Folks, you have been summoned to serve as members of a jury this Sunday at Nexus. As we explore the tensions we experience with God, this week we want to explore the question: is God cruel?
To do that, we are going to put God on trial for the cruel story of God asking Abraham to sacrifice (kill) his son Isaac. Is God guilty? The answer may seem obvious. Anyone, or any deity, that asks a father to kill his son, seems guilty of cruelty, at the least. Case closed.
And yet, this Sunday I will be acting as the defense attorney for the story. I intend to bring forward evidence that would suggest, beyond a reasonable doubt, that something is amiss here. Further, I intend to showcase that while the story may seem grisly on the surface, a closer look might reveal there is some actual good news to be found.
Now, you can thank Kristen for sparing you from my flair for the dramatic. I intended to show up in my best Columbo costume (raincoat, cigar, ill-fitted suit, and thick New York accent) but she thought the idea corny. While I disagree, she made me self-conscious, so you are just getting plain old Brad serving as defense lawyer.
You folks get to serve as the jury. Now, if you want to be prepared jurists, a simple reading of Genesis 22 should do the trick. As it reads on the page is all the prosecution needs to make their case. Can I prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that this grisly story on the surface might be good and welcome news about God? You be the judge.
A Brief History of Walking (S11 Episode32)
The Speed of God (S11 Episode31)
Jaguar Man (S11 Episode30)
A Costly Peace (S11 Episode29)
Dead Man Walking (S11 Episode28)
Prison Break (S11 Episode27)
Shipwrecked (S11 Episode26)
Of Place and Prison (S11 Episode25)
A Modest Proposal for Ending the Marriage Wars (S11 Episode 24)
Death of the Couple (S11 Episode23)
Questions of Marriage (S11 Episode22)
Howling: When God, Wolves & Humans Laugh (S11 Episode21)
Tongues of Fire (S11 Episode20)
The Girls with the Red Balloon (S11 Episode19)
A Failure of Imagination (S11 Episode18)
Pablo Escobar's Hippopotamuses (S11 Episode17)
What We Have Lost (S11 Episode16)
Of Caves and Christmas (S11 Episode15) CHRISTMAS EVE
Shock & Awe (S11 Episode14)
Home But Never Home (S11 Episode13)
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