Cell Block Tango?

Over the past three weeks, I’ve often come home feeling heavy, complaining that cell is hard. This quarter, our discussions have centered around assigning a topic, digging into the Bible to see what God says about it, and removing our own opinions from the matter. It’s been challenging, and I can feel my faith being tested. If I’m being honest, I’m not sure I like it. Sometimes, I just want to stay ignorant, believe things as they are, and push away all the difficult questions I’ve carried for so long.

Most weeks, I leave cell feeling sad. There aren’t always answers to the most challenging questions, and sometimes, the answers I do get don’t sit well with me. Maybe it’s just me not having the capacity to understand, but I suppose I’ll have a chat with Him when I get there.

The themes that have troubled me most have been the last two: “The Old Covenant vs. The New Covenant” and “The Israelites.”

We went off on tangents during these discussions, and a recurring issue was the interchangeable use of “Hebrew,” “Jewish,” and “Israelite.” Are they the same? Different? Who exactly are the chosen people God refers to? There’s a verse in the New Testament (I’ll find it for next week) that says God intentionally blinded and deafened the Israelites to Christ until the Gentiles return to Israel. So, who does that include now? The Jewish people? What about Israelites who are Christian? Does this mean they get a “free pass” until that day comes?

When discussing The Old Covenant vs. The New Covenant, a friend asked: “Didn’t the Jewish people notice that there is a new covenant? I mean, God’s wrath has ended.” She was referring to moments like Sodom and Gomorrah, the plagues, and people being struck down by lightning.

Another friend responded, “Maybe His wrath is still here; we just explain it away with science.”

This brought up verses claiming God’s wrath did end because of Jesus and that we’ll only see it again on Judgment Day. And that’s where everything started to unravel for me.

Who is responsible for all the natural disasters now? Or even death?

• Is it still God?
• Is it Satan?

Adam and Eve sinned, releasing death into the world. That’s fair enough. In the Old Testament, Satan held the key to spiritual death because the path to heaven or hell was defined by Old Testament rules. Then Jesus came. He died for our sins and, through resurrection, reclaimed the key to spiritual death. That makes sense to me. If we’re saved, we never have to die spiritually.

But who, then, is responsible for physical death? Sometimes, physical death leads to spiritual death if someone isn’t saved.

Take the example of a Muslim boy who gets shot before he’s had a chance to hear about Christ. What if he’d lived a few more years, escaped his circumstances, and found the good news? Why doesn’t he get that chance?

Or what about people living in remote villages on secluded islands, far from missionaries or Bibles? Why does God make it easier for some people to be saved and not others?

If it’s God, then why create people at all if He knows they’ll die spiritually? Doesn’t He already know the plan?

And this, I suppose, is where faith comes in. At some point, I just have to close my eyes and believe that it will all make sense one day. Otherwise, I’ll drive myself crazy.

Other random questions we didn’t get answers to:

• Cain found a wife and worried that others would kill him for murdering Abel. Where did those other people come from? Adam and Eve alone?
• Why didn’t God give anyone else the chance to be the Chosen People?
• When did the Israelites become Jewish?