I heard an interesting thing at the ecumenical men's prayer breakfast this morning. The pastor who gave the message, which was good, said at one point that we die when we've reached the right level of spiritual achievement, or maturity. "I don't want to have to live to be 100 to get there!" he said jokingly.
He was implying that God takes us to Himself when the time is right, and I questioned him about this. "What about the 18 year old Confederate soldier who dies at Gettysburg. Did God kill him, or did Satan, in the form of a Yankee?" Or more seriously, "When a baby is killed in the womb, is its life ended because it's reached the level of spiritual development that God intends for that child?"
But let's not be too quick to judge. Death is a catastrophe and against God's will, but it's overseen by Providence and, ultimately, redeemed by the sacrificial death of Christ. With that in mind, I can think of several, perhaps many, who seem to have died at the right time.
Does that sound somehow gloomy and morbid? Well, consider this popular opinion, Viz. The Government is your friend.
No. It's not.
LSP
The two most important days in anyone's life is the day that they're born and they day that they find out why.
ReplyDeleteHaving said that, and not wanting to engage in a doctrinal discussion on-line, I can only suggest that we trust in God with all our might and lean not to our own understanding.
Death is a different matter to people who have passed on that it is to us. There is a perspective to life that will change once we too have made the jump from "here to there".
No matter the cause of death (which is, as you say, not in God's plan, so unlikely a holy cause)-- for the soul undergoing the death it must be experienced as being called home, back to the arms of its maker. And Christ perfects all that is lacking in that soul at the time. So there would be resolution at any age, I like to think, at least for that soul (even if not for all the people left behind in mourning).
ReplyDeleteDo we ever reach spiritual maturity??? Some of the most remarkable saints never felt saintly...
Also, so much of our spiritual growth comes from direct gifts from God, over which we have little to no control. What if he chooses to not mature an area of our faith until we're 95? That's just what it is.
Those are just my few cents.
Definitely a mystery, LL.
ReplyDeleteThat's a good few cents worth, Jenny. Do we ever reach spiritual maturity? Surely not this side of the grave and for sure, the workings of Providence aren't always easy to understand, to put it mildly.
ReplyDelete"The government is your friend." Did George Orwell pen that? Well, if not, he should have.
ReplyDeleteThe pastor's remarks seem to come from the "feel good" theology book. It certainly doesn't explain hard cases, as you pointed out. I would guess we are all going to be surprised when we see what was really going on.
ReplyDeleteI think that things always go better for us if we take counsel from God rather than trying to school him. There are too many people who feel that God should come to THEM for advice. It always ends badly for them.
ReplyDeleteOur President is one of those people who would lecture God on his own personal virtue. And we know where that took us.
I totally agree, Fredd.
ReplyDeleteI think he'd stepped off the theology boat into the sentimental piety canoe, Julie. But people believe all kinds of oddities, like "we'll be angels when we die."
ReplyDeleteI totally agree, LL. Saying that, Obama can lecture God, because he's a God himself, a Messiah God King. Saying that, the halo seems syriassly tarnished lately.
ReplyDelete