ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHING
January 29, 2022
Does God take sides? I was recently reading a short article in Sojourners Magazine, and a few words caught my attention and got me to thinking. God sided with the enslaved Israelites and against the Egyptians. Does that mean God hated the Egyptians or did God stand against their choice to enslave other human beings? Could God love the Egyptians and still say, “I am going to side with the Israelites”? It is an interesting question to ponder if all your trying to do is determine God’s opinion in a Biblical story centuries old. But what about today? Does God take sides? If so, should Christians take sides? I’m not talking about the NFL playoffs or who should win the next season of the Voice. For centuries, theologians and Biblical scholars have suggested that God sides with the oppressed, the poor, the orphan, the widow and the immigrant (the prophets gave this list). What does it mean if you do not fall into one of those categories? What does it mean if you are participating in the oppression of such people? It was Abraham Lincoln who said, “…my concern is not whether God is on our side; my greatest concern is to be on God’s side, for God is always right.” Of course, Christians have subverted the ways and will of God often. Again and again, Christians have claimed to be on God’s side while working to obscure love, undermine justice and reject mercy. There are times when determining God’s “side” is murky at best, but there are times when it is pretty clear. So what does it mean to speak of God’s unconditional love for all creation and at the same time say that God takes sides? This is where being a follower of Jesus can keep you up at night.
May the love I know from you, Amazing God, be the love that manifests itself in the really challenging questions of faith. I do not wish to be naive about the injustice and mean-spiritedness in this world, but I never want to undercut your limitless love for all. Keep me in the struggle. Amen.
