I don’t suppose that in a hundred years of trying,
I could ever calculate the total investment
That mankind has sunk into believing
That God must not have really meant
All the things that he said.
It happens even in the churches—
Even in your church—
And, if you can accept it,
Even in your heart,
Where it is hoped—
Silently perhaps—
That God is well-enough understood
By our casual efforts,
And most likely comports
To our common-sensical assumptions
About what he must be like.
And rare among us are the ones
Who wrestle with the God of the Bible,
Insisting on understanding him
As he truly is,
As opposed to
What we might like him to be.
So many would rather get it wrong
Than to exert themselves to understand.
And it seems to me that this behavior
Puts the importance of the man
Higher than the importance of God.
But if the Bible is right,
We shall see in due time,
Whether we have judged correctly.
