Never So Cruel

"Absolutely not! That would be a terribly cruel thing to do to a poor animal," she said.

I was talking with a neighbor about the radio fence she used to contain her huge dog. You know the kind - a wire encloses an area, and the dog wears a collar. When the dog gets within range of the wire, a sound and / or a mild electric shock is administered. The dog learns to not approach the fence. Her outburst resulted from my assumption that you just turned the dog loose and let him figure it out on his own. Appalled, she informed me in haughty tones that it was the responsibility of the owner to show the dog the way. A loving and responsible dog owner would teach it where the fence was.

Hmmm...

God has not left us to flounder in the dark. He loves us and has shown us the way. He reveals Himself!

He reveals Himself in all of creation: "He never left himself without a witness. There were always his reminders, such as sending you rain and good crops and giving you food and joyful hearts." (Acts 14:17) "From the time the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky and all that God made. They can clearly see his invisible qualities-his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse whatsoever for not knowing God." (Romans 1:20)

And He reveals Himself specifically in the Bible - "All Scripture is God‑breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." (2 Timothy 3:16-17)

He loves us immensely, and does not want us to wander with no direction. He would never be so cruel. All we have to do is listen.