“It is a fact that Christians often feel that God is not close to them”.

This “little” fact dawned on me three weeks ago when reading “Let God Be God”. It dawned on me as an outcome of that book outlining Luther’s theology that ALL questions boil down to this is some form or another, “what is God’s will, heart or disposition toward me the sinner…” or some variant of that. That from this without Christ ALL is idolatry, stunningly enough, contrived from other qualities of God be it sovereignty, righteousness, that He is and so forth. But none of those answer the “what is God’s disposition toward me”. Luther likens it to a man we know some things about but not his disposition toward us, ill or good, so we “make it up an assessment of that man” (like idolatry) that is fallen. We say, “if I was God…”. Yet, when we see Christ FOR US/ME in the Word and Sacraments, then we have God’s heart and disposition toward sinners…we actually HAVE and KNOW for real THE GOD that is and not the idol of Him we’ve made up out of other essences of Him. To know His selfless love via the revelation of Christ FOR US, Gospel, is to know God and be known by God. Or as Luther put it “loose the revealed God, loose the hidden God also”. It’s a stunning thing!

In the book they ask why Satan couldn’t see the deity behind the incarnate flesh. Because the devil being the archtype of fallen man, that inherent doer and legalist of the law being UNDER the Law couldn’t see that THAT could be God…because his, and our, fallen love “assessment” of God with some retention of His other attributes would be a God that would punish and not forgive, much less give Himself over for the unlovable and unattractive, the sinner. BUT in paradox THAT IS God! If Jesus had come to punish sinners then, He would have been exalted AS God because that fit the bill of Satan and fallen man’s religion, a “love” that loves only that which is lovable and attractive, selfish love. But God’s love is altruistic and utterly devoid of self love and is selfless purely. Thus, when Jesus said He came to forgive sinners, well that surely could not have been God according to Satan and Satan’s children, the merit mongers.

All our struggles boil down to that: “It is a fact that Christians often feel that God is not close to them”, what’s His will and disposition toward me? That’s why we need afresh weekly Christ in Word and Sacrament, to KNOW THIS Gospel and God for me. Then I can go on and cheerfully serve my neighbor throughout the week in all my callings. If God’s revealed disposition is “I forgive you and have done all for you”, then what need do I have of my works? None! Pass them on to the neighbor! That question, “It is a fact that Christians often feel that God is not close to them”, EVEN lurks under the terror I once struggled with in deep deep darkness for years, “Am I predestine/elected.” After reading that book it dawned on me that THAT is the same question just being asked differently, “Am I predestined/elected” = “It is a fact that Christians often feel that God is not close to them” = “What is God’s will, heart and disposition toward me”. That’s at the VERY root of it. Outside of Christ, one cannot know, but fixed on Christ in Word and Sacrament that comes TO ME, God’s work (it’s crucial to see it as God’s work via the pastors hand not the pastors or mine), then I have the answer and predestination and election serve the Gospel. Again, as Luther says, loose the revealed God and you loose the hidden God with Him.

I begin to see more and more Luther’s point on the sacraments even above say Calvin on this as I grow older in the faith. The sacraments as an expression of God’s will TO YOU is powerful Gospel, very powerful, in fact life giving and sustaining. In a sense when we ask “what is God’s will, heart and disposition toward us” the answer can almost be simply said, “What more would God have had to say than incarnate His Word which is His heart and spoke through the Word and Sacraments to the same end”, what more would you (or I) have Him say to us/me to know His will?” It’s simple, but hard to “get in the blood”! Well, it’s impossible without the Word and Sacraments continually coming to us.

EVERY day in this life we are constantly asking in our minds and hearts either explicitly or implicitly, “It is a fact that Christians often feel that God is not close to them”, or “What is His will, disposition or heart toward me EVEN now/today…seeing how I still failed yet AGAIN!”

Blessings,

Larry KY