Craig Ferguson, Pat Robertson, Job and gumball machines.
Craig Ferguson, a late night TV host, made an absolutely brilliant statement. Probably one of the best statements I’ve heard recently, and as far as I know, he’s not a Jesus follower. He was doing a bit on Pat Robertson’s recent prediction of mass killings at the end of 2007.
Ferguson said,
“I think what happens is that some of these televangelists, they prey on the good-will of the congregation… People flock to these preachers, cause they want someone to tell them everything is gonna be all right. But here’s my thing, you can’t have certainty and faith. You can’t. You can’t have them at the same time. If you have faith, you don’t need certainty. If you have certainty, you don’t need faith. They can’t coexist. It doesn’t make sense. You can’t be hungry and full. You can’t be drunk and sober. You can’t be fat and thin. It doesn’t make any sense.”
This is an absolutely fascinating statement. If we have faith, we do so many of us flock to those public figures that predict the future through “prophecy” or promise the “best life now” or promise healing. Where is the faith in that? Are we not simply running off to soothe sayers? What is the difference, other than some use the name of Jesus and others don’t?
It reminds me of Job’s story, in some ways. It all came crashing down on poor Job. When I think I’m having a bad day, I just think of Job…puts things in perspective. Job lost his house, his children, his wealth, and then to make a bad day worse, his wife tells him “Why don’t you just curse God and die.” My husband loves when I say that to him.
So, there Job is, when his friends show up. The see how absolutely miserable he is. Scripture says that he looked so bad, they hardly recognized him. His friends sat with him for 7 days, mourning with him. But 7 days of mourning was about all they could handle. I think that we are not much different. We can only stand someone else’s grief for so long before we have to jump in and “fix it”. But that’s a story for another day….
His friend Eliphaz (I’ll call him Eli) jumps in and says, “Hey, Job, do you mind if I jump in here?” From there, Eli goes on to tell Job that the innocent prosper and the wicked get what they deserve. Hmmm…what was Eli implying?
Then old Bildad (Bill for short) weighs in. He suggests that perhaps Job’s children deserved to die for their sins and that if Job would simply repent, then certainly God would restore him.
As if this isn’t enough, then Zophar (Zoe for short) jumps in. He proceeds to tell Job that he is a mocker and a babbler and that he got LESS than he deserved from God as punishment.
Round and round it goes….for chapter after chapter. Eli, Bill and Zoe accuse and condemn Job (apparently, these guys have never heard of a fair fight). Job doesn’t fear God, Job is wicked, Job is clearly not listening to God. Of course, Job spends much time attempting to vindicate himself before his 3 “friends”. However, at some point the convo stops, because his 3 friends were disgusted with Job, as he was “righteous in his own eyes.” Then, to Job’s delight I’m sure, another friend swings by Job’s pad. I’ll call him Eli Jr. (no relation to the older Eli). Junior is already in a right state by the time he speaks. He was ticked with Job for justifying himself. He was ticked with the older 3 men, because they were unsuccessful at proving Job wrong. Junior takes 5 chapters and just lets Job have it.
Jehovah shows up.
I just love God. He has a fabulous sense of humor. So, God shows up and speaks to Job out of the storm. Even this is a clever little play on words. I think when God shows up, He must show up in the midst of a tempest, but Job was experiencing quite a tempest of his own. So God tells Job …
“Ok, Mister Man…get ready for me. I will now ask the questions, and YOU can answer.” God proceeds to ask Job questions like “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the world? Can you create lightening so that it says to you ‘Here I am?” Stuff like this. I’m thinking Job was feeling a bit humble. About halfway through God’s tirade, Job breaks in and says “Ok, Ok, You are right, God, I’ll shut up”. But God isn’t done with Job, yet. God continues to question Job with more humbling questions. One of my favorite questions that God asks is “Will you play with the leviathan like a bird, or put him on a leash for your girls?”. That’s funny. I don’t care what you say.
So, as the story wraps up, Job repents. He admits that he had no business questioning God or His purposes. Then, here comes the beautiful part, God totally OWNED Job’s friends. He tells them “that you have not spoken rightly of Me and that Job has. IF Job will pray for you, I will accept Job’s prayer and not deal accordingly with you.” BURN. I bet that Job’s friends were glad that Job was not the vindictive type. Job DID pray for his friends and God accepted Job’s prayers.
So, if you’re still with me, you may be wondering, “What the heck does this have to do with Pat Robertson and Craig Ferguson?” Well maybe, not much. However, I think it speaks to this need for us to have all the answers. Pray and God will heal. Be holy and God will bless you. Seek God and He will tell you the future so you can prepare.
Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. Hebrews 11:1
Technorati Tags: Pat Robertson, prediction, Craig Ferguson, Job, prophecy, healing, prophetic, Joel Osteen,
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Awesome, awesome post! Can I ost a copy of this on my site…pretty please?
Wow…that was fast. I just posted this like 5 minutes ago!
Yes, of course you can.
Jamie
Beautifully put. I totally enjoy your site–thanks!
Barak Obama says the same thing about faith in his book “The Audacity of Hope”. You can’t be sure about what you have faith in because if you did, it wouldn’t be faith.
Great post. I always wondered why I didn’t get the blue gumball. I must’ve been using a Canadian coin….
Erika,
Thanks so much!
Cindy-Right. And we can get into arguments about whether or not we have certainty in our faith, but I think it all comes down to the same thing…God is a mystery and until the day we see him face to face, we see darkly…..
This is a great post, thank you very much!
I enjoy it, particularly the reminder of how Job’s friends were certain but but wrong in his case - say 90% of the time they might have been right but this time they were 100% wrong - which is a poignant reminder to me that often I think I know how so well what others should do which is not the same as checking in with God and asking him - in fact one of the things I am most challenged by is applying that sort of judgement to me rather than others…
Faith i think can have moments of near certainty which is awesome and it can have moments of totall uncertainty - some days i feel like God has walked through the room, others I doubt whether he exists at all -i guess what I am learning to be glad about is both times I can pray and say thank you, say today i’m sure or today I don’t know and tomorrow who knows, but thank you I am free to express myself where I am… it’s a most awesome thing
It also reminds me what else would I do - even when I doubt God, me and everyother christian as a grand delusional experience I think that at the heart of this faith their is something that is still worth giving my life too, a hope, even a slim one, of something more than me/us, something that could bless the world rather than a life that just seeks to bless me…
thank you again!
ummmm . . . well, uh, hate to do it James but gotta go the other way on this one. Ferguson is right on this perhaps: that people want someone to tell them that everything is alright. Agreed. However, his statement that faith and certainty are mutually exclusive is absolutely balogna and you can spell that with an ey on the end. But we cut him slack because he is an unbeliever. Faith is certainty and assurance so that we have no doubt regarding certain revealed things–things hoped for. They are not things merely hoped for with uncertainty but with no shadow of a doubt as to our gaining them. But here is the problem with faith–1. people want to have faith at times in those things for which God has not given a corresponding promise! 2. Faith is often an expression of no doubt that God can do a certain thing– heal my child–He is able and I know it. So I pray. And I give thanks because I know without a doubt that God wants the best for my child. But if no healing then what? Is certainty gone? No. My faith is in His character and desire for what is best not in necessarily a certain promise of healing. But like the persistent widow we continue to pray in faith. It is absolute poppy-cock and bull shit . . . uh, excuse me, to say that people are not healed because there is no faith. 3. God gives the gift of faith–certainty. It is not available in this supernatural sense to the unbeliever. No wonder Ferguson is confused. For the reason of unbelief he gets slack for his ignorant comment. Faith is the gift of God and at times this can even be supernatural faith for specific things that will happen–miracles, etc. In this latter sense we see that faith is actually a spiritual gift given to some believers are given in gatherings for specific reasons. I think what we need in the church is more people grounded less in their experiences and whims speaking on things that we have been introduced to through the authoritative scriptures. And yes, I must say it again–if the Scriptures are not authoritative then I quit. I am wasting my time on this philosophy of empty pain and suffering.
Todd, did God give you the gift of foul language as well, or is that exclusive to unbelievers?
Paul,
I’m glad to hear that this post reminds you not to judge yourself before checking with God! I do believe this walk is one of faith. So often, we can’t see beyond the step we are taking. And if we can do that, on those days, take that one step, that’s all we need.
Thanks for your comments!
thanks Jamie, yes so true, i’m reminded of that verse in the psalms of how god provides a light for our path - i have always read it as a big ol spot light but more and more think of it in its context as a t-light on my sandals, just enough light to see what my foot is gonna land on before i put it down…
TA—I LOVE when you disagree with me!! It gives me a chance to argue with you.
Perhaps this is really a disagreement on semantics. Check this out:
Certainty implies a thorough consideration of evidence: “the emphasis of a certainty that is not impaired by any shade of doubt” (Mark Twain).
Certitude is based more on personal belief than on objective facts: “Certitude is not the test of certainty” (Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.)
Assurance is a feeling of confidence resulting from subjective experience: “There is no such thing as absolute certainty, but there is assurance sufficient for the purposes of human life” (John Stuart Mill).
Conviction arises from the vanquishing of doubt: “His religion . . . was substantial and concrete, made up of good, hard convictions and opinions. (Willa Cather).
I have certitude, assurance and conviction that the things Scripture says are true. I do not have certainty. I do not have evidence (other than emperical) that tells me Scripture is inspired, God created and Jesus rose. That is faith. And frankly, I think faith says a whole lot more than certainty. If I have proof, what good is it that I believe? I believe in my microwave. But that’s because it’s sitting in my kitchen. So what? That’s not faith.
Whatcha think?
How are the Philippines? When are you home? Say Hi to DT.
Virgil,
I think God gave both Todd and I the gift of foul language, if I remember any of our past conversations correctly.
wow, good to be in dialogue with you folks. Faith, assurance and hope are all linked. Biblical hope is different from normal run of the meal world hope as it is impossible without assurance. Check out Abraham’s near sacrifice of Isaac. He was convinced God would raise Isaac from the dead because he had an assurance that through Isaac all the nations of the world would be blessed. No Isaac means no faithful God. Regarding the bad language, two brief comments: 1. It is not good nor do I defend it; it is not the gift of God. Only with friends will I ever use it–for effect or as a joke–and that is perhaps not good either! 2. Paul uses the S word himself–but only in making a comparsion and it would not have been received as we would perhaps receive it today. In the end of course faith is certainty not based on evidences seen. This makes no sense to a man like Ferguson and many others. What good is it to judge of Spiritual matters through the lenses that the world provides? This is the problem I think.
TA faith is an odd thing. We are trusting in things we truly have no “evidence” of. Evidence in today’s world is highly valuable. So, my point, well, I actually had several in that post, my point as far as Ferguson is we are adopting the world’s ways in this “certainty” thing. We want ANSWERS and we want them now! Thank you very much. And I’m going to go back and say again. You can’t have faith and certainty. I can have trust, assurance, conviction…but not certainty.
As far as language…..just remember that article on “cussing Christians”…..
:)