As I've mentioned before, I do a lot of reading. Some of it is required reading, especially those books that I have to read as I study for my Doctor of Ministry degree. Over the past week, I just finished a fascinating book, called "Theology is for Proclamation" by Gerhard Forde. For those who want to take a deep look at the relationship between systematic theology and preaching, this is a good (albeit academic) book.
One point that Forde made has really made me think quite a bit. He talks about Jesus being true man. We confess that belief in the Apostles' Creed, where we confess that Jesus is both true God and true man. But I found his thoughts on what it means to be true man (for Jesus) utterly fascinating.
When God created man, the first man and woman "knew" who they were in relation to God. God was the creator, and was "above" them. But when they were tempted by the serpent, he caused them to think that they could strive to be like God. After all, that was the temptation. "You could be like God, knowing good and evil." By taking that step, the man and woman "fell" into sin by over-reaching their role in relationship to God. Previously they had been His loved and perfect creation. But now, in their lives, they sought to be like God, thus exalting themselves to a place that was never intended for them.
Here's where Jesus being true man then really strikes home. In His entire life, Jesus never once sought to be more than what He was in relation to God the Father. Jesus was the Son, and never sought to rise above that. Jesus was completely human, and never sought to be more than that as He lived in this world. Even when it came to the Father's will for Him, Jesus did not question if the Father really knew better than He did about what was best for Jesus. Instead, Jesus willingly accepted what the Father's will was, even though it meant being betrayed, abandoned, persecuted, beaten, and put to death.
That's what it means to be truly human, at least as I understood it from Forde's thoughts. And that actually makes a lot of sense to me. When we question God, in one respect, we are trying to tell God that we know what's good for us better than He does. When something happens in life and we complain to God about it, we're saying that we know what God should and shouldn't do in our lives. Each of these, and there are many more examples of things we do like this, show that we simply cannot remain merely God's created, loved creation, but instead, we strive to be God in our lives to some degree or another.
Being truly human means that we recognize that we live completely at God's mercy and by God's grace. Our trouble is that we simply cannot see what God is accomplishing when things happen in our lives that we don't like. If we knew what God was accomplishing when we were suffering, or when a family member was hurting or dying, we'd probably be a bit more able to accept our place in our relationship with God. However, because sin has cut us off from that connection, we are left with no alternative but to seek out the place of God.
As I said, I'm fascinated by this thought. I've tended to think about Jesus becoming like us as a human being, and have rarely given thought to the fact that Jesus came to be truly human, and what that means for us. I'm thankful for Forde for making me think about things like this.
One point that Forde made has really made me think quite a bit. He talks about Jesus being true man. We confess that belief in the Apostles' Creed, where we confess that Jesus is both true God and true man. But I found his thoughts on what it means to be true man (for Jesus) utterly fascinating.
When God created man, the first man and woman "knew" who they were in relation to God. God was the creator, and was "above" them. But when they were tempted by the serpent, he caused them to think that they could strive to be like God. After all, that was the temptation. "You could be like God, knowing good and evil." By taking that step, the man and woman "fell" into sin by over-reaching their role in relationship to God. Previously they had been His loved and perfect creation. But now, in their lives, they sought to be like God, thus exalting themselves to a place that was never intended for them.
Here's where Jesus being true man then really strikes home. In His entire life, Jesus never once sought to be more than what He was in relation to God the Father. Jesus was the Son, and never sought to rise above that. Jesus was completely human, and never sought to be more than that as He lived in this world. Even when it came to the Father's will for Him, Jesus did not question if the Father really knew better than He did about what was best for Jesus. Instead, Jesus willingly accepted what the Father's will was, even though it meant being betrayed, abandoned, persecuted, beaten, and put to death.
That's what it means to be truly human, at least as I understood it from Forde's thoughts. And that actually makes a lot of sense to me. When we question God, in one respect, we are trying to tell God that we know what's good for us better than He does. When something happens in life and we complain to God about it, we're saying that we know what God should and shouldn't do in our lives. Each of these, and there are many more examples of things we do like this, show that we simply cannot remain merely God's created, loved creation, but instead, we strive to be God in our lives to some degree or another.
Being truly human means that we recognize that we live completely at God's mercy and by God's grace. Our trouble is that we simply cannot see what God is accomplishing when things happen in our lives that we don't like. If we knew what God was accomplishing when we were suffering, or when a family member was hurting or dying, we'd probably be a bit more able to accept our place in our relationship with God. However, because sin has cut us off from that connection, we are left with no alternative but to seek out the place of God.
As I said, I'm fascinated by this thought. I've tended to think about Jesus becoming like us as a human being, and have rarely given thought to the fact that Jesus came to be truly human, and what that means for us. I'm thankful for Forde for making me think about things like this.
Interesting...thanks!
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