The Shack: Papa didn’t answer, only looked down at their hands. His gaze followed hers and for the first time Mack noticed the scars in her wrists, like those he now assumed Jesus also had on his. She allowed him to tenderly touch the scars, outlines of a deep piercing, and he finally looked up again into her. Tears were slowly making their way down her face, little pathways through the flour that dusted her cheeks.“Don’t ever think that what my son chose to do didn’t cost us dearly. Love always leaves a significant mark,” she stated softly and gently. “We were there together” (p95-96).
First, God the Father is invisible and has not been seen by anyone, except Jesus (John 6:46). Speaking hypothetically--If he were to take upon flesh we would not see scars in his wrist. The triune God did not take upon flesh, only the eternal Son, the Second Person of the Trinity, took upon himself a human nature which we call the incarnation (John 1:14). Paul has Papa saying, “When we three spoke ourself into human existence as the Son of God, we became fully human. We also chose to embrace all the limitations that this entailed. Even though we have always been present in this created universe, we now became flesh and blood” (99). There are many who praise The Shack because they say they learn so much about the Trinity. Yet, this book will only cause more confusion because the book shows Papa having crucifixion scars. Would it be a problem for a pastor to pray Sunday morning in church, “Father, I thank you for being crucified on the cross for my sins”? It would be theologically wrong. The Father was not crucified. We could thank the Father for sending (John 5:23; Gal. 4:4-5) the Son to die on the cross for our sins (Rom. 5:6, 8; 8:34; 1 Cor. 15:3), that would be Biblical.
