Our Irrational God

So I am really into food.  But often times for one reason or another, I am chowing down without thinking about what I am eating. Just chomping away at the plentiful bounty on my plate. I finish eating and the only thing that is satisfied is that my stomach is now full and now longer empty. I guess that is okay, it goes along with the saying, "eat to live, not live to eat". But there is a big difference between what I have just described and the experiences of savoring your favorite meal!

My all time favorite meal, is a steamed Maine lobster at my favorite Lobster shack in southern Maine. I will never eat one of those puppies, without thinking about the taste, the aroma, and texture! I marvel over God, that He would make food taste so good , something that is a basic need in which we would do anyway in order to survive, yet he designed it to be pleasurable (please, no theological debates on whether God intended us to eat Lobster. I am aware of the Jewish laws prohibiting the consumption of shellfish). I mean think about it, the muscle of an animal actually TASTES GOOD! Isn't that kind of weird. However, I am not writing this blog in order to encourage us to stop and think about our food. I want to try and relate the opposing experiences of eating to our relationship with God.

So many times, especially those who have grown up around the church and the message of the Gospel, we forget how crazy and pleasurable God's love is; and therefor find seasons in where it is difficult to worship and praise. I know we know God so loved the World that he gave up his one and only Son so that we may have everlasting life, but do we get how radical and weird that is. I mean the Words of God have told us that we all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. No matter what our attempts are, our effort is a miserable attempt to be holy and live to Gods standard. Gods own word says that we are filthy and sinful, which sin in itself is something God himself detests. Yet, God was so in love with me, and so in love with my wife, and so in love with you and everyone you know, that he covered all of our crap by sending Jesus, his own Son, to die in the most miserable way taking our full punishment, so that He may be with our wretched selves!!! And on top of all of this, HE WANTED TO! He longed for the chance to stand beside me while I struggled to give up lust. He wants to patiently love you and help you while you let go of your sinful nature. He wanted and has always wanted us, you and I, and all of the baggage we come with! Now you have to admit to yourself, our God is crazy in a beautiful way.

The best description of this love is in Ephesians 1: 3-9 (ESV)

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ

Before the foundation of the World, it was Jesus' want and logical decision to shed his blood, be separated from Heaven and God (who is all light and love) to save us because he loved us. This makes no sense and I am so grateful we serve a God who thinks the way he does. His wisdom is not ours and lets praise Him for that.

In His love,
Cory