From Simplicity to Infinity
This book is awesome! Playing catch-up a bit, I am amazed by the attention to detail and immense wisdom that Bailey has.
In this section in particular, the first chapter quickly caught a hold of me. Over summer, I read Fifty-Seven Words that Change the World by good ol' DJ with the Shasta driver team. That book illuminated crazy epiphanies just like these found in this chapter. It really is astonishing how 57 words really did shift the entire world...
A few notes:
(Let my words be few)
First off, great early 2000s Matt Redman song! Secondly, I think that one of my biggest pitfalls is over-complicating everything! Somehow, we as humans have fallen so far into the pit of great knowledge that we have to make things complicated in order to enjoy their challenges. I was just recently talking to my roommate about how some scholars preach to tell you how much they know instead of focusing on knowing the person of Jesus. The cool thing about our God is that he loves the simple! The bible is rich with illustrations of giving 2 coins vs a million is the greater tithe, or 1 sheep is more coveted than the 99, or simply touching Jesus' robe brings healing -- everything is so raw, so delicate, so simple. There's no need to fluff Jesus up because he is already infinite. He already knows the intentions of our heart and so there's no need to be wordy and complicate things. The gospel is simple, the childlike faith is simple...let's keep it simple!
(Abba breaks the mold)
Ahh such a great passage. I am enchanted by the infinite power, grace, being of Jesus Christ. I find it so oddly comforting that I'm never going to know everything about God -- that there is so much to continue seeking. We can never capture it all or comprehend such a mystery, but that shows how mighty the Lord is compared to all else. Puts into immediate perspective how tiny we are and how vast our Father is.
I really enjoyed the part where Bailey says no, obviously God is not a mother, and he is not a father either. He's Abba, He's Lord. Without giving away too much of my next point, though it's cool that we have worldly definitions of fathers and mothers to somewhat compare God to, we absolutely cannot stop there. God is so huge, there is no way he would ever be put into a box that we have created.
(Idolizing definitions/labels)
With that, I believe that by creating such man-made labels to cast on Jesus, we are instead taking our eyes off of Jesus and on to finding that perfect label for him. How about we try Alpha, Omega, Infinite God, Abba, Yahweh, Almighty! What is the sense in debating if God is more of a mother or father figure if he created everything! I love how Bailey puts us in our place here. No more idolizing definitions or labels or putting God in a box. Again, he is far more than we could every imagine.
(Prodigal son/A God that loves)
Classic bible story. The parable of the prodigal son further illustrates how beyond the mold our Father is. He breaks all stereotypes, all cultural norms, and is a God who loves...whaaaaat?! Some guy on KLove said the other day that the world cannot fathom meeting a God who loves them. There's something to say about how twisted we are to think that the role of God is to solely condemn. This book gives very interesting insight on how counter-cultural God was even back then. What a radical guy!
Tried to keep my words few here (and failed), but simply, Jesus, you are GOOD!
In this section in particular, the first chapter quickly caught a hold of me. Over summer, I read Fifty-Seven Words that Change the World by good ol' DJ with the Shasta driver team. That book illuminated crazy epiphanies just like these found in this chapter. It really is astonishing how 57 words really did shift the entire world...
A few notes:
(Let my words be few)
First off, great early 2000s Matt Redman song! Secondly, I think that one of my biggest pitfalls is over-complicating everything! Somehow, we as humans have fallen so far into the pit of great knowledge that we have to make things complicated in order to enjoy their challenges. I was just recently talking to my roommate about how some scholars preach to tell you how much they know instead of focusing on knowing the person of Jesus. The cool thing about our God is that he loves the simple! The bible is rich with illustrations of giving 2 coins vs a million is the greater tithe, or 1 sheep is more coveted than the 99, or simply touching Jesus' robe brings healing -- everything is so raw, so delicate, so simple. There's no need to fluff Jesus up because he is already infinite. He already knows the intentions of our heart and so there's no need to be wordy and complicate things. The gospel is simple, the childlike faith is simple...let's keep it simple!
(Abba breaks the mold)
Ahh such a great passage. I am enchanted by the infinite power, grace, being of Jesus Christ. I find it so oddly comforting that I'm never going to know everything about God -- that there is so much to continue seeking. We can never capture it all or comprehend such a mystery, but that shows how mighty the Lord is compared to all else. Puts into immediate perspective how tiny we are and how vast our Father is.
I really enjoyed the part where Bailey says no, obviously God is not a mother, and he is not a father either. He's Abba, He's Lord. Without giving away too much of my next point, though it's cool that we have worldly definitions of fathers and mothers to somewhat compare God to, we absolutely cannot stop there. God is so huge, there is no way he would ever be put into a box that we have created.
(Idolizing definitions/labels)
With that, I believe that by creating such man-made labels to cast on Jesus, we are instead taking our eyes off of Jesus and on to finding that perfect label for him. How about we try Alpha, Omega, Infinite God, Abba, Yahweh, Almighty! What is the sense in debating if God is more of a mother or father figure if he created everything! I love how Bailey puts us in our place here. No more idolizing definitions or labels or putting God in a box. Again, he is far more than we could every imagine.
(Prodigal son/A God that loves)
Classic bible story. The parable of the prodigal son further illustrates how beyond the mold our Father is. He breaks all stereotypes, all cultural norms, and is a God who loves...whaaaaat?! Some guy on KLove said the other day that the world cannot fathom meeting a God who loves them. There's something to say about how twisted we are to think that the role of God is to solely condemn. This book gives very interesting insight on how counter-cultural God was even back then. What a radical guy!
Tried to keep my words few here (and failed), but simply, Jesus, you are GOOD!
Lauren great stuff! Welcome to the blog =)
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