The conversation went deep quickly as our casual chitchat took a turn. He said, “Well, my god would not do that.” Surprisingly, as he spoke, the word “god” kept resurfacing but always with a “my” before it. At times, I felt nudged to interject a mini sermon, but instead chose to listen. After all, I was captive in the chair. He had the scissors – my hair was in his hands. But as he combed and snipped away, I kept wondering, “Who is this ‘my god?’”
According to the Pew Research Center’s 2014 Religious Landscape Study, 89 percent of adults say they believe in “God or a universal spirit.” But who is this god or universal spirit? How many “my gods” are roaming the earth? Which one is mine? I believe it’s a question that begs an answer.
For many, “my god” is a melting pot of ideas from a variety of sources – life experience (good or bad), nature, influential people, culture, religious traditions, the Internet, and books, both secular and holy. A Google search on the word “god” popped up 1,560,000,000 results! With over one and half billion hits on god, it’s tempting not to pick and choose – keep the ideas of god I like, discard the others that make me uncomfortable. Thomas Jefferson did exactly that – not with the Internet, but the Bible. With scissors in hand, he physically cut out the Scripture verses he didn’t agree with. “I am of a sect by myself, as far as I know,” he declared. With that, Jefferson’s god was born. (By the way, The Jefferson Bible is now available on Amazon in hard copy and paperback — with Prime shipping, of course.)
For Christians, God can also be found through a person – not Thomas Jefferson, but Jesus Christ. Despite sometimes being considered offensive and politically incorrect in our culture, the word Jesus brings instant clarity to who God is. Although we can see glimpses and certainly confirmation of God’s greatness and a sense of God’s power and wonder as we walk in the woods, listen to waves crashing on the beach, or admire a glowing sunset, I believe these experiences only tell part of the story. According to Traders Point Pastor Aaron Brockett in his Aug. 17, 2014, sermon on the Gospel of John, “You won’t know God until you know His Word. Jesus is the ultimate revelation of who God is.”
“Who is ‘my god’?” It’s an important question, but a better question to help begin the search for the answer might be, “What is the source of my god?”