I have a frequent habit of thinking like a pagan when it comes to God.
Seriously.
We may not realise it, but so often what we believe about God isn’t taken from the bible at all, but is the result of a culture obsessed with power.
Our ideas about God are often seeded with influences that look more like Zeus – or the New Avengers – than the God revealed to us in the New Testament.
Well meaning Christians will often say things like ‘God is all powerful’ and ‘he is in control’, or ‘it’s all part of Gods plan’, but the problem with saying these things to people who are suffering, or struggling with the realities of brokenness and evil, is that pastorally it rarely helps, and its not actually the full picture.
I would go as far as to suggest that if any conception of Gods power does not look shamefully weak and foolish, then it is not the true biblical concept of Gods power.
If we are to understand anything of the character and power of God, it will be through this lens.
The cross wasn’t just a one off expression of weakness where God briefly displayed his vulnerable side and then went back to being all powerful. Rather, the cross is the purest, most visible and most effective expression not just of Gods love but of his power!
Here’s the thing.
Ever since the fall (the catastrophic events described in Genesis 3 – not the American word for autumn 🙂 in which we decided to know ‘good and evil’ independent from God, we have had an addiction to power and an addiction to control.
As a result, we project our own ideas of power and control onto God. We view God as a micro manager and see him through the lens of our own addictions. We think he is doing what we would do if we were in control.
The scriptures emphasise how wrong we are to think like this. 1Cor1:25 tells us ‘The foolishness of God is greater than the wisdom of the wise’. We are intrinsically ‘self’ centred – with a few exceptions, whereas God is intrinsically ‘other’ centred’ – with no exception.
Why is the cross such a victory? Why is it the power of God. How can such power be expressed through such weakness? It looks so utterly weak and foolish.
Just imagine if any powerful politician – or even a God – were to outline their action plan to overcome their enemies through handing themselves over to them for their own public humiliation and slow execution – and with their dying breathe to pray forgiveness for those executioners… revealing how much they loved them.
We would laugh them off the stage and choose another leader. Or God. One a bit more Zeus like?