Do you believe in a loving or hostile God is a parody on Albert Einstein’s statement, “The most important decision we make is whether we believe we live in a friendly or hostile universe.” Einstein thought that was the most important question facing humanity, do you believe the universe is friendly or hostile?
How that question was answered would determine the response. If we believe the world is a hostile place, then all our efforts, technology, scientific resources, and discoveries would focus on safety and power by creating more walls and weapons.
If we decide that the universe is a friendly place, then we use those resources for good.
It’s a very important question to answer. But I believe a bigger and more important question to answer is whether we believe in a loving or hostile, judgmental God.
How Our Image of God is Shaped
Most people’s image of God, initially, is a subtle combination of their own mother and father or other early authority figures.
If you are fortunate enough to have loving parents and role models, you have a head start on your image of God being a loving Parent.
But if the authority figures in your life were absent, abusive, manipulative, untrustworthy, those traits can carry over to the image you form of God and whether that image is loving or hostile.
Much of the work Jesus did was to heal and to show us who God was, a loving God. He tells us that we are part of God in these verses from John.
“The glory that you have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.” John 17:22-23
John writes, “We love because he first loved us.” 1 John 4:19
I Used to Believe in a Hostile God
My image of God was very distorted. The message I heard from the pulpit left me disillusioned so much so that I turned away from my faith and from God for twenty years.
And I must admit, I struggle with the God depicted throughout the Old Testament. But it has been through the spiritual practices of prayer, meditation, and stillness that I’ve experienced God’s loving Spirit through a personal relationship. For me, I choose to believe in a loving God.
I Now Believe in a Loving God
I share more about this shift in this free, short eBook, Bringing God’s View into Focus to Live Life with Joy and Flow along with the audio version.
Having a loving image of God allows you to live your life with greater joy, flow, and freedom. God’s love, power, and glory will flow through you to others.
You will have greater peace, clarity, and purpose in your life as you love and trust God fully.
That has been my experience in making that choice. I choose to believe in a loving God.
If religion has left you wounded and disillusioned, download this free eBook and audio book: Bringing God’s View Into Focus to Live Life with Joy and Flow.
Jackie Trottmann
October 19, 2024 11:44 amHi Marco,
Thank you for your comment. It is a tough question to answer, especially when you mention the atrocities happening in the world. But these are all caused by hateful, abusive people in power. I don’t believe that God is causing this to happen. Is God allowing this to happen? Obviously, because it’s happening. Do I understand it? No – other than God is not a controlling God of our actions. We get to choose to do good or evil. Of course, we have laws that are supposed to prevent us from hurting others. But where there is power, where someone has the money and resources to dominate, even annihilate groups of people without a means to stop them, these types of atrocities will, unfortunately, continue to happen. We all need to unite and stop hate from happening. I believe in a loving God that weeps for those who are abused. That’s my answer.
May we work for a peaceful world.
Jackie
Marco Meneses
October 17, 2024 6:54 pmIf you go and talk with war victims around the world you will find the answer for a loving or hostile God.
If you go now, for example just to mention something that is happening now, to that place of palestines, Israel, etc and you see men women children that lost one arm or a leg or they got blindness you will see your answer. Put yourself in the mind of Congolese that the guerrilla or the government cut both arms. Give me your answer!!!!!