Posts tagged abuse
Bible in a Year – Day 5: You Want Me to Do WHAT?
Jan 5th
Today’s Reading: Genesis 16, 17 & 18
As human beings, there are a lot of things that we’ll never understand about God. We are simply not capable of fathoming his grandeur, wisdom, logic, etc. And those things which we can’t hope to comprehend have to fall into the category of the “mystery of God.” We encounter some of that mystery in these chapters of Genesis.
First, there is the question of “moral absolutes.” Some would say that everything is set in stone regarding right and wrong, moral and immoral. Others argue that though some things might be set in stone, others are a little more nebulous – something that might be considered wrong in one time and place may not be wrong in another time and place. And so, there are any number of opinions when it comes to the morality of Abram’s actions in this passage.
It seems that almost every sentence in the first six verses of Genesis 16 confronts us with a moral dilemma. Were these things sins, or were they just culturally acceptable practices that God didn’t have a problem with. Let’s take a look at what I’m talking about: In the first six verses, we are confronted with slavery (v. 1), “open” marriage (v. 2), polygamy (v. 3) and abuse (v. 4). In the verses in between, we see Sarai and Abram passing the blame to each other.
Now, I think it’s clear to see that the series of events that transpired, which left an Egyptian slave girl wandering in the wilderness, probably wasn’t a God-ordained solution. The passages also allude to the emotional turmoil that can be caused by people living in these kinds of situations and arrangements. However, it’s interesting to note that there is no mention of God reprimanding or punishing Abram or Sarai for their actions. God doesn’t speak out against slavery, extra-marital sex, polygamy or even the abuse that took place. Now, maybe that’s because it simply wasn’t recorded in the Bible, maybe it’s because God had other things he wanted to work through with Abram and Sarai or, perhaps, as some suggest, the Scriptures have been watered down over the years and filtered through cultural norms. Maybe God did talk to Abram about his actions and we just don’t read about it here.
Whatever the case, the next recorded encounter between Abram and God is one where God expands (or expounds upon) the covenant he made with Abram. He changes his name to Abraham and Sarai’s name to Sarah and he asks Abraham to honor the covenant by having himself, every male in his family and every male descendant circumcised. Now, if I’m Abraham, I might be thinking, “Um…you want me to what? To cut off part of my what?” I mean, it’s one thing to do that to a baby, but to a grown man with no anesthesia? Ouch.
WARNING: TMI ahead
Here, again, we see the mystery of God. Why did God require circumcision? He could have chosen just about anything as a sign or symbol of the covenant, so why this? Perhaps, as some have suggested, it was partially a health issue. In order for Abraham’s descendants to be “as numerous as the stars in the sky,” they would have to be sexually healthy. That would mean, of course, that their “parts” would need to be fully functional at all times, without infection or disease. Circumcision, then, is seen by some as God giving his people a slight advantage in the mating game, by having them eliminate that portion of skin which sometimes served as a hiding place for bacteria.
Maybe, as others insist, this was simply a test to see how serious Abraham was about this whole God thing. Or perhaps it was a ritual more akin to a frat boy hazing – an initiation into the family. Whatever the case, circumcision was required by God and we are told that Abraham and his family were circumcised that very day. From that point on, circumcision would become a requirement of the descendants of Abraham and would, indeed, serve as a lasting sign of the covenant God made with his people.
They Know Not What They Do
May 6th
Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots. (Luke 23:34, King James Version)
I was recently listening in on a webinar where the above verse was mentioned. Mind you, it was not the main topic of conversation and, in many ways, it was kind of glossed over – not in an intentional way, but in the way that we tend to do when we’re covering a lot of information in a little bit of time. However, in that instant after hearing the words and before moving on to the next thing, I took a moment to jot myself a note. The note read “Forgive them, for they know not what they do. What does that say about God’s ability/willingness to forgive?”
Now, I don’t have an answer for that question, but I wanted to share with you some of the things that jumped out to me and that have stirred my heart about that verse. Here, Jesus is being tortured – he is being killed – by a group of people made up of those who should know better (religious leaders supposedly in tune with God’s ways) and those who have no reason to know right from wrong in this situation (Romans, who are uneducated about and/or ambivalent to Jewish custom, law or religion.)
In the midst of their derision, Jesus asked God to forgive them – not simply to spare their life or to not judge them harshly – but to forgive them. Presumably, the kind of forgiveness that we are told only comes from giving our lives to Jesus is here being dolled out to people who not only haven’t accepted Jesus as Savior and Lord, but to people who are actually murdering him. On the surface, it seems like a really kind gesture, but thinking deeper, a statement like this – an act like this – seems to suggest some things that are counter to popular theology.
We have been told and believe that the only way to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven is to believe in and follow Jesus. Those who do not follow him, we are told, don’t stand a chance in eternity. Now, there are different views regarding those who never got a chance to hear the message of salvation (some think those people are fine and others think they will rot in hell) but very few of us have held to a theology that says that those who have had a chance to encounter Jesus, but have rejected him, have any chance at salvation, redemption or forgiveness.
But here, Jesus asks God to forgive the people because “they know not what they do.” In other words, they are ignorant of what their actions really mean. They don’t know that he is the Messiah. The don’t know about his mission here. Even though they have had personal interaction with the Savior of the world, they don’t recognize him as such and, seemingly, Jesus asks God to let them off the hook.
This is an understandable request, given that the majority of the people in the crowd had been riled up into a frenzy by the religious leaders. But I have begun to wonder how that applies to us today. What about all the people who have rejected God and rejected Jesus because of some horrible example of “Chrisitanity” in their lives – people who wear the name of Jesus, but fail to exemplify his character. I mean, if someone was beaten and molested by her pastor father and, thus, rejects everything he claimed to believe in, would that person be extended the same kind of forgiveness as those who crucified Jesus? What about people who are being whipped into a frenzy by today’s religious leaders who tell them that following Jesus means hating illegal immigrants, inciting violence against Muslims and overthrowing government? Or, what about those Muslims who have chosen a level of devotion to God that most of us can’t even fathom, but have been led astray by their own religious leaders into extremist, Jihadist beliefs and acts?
All three of these examples fall into the “they know not what they do” camp. Their actions represent not the rejection of Jesus, but, in the first case, rejection of personal beliefs associated with an abuser, and in the second and third cases, adherence to an ideology espoused by religious leaders – leaders who have been entrusted with helping those individuals adhere to God’s way. They know not what they do.
Actually, there are any number of people of whom we could say “they know not what they do.” The question I have, that I have no answer for, is this: What does God do with those who know not what they do? What if our theology on eternal salvation comes with a big caveat regarding ignorance and knowledge? I’m sure somebody else has thought through these questions and has compelling revelation to share. For me, I’m just asking the question and thinking about this verse in a way that is completely new to me. I would love to hear from you.
