Every now and then I like to infuriate myself by reading the titles of the books in Christian book catalogs. And every time, I do indeed get properly infuriated by seeing how so many believers have fallen for a postmodern view of God-- what I call the 'God as a lottery machine' idea, where if you push all the right buttons the money comes spilling out.
People today are obsessed with their 'rights;' they think that if they do everything they are supposed to do then God is obliged to bless them, end of conversation. And if, after coloring inside the lines, so to speak, they do not consider themselves properly blessed, they buy books such as "How To Hear From God" (Ooooh, I see! An owner's manual! How nice.) or "When God Doesn't Answer Your Prayer" (Because heaven knows, we can't take "no" for an answer! We followed the instructions, after all. . . .)
This is an easy trap to fall into-- I think we all probably catch ourselves thinking this way from time to time. I know I certainly do. But we must remember that God is not obliged to give us 'answers,' and He is not beholden to us for following His laws. Rather we are beholden to Him for more things than I could ever find time to mention. He is the Creator, the King, the Savior, the Judge.
Not the Lottery Machine.
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2 comments:
So true. I've used a vending machine analogy myself- with a Lottery Machine there is at least an element of chance. With a vending machine view of God, people 'name it and claim it,' and assume that God is now obligated to deliver the selection.
I agree with fa-so-la-la on this one greatly. You can't put it more simply than, God is the one that gives us 'rights' to think about and that he has power to LET us have them or not. God has no obligations or 'appointments' to meet or regulations. He made regulations, we just can't follow them.
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