Twisted

God didn't set us up for an angry rejection but for salvation by our Master, Jesus Christ. 1 Thessalonians 5:9 (Message)

Think seriously for a minute: What is your mental picture of God? Do you have some bearded old man in mind, like a Santa Claus in a cloak? Is your God-picture smiling and happy? Or is your picture that of someone angry, pointing a finger? My picture is like an older version of the brown-haired blue-eyed anglicized Jesus artists of long ago (and not so long ago) portray. God, being the Father, looks like His son in my mind, but an older version. Accurate? Probably not. Entrenched in my brain? You bet.

Looking at this verse, I suddenly realized this is how I, and probably others, view God. This is why I doubt, this is why I have trouble believing. I, the cynical world-weary human being, accustomed to being rejected, misunderstood and beaten down in the everyday, am just waiting for this whole God-thing to turn bad. I don't want that to happen, but that is what my sin-nature brain is expecting to happen. I can't speak any more plainly than that. Am I a Christian? Of course. I can say with utmost confidence and assurance that yes, Jesus is my Savior, my King. Does that mean I never doubt, take matters into my own hands, plan without eternity in mind, act without thinking of the consequences, ...sin? No! I am human and I will do these as long as I have to breathe oxygen. But when I do these things, I can come back to this verse and be reassured that I am not being fooled by God. He is not setting me up for a gigantic cosmic joke. He can be trusted. He is not looking for a way to criticize, to condemn or to punish me. He is not setting up an ambush or waiting to ensnare me. That's not God, that is Satan! How did my view of Him, the Holy One, spotless, blameless, the embodiment of love, get so twisted? When did my Creator change to my condemner? This verse quickly corrected my view of Him.

In this Easter season, remember that the plan of Christ dying on the cross was one of love and sacrifice, and God is not waiting to reject you. He rejected Christ, so that Their plan of salvation could come to fruition, that we would not have to experience separation from Him, but could forever live in the light of His love.

God, thank you for sacrificing Your Son for me. Remind me that You are love fulfilled and perfected. Untwist my view that I may see You clearly and correctly. Amen.

Nikki Hamsher