RE: My Christian Faith - A Favorite Analogy
Interesting analogy regarding debt and the payment of it. I'm personally not a believer, but I do like to explore the beliefs of various religions. Can you explain what you mean when you say:
we have nothing God wants
Pulling from pop culture, I've always heard there was a fierce battle going on between God and the Devil for our souls. Does God not want our soul? Is that not worth anything to him?
Barring that even, does God not want us? Just to spend time with us or be with us, like a parent wants to spend time with a child? I guess your statement (and I could be reading too much into it - I'm an English major after all) just sounds rather defeatist to me, as if we have no worth at all, but rather have to somehow bribe God to let us stick around.
I certainly don't expect you to know the mind of God, but I do like to hear perspectives different from my own. What are your thoughts?
Hey @mattifer, happy to explain more! I agree, learning about other people's beliefs is fascinating. Even within the broad spectrum of "Christianity" there is a staggering array of beliefs and interpretations. That's actually the subject of a post I'd love to do one day, but it's such a mammoth undertaking that I wonder if I'll ever get there...
But on to your question! The quote about "not having anything God wants" was just meant in the context of payment for our debts. To continue my analogy... so just like the people at the bank might really appreciate those cookies you made for them, or their 5k that you participated in, or the fact that you referred some customers, it's not worth anything towards the debt you owe them.
I believe that God wants a personal relationship with each and every one of us while we are alive, and he wants us to join him in his presence when we die. Unfortunately for us, in order to be in his presence we need to be blameless, and that's impossible once you've done a single bad thing. So even though he wants us to join him, we have nothing he wants as payment for our debts. We don't measure up to his standard, and so we can't be in his presence. Does that make more sense?
To expand a little on what he wants while we're on earth, and to your point about the nature of the relationship, the Bible uses three analogies that I like in order to depict the kind of relationship he wants. First, as parent/child. Us seeking his guidance. Confiding in him. Asking him for help. Obeying. Second, as husband/wife (under the model of traditional gender roles, haha). Submissive. Faithful. Dedicated. Affectionate. Finally as shepherd/sheep. Reliant. Dependent. Trusting. Owned.
The beautiful thing about Christianity, in my opinion, is that your relationship with God is your own. It's not corporate (part of the reason Catholicism is not for me - too much "I'll take your message and let God know" for my tastes). It's personal and you get out what you put into it. If you talk to a friend every day, that relationship will thrive. If you talk to God every day, through prayer and reading the Bible, I believe your relationship with him will thrive. And I believe God wants this kind of relationship with each and ever human on the planet. Including you, by the way :)
Thanks for taking the time to write a thorough response. I appreciate that. I see what you mean a bit better now.
Think of a home mortgage with a balloon payment. The home is legally yours, there is some value but when the final payment is due, the remaining total must be paid. We will all fall short at the end, an inch or a mile makes no difference. God calls us in our free will to accept His gift of salvation - that is what HE wants. He did not create robots to act as programmed.
Blessings to you.
And I LOVE the old Hymns as well.
That's an interesting analogy...but as a real estate agent I'd recommend staying far away from mortgages that involve balloon payments. You're right though - most people can't afford that final payment!