Who is God Anyway? Part 1

Originally posted 23 March 2008:

I am a Christian. Not ashamed to say that nor would I hide the fact from anyone I encounter. My husband, on the other hand, is not and has recently completed reading Richard Dawkins' "The God Delusion". The premise of the book is simply this; there is no proof that God exists, and so the conclusion is that He cannot. Richard Dawkin's seeks scientific proof of His existence. So the hypothesis "Does God exist?" must be proven using various 'real world' tests.

In conjunction with this publication, Richard Dawkins also completed a documentary entitled "Root of all Evil" in which he continues to 'prove' that there is no God by interviewing certain members of various religious groups and asking pertinent questions. The questions Mr Dawkin's poses are valid; some of which should be answered with sober thought and Godly wisdom. Others will always elude us as God never intended us to know "EVERYTHING".

In the "Root of all Evil" Mr Dawkin's spends considerable time 'proving' his hypothesis that God and Religion cause more problems on the planet than they solve, and regrettably I would have to agree here. He states that God and religion are the reason(s) behind most wars and conflicts and if God truly exists then why does He allow these wars to continue? If God is all-powerful, Richard implies, then why doesn't He just immediately intervene and stop them?

The simple answer to this question is that God GAVE the human race dominion over the earth and He gave us free-will. Therefore, He simply cannot intervene as this would take away our free-will and the associated responsibilities that free-will gives us (i.e. to manage the planet and our lives wisely). He can, of course, intervene if we ask Him (now you may be thinking at this point, well lots of people pray etc.; but biblically God cannot help in your situation unless you have a 'real' relationship with Him and live according to His principles).

So the next obvious question is WHICH God is the one true God? The Jewish, Muslim, Christian, New Age, Buddhist etc.???? As these various factions, flavours and versions of God have caused His followers to bicker amongst themselves, claiming that they are better than everyone else and right.

Mr Dawkin's raises serious questions. If God exists, why is there so much pain and suffering?

Why is the God portrayed in most of the Old Testament a figure of retribution and destruction, when Christ clearly states in His two New Testament Commandments "Love the Lord, with ALL your heart....." and "Love your neighbour as yourself" (i.e. treat the people you encounter in your every day life with the same respect you would like to be treated), and the New Testament talks about LOVE often throughout the text?

The Bible also states that God is the same, yesterday, today and forever, so therefore there cannot be a different version of God in the Old and New Testaments, they have to be the same.

These are valid questions, and there are many, many more; and I believe that these in particular need answers, and regrettably our religious leaders are shying away from this type of probing. So does the standard Christian rhetoric that it takes a "leap of faith" cut it? Why do Christians act in a pious manner, judging others, when Jesus Himself said "take the plank out of your own eye, before examining the spec in your neighbours" (paraphrased) - basically don't judge (worse still Jesus goes on to say "Judge not, or you will be judged with the SAME portion that you judged others by [again paraphrased]).

Ultimately, my hope in this blog is to explore some of the God Questions. Why does God elude us? Why do different 'flavours' of the same religion (particularly Christianity which includes, but is not limited to, Catholicism, Anglican, Baptist, Assemblies of God), have different perspectives on Gods nature and the Bible itself. Why do, for one example only, Catholics pray to Mother Mary, when the Bible clearly states to pray to the Father directly, in the righteousness of Jesus (He died for our sins, and so we are able to come directly before the Father) by the Holy Spirit (i.e. not just speaking idly with our own words but relying on the Holy Spirit to intercede - again, hopefully I may be able to explain things further as this blogs progresses)?

There is little proof that God exists and none of this proof satisfies the scientific community.

So who is God? Jesus taught that God is love. He is our Father (in the purest sense of the word, Father) and He loves us unconditionally (unconditionally means without condition, so we cannot prove ourselves to God, we do not need to do anything [strive], other than love Him and have a relationship with Him, it is by grace alone). Getting to know God takes building a relationship so that He becomes less elusive over time.

This takes a commitment on our part to acknowledge Him and seek Him, thus the ultimate proof that Atheists require can never be attained as they may never reach the decision to "get to know Him", and thus find Him. However, with my meager understanding, coupled with the lessons I've learned in my walk with God, I hope that I may start to dispel some of the mystery.