In our scripture reading this morning we see the Apostle Paul answering questions from the Corinthian church. He responds by saying that he can fathom the mysteries and has all knowledge, but he looks through the glass darkly. He was speaking of a mirror, which in his day was made of polish metal, perhaps copper. This would not reflect a good image.
Paul may had the gifts of prophecy and understanding mysteries but few of us have those gifts today. I certainly do not.
So to understand the Why’s of the bible I have to go to the source of all Knowledge, Almighty God, for the answers. He has provided the answers if we look deeply enough into His Book.
Here are some of the questions I’ve run across and what I believe, from scripture, are the answers.
Why, I’ve often wondered do that do wrong seem to prosper?
I’ve watched the world in general, the business world, and the church for many years and I’ve often asked, “Why do some of these folks seem to do well when an honest man, working hard seems to get hammered down?” I believe the answer to this question is found in the Paul’s writings to the Romans, chapter two, verse 4 - “Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance, and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness leads you (them) toward repentance.” God, our loving Father, wants all people, good and bad, to repent and by showing how much He loves even those who do evil He hopes they will repent and come back to Him. I believe that God weeps real tears as He watches His people do wrong and then not repent.
Another question I’ve wondered about is How does the Bible or God comfort people and what should we do with this facet of God’s personality?
Second Corinthians 1: verses 3 and 4 answers that question. “The Father is a merciful God, who always gives us comfort. He comforts us when we are in trouble, so that we can share that same comfort with others in trouble.” ( contemporary English version). Not the kind of comfort that Job’s friends gave him. Remember they “comforted” Job by telling him what a sinner he was and that he should get right with God. When people are in trouble, they aren’t interested in being told they are sinners, though they, like us, are. They want a hand offered in friendship and a listening ear. They may be willing to hear about God, but not the God that Job’s friends told him about. An avenging God who killed, maimed and brought disease to Job and his family. But, rather the New Testament God, the one who gave his only Son that we, today, may breach the wide gap that exists between God and His sinful creations, us. We are comforted so that we may be a comfort to others.
Another question I’ve considered is, Why would God be interested in us, mortals and sinners? Is he truly interested and why?
Why God is interested in us is should be obvious: Genesis 1:26 records God as saying, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness,...” After God had made man and the world in which we live, scripture records, “God saw all that he had made and it was very good.” We, you and I are made in the likeness of God. We are God’s highest handiwork. Which one of us, sinners that we are, could not look upon our children and be pleased? There is a theology which believes that God created the world and all its inhabitants than sat back to see what would happen. He has no interest in having a personal relationship with His creations. Those who believe this way are called Deists and they are wrong. Dead wrong. God wants to walk with us and to talk with us. He is vitally interested in every aspect of our lives. God lives and in Jesus Christ so do we. Paul tells us that all creation groans in anticipation and expectation of our adoption as sons and daughters of the Living God. In this sometimes hardened world, a world that most times put a premium on getting ahead regardless of who we hurt in the process, Scripture tells us to be merciful to others.
To be merciful is to offer mercy. Mercy could be defined as walking a mile in another person’s shoes before being critical of the way a person walks. Understanding, or trying to understand, why a person acts or speaks the way they do before being critical would lead us all in an attitude of
mercy. Jesus said, “Blessed are the merciful for they will be shown mercy.” To really blessed, or made happy, we must show mercy to all we encounter.
Why should I give to the church? Seems like all they do is squander the money I give them. You preachers are always asking for money? Have you every heard these questions or perhaps you’ve even had these thoughts yourself?
I know that from time to time, I wonder about giving. My wife and I tithe and then some. We give 10 percent of our gross check to the church and then we give for special projects and missions. Why do we do this? Why give to the church?
First of all, we give because we’ve been commanded to give. The idea of tithing is not new, it’s been around since the beginning of Judaism. When I was a youngster, working on the farm, many farmers set aside 10 acres and called that land, God’s acre. Whatever grew and was sold from this plot of land was dedicated to the church. Today, that practice has fallen out of favor. Scriptures teach us that the worker is worth his pay. In Paul’s day, he worked at tentmaking so as not to be a burden to his baby Christians. Today, the pastor is generally working full-time for the church -- making house calls, calling on the sick in the hospitals, studying to prepare a sermon, administering the business of the church. All of this requires an income of some sort. More importantly, is the upkeep of God’s church and that’s not just the building but the congreagation. We give to church to see that God’s work on this earth is taken care of. If some of the money is occasionally misused - well, we’ll let God take care of that problem. We have also have Jesus’ own words on this matter: “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. (Luke 6:38)”
And the biggest question of all has haunted me for years until I came to understand the answer.
Why the cross?
This is the foundation of the church. Jesus died as a substitional sacrifice for you and me, as a way for us to be able to bridge the gap between ourselves and God. We are sinners, unclean, and Jesus knew nearly 2,000 years ago we would need a way to get home to God with joy and peace. He could have come down from the cross, but in doing that, he would have acknowledged His inability to be God. Jesus loves us so much that He willingly gave up his life to insure each of us, you and I, would have a path back home. I’m so grateful to the Father that the Son lived and died that I can’t really find the words to thank Him.
I hope these answers help you. Thinking about the questions and the answers have helped me.
Amen
