It’s a frequent objection from people who sit on the fence about their faith, or are hesitant to believe in Y’shua or haShem. The objection may focus on different specifics, but it always begins pretty much the same: “I could never believe in a G-d who…”
What follows isn’t always as important as the mindset. Today, a vast majority of Western people of faith approach religion as being subjective, rather than objective. In other words, G-d is not G-d as G-d defines himself. Instead, people believe in a G-d they are comfortable with, and tend to ignore the passages in Torah with which they are uncomfortable.
Prefer to think of G-d as all-loving and never judging? So do a lot of people. Prefer to think of a G-d who is all-holy and harsh in his judgments because you’ve too often been wronged by others? A lot of folks do that, also. Prefer to think of G-d as a rotund man in red who, in late December, hands out candy, Catholic gifts and other goodies to well-behaved kids? Folks even do that!
What we’ve lost is a for more messianic Jewish - and genuine - approach to the question of who G-d is. That approach is simpler: G-d is who he has revealed himself to be, like it or not. Is he loving? Yes! Is he holy? Yes!
How can he be both a G-d who loves and a G-d who destroys, such as with the slaying of the first born in the Exodus narrative? That’s part of the mystery and joy in discovering and growing in relationship to haShem. He’s not the simplified, homogenized “concept” that most modern worshipers would reduce him to. He’s far more fascinating and complex. And, frankly, far more puzzling at times, too.
It’s harder work to know haShem for who he really is, as he has revealed himself to be in the Torah. But that is a G-d far more worth knowing, if you ask me.
