Disturbed!

Gene Robinson, the openly gay Episcopal Bishop of New Hampshire, who advised Barrack Obama on gay issues, offered his prayer during the inauguration ceremonies this morning. Besides the obvious problem of the lifestyle of the man who offered the prayer there was one part of his prayer that particularly caught my attention. He offered this petition,

"Bless us with compassion and generosity – remembering that every religion’s God judges us by the way we care for the most vulnerable in the human community, whether across town or across the world."

There are two problems that immediately jump out at me. Firstly, there seems to be the implication that there is either a plurality of Gods or that all religions, although vastly different in their beliefs, address the same God. None of the three major religions would believe that. All three would hold to a single God and would not agree that all ways lead to the same God. Jews would place the essential emphasis on the law and natural descent. Muslims would place the essential emphasis on Muhammad. And Jesus would be essential for Christians.

The second, and more troubling statement says that God will judge us "by the way we care for the most vulnerable in the human community." The truth of the matter is, God will not judge us by how we have treated each other but how we have treated God. Our sins, while certainly having implications on humanity, are offenses against a holy, gracious, and righteous God, first and foremost. It is not forgiveness from our fellow man that is of primary importance, but forgiveness of God. It is not the salvation from the wrath of man that we need but saving from the wrath of God. It is not the pleasing of men that is vital but the pleasing of God.

How can a man who is given the responsibility of sharing the Word of God, give such a humanistic viewpoint? It is disturbing. It will only add to the countless number of people who go about doing good deeds for humanity while ignoring the need to have their sins forgiven by God.

There is nothing here about God being angry, God being offended, or God punishing the sinful. Just a good works based salvation, that makes us feel better about ourselves but unable to help us one bit with God. May we search the scriptures and see that our sins have alienated us from God, his wrath hangs over our sinful heads and eternal punishment is our destiny unless we receive the free gift of his Son as the substitutionary sacrifice that appeases God's wrath against us.