Struck Down By God?
When my wife and I saw the news about Ariel Sharon's stroke, I turned to my wife and said, "Someone is going to say that Ariel Sharon has been punished by God for giving up the Gaza Strip."
As I said that, I was thinking of Muslim extremists or angry Jews - I didn't expect it to turn out to be Pat Robertson. But why not? His theology of the end-times and the way of thinking of those who adhere to the same eschatology leads easily to that conclusion.
Now I think it is possible for God to punish or strike down people for their actions - against the interests of Israel and against God. God promises this (Gen 12:3) and the Bible gives us examples of this (eg. Obad 10-16). I don't think it beyond the realm of possibility that God would strike someone down for their actions against Israel's interests.
And yet there is another side. When Jeremiah was prophesying, he was prophesying to the King and all Israel that they should abandon Jerusalem because the Babylonians would take it and he was condemned as a traitor (Jer 38:1-4). This shows that God is not uniformly for Jerusalem, nor is He uniformly for fighting to keep the land of Israel in Jewish hands. Wisdom is needed to know how to deal with the situation in the Middle East, but one thing is sure, God will secure the land of Israel for Israel - it was not necessarily a wrong move for Sharon to work toward peace. Nor is it up to him or any other politician to hold on to territory in the face of a possible solution to the unrest.
Did God strike Sharon down for giving up the Gaza Strip and parts of the West Bank? I don't know, but I do know giving up the land like that was not ipso facto an ungodly move (Matt 5:38-42).
As I said that, I was thinking of Muslim extremists or angry Jews - I didn't expect it to turn out to be Pat Robertson. But why not? His theology of the end-times and the way of thinking of those who adhere to the same eschatology leads easily to that conclusion.
Now I think it is possible for God to punish or strike down people for their actions - against the interests of Israel and against God. God promises this (Gen 12:3) and the Bible gives us examples of this (eg. Obad 10-16). I don't think it beyond the realm of possibility that God would strike someone down for their actions against Israel's interests.
And yet there is another side. When Jeremiah was prophesying, he was prophesying to the King and all Israel that they should abandon Jerusalem because the Babylonians would take it and he was condemned as a traitor (Jer 38:1-4). This shows that God is not uniformly for Jerusalem, nor is He uniformly for fighting to keep the land of Israel in Jewish hands. Wisdom is needed to know how to deal with the situation in the Middle East, but one thing is sure, God will secure the land of Israel for Israel - it was not necessarily a wrong move for Sharon to work toward peace. Nor is it up to him or any other politician to hold on to territory in the face of a possible solution to the unrest.
Did God strike Sharon down for giving up the Gaza Strip and parts of the West Bank? I don't know, but I do know giving up the land like that was not ipso facto an ungodly move (Matt 5:38-42).
posted by Ali at 8:20 PM
2 Comments:
I couldn't have said this better. I too disagree with Robertson's assessment (which he has now apologized for), but I find that I don't disagree for the same reason that most people disagree with him. Most people disagree with Robertson's statement because in their universe, God WOULD NEVER, EVER strike down a person. God NEVER causes suffering. Of course, I disagree with that. I think God does strike people down in his wrath, but it is usually beyond my ability to know who and when.
Without reading this blog I would not have thought about Jerimiah (sp). I will have to discuss that with my hubby. Thank you. But I do believe God would strike, as He did Nebal (abigails hubby). As for Sharon, I am not sure... Bible says Isreal being surrounded by Gentiles is a sign. Where I have a problem is to give up Gaza curses Israel and to curse Isreal one is cursed. FOr a Bible Believer to say Gaza is Philistine land goes against the Bible completely. The parimeters are drawn in the Bible. Bible does say, to add to bible you add Plagues, to take away from Bible you loose your Life Rev 22. Bible says make no judgements till the appointed time. Thank you for provoking more thought, Bless you!
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