It is difficult for us not to be the center of the universe. Self permeates our actions and attitudes. As long as crime is committed on the other side of the tracks we are fairly comfortable. Bombs go off almost every day on the other side of the world and we barely take note. But today it happened here. Now it is personal. Now the networks are continually telling the story over and over. It is us. Recently a senator completely reversed his position on the gay marriage issue because his son announced that he was gay. Suddenly it was personal. Suddenly it wasn’t some stranger. It was family.
One of my favorite authors wrote, “There is no self in God.” That sentence intrigues me. How can it be that an intelligent being has no self? My dog has a sense of self. When elephants have a patch on them and look in the mirror they touch the patch with their trunk. They know what they are seeing is self. When a tiny ant dares to enter our kitchen and I frighten it, it runs away. Is that a sense of self or merely an automatic survival reflex?
The Bible speaks of God’s love, God’s wrath, God’s joy and happiness. In my limited understanding those are indicators of self. I think the thought that there is no self in God refers to selfishness. God is totally committed to all that He has made. He is totally committed to you. He sees and understands your fears and loves. His relationship to you is personal. Paul assures us we are His sons and daughters. That is about as personal as it gets. Each day I wait for the phone to ring hoping it is one of my sons. It’s personal.
Written by Roger Bothwell on April 16, 2013
Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574
Rogerbothwell.org