To Whom Will You Give Control?

He is very serious.  He has the highest standards possible and knows every right from every wrong.  Standing always on the side of righteousness, he never stands by, simply watching, when he could otherwise intervene to assure that all under his authority are abiding by his perfect judgement.

Who is he?  Not God.

Exercising his authority, he ensures that no laws are broken, no breach of proper conduct endured, and no independent spirit allowed.  He reigns with the power of force and might.

Who is he?  Not God.

In all of his realm, the crime rate is zero, as is tolerance for any and all deviant  behavior.  In fact, deviations from any of the societally given norms are strictly forbidden.  His people are always protected from the unsanctioned callous and cruel; kept safe under his rigorous control.

Who is he?  He is not God.  Rather, he is a Syrian soldier I saw recently in a news video.  He is serving his president by quashing those who would trade in their protected status as Syrian citizens, for freedom.

The video linked here presents a (WARNING) very graphic image of the god that many people think they want: "A loving God" they say, "would not allow serial killers or child abuse, or drunk drivers to kill innocent children."  They start with the idea that a proper god would have their own exacting standards, and then insist that he impose them over the will of all, "to protect the innocent".  This soldier is caught imposing his president's standards.

But this type of control, we people of all stripes, find egregious.  When it is time for you to tell that little white lie, do you want your god to step in and wave a red flag like a line judge at a soccer game, when the ball goes out of bounds?  When you fail to fight fair with your spouse, do you want your god to eject you from the game like a home plate umpire who will only take so much guff?  Instead of intervening with every sin, God is waiting for the official day of judgement to arrive.  At that time and place we will stand before Him and confess (agree) that his assessment of every motivation and intent is correct and true.

The soldier in the second half of the video (if you dare to watch) has a protester tied up and lying on the ground.  He kicks him hard in the abdomen and, according to one translator I heard, is shouting: "This one is for wanting freedom!"

No.  We do not want a God who is "so loving."  Instead, our God lets us hurt, abuse and even kill each other (for now) because he has elevated our free will to the highest place, in the hope that we will use the freedom we have to judge ourselves and seek His help.

When all of our choice making is fully revealed and accomplished; when every chance to confess and repent is ignored and dismissed (in short, when we die); then will come the judgement deserved.  God is not interested in controlling us, so much as He is keen on allowing us to reveal, and then to observe, what we do with the absolute freedom he has given.