Mere Christianity

Posted: Saturday, August 21, 2010 by Morgan in
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I finished Mere Christianity today (finally) and I have some thoughts about it. C.S. Lewis is a very personal writer, and he does a good job of reaching out to the reader in meaningful ways and making his ideas relevant to real people. It was an enjoyable read, and I'm sure I'll read it many more times over the course of my life. There are some beliefs that Lewis seems to hold (evolution, for example) that I struggle to reconcile with Christianity, but after you dig through the layers of logical argumentation for the existence of God, the philosophical evidence for Christianity, sound moral teaching, and witty illustrations that explain some of the nuances of Christianity (all these things are valuable), it all boils down to a simple truth that is found in the scriptures: if you try to find anything besides Christ or find something in addition to Christ, you will never find it, but if you seek Christ primarily and exclusively, you will find everything you really needed.


Like I said, this same concept is found in the gospels in the familiar teaching of Jesus:
And he said to all, "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it , but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?" (Luke 9:23-25)

Staying true to the first part of Jesus' teaching, Lewis lays lots of emphasis of the putting off of self in the search for Christ, saying that as long as we are looking for ourselves, we will never find Christ. This concept connects to the centrality and danger of pride, which I talked about in my last post. He even goes so far as to say that we don't have personality outside of Christ, and that we only truly have personality when we give ourselves wholly over to Christ:
As long as your own personality is what you are bothering about you are not going to Him at all. The very first step is to try to forget about the self altogether. Your real, new self (which is Christ's and also yours just because it is His) will not come as long as you are looking for it. It will come when you are looking for Him. (226)
So that is his basic message, one which we would all do well to implement in our lives. It seems that humility and selflessness are the keys to finding Christ, both of which are really hard for sinners like us to do/be/have. He has a TON of great stuff to say besides that, but it's really his main point. I've compiled a list of things I underlined as I was reading, and I'll just list some of them.

"God is the only comfort, He is also the supreme terror: the thing we most need and the thing we most want to hide from. He is our only possible ally, and we have made ourselves his enemies." (31)

"What Satan put into the heads of our remote ancestors was the idea that they could...invent some sort of happiness for themselves outside God, apart from God. And out of that hopeless attempt has come nearly all that we call human history...the long terrible story of man trying to find something other than God which will make him happy." (49)

"God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing." (50)

"But the Christian thinks any good he does comes from the Christ-life inside him. He does not think God will love us because we are good, but that God will make us good because he loves us..." (63)

"I do not mean for a moment that we ought not to think, and think hard, about improvements in our social and economic system. What i do mean is that all that thinking will be mere moonshine unless we realise that nothing but the courage and unselfishness of individuals is ever going to make any system work properly." (73)

"One great piece of mischief has been done by the modern restriction of the word Temperance to the question of drink. It helps people to forget that you can be just as intemperate about lots of other things. A man who makes his golf of his motorcycle the center of his life...is being just intemperate as someone who gets drunk every evening. Of course, it does not show on the outside so easily: bridge-mania or golf-mania do not make you fall down in the middle of the road. But God is not deceived by externals." (79)

"I am afraid the only safe rule is to give more than we can spare.... If our charities do not at all pinch or hamper us, I should say they are too small. There ought to be things we should like to do and cannot do because our charities expenditure excludes them." (86)

"Very often what God first helps us towards is not the virtue itself but just this power of always trying again. For however important chastity (or courage, or truthfulness, or any other virtue) may be, this process trains us in habits of the soul which are more important still. It cures our illusions about ourselves and teaches us to depend on God." (101)

"That is why a cold, self-righteous prig who goes regularly to church may be far nearer to hell than a prostitute. But, of course, it is better to be neither." (103)

"...the dying away of the first thrill will be compensated for by a quieter and more lasting kind of interest. What is more (and I can hardly find words to tell you how important I think this), it is just the people who are ready to submit to the loss of the thrill and settle down to the sober interest, who are then most likely to meet new thrills in some quite different direction." (110)

"The rule for all of us is perfectly simple. Do not waste time bothering whether you 'love' your neighbor, act as if you did." (131)

"The smallest good act today is the capture of a strategic point from which, a few months later, you may be able to go on to victories you never dreamed of. An apparently trivial indulgence in lust or anger today is the loss of a ridge or railway line or bridgehead from which the enemy may launch an attack otherwise impossible." (132)

"Now, once again, what God cares about is not exactly our actions. What he cares about is that we should be creatures of a certain kind or quality — the kind of creatures He intended us to be — creatures related to Himself in a certain way." (145)

"Thus, in one sense, the road back to God is a road of moral effort, of trying harder and harder. But in another sense it is not trying that is ever going to bring us home. All this trying leads up to the vital moment in which you can turn to God and say, 'You must do this. I can't.'" (146)

"Doctrines are not God: they are only a kind of map." (154)

"Every Christian is to become a little Christ. The whole purpose of becoming a Christian is simply nothing else." (177)

"That is the devil getting at us. He always sends errors into the world in pairs — pairs of opposites. And he always encourages us to spend a lot of time thinking which is the worse. You see why of course? He relies on your extra dislike of the one error to draw you gradually into the opposite one." (186)

"[Christianity] is more like painting a portrait than like obeying a set of rules." (189)

"We are all trying to let our mind and heart go their own way — centred on money or pleasure or ambition — and hoping, in spite of this, to behave honestly and chastely and humbly. And that is exactly what Christ warned us you could not do." (198)

Pride

Posted: Tuesday, August 17, 2010 by Morgan in
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This is a major point of friction, even if people don't realize it (and maybe because people don't realize it). I realized that there was pride in my heart, which was surprising because pride and arrogance is my least favorite attribute in others. As I was reading through Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis, I read the chapter entitled "The Great Sin," which is all about pride. Lewis says that pride is the foundational sin and that it is different from all other sins because it is based on competition and one-upping everyone else. "Pride gets no pleasure out of having something, only out of having more of it than the next man...It is the comparison that makes you proud: the pleasure of being above the rest."


Pride is dangerous because it leaves no room for anybody besides yourself. When pride reigns in your heart, nobody else's opinions, desires, pleasures, values, loves, friendships, or characters matter. This not only completely alienates a person from other people, but also from God. It was pride by which Lucifer became Satan: he wanted to be greater, more holy, and better than God. The consequences for his pride were dire and we would do well to avoid both the sin and the consequence.

Pride encroaches on all aspects of our lives, and everybody is guilty of it at one time or another. Even Moses, who was the meekest man in the world, had his issues with pride. In Numbers 20, when the Israelites were complaining about the lack of water in the desert. Moses intercedes for the people because, although it wasn't right, it was one of the more legitimate things they complained about. God gave very specific commands to Moses to get water out of the rock. He was to take his staff and tell the rock to give up its water. This way, there would be no contact between Moses and the rock and though it was his word that caused God to let water out of the rock, it was God in the end that performed the miracle. Listen carefully what Moses says to the people: "Hear now, you rebels: Shall WE bring water for you out of this rock?" He then strikes the rock twice with his staff. This right here is pride. Pride pride pride. Even though Moses knew God was providing the water, he took part of it into his own hands, thinking he could do something about it rather than trusting God completely.

God punishes Moses and Aaron saying, "Because you did not BELIEVE IN ME, to uphold me as holy in the eyes of the people of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land I have given them." It seems that pride and lack of faith are closely connected in this instance.

So what do we do? The cure for pride is God (through humility). Lewis explains this a bit better, "[God] and you are two things of such a kind that if you really get into any kind of touch with him you will, in fact, be humble — delightedly humble, feeling the infinite relief of having for once got rid of all the silly nonsense about your own dignity which has made you restless and unhappy all your life." The first step toward changing is admitting that we are prideful, which is difficult, and being humble enough to ask God for help in transformation. For we can only work out our salvation with fear and trembling because God first worked in us.

"Love the LORD, all you his saints! The LORD preserves the faithful but abundantly repays the one who acts in pride." Psalm 31:23

Numbers Once Again

Posted: Thursday, August 12, 2010 by Morgan in
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Numbers is seriously full of great stuff. Lately God has shown me that even though we constantly complain and are unfaithful and ungrateful and blasphemous, etc., He is still faithful. He has a perfect plan for us, but when we insist on changing His plan, He gives us over to our desires. We often realize later that what we wanted isn't really what we wanted, and we come running back to Him and He takes us back and heals us (the Prodigal Son of the Old Testament anybody?).


Examples of this in Numbers are plentiful. In chapter 11, the Israelites complain about food and God provides it for them. Later, in Numbers 21, they complain about the food God provided them saying, "Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? for there is no food and no water and we loathe this worthless food." First of all, there was food (food that they requested nonetheless), they just didn't like it. So God, who provided the "worthless food," sent snakes among the camp to show the Israelites just how good they had it. Only after some of them died from snakebite did they realized they had sinned and asked for intercession from Moses. Interestingly enough, God didn't take away the plague He had given them, but He did provide healing and restoration to those suffering from the pain they brought on themselves.

Again in chapter 14, after Moses sends the 12 spies into the promised land and 10 of them come back with a bad report, the Israelites complain about their fate saying, "Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness!" Famous last words (probably not as famous as "Hey guys, watch this!"). They refuse to invade the promised land and God gives them exactly what they asked for: "What you have said in my hearing will be done to you: your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness.... Because you have turned back from following the Lord, the Lord will not be with you." The Israelites then decide to do what God originally had in store for them even though He made it clear that He would not be with them in the battle. They tried to take over the promised land anyway and were utterly defeated. Retroactive obedience after the orders have changed isn't actually obedience, it's turning your back on God twice.

And in Numbers 20, when there was no water to drink, they complained AGAIN: "Why have you brought the assembly of the Lord into this wilderness, that we should die here, both we and our cattle?" Simple, because they asked for just that in chapter 14. God is continually providing exactly what Israel wants. They just want the wrong thing all the time.

However, God also provides for His people in the miserable situations they get themselves into. He gives them food, water, protection, and healing, all the things a million nomads could hope for in the middle of a desert. God is adaptable. He knows what's going to happen and nothing takes Him off guard. Even when we take a different path than the one He planned for us, He always teaches us and brings us back to Himself. That is comforting because I know I don't always want the right things. We don't ever know exactly what's going to happen, but He does. Just follow Him.

"Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it." 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24

Rap (Unashamed)

Posted: Saturday, August 7, 2010 by Morgan in
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So I was listening to Ovadia while I was working a couple weeks ago and I decided to check out some other Christian rap. I didn't really know what to expect, but what I found was pleasantly surprising.


It actually gets down to the issues that mainstream Christian music doesn't. Christian radio and the music they play is generally all about how God loves you and will help you with your girlfriend or pay your bills or just feel good. Christian Rappers like Trip Lee aren't afraid to bring up serious issues and doctrines like finding joy in Christ and predestination and serious issues like depression, lust, pride, faith and perseverance in trials, the nature, holiness, and glory of God, and wives submitting to husbands. They aren't afraid to rap things like "I don't know what you heard, but I hope it matches with the Word" or "If I was worth dying for, this God is worth living for" or "I'ma confront you of your sin, but I'm gonna forgive you as I've been forgiven." Sorry, but I've never heard anything like that from Relient K.


These guys are unashamed of the gospel. They preach it through their music. You don't have to search through the lyrics to find a Christian theme. You don't have to wonder whether the song is supposed to be about a girl or about God. The message in Christian rap is raw, uncensored Christianity. I guess this is a challenge to go deep and be real about the Christian life. It definitely challenged me.



The King, Lecrae

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JEbk1dhOD0


Bear With You, Trip Lee

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-NTgtGSCp0


Sho Baraka, Higher Love

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZb_-hiq8ZY


Holy Hip Hop

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upt1ErURFHk



"For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels." Luke 9:26

Numbers

Posted: Monday, August 2, 2010 by Morgan in
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So after I finished reading Romans, I began reading Numbers. It sounds like a strange transition, but my mom had been reading Numbers for a while and she found that many of the lessons in Numbers and Romans are the same, they just are expressed in different ways. 


(Quick bit of trivia: the Hebrew name for the book of Numbers is In the Wilderness, which is way better since it actually describes what the book is about instead of describing two censuses that are more or less insignificant in the big scheme of the book.)

The Old Testament generally uses a story to illustrate the same principles and ideas that the New Testament does through logical organization of ideas in a sort of a lecture format. So I've been trying to make connections between the Old and New Testaments, and God has shown me many similarities and identities between the two. Most significantly, he has shown me that he is the same God no matter where he reveals himself in his Word.

I've found a recurring idea in my studies thus far:

God has a purpose and a plan for his people, and even though it may seem outrageous or impossible, he faithfully provides the means for them to carry out his plans for them.

An example of this idea can be found in Numbers 4 when God was giving the Levites their duties for the tabernacle. Moses mentions that if any of them who are not priests touched the holy articles (lampstand, altar, ark, sacrificial bowls and utensils, etc.) or even looked at them, they would die instantly. This seems pretty harsh, but before this passage, Moses described all the coverings that were to go over all these holy items. Some were wrapped in 4 layers of cloth and goatskin, which means that there is no way the Levites could touch the articles themselves or even see them without going to lots of effort to disobey this command. God doesn't just make impossible and arbitrary demands on his people, he protects them from his overwhelming glory and holiness and provides whatever they need to fulfill their duties to him.

Another example is found in chapter 11. The Israelites complain about their diet after God had delivered them out of torturous slavery in Egypt and provided food and water for them in the middle of a desert. God is astounded and angered at their ingratitude and consumes part of the camp with fire. Moses intercedes for this ungrateful people and expresses his inadequacy to guide them by himself. He even asks God to kill him rather than see his failure in this position. God hears his plea and divides up the spirit he had given to Moses and gives it to 70 other leaders, allowing them to bear part of the responsibility for this obstinate and stiff-necked people. God hands the people over to their desire for meat, giving them so much meat that "it comes out [their] ears and becomes loathsome to [them]." Moses is incredulous. How can he possibly find enough meat to feed over a million people for an entire month? This is the best part. Here is God's response: "Is the Lord's hand shortened? Now you shall see whether my word will come true for you or not." Sure enough, God brought loads of quail for the Israelites to eat, so much that the slowest and laziest gathered 6 bushels. 

Yeah, God provides. We just have to trust that he will.


"For I the Lord do not change..." Malachi 3:6a