Psalms 103
17. But the lovingkindness of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him,
And His righteousness to children’s children, (NASB)
17. God’s love, though, is ever and always, eternally present to all who fear Him,
Making everything right for them and their children, (Message)
Whatever else one says about God, His love is as dependable as a mathematical constant. Einstein’s equation of E=mc2 startled our world into the twentieth century. The “c” is the constant in the equation and is always the speed of light, 186,000 mph, squared. This fantastically large number remains the same and doesn’t vary. So it is with the character of God, it is and forever will be love. Again, the Psalmist uses the term as everlasting loyal love or concern.
Some theologians will claim that God has a love-hate entanglement warring within His character. However, the entanglement is our problem, not God’s, we prove it century after century. Does God judge the affairs of humankind? Yes, He allows negative circumstances into our lives but the negatives are always to encourage us to love as God loves. God acts first and foremost for our whole wellbeing. We are hunter-gatherers and then God “pokes us” into full humanity. That is preached to us in the beginning parables.
Hell is not a place for eternal damnation but another divine “poking” intended to wake us up to our heavenly potential. If we waste our earthly choices, if the meandering continues unabated here on earth, or we had no choices, expect the poking to continue after death. The hottest U.S. environment is Mc Allen, Texas, in the good old summertime. As the sun peaks above the horizon, the heat and humidity hits like a sledgehammer. It’s an attention grabber. Within the first few steps out the door, one is swimming in their own sweat. For someone who works outdoors, that day is a test of our motivational center. Likewise, God wills (His motivational center) for us a passing grade (He loves us), as he prods us all into accepting our divine destiny, fully human and united around Him.
About now your getting steamed, right. That doesn’t sound like any concept of hell I ever heard preached! Hell is to punish the bad guy’s, they deserve the eternal fire. If that were so, why did Jesus never dump condemnation on people? He prodded the Pharisees, the rich young ruler, Peter, the religious and ethnic authorities, the adulterous woman, the one who betrayed him, etc., etc. His mere presence seemed enough. His actions were based on what was right as God see's rightness.
In the Eastwood film, “The Forgiven”, the young gunman is lamenting about his first kill and attempts to excuse the murder by saying the man deserved it. Will Munny responds dryly with the biblical truth, “we all deserve it kid”. We as human beings know who we are. The issue is not what we deserve for we all have earned hell, the only real issue is the next choice.
At this point there would be the temptation to congratulate ourselves upon making the right choice. The choice to open our lives up to the Almighty. Anyone who has been there is quick to concede that this was not a human choice, it is a God induced choice. The prodding process has attracted our attention, cleared our vision, and He has given us the courage to choose. The Calvinistic tradition called it God’s predestination, while John Wesley called the prodding process, prevenient grace. Could both theological traditions be expounding the same truth? That question will be left for bigger minds. For now, we can all agree that salvation is a gift of God through Jesus Christ.
What about the Bible? Hell is one of those issues that is almost ignored in Scripture, it is rarely mentioned. Often, when mentioned, the terms are inserted as punctuation, an exclamation point. It is described in ethereal terms. This reader can find no developed theology of hell, so give me the freedom to speculate. Could it be that we have assumed that there is no need for such a
theology post death? That assumption is not loyal love and concern. What has happened to the billions of our fellow human beings who had no real choice to make? Are we so self centered to assume that God’s love can be this myopic?
God acts toward all of us according to His character, loyal love and concern.
Glen Goslaw
Victorville, Ca
