Tests to Determine God's Will or Approval
How is it that some biblical characters would say, “If God does this, then it’s a sign for us to do ___?” How come when I try it it doesn’t work? (Gn 24:12-14, Jdgs 6:36-40, I Sm 14:9-10)
I can kind of connect this to something similar -- vows, which are perfectly fine to make, as long as you really intend to keep your vow. The 2 are similar because with testing you're searching for a sign to see what you should do next. With vows, you're asking that God do something for you and you'll do something in return. In either case, you're asking that God do something, on which you will make your next action dependent. The interesting thing is that even making vows sounds kind of sacrilegious, like you're trying to bargain with God, getting him to do what you want him to do for you. Some people might say you should be more interested in what you can do for God. Now if what you're asking for is in itself wrong (wanting a sports car for example), then I could see how this is bad. If you're asking that God save your spouse from cancer, and you make a deal with him, that doesn't sound so bad. So why don't people make more vows? (And keep them?) Because it sounds like if people made more vows to God, there'd be a lot more answered prayers, which sounds like a good thing.
But to go back to the original question, how does one even set up an appropriate test for God? Gideon used a fleece, Jonathan used whether a Philistine went up to them or not (which is strange in inself, since it sounds like either way, they would have had to fight the Philistines, making the test rather redundant).
But I can easily see this turning into superstition. Whereas it seems good that people make more vows, provided that they're serious, people setting up more tests doesn't really sound good. Imagine if everyone were to make decisions this way, even the slightest of decisions, using this method. I suppose it gets more ridiculous and more superstitious the farther removed the 2 (the test and the conclusion) are. (For example, a fleece has nothing to do with fighting the Midianites, whereas Philistine reactions have at least something to do with engaging Philistines in battle [as with Jonathan and his armor bearer].)
On the other hand, even vow making seems like it could be abused, like if you promise God every time you want a quick-to-find parking spot that you'll throw a little bit more into the offering basket next Sunday. Maybe some people don't find this trivial, but to me this sounds like overdoing it.
Furthermore, what if you were to use this method for very serious decisions where it'd probably be better if you came up with your own carefully thought out reasons for going one way or another. I know Abraham's servant used a test to find Isaac a wife, but is this recommended for everyone? Well, why not? We have a biblical example of this. But that's why I have a problem with this -- if it doesn't sound good for daily life, why would it be good for biblical characters? What if you were to tell God, "OK God, the next woman who walks into the room wearing a green shirt is the one."
Acts 1:26 (this is just one example among many in the bible) Why is it OK to cast lots to make a decision? (I personally think this is a bad idea and can't find any reasons to support it or explain why and how it works.)
I can kind of connect this to something similar -- vows, which are perfectly fine to make, as long as you really intend to keep your vow. The 2 are similar because with testing you're searching for a sign to see what you should do next. With vows, you're asking that God do something for you and you'll do something in return. In either case, you're asking that God do something, on which you will make your next action dependent. The interesting thing is that even making vows sounds kind of sacrilegious, like you're trying to bargain with God, getting him to do what you want him to do for you. Some people might say you should be more interested in what you can do for God. Now if what you're asking for is in itself wrong (wanting a sports car for example), then I could see how this is bad. If you're asking that God save your spouse from cancer, and you make a deal with him, that doesn't sound so bad. So why don't people make more vows? (And keep them?) Because it sounds like if people made more vows to God, there'd be a lot more answered prayers, which sounds like a good thing.
But to go back to the original question, how does one even set up an appropriate test for God? Gideon used a fleece, Jonathan used whether a Philistine went up to them or not (which is strange in inself, since it sounds like either way, they would have had to fight the Philistines, making the test rather redundant).
But I can easily see this turning into superstition. Whereas it seems good that people make more vows, provided that they're serious, people setting up more tests doesn't really sound good. Imagine if everyone were to make decisions this way, even the slightest of decisions, using this method. I suppose it gets more ridiculous and more superstitious the farther removed the 2 (the test and the conclusion) are. (For example, a fleece has nothing to do with fighting the Midianites, whereas Philistine reactions have at least something to do with engaging Philistines in battle [as with Jonathan and his armor bearer].)
On the other hand, even vow making seems like it could be abused, like if you promise God every time you want a quick-to-find parking spot that you'll throw a little bit more into the offering basket next Sunday. Maybe some people don't find this trivial, but to me this sounds like overdoing it.
Furthermore, what if you were to use this method for very serious decisions where it'd probably be better if you came up with your own carefully thought out reasons for going one way or another. I know Abraham's servant used a test to find Isaac a wife, but is this recommended for everyone? Well, why not? We have a biblical example of this. But that's why I have a problem with this -- if it doesn't sound good for daily life, why would it be good for biblical characters? What if you were to tell God, "OK God, the next woman who walks into the room wearing a green shirt is the one."
Acts 1:26 (this is just one example among many in the bible) Why is it OK to cast lots to make a decision? (I personally think this is a bad idea and can't find any reasons to support it or explain why and how it works.)
