Many people have a misguided view of the character of God. They see him as an old, crotchety, codger who really gets his jollies out of inflicting pain and misery on us poor human saps. That is sad. In fact, it's tragic.
When I was a teenager, the only good Sunday afternoon television programming involved All-Star Wrestling. If it wasn't football, it was wresting. Pure nonsense, but fun entertainment. My favorite villain in the 1970's was the evil, sadistic, Baron von Rashke. He wasn't terribly big, but boy was he mean. He was a raving lunatic, with spittle running from his mouth as he wrestled. He struck fear in his opponents and laughter in his fans. But is was his famous move that made all the difference. It was called, "The Claw," or in the Baron's language, "Zee Claw." His hand would grip a man by the forehead and squeeze the poor guy into submission. NO ONE wants his brains crushed. Oddly, some people see God that way...the Baron with a claw-hand just waiting to pounce when things are going bad. That's not what the word says, and it's not what I know by experience.
PROMISE Sixteen
"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God."
2 Corinthians 1:3-4
Admit it. That doesn't sound like a holy drop kick, or a claw, or God coming off the top rope when we are down and out. It sounds more like the God who really cares about what happens in our lives and is there to lift and encourage us. Maybe we should re-think how we see the one who died for us in that cosmic tag-team match when we were beaten by the enemy.
Pastor Jim
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