Who Really is the Father of Lights?
I saw an ad for a film called Father of Lights. Don't know much about it, but was intrigued because the term is a name for God in the New Testament. So I went to the website about the film, and found a piece written by someone responsible for it who says this is the third film in a series that is supposed to tell us who God is really. Apparently the film shows all kinds of awesome things happening to people, and this proves that God is loving and kind and giving and gracious and because of all that...
He definitely then isn't
Angry.
It wasn't just that the writer said this, but he said in that pukifyingly humanist way, you know, "We must get rid of that Neanderthal idea that God is wrathful, which is just so ridiculous and no enlightened person really believes that anymore."
I read this and, yes, got a little angry. I get a bit ticked about these kinds of statements because they themselves are so idiotic. For one, the guy writes with such anger himself. Now I'm fine with that, anger is a simple, natural, profound, and yes, quite useful human emotion. But for him to be angry at people who say God is an angry God sort of undermines his claim.
But the most important thing is that his categorical declaration, "God is not angry," is patently false, if one takes what they think about God from the Bible. I'm sorry, but most of what anyone believes about God being loving and kind and all the rest of it comes from the Bible. No other philosophy, theology, teachings, narrative, metanarrative, mentality, or world view comes close to holding the real depth of rich meaning that "God is love."
The Father of Lights guy can try to make a case for God's love and kindness and all from some other source, but it pales in comparison to the Bible. And if he does employ the Bible as a defense for his claim "God is not angry," then he's light-years off the mark.
I could reference dozens of places where God is clearly wrathful, but one I'll point out is Psalm 78. If you read it, you simply can't miss it. But I share Psalm 78 because in and around his wrath you'll see something really amazing...
That God is still merciful.
See, the Father of Lights guy is so brainwashed by humanist doctrine that he can't fathom a God who is both angry and merciful. I believe that is because he knows his sin condemns him to judgment and eternal separation from God. So he must make up a fairy-tale God instead of doing the one simple thing that would actually bring him into God's favor in spite of His anger.
And that, for the umpteen-gazillionth time, is putting one's trust in Jesus Christ who is God's divine expression of mercy to rescue those who are objects of His wrath, namely you and me. But the Father of Lights guy and millions like him are so deaf and blind to this simple truth that it is the ugliest sounding foreign language.
Even the best churches get caught up in it. I saw a pithy church marquee saying that went, "Holding on to anger is like taking poison and expecting the other person to die." Very insightful indeed -- I like the quote and I do understand that it is making a point about acting inappropriately on anger or letting anger turn into bitterness. I got it.
But I also think one thing grafted churches do far too often is emasculate themselves and eviscerate the spiritual virility they could have for Christ. The marquee saying is also telling everyone in a very subtle way: "We church people keep our anger bottled up inside because World operatives tell us not to be angry because it is just so unseemly. This keeps us from looking mean and yet at the same time makes us weak-willed mutes."
So yeah, here's a good word for anger. I write this blog because yeah, I'm a little angry at widely broadcast moronic statements, especially because they help send people to hell. I blog because maybe someone will read this web writing and see their "I'm mad as hell and not going to take it anymore" urges are perfectly normal.
The real question is, what do we do with those wrathful sentiments? Do we join up with the people of "The Cause" whatever it is and the Father of Lights people and the cool government people like Barack Obama and shake our fists rather forcefully (and wrathfully I might add) at whatever we don't like?
Or do we leave justice in the hands of God (and his instruments of judgment that the Father of Lights guy is merely a part of) and go over to another place where mercy is found for people who are very rightly objects of wrath because of our sin?
Namely, the Kingdom?
That's where Jesus is.
No, not the "church" Jesus who's just one of the "righteous cause" dudes.
But The Jesus.
_
Okay, so here's another plug for my webzine on which I put a new home page piece with a new video! Awright! You can check out for yourself if I've got down who this Jesus guy is. If you don't think I do, that's cool. Keep seeking Him, He'll let you find Him. But no matter how many of God's phenomenal acts of mercy the Father of Lights guys cherry-pick in their film, if they say stuff that dismisses the very real wrath of God in and around all of it, you won't find Him there.
He definitely then isn't
Angry.
It wasn't just that the writer said this, but he said in that pukifyingly humanist way, you know, "We must get rid of that Neanderthal idea that God is wrathful, which is just so ridiculous and no enlightened person really believes that anymore."
I read this and, yes, got a little angry. I get a bit ticked about these kinds of statements because they themselves are so idiotic. For one, the guy writes with such anger himself. Now I'm fine with that, anger is a simple, natural, profound, and yes, quite useful human emotion. But for him to be angry at people who say God is an angry God sort of undermines his claim.
But the most important thing is that his categorical declaration, "God is not angry," is patently false, if one takes what they think about God from the Bible. I'm sorry, but most of what anyone believes about God being loving and kind and all the rest of it comes from the Bible. No other philosophy, theology, teachings, narrative, metanarrative, mentality, or world view comes close to holding the real depth of rich meaning that "God is love."
The Father of Lights guy can try to make a case for God's love and kindness and all from some other source, but it pales in comparison to the Bible. And if he does employ the Bible as a defense for his claim "God is not angry," then he's light-years off the mark.
I could reference dozens of places where God is clearly wrathful, but one I'll point out is Psalm 78. If you read it, you simply can't miss it. But I share Psalm 78 because in and around his wrath you'll see something really amazing...
That God is still merciful.
See, the Father of Lights guy is so brainwashed by humanist doctrine that he can't fathom a God who is both angry and merciful. I believe that is because he knows his sin condemns him to judgment and eternal separation from God. So he must make up a fairy-tale God instead of doing the one simple thing that would actually bring him into God's favor in spite of His anger.
And that, for the umpteen-gazillionth time, is putting one's trust in Jesus Christ who is God's divine expression of mercy to rescue those who are objects of His wrath, namely you and me. But the Father of Lights guy and millions like him are so deaf and blind to this simple truth that it is the ugliest sounding foreign language.
Even the best churches get caught up in it. I saw a pithy church marquee saying that went, "Holding on to anger is like taking poison and expecting the other person to die." Very insightful indeed -- I like the quote and I do understand that it is making a point about acting inappropriately on anger or letting anger turn into bitterness. I got it.
But I also think one thing grafted churches do far too often is emasculate themselves and eviscerate the spiritual virility they could have for Christ. The marquee saying is also telling everyone in a very subtle way: "We church people keep our anger bottled up inside because World operatives tell us not to be angry because it is just so unseemly. This keeps us from looking mean and yet at the same time makes us weak-willed mutes."
So yeah, here's a good word for anger. I write this blog because yeah, I'm a little angry at widely broadcast moronic statements, especially because they help send people to hell. I blog because maybe someone will read this web writing and see their "I'm mad as hell and not going to take it anymore" urges are perfectly normal.
The real question is, what do we do with those wrathful sentiments? Do we join up with the people of "The Cause" whatever it is and the Father of Lights people and the cool government people like Barack Obama and shake our fists rather forcefully (and wrathfully I might add) at whatever we don't like?
Or do we leave justice in the hands of God (and his instruments of judgment that the Father of Lights guy is merely a part of) and go over to another place where mercy is found for people who are very rightly objects of wrath because of our sin?
Namely, the Kingdom?
That's where Jesus is.
No, not the "church" Jesus who's just one of the "righteous cause" dudes.
But The Jesus.
_
Okay, so here's another plug for my webzine on which I put a new home page piece with a new video! Awright! You can check out for yourself if I've got down who this Jesus guy is. If you don't think I do, that's cool. Keep seeking Him, He'll let you find Him. But no matter how many of God's phenomenal acts of mercy the Father of Lights guys cherry-pick in their film, if they say stuff that dismisses the very real wrath of God in and around all of it, you won't find Him there.
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