The Divine and the Dimwit

Gravity. An enticing phenomenon no person avoids or escapes. Inventions like the airplane manipulate gravity to suit their purposes, but no invention (or life for that matter) operates without it. Like gravity, time exists as a inexplicable phenomenon in the realm of the intangible. Our lives abide by time regardless of the schedules we choose. Same with the concept of space. We maneuver items, buildings and rooms to suite our local space preferences, but space forces our hands to deal with allotted portions both locally and universally.

Gravity, time, and space exist outside our control and ability to create. Natural phenomenon such as these mystifies us and demands our adherence. They render us incapable of denying or defying them; if we try, we incur stupendous consequences (i.e. denying the existence of gravity amounts to serious pain if put to the test by stepping off a building).

Scientific laws and natural phenomenon find their origin in God. A catastrophic and random explosion of magically appearing molecules may produce some form of scientific mumbo jumbo, but not the birth of a meticulously orchestrated universe and earth. Only the God of the Bible exercises the creativity and power necessary to command our incomprehensible universe into existence while fashioning every molecule, atom and creature according to His distinct purposes.

To think otherwise belies both utter madness and futility in brain functioning, or spiritual blindness akin to lifeless senses.

Unfortunately, both stinted brain functioning and spiritual blindness prevent God from residing in His rightful place in our feeble hearts. We quickly suppress critical thinking and settle for existing in our own little worlds, expecting God to oblige our dimwitted perceptions of reality. Our actions and words “test” God as if He exists to serve us and merit our favor.

The moment creatures deceive themselves into thinking they equate with their Creator (and can therefore demand and manipulate His actions); they plunge forward to an inevitable disaster. We (created and fallible human beings) control nothing, including the little worlds we exist in! Yet in our pits of depravity we feel like we possess the right to demand actions from God—that we can manipulate Him into performing in ways pleasing to us.

Displaced perspectives serve as phenomenon themselves. Such perspectives cause hilarious laughter until we realize the sheer tragedy they incur when believed. Creation binds fallible creatures by stinting their perspectives. Aspects of creation fail to grasp the comprehensive reality outside themselves because perspectives form by first-hand experiences.

Minute creatures experience their immediate surroundings and little else of outside those influences. Even if we manage to look beyond our local situations, we act solely in roles of observation. We may draw conclusions about the functions of life and this universe based on what we observe, but we always land short of comprehensive truth because our observations originate from limited perspectives.

Understanding our finiteness drastically impacts our relationships with God. Our stance before Him (totally dependent) remains the same regardless of our awareness of the posture. If we think of ourselves outside God’s sovereignty or refuse to accept His Lordship, we only deceive ourselves. We’re accountable to Him whether we own up to it or not. When Christ comes again He’ll illuminate everyone’s mind with His truth, but by then we’ve already chosen the object of our loyalty—Him or us.

Gideon struggled with understanding his posture before God. He arrogantly expected God to adhere to his perspective, not the other way around. Instead of taking God at His Word, his blatant distrust attempted to force God’s hand to cushion his feeble faith. Amazingly, God obliges…more than once.

Gideon said to God, “If You will deliver Israel through me, as You have spoken, behold, I will put a fleece of wool on the threshing floor. If there is dew on the fleece only, and it is dry on all the ground, then I will know that You will deliver Israel through me, as You have spoken.” And it was so…Then Gideon said to God, “Do not let Your anger burn against me that I may speak once more; please let me make a test once more with the fleece, let it now be dry only on the fleece, and let there be dew on all the ground.” God did so that night.
Judges 6:36-40

Rather than submitting to God’s sovereignty and encompassing power as Creator of the universe, Gideon shakes in his boots and pompously decides God must prove Himself. He fears his fellow creation instead of the Creator. This willingly displaced perspective resulted in short-sided (and utterly selfish) requests for God to step into his world and meet his demands.

We err similarly every day. Exercising trust in our physical senses rather than God-mandated truth pushes us deeper into faulty logic and stinted perspectives.

Though totally comprehension of God’s Gospel and His purposes elude us (and will continue doing so while living in the confines of this universe), He still desires us to pursue Him. He longs to align our perspectives with His, which only results through an intimate relationship with His Word.

Practicing truth and watching it manifest in our lives derives first from knowing it, and then from submitting to it on God’s terms. Let’s get over ourselves and let God arise to His rightful position as Savior and King in our lives. Strive to enter His presence and perspective, not appeal for Him to oblige our misguided and feeble minds.