The Fright of & Flight from God (Part One)

Job 40:1-14 Then the Lord said to Job, “Do you still want to argue with the Almighty?
You are God’s critic, but do you have the answers?” Then Job replied to the Lord, “I am nothing—how could I ever find the answers? I will cover my mouth with my hand.  I have said too much already. I have nothing more to say.” Then the Lord answered Job from the whirlwind: “Brace yourself like a man, because I have some questions for you, and you must answer them. “Will you discredit my justice and condemn me just to prove you are right? Are you as strong as God? Can you thunder with a voice like his? All right, put on your glory and splendor, your honor and majesty. Give vent to your anger. Let it overflow against the proud. Humiliate the proud with a glance; walk on the wicked where they stand. Bury them in the dust. Imprison them in the world of the dead. Then even I would praise you, for your own strength would save you.

The more that I read in this study on the debate between “Theism” and “Atheism” the more interesting it gets as the issues, facts and assumptions are laid on the table in the open market of free discussion. Sproul points out that all the atheist psychoanalysis theories of the origin of religion differ in points of details, but contain a common element of argumentation, the belief that religion owes its origin and its sustaining power to psychological needs runs as a common threat through all of them. There is no dispute that man has the power of creative imagination and the capacity to turn his fantasies into theories or full-blown religious systems. But the same thing can be said for atheism. The atheist has his vested interests too. Remember that the origin of religion set forth by modern atheist psychoanalysis theories offer no proof or falsification of the case of “theism”. Though the atheist offers an interesting study of human psychological means and motives for religious beliefs, they must also recognize that the New Testament of the Holy Bible (the Word of God) offers some interesting input about the psychological means and motives for “atheism”. A man or woman burdened by serious guilt may want very much for there to be no God. A man or woman wanting to indulge their own sinful desires at the expense of others may like the idea that they are not ultimately accountable to a just and holy Sovereign Creator God.  The idea of the wrath of God is not a popular concept. As stated last post: The basic stages of man’s reaction to God can be formulated by means of the categories of trauma, repression and substitution.  

Job 42:1-6 Then Job replied to the Lord: “I know that you can do anything, and no one can stop you. You asked, ‘Who is this that questions my wisdom with such ignorance?’ It is I—and I was talking about things I knew nothing about, things far too wonderful for me. You said, ‘Listen and I will speak! I have some questions for you, and you must answer them.’ I had only heard about you before, but now I have seen you with my own eyes. I take back everything I said, and I sit in dust and ashes to show my repentance.”

The first stage or category of sinful man’s reaction to Almighty God is “trauma”. Trauma may be defined as “a disordered psychic or behavioral state resulting from mental and emotional stress”. A traumatic experience generally involves something negative or threatening to the individual. The trauma is produced by man’s encounter with God’s self-revelation. By Romans 1:18-25, God has revealed Himself to all men, but what is it about Him that would terrify us so much and lead us into this exchange-substitute process? Confrontation with God shocks and injuries man. God’s presence manifests a threat to man’s moral standards, a threat to his quest for autonomy, and a threat to his desire for concealment. Sproul states that perhaps the five most significant aspects of God’s being that make fallen human beings uncomfortable are: (1) His holiness, (2) His omniscience / all-knowing, (3) His sovereignty / supreme domination, (4) His omnipotence / all-powerful, (5) His immutability / never changing. God represents the invasion of light into the darkness to which men are accustomed. Reformer John Calvin wrote: “in estimating our spiritual qualities, so long as we do not look beyond the earth, we are quite pleased with our own (self) righteousness, wisdom, and virtue; we address ourselves in the most flattering terms, and seem only less than demigods. But should we once begin to raise our thoughts to God, and reflect what kind of Being he is, and how absolute the perfection of that righteousness, and wisdom, and virtue, to which, as a standard , we are bound to be conformed, what formerly delighted us by its false show of righteousness, will become polluted with the greatest iniquity.”

Jonah 2:6-9 I sank down to the very roots of the mountains. I was imprisoned in the earth, whose gates lock shut forever. But you, O Lord my God, snatched me from the jaws of death! As my life was slipping away, I remembered the Lord. And my earnest prayer went out to you in your holy Temple. Those who worship false gods turn their backs on all God’s mercies. But I will offer sacrifices to you with songs of praise, and I will fulfill all my vows. For my salvation comes from the Lord alone.”

Good studies take time, and this one is no exception. Let’s pick it up here on the next post. Blessings.

In Christ, Brian