Commonly used statements like "God controls everything" or "God allows me to suffer for His glory" are from the Calvinist tradition and have infiltrated Western church culture. This tradition has led us to a place where we misunderstand God's sovereignty. Even cults and Satan started out with or quoted scripture, but they have twisted it. Most of us came to Sandbox because we didn't like what we saw at our previous churches, but we must be careful not to overcompensate because each denomination has good things to offer as well. If we believe that God causes everything, both the good and the bad, then how can we pray for and believe that He wants to heal us? If we are honest, we don't truly believe God is good and this mindset causes us to look at God with mistrust. If we read the Old Testament without reading the New Testament, we miss the beauty of God's story and Jesus, which explains the Old Testament. We keep trying to figure out the equation (Old Testament) when we already see and know the answer (New Testament). Jesus is perfect theology and all discrepancies in the Christian faith come because we don't know who God is. In the Old Testament, they didn't know God's plans, but in the New Testament, Jesus TOLD us His plans! He's not trying to undo what God did: He is the embodiment of God. A cold, detached God is not what Jesus walked on this earth. He is all we need to understand everything we need to know about the character of God.

Amen!

Reference verses: Matthew 13:58; Colossians 2:16-17; Matthew 13:17; Colossians 1:15, 2:9; John 14:8-19; 1 John 3:8; Matthew 4:23; Matthew 9:35; Acts 10:38; John 10:10; Isaiah 55:8-9; John 15:5; Job 11:7-8; Exodus 4:11; 1 Corinthians 2:11-13; Luke 4:18-19; John 5:39-42; Hebrews 12:2; Philippians 3:4-10