Hammer on Anvil '

"God is dead. And remains dead. And we have killed him.

--Friedrich Nietzsche

For some time I have been thinking on my belief in God and how all my beliefs hinge on it. This became even more poignant in my mind when I re-discovered "And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who come to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him." (Hebrews 11:6) It's not just God's existence though that is imperative, his character is just as important. It'd be a small victory to prove beyond doubt that God exists but that he is one that wants nothing to do with man. The quote I shared in my previous post expresses this well: "For what we need to know, of course, is not just that God exists...but that there is a God right here in the thick of our day-by-day lives...It is not objective proof of God's existence that we want but the experience of God's presence." And this he has and will give us.

This desire for God's presence in the here-and-now is answered in the person of Jesus. Many of us learned and memorized John 3:16 as children. Romans 5:8, puts it this way: "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." This verse shows us the character of God (loves mankind), his presence on earth in the person of Jesus, and the sacrifice he made. It is Holy week with Good Friday coming up, the day Jesus was crucified on the cross. I don't pretend to understand all that Nietzsche might have meant in his quote, but I find it interesting because this week we do celebrate the death of God. Yes, Jesus died, and it was we who caused him to die. But he did not remain so and an empty tomb showed on Resurrection Sunday.

As Good Friday and Easter Sunday are coming up I encourage you to read the Gospel accounts and think about what this weekend means.

Brett