For since men's reason had descended to sensible things, the Word submitted to being revealed through a body, in order that he might bring bring men to himself as a man and turn their senses to himself, and that thenceforth, although they they saw him as a man, he might persuade them through the works he did that he was not merely a man but God, and the Word and Wisdom of the true God.
Athanasius, 293-373 AD, The Incarnation, 16 (Contra Gentes and De Incarntione, translated by Robert W. Thomson, Oxford at the Clarendon Press, 1971, p. 173)
Why is it important that Christ reveals God to us? How does this affect the way we live?
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Jesus was/is so different than the Zeus image of God.
ReplyDeleteAs I have said before I do not believe the God of the Old Testament is at all parallel to Zeus or that Jesus differs from God as the Old Testament presents Him. But I do not know if we want to go over that whole can of worms again.
DeleteI am not interested in rehashing it either. But I am interested in how you think Jesus revealed God to us.
ReplyDeleteHe clearly reveals God's love and compassion. In forgiving the adulteress, the woman at the well and Zaccheus. In healing the sick and demon possessed and blessing the little children.
DeleteBut He also shows God's justice. In the stern requirements in the Sermon on the Mount and elsewhere. In the rebuke of the Pharisees and Sadducees. In the turning over the money-changers tables and the clear call to repent.
These do seem to fit together as some might think they would. He rebukes the apparently upright and proud and reaches out to the sinful and guilt-ridden.
I think it is easy to see God as an abstraction, but Jesus gave Him a human face. It is difficult to see how the abstractions of love and justice fit together but Jesus exemplified them for us.
That probably does not begin to exhaust the subject. But those are my thoughts.
So, the Sermon on the Mount is about new and harsher laws because Mosaic Law was not adequate? Are the Beatitudes included? Or the golden rule? Or the admonition not to judge? Do you see hell fire and brimstone in his teaching on the Mount? Or was his sermon a rebuke of the Pharisaical love of their rules. I suspect the Pharisees did not understand that the intent of his message was not to establish a new law but to point out the absurdity of theirs.
ReplyDeleteAbout justice. Are you saying that justice is all about rebuking? What about when Jesus viciously attacked and murdered innocent money changers? Oh wait. Jesus just overturned the tables of men bilking the sheep and the scriptures do not say that anyone was hurt. Does this not reveal that God's anger and zeal is against those who would abuse the sheep? If anything, does the actions of Jesus not represent how passionately God is for us and not the religious elite?
To summarize, I simply do not think that you have showed how Jesus equally showed love and justice. Perhaps you have other examples from the gospels?
I do not believe the Sermon on the Mount was about harsher laws because the OT law was not harsh enough, but was about showing what the OT had always really implied. I believe the point of it was showing people that they could not keep it and needed forgiveness. I do not see any evidence in that Jesus was speaking hypothetically and did not really mean what He said. Surely the commandments to not be angry with others, to not look on a woman with lust, to absolute honesty and divorce only under exceptional circumstances seem extremely strict. Also the statement that many outwardly moral people would be told in the last judgment He never knew them was quite strict. Jesus certainly seems to be talking about hell, repeatedly.
DeleteAs for judge not it is occupied by the statement that those who judge will be judged in return (Luke 6:37). The Beatitudes in Luke's version are occupied by opposite and equal woes (Luke 6:24-26). The Golden Rule is a commandment which is clearly intended to be obeyed. None of these take away the requirements of strict justice in the Sermon.
There is much more that could be added the rebuke of Capernaum and the cities of Galilee, the story of the man who built bigger barns and others. It is true Jesus never killed anyone, that does not seem to be part of His particular mission, but He repeatedly threatened them with hell, which in the long run is more severe.
I do not say the examples of love and justice in the life of Jesus are exactly equal. God is very merciful. But the examples of justice do not seem to me to be insignificant or easily explained away.
Always interesting how we seem to see Jesus so differently.
DeleteInteresting, indeed.
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