The consequences of the past

It is a strange world we live in. In the last twenty four hours we have witnessed one of the worst atrocities that the world has seen in recent months with the deaths of 49 people at the shooting in NZ. We have witnessed the shame of a politician who linked such tragic deaths to immigration policy. We have seen the outcry of many in the face of such utter vilification of people made in the image of God. Yet, I can foresee that in times to come this will be just another tragedy just like the fall of the tower at Siloam (Lk. 13.4). The scale may be different but the voices are the same in the blame game of culture and religion. In the same passage this is foretold as Christ himself states that this will continue until we repent but of what?

In the Philippians passage the writer suggests that we need to model our behaviour on that of Christ and he will be their as we transform ourselves into such a being that our transfigured selves can shine as a light to the world. What our problem, or at least one of our problems, is the holding on to of either untruths or truths that have been manipulated to conform to our wishes rather than those of God. We are like those that follow Christ in that we hold to our beliefs rather than to what scripture and God tells us. we place ourselves above those things that we should be believing and undermine our own beliefs. It is surprising for some that many non-Christians are more Christian than most Christians. Our belief systems often overlap with the belief systems of others but we are to engrossed in what we think we are meant to do that we fail to see others doing what we should be doing. We are quite honestly unable to conform to Christ more often than not as we uphold those who would have us  denigrate those not of our ilk. Our neighbours and our fellow inhabitants of earth are seen only as tools to be used for the benefit of ourselves and not for their own selves. Too often our sins are the sins that we perpetrate everyday without realising our own self hypocrisy.

Only when we see beyond the past do we see a new future

Today we are reminded of the covenant that was made with Abram at a time when he was extremely uncertain of the future (Genesis 15). The promise that was made at that time was a promise of land and of fecundity. This to a certain degree mirrors the promise that is made right at the start of Genesis at the creation for man created in the image of God to go forth and multiply. How else but through his and Eve's offspring to become a multitude on Earth. This same generosity of fecundity is being offered to Abram and his descendants even if none are apparent at the time. Yet, it is a promise that is not without its challenges. Challenges that are to be faced and are in turn a challenge to the descendants' faith, which we know through the scriptures is not always true. This then is perhaps the crux of our question and how we are true to God as God is true to us.

It is only when we remove our own petty hypocrisies that we are actually able to follow Christ and fulfill that which we are destined to. It is when we form our own self fulfilling dreams that we revert to the continuation of Siloam and all that that means for us. It is only when we recognise the truth of God's promises to us that we are able to fully transform our lives and live as Christ would wish us to. Then the petty hatreds of today will fade away and we will begin to understand what it means to love. It is the influences of the past that colour the thoughts of the future. If something has happened in the past that has angered, disappointed, depressed, turned us away, upset us, etc. then anything that is similar will cause us to react in the same way. We need often to let go our past experience and allow ourselves to experience God anew for us to step into a new future. We have to reset our lives in accordance with God's purposes and allow our new eyes to see more clearly through the obstructions of the past.