I'm Only Human...

Blogging gives me an ideal spot for airing out all my pets and peeves. And I can get out all those crazy wonderings, the ones that usually get me those, “um, where’s the straight-jacket?” looks. Today I’ll do a little of both.
Pet: Someone messes up and as explanation claims, “I’m only human.” The account of creation in Genesis, whether you believe it to be a literal 6 days, stretched out 6 days, done through evolution or what have you, asserts several points. First, God is sovereign over His creation. Second, humans are special and primary in this creation (rather than an accident, after thought, or result of a sexual encounter, as the creation stories from other religions allege). Third, that God created humans in His image, and He declared them good. Yes, absolutely, in the Fall and every time I fail to love God or love my neighbor, I taint that image. But it’s still there. So “I’m only human” is something to live up to, not something to fall back on. Jesus is the only one to walk this earth and be truly human. Someday, whoever depends on Jesus for their right-standing with God will learn what it means to be truly human, with perfect bodies exuding the image of God, in harmony with God, each other, and nature. So, no, don’t tell me “I’m only human” when you mess up. Tell me you acted a little less humanly.
Peeve: Whenever someone sees some sampling of good in the world, someone who puts themselves in a dangerous position to save another sort of thing, they sigh and say, “He must be an angel.”
What?
How bout this? He must have actually let his Imago Dei (image of God) shine through. He must have just for one moment lived up to what he was created to be.
There is a verse that says that we need to be hospitable and caring of others cuz you never know when you are entertaining angels. Note: we need to be nice because we might have angels in our presence, not the other way around. The angels are the recipients. Other references to angels include messengers, sword-wielding warriors fighting demonic forces in a realm we don’t see, and those that serve in the presence of God. None of this is baby butt-cheeks playing a miniscule harp with curls framing a pudgy face.
Here’s what I think: as long as we say it was an angel, we don’t have to set that as a standard to which we should attain. Just like my flute students. If they preempt the whole thing with, “I can’t,” they think they have a way out and they don’t have to practice. (Little do they know with whom they deal!)
So to the crazy wonderings: My dad said once that he believes that when Jesus calmed that storm, he was being truly human (rather than demonstrating divine powers). In the beginning (I love those words. They mean story time.), man was created as caretaker of the world, over the world, naming things and caring for them and keeping them in check. Humans should be able to calm storms. Of course, because we are fallen and corrupt and decaying and would use that power for our own agenda (or should I say, we do use that power for our own agenda), we can’t calm a storm. Or walk on water, or fly (except in planes). So in that day when God restores everything to good, will we be able to walk on water and fly? I mean, in Rev. 21 and 22, it says the city is a mile high. How else will we get to the top?
Okay, I’ve rambled enough. So here’s to fairy dust and Superman and caring for the least of these.