In a spiritual world of quick fixes and vague emotion, is it crazy to believe there is still a place for insights based on simple, basic, theological understanding. I believe it is worth exploring.
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Saturday, February 22, 2014
Old Erich Proverb - Danger
The real danger is not the evil things, but the good things we let get between us and God.
I would take Romans 8 as that nothing can ultimately separate us from God and His love. But to say nothing can even temporarily come between us and God would imply we could not sin, which would seem to carry the meaning of the text too far.
I think part of the question here is what we mean by "between us and God". There is a sense in which as Romans 8 says nothing can come between us and God. God loves us and forgives us even when we sin and even we fail (which we always do). But there is another sense in which on the practical level every sin puts something between me and what God wants to do in my life. Now in this sense there is always something between me and God, but growth in Christ is the process of eliminating those things or putting them in proper perspective (if they are good things given too much importance). I am convinced it is knowing nothing can come between me and God in the first sense, that gives the confidence to deal with the things that come between me and God in the second sense.
In my view sin does not put anything between us and God but simply focuses our attention away from God within us. It may be semantics but (in my thinking anyways) we must always remember that He is always with us. The Holy Spirit lives in us and nothing can separate from Him.
It may be we are dealing merely in semantics. I would say it we focus our attention away from God that is a barrier that prevents me from consciously experiencing God work in my life the way I could be even though God loves me and His Spirit dwells in me. But I am not sure if we are disagreeing about anything or not.
Here is a contrary thought Mike. ツ
ReplyDeleteWhen I read the end of Romans 8, it seems that nothing can separate us from the love of God.
So is it possible for something to get between us and God?
I would take Romans 8 as that nothing can ultimately separate us from God and His love. But to say nothing can even temporarily come between us and God would imply we could not sin, which would seem to carry the meaning of the text too far.
DeleteIf sin gets between us and God then there will always be something between us and God.
ReplyDeleteI think part of the question here is what we mean by "between us and God". There is a sense in which as Romans 8 says nothing can come between us and God. God loves us and forgives us even when we sin and even we fail (which we always do). But there is another sense in which on the practical level every sin puts something between me and what God wants to do in my life. Now in this sense there is always something between me and God, but growth in Christ is the process of eliminating those things or putting them in proper perspective (if they are good things given too much importance). I am convinced it is knowing nothing can come between me and God in the first sense, that gives the confidence to deal with the things that come between me and God in the second sense.
DeleteIn my view sin does not put anything between us and God but simply focuses our attention away from God within us. It may be semantics but (in my thinking anyways) we must always remember that He is always with us. The Holy Spirit lives in us and nothing can separate from Him.
ReplyDeleteIt may be we are dealing merely in semantics. I would say it we focus our attention away from God that is a barrier that prevents me from consciously experiencing God work in my life the way I could be even though God loves me and His Spirit dwells in me. But I am not sure if we are disagreeing about anything or not.
DeletePerhaps your proverb would be better stated this way?
ReplyDeleteThe real danger is not the evil things, but the good things we let get between us and our experience of God.
I could live with that.
Delete