Ye Gods!
It’s easier to make a god than to believe in God. That way, “God’s” always at our beck and call. He’s always right where we left him. He keeps us amused—like the gods of ancient Greece amused the people who made them up.
Take their chief god, Zeus. He was the most powerful of the gods—also the most randy. He was always slipping down from Mt. Olympus and seducing some human female, producing superhuman offspring like Hercules. Then he’d slip back home—to face the wrath of his wife! I can imagine the old boy, sandals in hand, lipstick on his face, tottering in the kitchen: “Now Hera, are you going to believe what you see…or what I tell you?” Talk about a Desperate Housewife! Yeah, those old gods were entertaining.
Other Greeks had a more somber view of the gods. The Epicureans believed the gods pursued a “serene detachment.” They were aloof and apart and disinterested in humanity.
Either way, the ancient gods put no brake on human behavior. Why should they? They didn’t care about humanity. They didn’t love human beings. So, apart from a few unfortunate instances of thunder-bolt target practice, Zeus allowed mortals to do pretty much what they wanted. They allowed men to call the shots—because they were gods of the imagination. Like ours.
The god many know and worship, even—dare I say it—in the church, is the god we feel comfortable with. He agrees with our opinions, backs our politics, and generally approves of the way we live. He knows we’re basically “good” people and he wants only to make us happy.
In Athens, Paul saw a shrine to “the unknown god.” That was the God he wanted these people to meet, the God we all must meet. He’s not a glorified version of us. This God commands all men everywhere to repent.
