the unknown god: how the real bible god is hidden by unbiblical views among us religious people

THE UNKNOWN GOD: How The Real Bible God is Hidden By

Unbiblical Views Among Us Religious People

"But, mother," said I, "do you really believe that the soul sleeps in the grave until the resurrection? Do you think that the Christian, when he dies, does not go immediately to heaven, nor the sinner to hell?"

She answered: "The Bible gives us no proof that there is an eternally burning hell. If there is such a place, it should be mentioned in the Sacred Book."

IMAGES OF GOD AND THEIR EFFECTS ON US: Part 1—E.G. White’s Early Struggle With Hell

(from Sketches of Life, chapter 3)

ELLEN G. WHITE (CONTINUED)

“Why, mother!" cried I, in astonishment, "this is strange talk for you! If you believe this strange theory, do not let any one know of it; for I fear that sinners would gather security from this

belief, and never desire to seek the Lord."

"If this is sound Bible truth," she replied, "instead of preventing the salvation of sinners, it will be the means of winning them to Christ.

ELLEN G. WHITE (END OF SKETCHES OF LIFE QUOTE)

If the love of God will not induce the rebel to yield, the terrors of an eternal hell will not drive him to repentance. Besides, it does not seem a proper way to win souls to Jesus by appealing to one of the lowest attributes of the mind,--abject fear. The love of Jesus attracts; it will subdue the hardest heart.“

ELLEN G. WHITE (CONTINUED): TESTIMONIES FOR THE CHURCH, VOL. 1, PP. 23-26

In my mind the justice of God eclipsed His mercy and love. I had been taught to believe in an eternally burning hell, and the horrifying thought was ever before me that my sins were too great to be forgiven, and that I should be forever lost. The frightful descriptions that I had heard of souls in perdition sank deep into my mind. Ministers in the pulpit drew vivid pictures of the condition of the lost…


Our heavenly Father was presented before my mind as a tyrant, who delighted in the agonies of the condemned; not the tender, pitying Friend of sinners, who loves His creatures with a love past all understanding and desires them to be saved in His kingdom…

Perhaps my sympathies were more easily excited by suffering because I myself had been the victim of thoughtless cruelty, resulting in the injury that had darkened my childhood. But when the thought took possession of my mind that God delighted in the torture of His creatures, who were formed in His image, a wall of darkness seemed to separate me from Him.


When I reflected that the Creator of the universe would plunge the wicked into hell, there to burn through the ceaseless rounds of eternity, my heart sank with fear, and I despaired that so cruel and tyrannical a being would ever condescend to save me from the doom of sin.


I have since thought that many inmates of insane asylums were brought there by experiences similar to my own. Their consciences were stricken with a sense of sin, and their trembling faith dared not claim the promised pardon of God. They listened to descriptions of the orthodox hell until it seemed to curdle the very blood in their veins, and burned an impression upon the tablets of their memory.


Waking or sleeping, the frightful picture was ever before them, until reality became lost in imagination, and they saw only the wreathing flames of a fabulous hell, and heard only the shrieking of the doomed. Reason became dethroned, and the brain was filled with the wild phantasy of a terrible dream. Those who teach the doctrine of an eternal hell would do well to look more closely after their authority for so cruel a belief.

When we examine our private images of God and discover significant distortions, we may feel horrified at the thought that we could harbor such negative images of God. Viewing God in negative ways may seem unacceptable and frightening. In spite of our fears, however, I believe it is critical that we explore our private images of God. I believe this is important for several reasons.

ON HOW OUR PRIVATE VIEWS/IMAGES OF GOD AFFECT US: THE NATIONAL

ASSOCIATION FOR CHRISTIAN RECOVERY

First, our private images of God can have a powerful impact on our behaviors, even without our conscious awareness. The woman who described God as a bully with a club was paralyzed by this image. Her private images of God kept her from leaving a violently abusive relationship. She was afraid that if she left, she would be punished by God. We need to explore our images of God because they can keep us locked in self destructive behaviors.



A second reason for giving attention to our private images of God is that they profoundly impact our spiritual well-being. When our images of God are distorted, our whole relationship with God can become distorted. We may secretly spend our lives cringing, hiding and running from God – or anxiously performing to earn God’s approval. If we have highly negative images of God we will most likely experience a great deal of spiritual distress.



A third reason to pay attention to our images of God is that they are related to our images of ourselves. It has been my observation that for every distortion a person has of God there is usually a corresponding self-distortion. If we see God as a vengeful, punishing God, we are likely to see ourselves as bad and as deserving of punishment. If we see God as a person with impossible expectations, then we will likely see ourselves as a failure or as not good enough.



When I present this material in workshop settings I often ask participants to provide details of the image of God as a bully. Groups of pastors, missionaries and mental health professionals have all been able to quickly fill in this image, because it is such a personally familiar image . The description I have heard goes something like this: God is big; he is angry for some unknown reason; he is demanding and sadistic; you can never be sure if you’ve pleased him; he carries a club or a two-by-four that he intends to use; he is scowling so that his face is red and contorted; he is unapproachable.



Fortunately, the Bible is rich in powerful and helpful imagery about God. God is pictured in Scripture as King, Shepherd, Comforter, Counselor, Healer, Helper, to name a few. These images from Scripture can provide a dramatic contrast to our disturbing images. Contrast, for example, the image of God as a bully with this description of God as both a powerful ruler and as a tender, gentle shepherd:



You who bring good tidings to Zion

go up on a high mountain.

You who bring good tidings to Jerusalem,

lift up your voice with a shout,

lift it up, do not be afraid;

say to the towns of Judah,

‘Here is your God!’

See the Sovereign Lord comes with power,

and his arm rules for him.

See, his reward is with him



and his recompense accompanies him.

He tends his flock like a shepherd;

He gathers the lambs in his arms

and carries them close to his heart;

he gently leads those that have young.

Isaiah 40:9-11



Bibliography:

The work on this slide is taken from

1.E.G. White, Sketches of Life, chapter 3

2.E.G. White, Testimonies for the Church, vol. 1, pp. 23-26) via the internet

3.The National Association for Christian Recovery

via their website http://www.nacr.org/wordpress/142/recovery-from-distorted-images-of-god-seeing-god-in-new-ways-recovery-from-distorted-images-of-god

TIME FOR DISCUSSION: QUESTIONS, COMNMENTS,

PROBLEMS/SOLUTIONS/VIEWS, BIBLE TEXTS..

http://www.nacr.org/wordpress/142/recovery-from-distorted-images-of-god-seeing-god-in-new-ways-recovery-from-distorted-images-of-god



the unknown god: how the real bible god is hidden by unbiblical views among us religious people

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