‘Mistakes Were Made (But Not by Me): Why We Justify Foolish Beliefs, Bad Decisions, and Hurtful Acts’ by Carol Tavris and Elliot Aronson (Mar 2008):

“People will bend over backwards to reduce dissonance in a way that is favorable to them and their team. The specific ways vary, but our efforts at self-justification are designed to serve our need to feel good about what we have done, what we believe, and who we are.”

The quote reminded me of reading in Erickson’s ‘Christian Theology’ that we are creatures, hence finite, and it is an arrogant attempt to be god to be real surprised when we make mistakes, even setting aside the issue of sin.

Millard J. Erickson, Christian Theology, Second Edition, pp 514-515.

6. There are definite limitations upon humanity. Humans are creatures, not God, and have the limitations that go with being finite. Only the Creator is infinite. Humans do not and cannot know everything. While we ought to seek to know all that we can, and ought to admire and esteem great knowledge, our finiteness means that our knowledge will always be incomplete and subject to error. This should impart certain sense of humility to all our judgments, as we realize that we might be wrong, no matter how impressive our fund of facts may seem.

Finiteness also pertains to our lives. Whether Adam as he was created would have died had he not sinned is a subject of debate (see p 629-31). We do know, however, that he was susceptible to becoming subject to death. That is, if he was immortal, it was a conditional immortality. Thus, humanity is not inherently immortal. And as presently constituted, we must face death (Heb. 9:27). Even in the human race’s original state, any possibility of living forever depended on God. 0nly God is inherently eternal; all else dies.

Finiteness means that there are practical limitations to all of our accomplishments. While humanity has made great progress in physical feats, that progress is not unlimited. A human may now execute a high jump of seven feet, but it is unlikely that anyone will, within our atmosphere, ever jump a thousand feet without the aid of artificial propulsion. Other areas of accomplishment, whether intellectual, physical, whatever, have similar practical limitations upon them.

7. Limitation is not inherently bad. There is a tendency to bemoan the fact of human finiteness. Some, indeed, maintain that this is cause of human sin. If we were not limited, we would always know what is right and would do it. Were humans not encumbered by finiteness they could do better. But the Bible indicates that having made the human with the limitations that go with creaturehood, God looked the creation and pronounced it “very good” (Gen. 1:31). Finiteness may well lead to sin if we fail to accept our limitation and to live accordingly as we shall observe shortly. But the mere fact of our limitation does not inevitably produce sin. Rather, improper responses to that limitations either constitute or result in sin.

Some feel that human sinfulness is a carry-over from earlier stage of evolution but is gradually being left behind. As our knowledge and ability increase, we will become less sinful. That, however, does not prove true. In actual practice, increases in sophistication seem instead to give humans opportunity for more ingenious means of sinning. One might think that the tremendous growth in computer technology, for example, would result in solutions to many basic human problems and thus in a more righteous human being. While such technology is indeed often used for beneficial purposes, human greed has also led to new and ingenious forms of theft both of money and information by the use of computer. Reduction of our limitations, then, does not lead inevitably to better human beings. The conclusion is clear: human limitations are not evil in themselves.

8. Proper adjustment in life can be achieved only on the basis of acceptance of one’s own finiteness. The fact of our finiteness is clear. We may, however, be unwilling to accept that fact and to accept our place in the scheme of things as creatures of God who are dependent upon him. Adam and Eve’s fall consisted at least in part of an aspiration to become like God (Gen. 3:4-6), to know what God knows. A similar aspiration underlay the fall of the evil angels (Jude 6). We ought to be willing to let God be God, not seeking to tell him what is right and true, but rather submitting to him and his plan for us. To pass judgment on God’s deeds would require an infinite knowledge, something that we simply do not have.

This means that we need not always be right. We need not fear failing. Only God never fails or never makes a mistake. It is not necessary for us, then, to make excuses for our shortcomings or to be defensive because we are not perfect. Yet awareness of our finiteness often leads to feelings of insecurity that we attempt to overcome through our own efforts. Jesus pointed out to his disciples that such attempts to build security by our own efforts will always lead to increased anxiety. We need not be God, for there is a God. We need only to seek his kingdom and his righteousness, and all life’s needs will be supplied (Matt. 6:25-34).

A proper humility will follow if we admit to ourselves our finite creatureliness and are willing to live accordingly. A college Bible department once received an application for a teaching position from a person who practiced positive thinking in the extreme. The answers to the questions on the application form dripped with self-promotion, even arrogance, which seemed particularly inappropriate for someone without teaching experience. The department chairman asked a colleague for his reaction. “Oh,” was the response, “I don’t think we have a position worthy of this man. In fact,” he added, “I don’t think there is any position anywhere that is worthy of him. There hasn’t been an opening in the Trinity for almost two thousand years.”

We are not, cannot, and need not be God. God does not expect us to be God. Satisfaction and happiness lie in wait for us if we accept this fact, disappointment and frustration if we do not. We are not beings who should be God but have failed in the attempt. We are what we were intended to be: limited human creatures.