But let all who take refuge in you rejoice.

 

Saturday, September 2, 2023


Psalms 5; 6

1 Kings 2:13-27

Acts 23:1-11


Observance: Lucian Tapiedi and the Martyrs of Papua New Guinea


But let all who take refuge in you rejoice.


When you think about how God is spirit, what is the mental image that comes to mind? We do so very much like to talk about how God is incorporeal and immaterial. But does that run the risk of our understanding of God as being less than something? We are material; so does that mean God, being immaterial, is like us, just missing the physical bits? C. S. Lewis observed that this type of language, while technically correct, causes us to subconsciously miss out on the true wonder of God’s nature. He suggests that we need a different prefix: rather than immaterial, God is transmaterial, or supermaterial. God is not so much incorporeal as supercorporeal. Where we live, in this world that is a shadow of God’s glory, the original image that is casting that shadow is just like ours, but supremely more wonderful.


This understanding helps combat our tendency to think of God as being far too busy with other, more important issues than to worry about our little prayers for help. Where a human being can only worry about so many things at once, God is supercapable, and is concerned about everything, all at the same time. Or as David sang in the fifth Psalm, a song for us to sing for ourselves: “Lord, in the morning you will hear my voice”.


Another human limitation is our seemingly finite amount of loving care. Take, for example, all the money in the world. Each one of us has been given a small amount of that money to steward. This means we have to make hard choices: do we bless our family; the missionary in Burma; the church in the bush; the people printing Bibles underground in China; the people digging wells in Central Africa? Is this how God works, just on a larger scale?


If God is the original image of which we are the shadow, then God is not loving, but superloving. God is not generous as we know it; God is supergenerous. All who take refuge in the Lord rejoice, and shout forever with joy. Not some who take refuge, and with a limited quota of joyous shouts, but all, and forever. God surrounds us with favour like a shield; not favouring just a few things here and there, but everything. We are surrounded, forever, with the blessing of God’s favour. His superblessing; His superfavour.

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