Why is God hiding? Part 2

So God hides!! And only fully reveals himself in special circumstances to special people. But has he ever revealed himself fully to us? Even more than in this conversation with Job? Or are we missing who he really is?

That is how I ended my earlier post entitled "Why Does God Hide?" It leads two two questions:

1. Is God REALLY hiding?

and

2. Has he ever fully revealed Himself?

Let me be straight and direct on the first question. Is God REALLY hiding? The direct answer is, of course, yes. God really is hiding. His creation hints at who he is and that he exists. But it isn't direct in revealing him.

In fact--at all points in time for the Christian SINCE the ascension--some faith is required to "see" God. Maybe it's easier when miracles really happen. Maybe the spirit convicts and convinces us in an undeniable way. But it doesn't take long before we're fully dependent on trusting God.

That's for all of us, not just some of us.

But some of us get a special "blessing." God not only isn't visible, but life's pain makes us question the validity of simple promises:

^{Matthew 6:30-32 NIV}If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? ³¹So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' ³²For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.

^{Matthew 7:9-11}"Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? ¹⁰Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? ¹¹If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!

^{Mark 5:35-36 NIV}While Jesus was still speaking, some men came from the house of Jairus, the synagogue ruler. "Your daughter is dead," they said. "Why bother the teacher any more?"

³⁶Ignoring what they said, Jesus told the synagogue ruler, "Don't be afraid; just believe."

Or for that matter:

^{Matthew 5:10-12 NIV}Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

¹¹"Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. ¹²Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Do I trust each of those promises at this point at face value? I'll be honest. No. In isolation each of these verses has been quoted to me as a "reminder" of how God works and essentially each quote was a judgement of my faith. The people doing the quoting were churchgoers. I'm absolutely certain that they intended what they said for good.

But I think the simplest interpreation of each of these verses may not be what God intended. Each, of course, occurs in a bigger context.

Was Jesus saying regardless of difficult circumstances "don't worry"? After all, don't birds still fall from the sky even if God knows WHEN that happens? Isn't life terrifically cruel at times? And doesn't God ALLOW it to be that way?

As I noted in the first part of this post, that certainly happened to Job. Can I ask a horrifying question? What if Job had followed his friends' advice, admitted that the unbelievable difficulty in his life was HIS FAULT, and repented of his unbelief/sin?

Well...the first thing is that Job's friends would have seduced Job into believing a lie. After all, God said that his friends LIED about God while God said that Job told the truth. What lie is God accusing them of?

If you can answer that question, I believe you will understand why God hides. If you understand the people who lie about God's nature, then you will understand the TRUTH of God's nature.

So what do you think was going through their heads as they accused Job of sin? We know it was a lie...and we KNOW who the father of lies is...what was he telling them?

May I suggest that Satan was whispering this to them:

"THERE you go...now you have proof. Despite the fact that Job SEEMED righteous, he is really NO BETTER THAN YOU."

Wow...think about Satan's fall....and think about Eve & Adam's temptation...think about the temptation of Jesus. They all revolve around the same idea: that someone can through their own actions put themselves on the same plane as someone righteous. Satan thought he was like God. He offered to Eve and to Adam that THEY could be like God. He offered Jesus dominion over Satan's kingdoms if he would only accept Satan's dominion over him.

And Satan's friends clearly were trying to tell Job that he was just like them...that he hadn't done enough to claim righteousness. That he should admit that he was unsaveable.

But in one verse Job sweeps away ALL of his friends comments and sings God's true nature for all of time:

^{Job 19:25-28 NIV} I know that my Redeemer lives,
and that in the end he will stand upon the earth.

²⁶ And after my skin has been destroyed,
yet in my flesh I will see God;

²⁷ I myself will see him
with my own eyes—I, and not another.
How my heart yearns within me!

There it is...we're back to the heart of the issue. This verse is approximately at the halfway point in the book of Job. Neither Satan's machinations nor God's incitement against Job can change a very simple fact: Job STILL believes that his Redeemer LIVES and that he YEARNS for that Redeemer!! He hasn't given up on God!!

What is important is not what faith reveals about GOD, but how God is revealed through faith. It isn't the information about God that is important. Difficulty reveals THAT we really believe. Once it makes clear THAT we believe and will NOT be shaken, THEN others will wonder WHAT we believe. We don't trust him BECAUSE of what he does for us. Think really hard about that...we don't TRUST him BECAUSE of what he does. We trust him because of WHO he IS. "Yahweh...I am."

The seed must be broken in order to sprout. You can't see the butterfly until the chrysalis opens. It isn't the factual information that is revealed through difficulty. It is the new creature that proves the existence of God.

Frustration? Difficulty? Can't see God? Me, too. It isn't fun. Friendships no longer there? Can barely stand to go to church? I know what you mean. Every word from the good intentioned is like a spear in the side? It's ok....

Hold on. Don't give up. Don't let go. The Hound of Heaven pursued you and took hold of you. Now YOU DON'T LET GO! Fight!! Struggle!!! Struggle with God!! (ISRAEL!!!)

Who you now are is revealed through all of this. Who are you? When God is hidden, what does it reveal about YOU???

Don't you see the difference between THIS ending and Million Dollar Baby???

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