God’s Children

We, human beings, are paradoxical. We like simplicity and freedom, but often need complexity and limitation. Famous golf teacher AJ Bonar said that golf is nothing but a ball, a stick, and hand-eye coordination. Nevertheless, there have been numerous teachers, programs, books, videos, magazines, tools, etc. for teaching golfers myriads of swings, techniques, and tips. In one’s life, much time is spent in complicating simple things and in simplifying complicated things. Perhaps, in many cases, true simplicity and freedom cannot be obtained without complexity and limitations being gone through. This might be called “perceiving a mountain a mountain, then perceiving the mountain not a mountain, and finally perceiving the mountain a mountain again”.

According to Genesis, in the beginning human ancestors had no need to distinguish between good and bad, and life was indeed simple.[1] However, possibly because of curiosity and desire, the ancestors ate fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and as a result, life became very complicated ever since. Some might ask, “Why wouldn’t the omniscient, almighty, and loving God have prevented the human ancestors from eating the fruit?” Similar questions might arise regarding the Book of Job: “Why would God have shown off Job to Satan and been provoked to allow blameless good man Job to be tested (or tortured) by Satan?” One possible explanation: God did not think that His children could only stay at a level of mindless or immature simplicity; rather, He had faith in his children and believed that, after going through complexity, they must be able to achieve wise and mature simplicity. “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28) In other words, through His ingenious work and arrangement, He wants his children to obtain true simplicity and freedom.

Based on His faith, He allowed Satan to do anything to Job and his family and property except killing him. Some might relate this account to the fact that the Jews have been ruled, tortured, and massacred but are not extinct.

According to the Book of Job, even before Satan’s tests, Job’ life and mind had been quite complicated and lacking in freedom. He had feared God nervously, and had kept worrying himself about the possibility of his children’s inadvertent sins against God. Therefore, every time his children had a feast, he would have them purified and sacrifice a burnt offering for each of them, whether any of them sinned or not, just to feel safe. This is like playing a provisional ball whether a previous ball is out of bound or not. When he was going through various sufferings, even though he believed he had done nothing wrong, he insisted on the mundane and simplified theory of reward and recompense for good and evil, without knowing that God had different perspectives and arrangements. Not until after a conversation with God did Job start to enjoy his life with a free and open mind, then he freely and humorously named his daughters dove, cinnamon, and eye shadow (a cosmetic), respectively, and let them inherit his property like his sons, without being bound by conventions. Please refer to The Sufferer’s Wisdom: The Book of Job in Getting Involved with God by Ellen F. Davis for detailed discussion of the above. Through Satan’s acts, dialogues between Job and his wife and friends, and His performance in the grand finale, in all things God works for the good of Job, turning him from a nervous and uneasy good man into a free and happy good man.

According to the Bible, after sinning, enraging God, and undergoing various sufferings, the Jews became a nervous people that over-interpret God’s commandments. As a result, they nervously or superficially abided by God’s law as well as rules that they set themselves, but they were not necessary good in God’s eyes. In the Gospels, Jesus told people to observe the law and rules (Matthew 23:3); nevertheless, he also had said that 'love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind' and a similar 'love your neighbor as yourself' are the greatest commandments (Matthew 22:37-40). The law and rules are only means, but not the end. The law and rules and the process of observing them might be complicated, but the commandments and the end are simple. In the Epistle to the Romans, Paul maintained that law can only make us conscious of sin, but observing the law cannot make us good in God’s sight (Romans 3:20). However, Paul also advised us to be relaxed without anxiety and fear, for we did not receive a spirit that makes us a slave again to fear, but we received the Spirit of sonship (Romans 8:15). Again, “in all things God works for the good of those who love him” or love others, so that they become his renewed children and good people in his sight and achieve freedom and glory (Romans 8:28-30). With complexity, Paul enumerated various spiritual gifts, but with simplicity, he advised us to “eagerly desire the greater gifts”, in “love” (1 Corinthians 12:31-13).

Speaking of “God, others, and love” is as simple as speaking of “a ball, a stick, and hand-eye coordination”. Still, there seems to be full of complexity and difficulty in practice. Perhaps God expects and believes that, after seeing through various illusions intertwined with good and evil, and going through various complicated tests and exercises, human beings will perceive the mountain a mountain again and will renew from children that are simple but lacking in wisdom like Adam and Eve into children that are simple, free, and full of wisdom like Jesus. On the complicated path, let’s walk at ease with love.

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[1] Genesis 2:16 can be read as that God warned the human ancestors against having knowledge of good and evil--thanks to a long-time good friend for pointing this out. (Note added 12/22/2005)

見山又是山的上帝兒女

我們人類是很奇妙的動物。我們喜歡簡單和自由, 卻常常需要複雜和限制。有位名叫AJ Bonar的高爾夫球教練說, 高爾夫球不過是一顆球、一根杆子、再加上眼手協調。然而, 市面上卻有眾多的教練、課程、書籍、影片、雜誌、工具在教導球友無數的揮杆姿勢和技巧等等。人的一生, 似乎花很多時間將簡單的事物複雜化和將複雜的事物簡化。或許在許多的情況下, 必須經歷過複雜和限制, 才得以享受真正的簡單和自由。所謂, 「見山是山、見山不是山、見山又是山」。

根據創世記, 人類原本不需要分辨善惡, 生活原本簡單。但是可能因為好奇加上慾望而吃下善惡樹的果子, 從此生活變得非常複雜。有人會問, 為什麼全知、全能、且慈愛的上帝不願事先防止人類吃下這個果子呢? 同樣的問題也可能在讀約伯記的時候出現: 為什麼上帝要向撒旦炫耀約伯, 然後接受撒但挑釁, 讓好人約伯受到那麼多痛苦呢? 可能的解釋之一, 就是上帝不認為祂的兒女只能停在簡單的、無智慧的簡單, 而相信祂的兒女一定能在經驗過複雜之後, 提升到成熟的、有智慧的簡單、自由境界。而且, 上帝要使萬事互相效力, 協助祂的兒女得到真正的自由 (或是按照羅馬書8:22和8:28-29的說法, 使愛上帝的人成為祂的、自由的兒女)。

由於上帝的信心, 祂只要求撒但存留約伯的性命, 而任憑撒但對約伯和他的家人、產業為所欲為。同樣地, 我們也看到猶太人歷經外族統治和屠殺而並未滅絕。

根據約伯記, 在撒但試煉約伯之前, 約伯的生活和他的心其實已經頗複雜而不自由了。他戰戰兢兢地敬畏上帝, 總擔心自己或家人得罪上帝。所以, 每當他的兒女有所享樂, 他就叮嚀他們要自潔; 而且不管有沒有人犯錯, 他都為所有人獻祭贖罪, 以求心安(有點像打高爾夫球時即使不確定打出界外, 還是打一個provisional暫定球)。在他受苦難的過程中, 即使他相信自己並沒有過錯, 也還是堅持世俗簡易立即版的「善有善報、惡有惡報」理論, 而不知道世人眼裡的「善」未必是上帝眼裡的「善」, 世人眼裡的「惡」未必是上帝眼裡的「惡」。在和上帝對話以後, 約伯才以自由開放的心胸享受人生, 包括不流俗地給女兒取名鴿子、肉桂、和眼影(化妝品), 並讓女兒和兒子一樣得到產業。(參考Ellen F. Davis所著的The Sufferer’s Wisdom: The Book of Job, 收錄在Getting Involved with God) 上帝藉著撒但的作為、約伯妻子和朋友等人的言論、和祂自己的壓軸演出等等, 使萬事互相效力, 讓約伯從一個緊張兮兮的好人, 轉變成一個自由快樂的好人。

根據聖經, 猶太人因為得罪上帝而幾經禍患之後, 也變成緊張兮兮的民族, 過度解釋上帝的誡命, 戰戰兢兢或注重表面地遵守律法和自己訂的細則教條, 卻未必是上帝眼裡的好人。 在福音書中, 耶穌告訴眾人要遵行這些律法和教條(馬太23:3), 但也說「盡心、盡性、盡意, 愛主你的上帝」和與愛上帝相仿的「愛人如己」是一切道理的總綱(馬太22:37-40)。道理只是輔助工具, 其複雜也只是過程, 而不是目的; 原則和目的其實都是簡單的。使徒保羅在羅馬書中也強調所謂律法讓我們知道什麼是罪, 卻不能讓我們成為上帝眼裡的好人(羅馬書3:20)。然而, 保羅也告訴我們要輕鬆自在, 不須緊張害怕, 因為上帝給我們的不是奴僕的心, 乃是兒女的心 (羅馬書8:15)。而且, 上帝使萬事都互相效力, 叫愛祂(愛人也相仿)的人得益處—成為祂的兒女、祂眼裡的好人, 並得到自由和榮耀(羅馬書8:28-30)。不免繁複地, 保羅也列舉了許許多多不同的恩賜(天份), 卻仍以簡要的基礎總結「要切切地求那更大的恩賜」亦即是「愛」(哥林多前書12:31)。

「上帝、人、和愛」, 講起來就像講「球、杆、和眼手協調」這麼簡單。但是實行上又似乎充滿複雜和困難。或許上帝期許並相信人類在經過種種善惡交織的假象, 及複雜的考驗和練習之後, 將會見山又是山, 由亞當、夏娃般簡單卻缺乏智慧的兒女, 演化成耶穌般簡單、自由自在、且充滿智慧的兒女。

各種「道」和「經」, 如其字義path, 只是過程; 偏離「愛」(或作「慈悲」)的就無益處了。我們應選擇有愛的道和經, 試著以輕鬆自在的心情來行。