Most of us memorized John 3:16 about the same time we learned our ABC's and that stupid Barney song. Sorry, it's probably stuck in your head now isn't it?
Unfortunately, growing up we never seemed to get to the next verse. It's a shame because John 3:17 perfectly describes divinity's heart towards humanity.
'God didn't go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again.' -Message Bible
Does that really happen? Does Jesus really put things back together or is He just a good bumper sticker, excuse to vote our own political ideas, or imaginary folk-lore persona that has birthed mass-deception. And do we really need his help? We're educated, sophisticated, experienced, and sympathetic to others, so what's with the condescending, 'I'll put the world right again.' Doesn't every consecutive generation make the world a better place by ending war, poverty, and senseless genocide?
When Nietzsche famously said, "God is dead", he was more accurately saying God is no longer relevant. Several of his works are premised on this presumption and call on mankind to find a new mode of survival. In essence, what is the fuss of religion, God, forgiveness of sin, and grace when we have evolved into an advanced species who are capable of developing our own parameters of nurture and nature.
Funny thing happened after Nietzsche eulogized God: World War I with 18.5 million soldiers and civilians dying, World War II with over 35 million soldiers and civilians dying, 6 million Jews were killed in the Holocaust, Chernobyl nuclear power plant exploded releasing one hundred times the radiation dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, violence continues in the Middle East as genocide grows in parts of Africa, and 27 million people are enslaved in modern day slavery and human trafficking.
As I write this, I can't help but think of kids dying of starvation all over the world, people suffering under physical and sexual abuse, and rampant war and disease.
I know Theology is a messy thing because most time it starts and ends with a why. But Jesus didn't come to make sense, he came to make things right, and that's why Nietzsche's not. We need help, from ourselves. God's only irrelevant when he's misrepresented, or his message is perverted for personal gain. And when you've made God into anything but what he is, I agree with Nietzsche, he's dead.
Nietzsche may have been a great author, but he was lousy as a prophet. We need something purer than us, without selfish motivation, to rebirth us. To make the messy things in life right again. Can God really heal pain, sickness, war, fear, prejudice, abuse, and fear? Because the truth is, we can't.
Unfortunately, growing up we never seemed to get to the next verse. It's a shame because John 3:17 perfectly describes divinity's heart towards humanity.
'God didn't go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again.' -Message Bible
Does that really happen? Does Jesus really put things back together or is He just a good bumper sticker, excuse to vote our own political ideas, or imaginary folk-lore persona that has birthed mass-deception. And do we really need his help? We're educated, sophisticated, experienced, and sympathetic to others, so what's with the condescending, 'I'll put the world right again.' Doesn't every consecutive generation make the world a better place by ending war, poverty, and senseless genocide?
When Nietzsche famously said, "God is dead", he was more accurately saying God is no longer relevant. Several of his works are premised on this presumption and call on mankind to find a new mode of survival. In essence, what is the fuss of religion, God, forgiveness of sin, and grace when we have evolved into an advanced species who are capable of developing our own parameters of nurture and nature.
Funny thing happened after Nietzsche eulogized God: World War I with 18.5 million soldiers and civilians dying, World War II with over 35 million soldiers and civilians dying, 6 million Jews were killed in the Holocaust, Chernobyl nuclear power plant exploded releasing one hundred times the radiation dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, violence continues in the Middle East as genocide grows in parts of Africa, and 27 million people are enslaved in modern day slavery and human trafficking.
As I write this, I can't help but think of kids dying of starvation all over the world, people suffering under physical and sexual abuse, and rampant war and disease.
I know Theology is a messy thing because most time it starts and ends with a why. But Jesus didn't come to make sense, he came to make things right, and that's why Nietzsche's not. We need help, from ourselves. God's only irrelevant when he's misrepresented, or his message is perverted for personal gain. And when you've made God into anything but what he is, I agree with Nietzsche, he's dead.
Nietzsche may have been a great author, but he was lousy as a prophet. We need something purer than us, without selfish motivation, to rebirth us. To make the messy things in life right again. Can God really heal pain, sickness, war, fear, prejudice, abuse, and fear? Because the truth is, we can't.
