Articles
An Honest Question About God
A young man who grew up in an atheist nation recently asked an honest question: “Is God fair? And is doing things fair being kind?” Before reading further, ponder this question and think about how you would respond to someone who has little Biblical knowledge about the nature of God.
Below (in bold) is my original answer followed by added comments:
God's character includes many aspects: love, justice, patience, grace, mercy, kindness. Like humans (we are made in His image), His character is complex but consistent with the other elements. I believe God is supremely fair, and by that I mean that He gives ample instruction of what He wants us to be (He doesn't hide truth and then spring something on us that we didn't have opportunity to know). He gives us opportunity to learn and grow and become better people. He blesses us with resources (food, clothing, shelter, etc.) that we do not deserve. So, when God COULD act harshly toward us based on our sins and rejection or denial of Him, but withholds this from us so that we can grow and learn, He is being supremely fair.
[Comment: Webster’s first definition of fair: “1a – Marked by impartiality and honesty : free from self-interest, prejudice, or favoritism; 1b(1) – conforming with the established rules.” While God would be justified to treat us exactly and immediately as we deserve, He extends latitude and consideration we do not deserve. This leads to the next part of the response:
Kindness includes the quality of fairness, but it is more complex than that. Kindness involves compassion, humility, sympathy, the ability to feel what someone else feels and treat them according to their needs or their good.
The Bible teaches that God is kind (see Ephesians 2:7; Titus 3:4; Isaiah 54:8). If He was not kind, we would all feel His wrath immediately as we sin, since the cost or penalty of sin is death or separation from God. But the fact that He continues to bless and help us shows His kindness. Another way of saying this is, "for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust" (Matthew 5:45).
Another word we could substitute for kindness is grace. Grace is the action of blessing someone who doesn't deserve to be blessed. God did this for us when He sent His Son (Jesus) to die for us on the cross. But God shows us grace and kindness every day by giving us time, freedom, peace, free will, blessings, etc. that we do not deserve.
[Comment: Webster’s definition of kind: “1a – of a sympathetic or helpful nature; 1b – of a forbearing nature : gentle.” The legalist tends to discount the kindness of God; the liberal tends to overemphasize it. But while God expects full and flawless obedience, He has also made provision for restoring and refining us – at great cost to Himself – so that in His kindness we still have the opportunity of fellowship with Him now and eternal life in His presence for eternity. We might liken this, as Scripture does, to how a father deals with his children. We recoil from the heartless, autocratic, demanding father due to his lack of fairness or kindness. The father we all want is the one who has mercy, is patient and loves us in spite of our many failures. This, thankfully, describes our heavenly Father.]
Which leads to the last part of my answer to our young inquirer:
So, God is fair, but not infinitely so. In other words, our opportunities will eventually end, and those who have rejected Him or rebelled against Him will be held to account. God is kind, but not infinitely so as the rebellious and unfaithful will be banished from Him if they die apart from Christ.
In this earthly life we have free will, chances to learn, opportunities to conform to His will and submit ourselves to His laws and care. While we are alive on earth we are surrounded by God's kindness and fairness. We need to take advantage of them while we can.
Unfortunately, so many live their lives oblivious to God and unconcerned about their spiritual welfare and the consequences of dying apart from a relationship with Him. But we will never be able to say, "God didn't tell me," or "God didn't give me evidence," or "God didn't make things clear," or "I would have believed in Him if ...". Everything we need to know, especially in 2022 with digitalization, internet, etc., is available to us. We just need the desire to learn about God and seek His will for our lives.
[Comment: Humanistic ideology completely dismisses the eternal aspect of our existence. It places all of our hopes, dreams, achievements and value squarely upon this life alone, for there is nothing else afterward. No wonder so many people are troubled, anxious and/or neurotic, for we all recognize on some level the uncertain, terminal and ultimately meaningless existence that is our “three score and ten” on this planet.
This outlook misses the whole point of our life on earth. We have but a short time to come to know God; work on our character; serve our families, brethren and fellow man. This life is a series of trials designed to educate, refine and prepare us for heaven; to instruct us about sin and Satan and what his influence can do to deceive, distract and destroy us. God is fair; He is kind; and we should be so grateful that His justice is tempered by compassion. But we must not take it for granted. We all have a day of reckoning coming in which we will be accountable for how we responded to His fairness and kindness.]
Final thought: As the West drifts further into humanism, and as political forces are inexorably leading us into globalism, we are going to encounter more people who are totally unacquainted with God. And like this young man, some of them will have honest questions about the nature, character and will of God that we might have taken for granted. We must begin to think in these basic terms and “always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear” (1 Pet 3:15).
