When Time passes you by... (Part 2)

Tumblr is just a waste of time and for those who are so lazy to write what's exactly on their mind (Sorry Tumblr folks!). It's just not for me. Aside from that, I am making 'blog writing' as one of my new year's resolution. Writing helps my brain to get ideas flowing. This sort of thing doesn't come natural, instead it requires practice and commitment. 

Now then, what did I left hanging last time? Oh yes! My understanding of God.

After roughly 7 months attending bible studies at FOCUS, I learnt that God is sovereign. What is sovereignty? Well, it basically means to be in control. God being in control is quite essential to the His character and at the same time - controversial !

Let me first explain why it is essential. God needs to be in control because if he's not, then He's not worthy to be taken seriously. And adding to that, he should not to be a god with a capital 'G' ! Hahaha... seriously~ He won't be a big deal if he wasn't.

This leads us to the next bit: controversial. Having a, usually unseen, divine being in control over us is really an unsettling scene for most of us. What happens to free will??? Are we just puppets of some unseen forces. What about suffering in the world? If he is in control, why so many disasters, wars and famine has happen through the course of history?These questions are commonly raised by christians and atheist alike. I'm sure there are more, but I won't dwell into the all the other questions as you can see.... I'm not writing a book here!!!

Q1, do we still have free will? Yes, God gave us a choice to follow His ways or just go about with ours. A good example would be our ancestors, Adam and Eve. They weren't forced to obey God, instead they were to make decisions as they please. However, they chose to follow a perverse decision: to be like God.

Q2. what about suffering in the world? The answer is pretty much a follow up to the previous question: Sin. Yeah, Creation is cursed by God since mankind first rebelled against their Creator. Thus, the punishment for Sin is Death. For God is Holy and Just. He could not tolerate our insolence.

I know. Sounds harsh. But that's the truth. We deserved it. Is that it?! Fear not, for God is still in control. He foresaw everything. Hence, he has executed a plan. A plan to save humanity from the punishment that is Death. A plan to restore what was tarnished by Sin.

That plan is JESUS. The name Jesus literally means 'God saves'. How comforting is that? Our God is not a one dimensional character. He is sovereign, holy, just, wrathful, jealous, loving and merciful!  That's a mouthful, and yet there's so much more to him if you read the Bible. We have a God who's willing to be a human, so that he could redeem us. Thus, I would end with this note:

¹⁶ For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
John 3:16