I think a lot of people who reject the Bible do so because they can’t come to terms with its paradoxes.
A paradox is a seeming contradiction—the operative word being “seeming.” Two components that don’t jibe at first glance. And the Bible is full of these.
The same God that said “Thou shalt not kill” and “Turn the other cheek” encouraged Joshua to slaughter all the men, women and children of Jericho and showed no displeasure when David beheaded Goliath. The unthinking mind can’t reconcile such a disparity, so it writes it off: kind of like a teenager who doesn’t obey his parents because they seem to contradict themselves. It gives them an easy “out.”
We read “the powers that be are ordained of God” and “whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God” (Romans 13: 1, 2). But then we read how Daniel blatantly resisted the decree of Darius, which led to the whole lion’s den episode. So which example are we supposed to follow?
We know that we should “take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, etc.” (Matthew 6: 25). But then we see Joseph stockpiling seven years’ worth of food—not just for his family, but for his entire country. So which is the right way?
Of course none of the seeming contradictions are true contradictions. It just takes a little extra effort to reconcile the paradoxes and move on. By just opening a concordance we could see that there’s a difference between murdering and killing—and sometimes a holy judge requires the death of wicked men. So there is actually no contradiction at all.
We could learn that “take no thought” actually means “don’t be obsessed or anxious,” not “don’t prepare.”
We might even come to the conclusion that “the powers that be” doesn’t necessarily mean all dictators and bureaucrats (though it certainly suited King James to give us that impression).
But it takes a small amount of extra effort and study to explain these paradoxes to ourselves and others. They can’t always be summed up in a bumper sticker or a 30-second YouTube video. And I think the average person is not willing to get off the treadmill of life long enough to make that effort.
The unsaved who can’t come to grips with Scripture--and even professing Christians who never seem to grow--get mentally paralyzed by these paradoxes. Paradoxes either frustrate them or give them a convenient excuse for not pursuing the truth further. How many times have you heard, “If God is so loving and powerful, why is there evil in the world?” Classic paradox, where most people give up at the question itself because it seems so clever and irreconcilable. But there is actually an answer…which leads us to greater truths.
What Jesus said of parables could also apply to paradoxes:
“And the disciples came, and said unto him, 'Why speakest thou unto them in parables?' He answered and said unto them, 'Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, "By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive"'” (Mark 13: 10-14).
Anyway, just something I’ve been observing and thinking about. And yes, that’s the best picture of a paradox I could find.
A paradox is a seeming contradiction—the operative word being “seeming.” Two components that don’t jibe at first glance. And the Bible is full of these.
The same God that said “Thou shalt not kill” and “Turn the other cheek” encouraged Joshua to slaughter all the men, women and children of Jericho and showed no displeasure when David beheaded Goliath. The unthinking mind can’t reconcile such a disparity, so it writes it off: kind of like a teenager who doesn’t obey his parents because they seem to contradict themselves. It gives them an easy “out.”
We read “the powers that be are ordained of God” and “whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God” (Romans 13: 1, 2). But then we read how Daniel blatantly resisted the decree of Darius, which led to the whole lion’s den episode. So which example are we supposed to follow?
We know that we should “take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, etc.” (Matthew 6: 25). But then we see Joseph stockpiling seven years’ worth of food—not just for his family, but for his entire country. So which is the right way?
Of course none of the seeming contradictions are true contradictions. It just takes a little extra effort to reconcile the paradoxes and move on. By just opening a concordance we could see that there’s a difference between murdering and killing—and sometimes a holy judge requires the death of wicked men. So there is actually no contradiction at all.
We could learn that “take no thought” actually means “don’t be obsessed or anxious,” not “don’t prepare.”
We might even come to the conclusion that “the powers that be” doesn’t necessarily mean all dictators and bureaucrats (though it certainly suited King James to give us that impression).
But it takes a small amount of extra effort and study to explain these paradoxes to ourselves and others. They can’t always be summed up in a bumper sticker or a 30-second YouTube video. And I think the average person is not willing to get off the treadmill of life long enough to make that effort.
The unsaved who can’t come to grips with Scripture--and even professing Christians who never seem to grow--get mentally paralyzed by these paradoxes. Paradoxes either frustrate them or give them a convenient excuse for not pursuing the truth further. How many times have you heard, “If God is so loving and powerful, why is there evil in the world?” Classic paradox, where most people give up at the question itself because it seems so clever and irreconcilable. But there is actually an answer…which leads us to greater truths.
What Jesus said of parables could also apply to paradoxes:
“And the disciples came, and said unto him, 'Why speakest thou unto them in parables?' He answered and said unto them, 'Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, "By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive"'” (Mark 13: 10-14).
Anyway, just something I’ve been observing and thinking about. And yes, that’s the best picture of a paradox I could find.
