Choose to Live
Most of us see life as a given, not as a choice. This is true to a large extent when we consider our physical life. We didn’t choose to be born. We don’t choose to live and though sometimes we do things that might hasten our death, psychologically healthy people don’t typically commit suicide.
Yet, given all this, we find numerous passages in the Bible which challenge us to choose to live. Clearly, these can’t refer to physical life, because we’ve already established that this is not a matter of choice. However, spiritual life is another matter. We can choose to go through physical life in a state of spiritual death, or we can reconnect with God and find spiritual life.
Let’s take a moment or two and think about the spiritual life that God invites us to experience. The prophet Amos wrote the following: “For thus says the LORD to the house of Israel: ‘Seek me and live; but do not seek Bethel, and do not enter into Gilgal or cross over to Beersheba; for Gilgal shall surely go into exile, and Bethel shall come to nothing.’ Seek the LORD and live...” (Amos 5:4-6a ESV)
Twice in these verses, we find the command to seek God and live. As I read this, I noticed that the prophet specifically told the people to “not seek Bethel, and do not enter into Gilgal or cross over to Beersheba.” That sharpened my curiosity and prompted me to do some digging around.
Bethel was a famous place in Israel. It was the place where Jacob had his heavenly dream. The ark of the covenant, the symbol of God’s presence, spent a long time there. Gilgal was also famous. In its case because it was the place where the Israelites made their first camp after crossing the Jordan river as they entered into the promised land. It was the place where the rite of circumcision was renewed and the first Passover was held. The name Beer-sheba signifies ‘well of the oath.’ It was the place where Abraham and Abimelech swore an oath of peace. Later, it was associated with Issac who also dug a well there.
It seems that God wanted His people to seek Him. He warned them against the human tendency to settle for something less. In the case of the associations of these three places, God’s symbolic presence, religious tradition, and historic promises. These things may have their place in the life of the believer, but too often they become traps. It is easy to hang onto things like these and become content with them. When we do that, we typically give up seeking after God.
In the passage we’re looking at, God was speaking to His chosen people as a nation. In our time, we find parallels at the individual level. We might associate Bethel with the memory of a special time when we were particularly aware of God’s presence and activity in our lives. Such recollections are precious to us, but keep us from moving forward, seeking to know God better.
Gilgal could represent the religious traditions with which we are comfortable and which provide meaning to our lives. Faithful adherence to particular spoken formulas like prayers or creeds, or specific ways of doing things like conducting the communion service, can distract us from real worship.
Beer-sheba can stand for the promises of old. I suspect that most Christians can think of a promise they made to God some time in the past. If it is a promise kept, it can engender pride, if it has been unkept, their focus on trying to keep it may well prevent them from drawing close to God. Instead of recognizing and confessing their failure, they allow this thing to become an impediment in their relationship with God.
If we accept that God is the source of life, any choice we make concerning life will necessitate our drawing closer to God. The nearer we find ourselves to God the deeper the spiritual life we will experience. The further we move from God the shallower our spiritual life becomes to the point of looking like death.
Regarding our physical life, we sometimes talk about “the will to live.” It is a drive which can keep us hanging on, even when medical experts despair of our recovery. Many are the examples of people whose will to live has pulled them back from the brink of death. May it be with us as Christians that the will to live spiritually will drive us close to our Father whose promise still rings out clearly, “Seek Me and live.”
Ron Hughes
© Febuary 2009
