Holmes and the Ant

I love knowing stuff. My mind has no problem remembering strange minutia and facts that are often of little value. Along with that, I love puzzles, but only puzzles I can figure out. Nothing is more infuriating to me than to get stuck on some kind of logic problem or mental trick and having to admit defeat. I guess it is in my genes to want to figure everything out. If that's not possible, I want to at least have more figured out than the next guy. I know it's not the healthiest attitude, but at least I'm aware of it.

I bring all this up to tie it in with one of my favorite fictional characters as a teenager. Sherlock Holmes was always interesting to read. I loved how he could take a seemingly trivial item or observation and turn it around to solve a major case, or at least make a break in it. Most of these were simple deductions that he would make concerning a scuff on a shoe and a stain on a sole. As long as the knowledge flowed in an understandable manner I was OK. However, it used to infuriate me when he would make leaps that weren't in the story line. I would get uninterested quick. Not because it wasn't explained at some point, but because I wanted to be in "the know". Does this sound like you?


I'll go to a movie with stunning visual effects, wonderful musical scores and (to me) an intriguing plot line. But a few days later I'll be talking to a friend or scanning Facebook and someone will say, "I didn't like it, I didn't understand half of what went on!",or "It didn't make sense, it was ridiculous that...". A lot of people are quick to discard something if they don't immediately understand it. New information must come in bite sized nuggets that we can easily digest; nothing too radical or extreme. Here we find another problem that you must address if you want to learn more about who God is, one that I had to address myself. You cannot understand everything about God. That's it, plain and simple. There are things that we will never understand because we can't. Now I imagine some of you are crying foul much like I have in the past. Stick with me for a little and let's see if we can work through this.

In Exodus chapter 3, we come across an exchange that takes place between God and a man called Moses. At this time, Moses is a simple shepherd. But years in the past, he was a part of the royal family of Egypt. Long story short, he was the son of a slave family who was adopted by the daughter of the Pharaoh and raised to be her son. At the age of 40 he killed one of the slave drivers who was abusing one of his fellow Israelites. The murder was found out and he ran off into the desert, married had children and kept sheep for 40 years. As he is tending sheep he comes across a bush that is burning but not being consumed by the fire. From this bush, God speaks to Moses, telling him that he must go back to Egypt and tell the ruler of the most powerful empire of that time to let all of the Israelite slaves go. Moses is of course taken aback and tries to get out of it.

The point of all this is his second question to God. Moses states that once he tells everyone this they'll want to know who sent him. He asks God...Who should I say sent me? Here is God's response from Exodus 3:14.

God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM . This is what you are to say to the Israelites: 'I AM has sent me to you.'"

Most of us would have started listing our genealogy, our character attributes, or maybe things we have accomplished. God simply states "I AM". Why? Why doesn't He just explain who He is. Better yet, why doesn't He explain why His chosen people have been slaves for hundreds of years? Why is He waiting so long. We deserve answers...we demand answers...or we won't believe He sent you! God must prove himself to me.

Now this may sound a little harsh, but any of you who are parents will certainly understand this. If there really is an all powerful God, it would be laughable and possibly dangerous for you or I to demand an explanation from Him. Search His will; sure! Ask for help because something doesn't make since; yes! Make Him prove something to you because it sounds stupid; no. When someone stands toe to toe with God demanding answers they have already made up their mind that either He doesn't exist or that He is impotent. This is about as smart as my eight year old son rolling his eyes at me. God chooses to approach us in His own way in His own time. He does this not to be cryptic or mysterious; He does it for our benefit.

I have often used an analogy to make this final point. Let's say that there was a way for you to communicate with an ant on their level. Not that they gain intelligence, but you are able to speak to them in a language they understand. Will they be able to understand everything about your life? Could they completely understand your family structure compared to theirs? Could they understand my six foot tall world to their two millimeter tall world. You would have to put the basics into context; I am not going to hurt you, I can see more than you can see, I will help you to be the best you can be. Now if a scientist could do that, we would be greatly impressed. There is so much left to communicate to the ant, but would it be good for him to have all that dumped on him all at once? I suppose that little by little, the man could slowly explore new ideas with an ant and teach him more. But would the ant ever be able to comprehend it all? No. The ant is limited, just like we are compared to God.

I reached a point where I acknowledged that God knows more than I do. He has taught me many things, and through these He has proved to me that He exists, that He cares for me, and that He wants to help me. The rest I must take on faith.

Blessings to you all,
Nathan

*Scripture was taken from The New International Version