Simula na naman po ng buwan para sa Kaliwanagan Kay Kristo at magsisimula na naman tayo ng mga montly topic series. Ang napili kong topic this month ay galing sa isang tanong ng isang university professor na itatago na lang natin sa pangalan na Zane. Malimit daw bumabalik-balik sa kanya na hindi niya ma-reconcile ang loving God na sinasabi ng mga Christians at ang evidence of being unloving Niya sa Bible most especially sa mga judgments Niya sa Old Testament. So this month we will revolve around this claim of the ‘unloving God” at magbibigay tayo ng support kada episode na ating tutugunan with an apologetics response.
In this episode, hindi muna tayo magdi discuss ng support sa claim bagkus we will deal muna with this claim that God is unloving. I-analyze muna natin yang claim na yan bago tayo pumunta sa support na gagawin natin next episode.
Reminder ko lang na ang isang argument ay may dalawang parts: claim at ang support. Ang claim ay isang claim sa reality o kung paano ang takbo ng realidad; samantalang ang support ay pagbibigay ng pruweba na totoo nga itong claim mo na ito. Malimit ang pinagtutuunan natin ng matagal na pansin dito is yung support. Pero for this first blog let’s discuss muna this claim that God is actually unloving by discussing a very important notion sa divine love.
Love is nasa nature ng Diyos. Just as breathing is part of our life, love is with God. God is love (1 John 4:8) -- yang ang nature Niya. Pag sinabing nature o kalikasan, ang katangiang ito ay inseparable sa Kanya. Napakalawak ng meaning ng divine love pero sa interes ng topic natin ngayon let’s focus sa isang key characteristic netong divine love. Mag focus tayo sa motion of the will. This motion is one of giving. We understand love also as a giving attribute and reaching-out motivation from God. If He is not loving wala ang idea ng blessing, grace at favor. (Hindi natin dito pag uusapan ang divine emotion to love and we will not go into the doctrine of impassibility that I affirm. Dun lang tayo sa motion of the will.)
Kung wala pong motion of the will to give ang Diyos, wala pong meaning ang divine grace at mercy. Wala tayong kaligtasan kung hindi bahagi ng kalikasan ng Diyos ang mag-gawad, magbigay. Ang grace, if you look sa verses like, Ephesians 2:8-9 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast” may motion ang will ng Diyos from Himself giving a gift to someone. Again, kung walang love ang Diyos hindi mago-occur sa isipan niya to grant something. Ika nga ng isang kilalang Baptist theologian na is D.A. Carson, “[God’s] love wells up amidst His perfections and is not generated by the loveliness of the loved.”* Grace amplifies our understanding of what divine love is. Imaginine niyo na lang na imbes love, God would be like the Canaanite god na Moloch na may lust for blood. Imbes na magbigay siya, kukuha siya ng mga child sacrifice.
Ang mercy halos tulad din ng grace pero may key distinction. While sa grace, the receiver is undeserving of gifts because he is not qualified, mercy on the other hand the receiver deserves punishment sa ginawa niya laban doon sa magga-grant ng mercy sa kanya. Parang yung sa Prodigal Son. Siya na nga yung lumapastangan sa Ama niya ang Ama pa ang tumakbo palapit sa kanya nang siya ay manumbalik. Imbes parusahan siya, mercy ang natanggap niya. Sa madaling salita, ikaw na nga yung binigyan ng Diyos ng buhay ikaw pa ang gumawa ng sala sa kanya, subalit in His mercy He bestowed salvation pa. Hightlighted ang love diyan kasi kung wala sa bokabolaryo ng Diyos na magbigay, then you won’t receive any. Mercy amplifies our understanding of that giving nature of God.
The love of God is an act of His will din to grant something, give favor etc. It is this best depicted in the act of giving a gift.
God did that in creation at ibinigay pa ang pamamahala nito sa mga tao. Kung wala sa nature ng Diyos ang love, He wouldn’t even think of granting somebody something. He wouldn’t create a world that obviously He does not need but is needed by the people He created and loved.
Ang attribute na ito na love ay nakikita natin sa relational dynamics ng Trinity. If you will study yung mga passages that talk about the relationship of the Trinity you will encounter a lot of giving. Tulad na lang ng pagbibigay ng honor ng Ama sa anak sa Jordan River ng bautismuhan si Kristo (Matthew 3:13-17). Tulad na rin ng pagbibigay ng honor ni Kristo sa Ama (John 6:38; 14:31; Matthew 26:36-46). Ang Holy Spirit if you remember was the One na nagbigay ng buhay sa incarnate Son sa sinapupunan ni Maria (Matthew 1:18).
Ganyan pong notion ng love ang nais kong makita natin as we discuss this issue ng objection na “God is actually unloving” na claim. To me this claim is nonsensical.
Idagdag ko lang etong sinabi ng Baker's Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology on God’s love,
That seeking and bridging reaches its pinnacle when God sends his Son into the world to rescue sinners and to provide them with eternal life ( John 3:16 ; Rom 5:7-8 ; Eph 2:1-5 ). John declares, "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us" ( 1 John 3:16 ). God's love is not based on the merit of the recipient ( Deut 7:7-8 ; Rom 5:7-8 ). Because he is love, God is not willing that any person should perish, but wills that everyone repent and live ( Ezek 18:32 ; 2 Peter 3:9 ).†The very fact na yung nag-oobject ay humihinga ng hangin, may vocal chords siya to speak, may ability siya to write, may pinanggalingan siyang sinapupunan ng ina niya at pagkadami-daming bagay para siya ay mabuhay ay mga proof that God has given something. He loves. He extends. Why would God do that? The motivation we can think of is that it is in His giving nature. To say that God is unloving is to deny our very own existence kasi you exist dahil nasa nature ng Diyos ang magbigay. Siya ang nagbigay ng buhay sa'yo.
Ngayon kasama sa pagbibigay na nature na yan, nasa nature din ng Diyos ang wrath -- hindi yung wrath na nag aamok -- but wrath against evil and the evil actions of men who deny the acts of God. So next episode we will talk about this development sa ating discussion and try to explain the relationship ng love ng Diyos dun sa wrath niya sa mga Canaanites. Mababalikan natin diyan ngayon yung concern ni Prof. Zane.
Let me end this idea of a giving God with a verse from 1 John 3:16 to highlight to us the idea of a giving God as a powerful notion para natin maintindihan ang meaning ng love ng Diyos -- “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.”
I pray that as we learn more about God that our nature din will lean towards giving ourselves most especially to God because Jesus said that as the Father has sent Him, so is He sending us.
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* D.A. Carson, "How Do God's Love and Wrath Relate," in The Gospel Coalition (website), 2011; accessed at https://blogs.thegospelcoalition.org/justintaylor/2011/03/07/how-do-gods-love-and-gods-wrath-relate/.
† Baker's Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology, sv "Love"; accessed at http://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionaries/bakers-evangelical-dictionary/love.html.
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