Getting rid of God - Ruminating in the Word of God.

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing,
majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of
him and what came to my mind and heart in Luke 22:1-2,

"Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread, called the Passover, was
approaching, and the chief priests and the teachers of the law were
looking for some way to get rid of Jesus, for they were afraid of the
people."

In his introduction to the betrayal and arrest of Jesus, Luke provides
some background detail. The religious leaders of the day sought "to
get rid of Jesus", but were afraid of the people. They needed a way
but would have to do it in a manner that would not arouse the possible
opposition of the people.

The opportunity came their way through the agency of Satan. We are
told that "Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the Twelve."
Verse 3. This prompted Judas to approach the chief priests and
officers of the temple and work out a plan with them. Money would be
given Judas and so he watched for an opportunity to hand Jesus over to
them when no crowd would be present.

What captures my attention is that these religious leaders wanted to
get rid of Jesus. Why? Jesus taught the people about God from the
Scriptures, he performed wonderful miracles that freed people from
demon possession, illness, infirmity, even death. He fed people and
manifested a deep compassion for them. Why would these religious
leaders want to get rid of Jesus?

They did not know God. These religious leaders held enviable positions
in society, commanding respect and a living. But, they did not know
God. It was not that they were ignorant of the Scriptures, it was they
never embraced God who inspired the Scriptures. For this, Jesus called
them out, threatening their status as the religious leaders of the
day. Jesus called them hypocrites, blind guides, snakes and a brood of
vipers! See Matthew, chapter 23. They were threatened by Jesus and so
they sought to get rid of him.

This is true for all who fail to embrace God. Any mention of God
brings the cold reminder that all are condemned to spend an eternity
in a fiery lake of burning sulfur for their sins in this life. Since
all sin, all are condemned. Any thought, any mention of God often
brings opposition and anger. We see it in the tireless campaign to
remove any vestige of Christmas in the public square during that
season. We see it in the willful exclusion of the major influence of
the Judeo-Christian heritage that resulted in western civilization in
curriculum taught in schools. We see it in the many and various
crusades of political correctness in political and public discourse.
Indeed, in many quarters, any discussion of God is simply not
considered polite conversation. God has become a taboo subject in the
rising tide of a desperate effort to get rid of God.

The sad truth is that those who embrace Jesus Christ escape God's
condemnation and enter into his family. Jesus said, "I tell you the
truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal
life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to
life." John 5:24.

God exists, as well as his judgment, and the objective reality of this
is not contingent upon our acknowledgment or consent of it. Try as we
might to get rid of God, he isn't going anywhere. Just as futile the
efforts of the chief priests and teachers of the law to get rid of
Jesus, so is the futile effort of those today who attempt to get rid
of God. He isn't going anywhere.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share
your thoughts of worship from your Bible reading today. I'd love to
hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com