Ingrid Faro
We won’t understand the gospel. We won’t understand why Christ had to come. We won’t understand who we are and our responsibility. But God gave us responsibility and authority to carry out His will, to take His goodness and spread it to all the rest of creation. When we fail to understand that, and fail to understand that every human being is his image bearer, and the way we treat every human being, God is going to take personally. So, we start there with who we are and how we view everybody else, if we begin reforming.
I remember how transformative that was when I really dug into Kathy McDowell’s book The Image of God in the Garden of Eden. That was her Harvard dissertation, but it was still my favorite book, which is a little odd perhaps. It was so transformative, because it rooted who God is, informing us from the beginning who we are, and then that image language just continues throughout all of Scripture. It comes back, of course, in Christ, who restores, and we’re taught to be transformed into His image, from glory to glory. Just looking at that transformation process that God wants us to change our worldview, to match his, to see his goodness, and to see how he views every human being as completely full of value and worth.
And as we begin to change that worldview, seeing that there’s not a person we pass that isn’t worth dying for, from God’s perspective. Then also, his creation. Just as if somebody comes in my house and messes my stuff up, I’m not going to be happy. When we come into God’s house and mess things up, he’s not happy either. Just getting that perspective from Genesis 1 and 2, of how God views people and his world, and how he wants us to see things through his lens. It changes our desires. And by the way, I’ve got a whole chapter on need and desire, that those are good. In the garden, God created us with needs and desires, and that’s good, but it’s what we do with those. With everything, it’s with the
freedom that He’s given us. It’s what we do with that freedom. That is what counts.
David Capes
I once heard a pastor say that sin is simply satisfying a God given desire in a God forbidden way. That the desires we have aren’t themselves the problem. It’s what we do with them. Genesis 2 leads us to Genesis 3, and you’ve got a really interesting section there on unseen causes. I noticed that you drink pretty deeply from Michael Heiser and his work. I’m a great admirer of him and was saddened by his passing not long ago. Let’s talk about some unseen causes. Nature, and human beings, we know that. But there are these unseen causes we don’t see.
Ingrid Faro
And especially in the West, we don’t often hear about that. I didn’t hear about it in seminary. I didn’t hear about it a lot in churches. Of course, there are some churches that are looking for a demon under every rock. That’s another extreme. We could have extremes on both ends, but I do spend time just on the language of the different beings that scripture talks about. What are principalities and powers? What are demons? What are angels? What are cherubs? You know, they’re not little, fat babies with wings and bows and arrows. They’re throne guardians.
So there are these creatures, this unseen realm that scripture, both Old and New Testaments talk about. All Michael Heiser did was gather the research. There’s so much more literature on it that is solid, scholarly literature that is rooted in Scripture. Paul, of course, says it so simply, we’re not wrestling against flesh and blood, but powers, and principalities. We’re wrestling against world rulers of darkness, spiritual rulers in the heavenly places of wickedness, and so recognizing that it’s not just us. When things happen we should go to God and say, what is really going on here? Are there spiritual
forces behind what is happening?
And don’t be afraid of asking those questions or think it’s weird. Some of my students from other continents, always smile when I go into this. They said, I never thought I’d have a class on this. We actually get to talk about that in seminary. Some of them will share stories, personally about weird things. And I’ve seen and experienced weird things, as we would call it. But it’s in Scripture, and so don’t be afraid to recognize that Jesus took authority over all of it. Remember the prayer at the end of Ephesians 1 that he is above every power, principality, dominion, every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in the one to come.
David Capes
You are talking like a New Testament person! I can really resonate with that. Now this is a very personal story, as I said. The subtitle is A Biblical and Personal Exploration. And you do a lot with Bible and theology. But there are moments when you just break away and say, now here’s my story. Was that cathartic for you? Was that helpful? I know you’ve been open about sharing these things now for a while. People connect with it, but we’re sometimes trained that we should be silent about these things in life.
Ingrid Faro
Yes. I can’t say that it’s cathartic now though certainly, when I first began to open up about them, it was. But I have found since I started opening up and sharing about them, that almost every time, there will be somebody who comes forward for the first time who’s never shared their trauma, their abuse, their fears. And it gives them an opportunity, so I find that it’s healing. It brings healing, it opens the doors for people to begin to process and not think that they’re alone, and to have hope. For me, sharing then is intended to give hope, because none of the things that I went through kept me there. I am not a victim
of anything that has happened to me. And that is the beauty, that Christ can heal and redeem us from our traumas. I have very close friends that have been through things that are almost unimaginable, who are living whole lives. Many psychologists and trauma specialists say that’s not possible. But in Christ, it absolutely is. He did defeat evil, and we can begin that journey toward healing, and that’s the goal. God is a God of shalom. In the book, I say I used to have a whack a mole theology. Every time I raise my head up, bam! But God’s changed my theology into a shalom theology. I see that in the life of Jesus, and I see it throughout scripture that God wants our wholeness.
David Capes
To become whole after trauma requires forgiveness. Forgiveness may be as miraculous as parting the Red Sea. Real forgiveness, when it happens. It may be as miraculous as telling a paralyzed man to get up and walk. I find it to be a very unique teaching of the Christian faith. How did you learn to forgive?
Ingrid Faro
Well, first, it was helpful for me when I recognized that the only time in the New Testament that the apostles said, “Lord increase our faith”, was when Jesus said, forgive 70 times 7. They said, “Lord, Increase our faith”. Not about raising people from the dead or anything else but forgiving. Recognizing that forgiveness is hard. It is hard. Forgiveness cost Christ his life. And so, we have to recognize the gravity. Often we throw the word forgiveness around like, oh, just forgive them, as if it’s something easy. It’s not, because it does take processing. I had to recognize, if I was stuck in unforgiveness and offense, in resentment, that it was poisoning my very soul and it was killing me. It’s like this article, a secular article, but it’s still really good. Resentment is like drinking poison, hoping it’ll kill the other
person.
David Capes
It’s a great line! I was talking to Harold Kushner one time. He’s great rabbi who wrote a book about bad things happening to good people and he said forgiveness is really a favor we do ourselves. Because to linger in that kind of anger and hatred will end up robbing you of your soul eventually.
Ingrid Faro
Yes, exactly. It sets us free. And currently I’m doing research on forgiveness, and so many of the words have to do with releasing a trespass. If someone has crossed a boundary with me, that’s trespass. How can I let them go? If there’s a debt that somebody should have paid, it’s not releasing a debt, but giving it to God. And say, God, you are bigger than any wrong that somebody has done. You are bigger, both to handle them and to take care of me. Part of it is a release, but again, it is a big topic and not to be taken lightly.
David Capes
No, it’s not at all. It’s a wonderful book Ingrid Faro. It’s titled Demystifying Evil, A Biblical and Personal Exploration. Thanks for being with us today on The Stone Chapel Podcast.
Ingrid Faro
Thank you, David.
A Nugget of Wisdom from Ingrid Faro
When I was in one of my lowest places, early one morning, this verse popped into my head. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for you are with me. And I thought, yes that’s a good verse in my depression. And then I heard basically the spirit of God speaking in me.
Don’t lay down in the valley of the shadow of death. Don’t set up camp there. I’m with you to bring you through. And that has continued to be a guiding word for me. Fear nothing. Fear no evil. Fear nothing bad. Because God is with me to see me through and to never quit, never stop until I’ve seen God take me through. Whether you’re in your car on in the middle of some horrible situation, I will say I refuse to be afraid. God, I know you’re with me and will show me the way through.
Transcribed by https://otter.ai
