Messing With My Mind

I originally posted this on Facebook on February 6th, 2009.

All these years it has really bothered me that people could have seen all the things Jesus was doing and who he was and yet reject him.. and want to kill him to protect their political positions.

Now here in John 12:40 it reads: "He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts, Lest they should see with their eyes, Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, So that I should heal them."

Wowza!

God purposefully kept them from believing in him and accepting him. For.. if they had accepted him and not killed him then there would be so salvation for all of us generations later.

This is going to take days(or longer) to absorb. What are the implications? I understand the need for Jesus' death and resurrection, etc. But the idea that God can keep someone (or you) from believing in him and/or doing what is 'right'... now that starts messing with some paradoxes.

"Oh, why did God do this to me?"... You've heard the people blame God for troubles in their lives.

But then the response back is, "God didn't do that to you.. he's allowed Satan some 'leeway' against you for his purposes... to strengthen you.. to draw you closer to him.. to offer you experiences so that you can minister better to others....

Is that true?

Here in John 12:40 it says that God just plain and flat out hardened a great many peoples hearts against him, kept them from seeing and believing in him.... (He removed their free choice and Will.. they became puppets).... That messes with even more concepts of God that I didn't think fit into the picture of things.

This indeed is going to mess with my head for a while. Heh.