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, eh?

]]> By: akaGaGahttp://ceruleansanctum.com/2009/02/wicked-wicked-wicked-wickedrighteous.html#comment-43637 akaGaGa Tue, 10 Feb 2009 11:25:24 +0000 http://ceruleansanctum.com/?p=1142#comment-43637 Could it be some suffer more because they pray more for things like wisdom, knowledge, and strength? I did a post last summer on the blessings of suffering:http://akagaga.blogspot.com/2008/06/blessing-of-suffering.html Could it be some suffer more because they pray more for things like wisdom, knowledge, and strength? I did a post last summer on the blessings of suffering:

http://akagaga.blogspot.com/20.....ering.html

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