Awhile back, I wrote a post which came as close to endorsing "relativity" as you'll hear me come. Not relativity of truth, because if something is true, it's ALWAYS true, for EVERYONE. But I talked about relativity of experience. All of us figure out THE Truth in different ways.
We each relate to God differently. He doesn't change, regardless of what we believe about Him. And sometimes we get it wrong. (Those who maintain belief in relativity of truth say everything is "right," but because truth is absolute, our different experiences may lead some of us to wrong conclusions...)
But, my point is, each of us appreciates different truths about God's complex personality. Some of us really enjoy thinking about Him as the meek, mild Jesus, who preached peace and love before carrying His cross wordlessly. Others can't get enough war-talk from the angry, justice-loving God who despises sin and promises to punish those who roll in it. Certain aspects of God naturally appeal to us.
But the Bible warns us we will never fully understand our Creator. Isaiah says, "Your ways are not my ways." If that's the case, then why do we get stuck on certain truths instead of realizing there are a lifetime of lessons to learn about Him? When we start feeling comfortable with what we "know," shouldn't that be a cause for concern?
Those of us who talk endlessly of God's demand for justice probably have more to learn about his love/mercy. If we see God as a loving Father, we could learn something from those who preach the Fierce Warrior. These things aren't mutually exclusive. That means, God isn't "inconsistent." But He IS unique and complex--far beyond what we can categorize and define as limited humans...
I'm challenging myself, and YOU readers, to step away from what you know and like about God for just a little while, in order to seek out and study new truths for a season. Especially investigate the claims that make you uncomfortable. And remember, as soon as we experience an "a-ha!" moment of revelation, we run the risk of obsessing over that one truth and making God one-dimensional.
I believe: Just when we get used to worshiping a certain part of God's character, we should start looking for the next scandalously difficult thing to grasp about Him...
