Good Sense

Is our God a vengeful God?

The Lord your God you shall fear; him you shall serve, and by his name alone you shall swear. Do not follow other gods, any of the gods of the peoples who are all around you, because the Lord your God, who is present with you, is a jealous God. The anger of the Lord your God would be kindled against you and he would destroy you from the face of the earth. - Deuteronomy 6:13-15

Today's Old Testament reading paints a picture of God that is a lot like the image I was taught when I was young.  It is the image of a God who will punish us in this life if we screw up.

We don't like to think of God that way anymore, or at least I don't see God that way anymore.  I see a forgiving and loving God, one who may get angry with me, with us, but tries to urge us to come back to Him.

Now does that mean bad things won't happen to us if we screw up?

I don't think we can avoid the bad, nor can we always expect the good.  What comes our way may come regardless of how well we obey God, but what we can rely on is God's help either way.

So, it is just common sense to do all we can to serve God and to be like God, since it is God who is there for us always. 

Does that mean we have to fear God?  As a child, fear was an excellent motivator, but as an adult, I believe love is stronger than fear.  It is from love that we act in accordance with God's will, even if we don't know what that will is.

Today, I will try to act not out of fear but out of love, and I will revel in the fact that it just makes good sense. 

Care to join me?

More to come...