The God Who Delegates
From Moses to most of us, God works through an unlikely set of characters.
Philip Yancey
January 1, 1989
Your mission: a documentary film series about religion for PBS. Great. One more yawner of an assignment. "Explore images of God through the ages," or some such abstraction, they say. Just fine. Who comes up with these schemes? For starters, the central character is invisible. Well, until someone thinks of a way to arrange an interview with God himself, they'll have to settle for vignettes about God. Fourteenth century B.C. Begin with helicopter shot of the Sinai peaks. Uninhabited area, so no TV antennas to dismantle, etc. Zoom to a clump of Bedouin extras impersonating ancient Hebrews. Voice-over on how they eat, what they wear. Camera settles on a Jewish boy about 12 years old. Interrupt him from play and call him over. "Tell me about your God. What's he like?" narrator asks. Boy's eyes widen. "You mean . . . you mean . . ." Can't bring himself to say the word. "That's right, Yahweh, the God you worship." "What's he like? Him? See that mountain over there? [Cut to volcano. Lots of steam, smoke. Close-up of magma.] That's where he lives. Don't go near it or you'll die! He's . . . he's . . . well, most of all he's scary. Real scary." A.D. First century. Pan across the broad, flat horizons of Palestine. Same Bedouins, now milling around the desert in a group. Oasis in the background. Tighten in on a clump of bystanders, then on a woman along the edge, sitting down, leaning against a desert shrub. Prompt her with a question about the nature of God. "God? I'm still trying to figure him out for myself. I thought I knew, but when I started following this teacher around, I got confused. He claims he's the Messiah. My friends laugh. But I was there when he fed five thousand people-who else could do that? I ate a piece of the fish. And ...
Like the preview? To read this complete article
and 18,013 more in the archive—JOIN NOW!
Easily find high-quality, well-researched materials that provide a Christian perspective on topics ranging from headlines to history.
Start using this invaluable tool TODAY for preparing your Bible studies, presentations, class lectures, sermons, meetings, and more.
|
It's easy and quick to join:
Brought to You by Christianity Today Int'l |  |
|
| 
Find similar articles
E-mail this page
