The President created a major controversy lately when he told the Catholic church that their God is stupid, but his God is perfect. While I feel I should not dip my finger into their fight, I feel obligated to react when he asked, "Why would God create something perfect only to destroy it by tempting them to sin?" The temptation he was referring to were the two trees God placed in the MIDST of the garden.
Jeremiah 9:24 says, "...let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord who exercises lovingkindness, justice, and righteousness on earth; for I delight in these things," declares the Lord.
Did God make Adam imperfect by giving him free will, or the ability to decide whether to obey Him or not? The answer is no! The reason God gave him this ability is because He is loving. How would you feel if you ask your spouse, "Honey, why do you love me?" And he or she says, "Kasi I have no choice, eh!" That would be hurtful di ba? You see, love can only be called love when you give the other person the ability to choose, and not force him or her to do it. After God created man, in Genesis 1, He looked at His creation and said that it was very good. Notice that He did not say it was perfect. I believe this means that He gave man a choice to live out his purpose, and that is to be good for the Lord.
On the other hand, did God tempt man when He placed those trees in the garden? Many would say yes, but I disagree! The Bible did not say that those trees were put in an isolated and special place in the garden. It did not also say that they were unique trees with unique fruits. Instead, the Bible said that in the MIDDLE of the garden, God identified two trees to represent the Tree of Knowledge and the Tree of Life. Why were those trees there? Genesis 2:16 and 17 explain why. In these verses, God said that they can eat from any tree but not from these special trees. When He said this, God established an important truth in the garden. Through those trees, He made it clear that He remains the Owner of the garden; because only the owner has the right to tell you what you can and cannot do inside his property. So when Adam and Eve decided to disobey this, they disrespected God as the Owner and were thus kicked out of Eden. Why? Because God is just!
Justice is an important facet of God's character. In Deuteronomy 16:20 He said, "Justice, and only justice, you shall follow, that you may live and inherit the land that the Lord your God is giving you." God knows that justice brings order, its absence will bring chaos and pain. Some people may disagree with me, but I believe this is what the government is trying to do. It is trying to restore justice so that there will be peace in our land. What do you think would have happened if God did not deal with the sin of Adam? Di ba he would have continued to disrespect God and would probably even have taught his children to do the same?
But while God is just, He continues to be loving. This is why He sent His Son to do what man could not do himself-- to atone for his sins and become good. I have learned that it is very difficult to become good on our own because we are naturally rebellious like Adam. That is why God sent His Son to help us become good, but for this to happen we need to act on our faith, by trusting and OBEYING Jesus as Lord.
My God is not stupid. He is loving and kind, righteous, and just!
