Selah2020: Pause and Reflect

[A ‘Tuesday Challenge’ originally prepared for the congregation of Horley Baptist Church during September 2024]

You must not misuse the name of the LORD your God. The LORD will not let you go unpunished if you misuse his name.
Deuteronomy 5 v11 [NLT]

How do you react when someone mentions God in your presence? Do you ignore it, dismissing it as blasphemy or ignorance, or does some sort of image come to mind? Perhaps you recall that mankind was made in the image of God but, as we look around at the various shapes and sizes of people, we feel inclined to be somewhat selective in trying to reimagine God.

Of course, we are not trying to recreate God in our image but should we even contemplate forming such an image? Consider the reaction of the prophet Isaiah when he saw a vision of God:

And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!”
Isaiah 6 v 5 [ESVUK]

If we are tempted to form an image of God in our minds then first we have to understand what we mean by ‘God’. In our community of faith we think of God as a trinity; three distinct persons comprising one entity. The apostle Paul confirmed this relationship when he concluded one of his letters to the church in Corinth with this verse:

May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
2 Corinthians 13 v14 [NIVUK]

So, when someone mentions God in our presence, do we think of the trinity collectively or, perhaps more likely, of God in a more dominant paternal role? Arguably the latter lends itself to image creation more readily, especially if we have been influenced by the works of artists such as Michelangelo.^[1]

Alternatively, we might think of God as some sort of eccentric engineer; having created the world’s systems, he now lets them run their course with no apparent intervention whilst he transfers his attention to some other part of the universe. Perhaps the image of an absentee landlord comes to mind; he owns the earth and sets the rules, and expects his dues in return but is otherwise irrelevant to daily life.

How sad is the situation when, on hearing the name of God, we have no reaction at all. The highest ranks of heavenly creatures – who have no need to imagine an image of God – recognise his status:

And they were calling out to one another: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of Hosts; all the earth is full of His glory.”
Isaiah 6 v3 [BSB], cf Revelation 4 v8

How much more should we, who have been redeemed, give him the honour that his name commands.

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References:
[1] ‘The Creation of Adam’, Michelangelo, c1511

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Last week’s reflection: A Wanderful Time
 

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Contributed by Steve Humphreys; © Steve Humphreys