It Doesn't Make Sense

It had never rained a drop of rain on the earth, and Noah didn’t even know what rain was. Yet God asked Noah to build an enormous ark, a major project which took a significant amount of time and brought ridicule from his neighbors. (Genesis 6)

God promised Abraham that He would bless him and make a great nation of him. Then He asked Abraham to leave his homeland and the place where he had begun to prosper. God instructed him to pack up and start traveling to a new land, but He did not reveal where the destination would be. (Genesis 12)

God promised to give innumerable descendants to Abraham. Not only did Abraham not have any children that would make such a promise possible, but he was married to a woman who was too old to have children. (Genesis 18)

After a long wait and the miraculous birth of the promised son, God asked Abraham to sacrifice that son. (Genesis 22)

Joseph’s service for God required that he be despised by his brothers, torn from his family, sold as a slave into a foreign country, tempted and falsely accused, thrown into prison, and forgotten by those who promised to help him. (Genesis 37-39)

Just as the nation of Israel was beginning to be established, God sent a lengthy drought that threatened their lives. In order for them to survive, God instructed Jacob to uproot his family, leave the Promised Land, and move to a foreign country where they would end up becoming slaves for four hundred years. (Genesis 46)

Moses had abandoned his position as prince of Egypt and had spent decades as a shepherd in the desert. It was from this unlikely role that God called Moses and instructed him to go before the world’s greatest leader. There he was to make the absurd request that Pharaoh free his enormous and very productive slave population. (Exodus 3)

As they escaped Egypt, God directed the children of Israel to make camp in a location where they were trapped by surrounding mountains, the sea, and an angry approaching army. (Exodus 14)

As Israel approached the first battle in their conquest of the Promised Land, God gave an unlikely battle plan. The army was instructed to march around the city of Jericho once a day for six days and then seven times on the seventh day. (Joshua 6)

When Israel faced a battle against Midian, God purposefully reduced Gideon’s army to 300 men. He then sent that miniscule army into battle armed only with trumpets, pitchers, and torches. (Judges 7)

David, likely only a teenager, had no military training, no armor, and very little moral support. With only a sling and stones as weapons, he was impelled by God to go into battle alone against a giant, well-trained, well-equipped, and life-long warrior who was accompanied by a bodyguard. (I Samuel 17)

Jehoram and Jehoshaphat joined together in battle against Moab. The impending battle was daunting enough; additionally, the armies found themselves with no water for themselves or their animals. They were an easy target, and God’s answer was for them to go out and dig trenches in the valley. God Himself admitted there was no rain in the forecast, and He gave no additional instructions for the battle itself. (II Kings 3)

On another occasion Jehoshaphat faced a massive allied army led by Moab and Ammon. The threat was so disconcerting that the entire nation turned to fasting and prayer. God told His people not even to fight; instead they were to go out to where they could overlook the battlefield and then just stand and watch. (II Chronicles 20)

Naaman, a foreign army captain, was willing to acknowledge God’s power and seek the help of God’s prophet for his leprosy. After making the trip, he was not even allowed to see the prophet, but was relayed the unpromising instruction to go dip seven times in the muddy Jordan River. (II Kings 5)

Esther seemed to be the only hope to keep the Jews from being annihilated. Unfortunately, if she went before the king without an invitation and he didn’t feel like seeing her, she would be killed. She had not been invited to see him for thirty days, and with less than five years as queen, she had neither a great deal of experience to know what to expect nor a well-established rapport that might offer some immunity. More than just a visit, she wanted to ask for a significant intervention from the king and a major reversal of a law. In spite of the risks, she fulfilled her role within God’s plan by taking her life into her hands as she went uninvited to the king. (Esther 4-7)

When ordered to worship an idol, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego faithfully followed God’s command regarding false worship, even though they knew their obedience meant death in a raging furnace. They were graciously given a second chance, with the consequences of refusal clearly explained to them. To avoid a certain death, they could have made an outward show of kneeling to the idol, but they chose to obey God instead. (Daniel 3)

After difficult days of sorrow and ministry, Jesus compelled His disciples to go out on the sea in the middle of the night. He knew of the storm and wind they would face as they struggled to cross the sea. Knowing all the challenges involved in such a night trip, He didn’t even go with them, but sent them on their own. (Matthew 14)

Professional fisherman had used their skill and knowledge as they worked during the optimal nighttime hours, yet they caught nothing. Then in the heat of the day, when the fish were even less likely to be caught, and when the fishermen were tired and packing away their equipment, Jesus told them to go out and try again. (Luke 5)

Jesus was on His way to Jairus’s house to minister to his sick daughter. While on the journey, messengers arrived and informed the group that the daughter was already dead. Not only did Jesus continue to the house anyway, but He told the people not to fear or cry. (Luke 8)

Jesus loved Lazarus and his family. He knew Lazarus was sick, and He knew He had the ability to heal, yet He waited two more days before starting to go to him. From the perspective of family members and onlookers, Jesus allowed His friend to die. (John 11)

God sent His Son as the promised Messiah. Crowds of Jews were captivated by His teaching and miracles; they began to have hope of deliverance and the expectation of their nation’s being restored. With so many people encouraged and ready to follow this new leader, God allowed Him to be crucified as a common criminal.

None of these situations made much sense. Human thinking couldn’t figure them out. In each case, however, the person involved obeyed, doing what God had asked.  Also in every case, God worked out a wonderful plan. Consider the end of each story. When people obeyed God’s seemingly senseless plans, God gave amazing results: deliverance, victory, blessing, healing, resurrection, salvation - often on an incredible scale. It turns out that God knew what He was doing all the time.

The spiritual climb is sometimes like that; it doesn’t always make sense either. Our path might plunge down again before we can reach the next upward slope. A chasm might open in front of us, requiring that we leap over it. At times the path seems to disappear into a solid rock wall. We may have to cling to tiny bumps or cracks in the rock - maybe even hang upside down. We may need to walk on a tiny ledge that we can see is narrowing down to nothing. These things make no sense to us. They seem to make upward progress impossible - but God understands a lot of things that we can’t understand. When we obey His leading, He will work through the most confusing of situations to accomplish His great plan. Whether in our lives or in the lives of others, we may be incapable of comprehending what God is doing. In those cases, can we not let it be enough to remember that God understands perfectly? He always knows the answers to the why’s of life.

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” declares the LORD. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:8-9 (NASB)