Prompt: Chaos, by Thomas Kinkade
For the context of this article, read my previous post.
The central question I would like to address in this series:
What basic truths can we learn from the fact that God gave us a perfect world?
The first thing we can learn is that God’s perfect world is the exact opposite of chaos, Genesis 1:1-2.
Some intellectuals promote this so-called “chaos theory”. They see "beauty" in it. They make it as a model to interpret many things in life such as the market, society, economics, and politics. The basic presupposition is contrary to Judeo-Christian tradition. For them, the underlying foundation of human existence is not order, but chaos.
Reading the introductory material to the book of Genesis, I stumbled upon a piece of information to illustrate this. Wenham lamented about the current state of Old Testament scholarship. It is now divided into various schools. He describes a situation that reminds us of the Book of Judges. In OT scholarship, no one is considered king. “Everyone is doing what is right in his own eyes!” For him, the safer option is to just simply list the various critical opinions and let the reader decide.
As for me, it is enough for me to simply trust what the Bible tells us that the basic reality of human existence isn’t chaos but order. As we look into the world around us, we can also see design, meaning, and purpose.
In Genesis 1:2, Moses describes the original condition of the earth as "formless" and "empty". It was in chaos. Many Bible scholars believe that these words are related to a picture of a desert or wilderness where people find it hard to survive. Using these words to describe the original condition of the earth would mean that the earth was uninhabitable and hostile to life.
This message was so important for the Israelites during Moses' time. We read that the Pharaoh of Egypt oppressed them with forced labor. Egypt was no longer friendly and hospitable to the Jews. The new politics was hostile to them and their life in Egypt was one of economic slavery. In the language of Genesis 1:2, it meant that the life of the Jews in Egypt during Moses' time was one of chaos, without order and emptiness.
We find a similar picture in the New Testament. The apostle Paul describes the life of those without Christ:
As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath (Ephesians 2:1-3).
Notice that the word "flesh" in verse 3 is "sarx" in Greek, which refers to the sinful condition of humanity that is hostile to the Spirit of God. This tells us that human life apart from Christ is in chaos; it is without order and empty. And it is the exact opposite of what God planned for us. God wants us to live in the cosmos, in a perfect world not in chaos; to live a life that has form and order, not disorderly, lawless, and anarchic; to live a life that is full and has meaning, not empty and meaningless.
Moses understood this message. He knew that the only hope for his generation was liberation from a life of chaos, religious polytheism, of political oppression, and economic slavery through the Word and the Spirit of God.
We also need to understand and be fully convinced that our life in Jesus is a life of liberty, joy, order, and purpose through the Holy Spirit and the word of God. However, this new life entails a responsibility.
In our days, we see nations whose religious, intellectual, political, and economic affairs are in chaos. We also know individuals whose lives are in ruin; people who no longer find meaning in life and think that death is the only escape.
On the other hand, a life in Christ that is living the kind of life that pleases God entails dependence on the Spirit of God. And such life can only be experienced as a reality in the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is the only hope for our time. Legislation and education cannot do it. Inward transformation through the gospel's power resulting in social reformation is the way to go, leading to the right path toward God’s original design.