I was intrigued as to what C.S. Lewis would have to say about learning in times of war; I did not expect this essay to be a reminder of any practical truth. Yet once again, Lewis points us back to God, as he does in all of his writings. This quote that struck me the most in his essay:
“‘Whether ye eat or drink or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.’ All our merely natural activities will be accepted, if they are offered to God, even the humblest: and all of them, even the noblest, will be sinful if they are not.”
Lewis has such a powerful way of reminding us that no matter what we do, in every action, in every breath, in every thought, we are directing ourselves towards heaven or hell; we are living for Christ, or we are not. If we think of life in these terms, our lives and small decisions have such great significance. How can God make such a small action of mine something glorious for His Kingdom? How can such a “small sin” be such a stumbling block and opportunity for Satan? And yet, it is so. Lewis' quote served as a great reminder that I am writing a song with my life story. Every decision is like a note in a song; every note is so discrete, yet every note can be heard; multiple notes gone wrong will ruin entire parts of a song. Yet every well placed note will combine with others to create a beautiful melody of praise to God.
I found that Lewis’ concluding paragraph brought up an important point that relates to our previous class discussions about happiness.
“All the animal life in us, all schemes of happiness that centered in this world, were always doomed to a final frustration.”
We were never destined to find our satisfaction in pleasures of this earth. These things are all temporary and, as Lewis wrote, “doomed to final frustration.” God has designed us to find our joy and satisfaction in Him. The things of this earth are fleeting; when we turn to them for satisfaction that we can only find in God, we are left distraught and empty because these things will always let us down when they come to an end.
Our lives will sing a song of praise to something, be that God, be that the hopeless search for happiness, or be that some other idol. Ultimately we find our satisfaction in living our lives for God and committing every day to Him and his purposes.
Monday, January 18, 2010
Plantinga - Chapter 4
As we discussed the purpose of the 10 commandments today in class, a Psalm that I recently read came to mind. Psalm 19 speaks of the beauty of the law; it reminds us that the law is beautiful because of its purpose and what it does for us. Rather than thinking of the law as something that binds us and restricts us, we think of it as something beautiful, reflecting something so much deeper in our hearts.
Psalm 19:7-11
7 The law of the LORD is perfect,
reviving the soul.
The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy,
making wise the simple.
8 The precepts of the LORD are right,
giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the LORD are radiant,
giving light to the eyes.
9 The fear of the LORD is pure,
enduring forever.
The ordinances of the LORD are sure
and altogether righteous.
10 They are more precious than gold,
than much pure gold;
they are sweeter than honey,
than honey from the comb.
11 By them is your servant warned;
in keeping them there is great reward.
On a different note, during our discussion of Plantinga, chapter 4, we began discussing the impact of receiving a Christian education on our faith. I think this is a topic we must truly be aware of as we are constantly surrounded by a Christian environment. On one hand, I think receiving a Christian education can be a great opportunity. In a secular school, professors are thinking “along” the Christian faith we are “looking at.” They may challenge us intellectually in certain areas; yet at the same time there is something more challenging and engaging to be challenged by professors who “look along” the same faith and challenge their students within that. I think we can be challenged to seek God and learn more about Him and the world he has created in a Christian school.
Yet at the same time there is such danger living in this environment. Just as the Screwtape letters mentioned, Satan is so eager to make us believe that we are following God by convincing us, through outward things (habits or knowledge), that we are near to God. All the while he tries to harden our hearts to God, cutting off our communication with the Lord. He attempts to wean us from a personal relationship with God to bring us to a point where we are only approaching God in the context of classes or in a group context. From there he may attempt to make our “interactions with God” merely empty and meaningless habits. The most dangerous place is when he is successful at cutting off our communication with God; with time, with long lived lies, he may be able to convince us of almost anything. Since we are not forced to swim against the current of the world (as we would in a state school), we may easily begin to stop swimming so hard and be carried with the current.
What are we going to do with our Christian education? Will we be spoon-fed like a child and slowly become apathetic? Or will stand firm in the hope of our salvation and fall more in love with our Savior every day?
Psalm 19:7-11
7 The law of the LORD is perfect,
reviving the soul.
The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy,
making wise the simple.
8 The precepts of the LORD are right,
giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the LORD are radiant,
giving light to the eyes.
9 The fear of the LORD is pure,
enduring forever.
The ordinances of the LORD are sure
and altogether righteous.
10 They are more precious than gold,
than much pure gold;
they are sweeter than honey,
than honey from the comb.
11 By them is your servant warned;
in keeping them there is great reward.
On a different note, during our discussion of Plantinga, chapter 4, we began discussing the impact of receiving a Christian education on our faith. I think this is a topic we must truly be aware of as we are constantly surrounded by a Christian environment. On one hand, I think receiving a Christian education can be a great opportunity. In a secular school, professors are thinking “along” the Christian faith we are “looking at.” They may challenge us intellectually in certain areas; yet at the same time there is something more challenging and engaging to be challenged by professors who “look along” the same faith and challenge their students within that. I think we can be challenged to seek God and learn more about Him and the world he has created in a Christian school.
Yet at the same time there is such danger living in this environment. Just as the Screwtape letters mentioned, Satan is so eager to make us believe that we are following God by convincing us, through outward things (habits or knowledge), that we are near to God. All the while he tries to harden our hearts to God, cutting off our communication with the Lord. He attempts to wean us from a personal relationship with God to bring us to a point where we are only approaching God in the context of classes or in a group context. From there he may attempt to make our “interactions with God” merely empty and meaningless habits. The most dangerous place is when he is successful at cutting off our communication with God; with time, with long lived lies, he may be able to convince us of almost anything. Since we are not forced to swim against the current of the world (as we would in a state school), we may easily begin to stop swimming so hard and be carried with the current.
What are we going to do with our Christian education? Will we be spoon-fed like a child and slowly become apathetic? Or will stand firm in the hope of our salvation and fall more in love with our Savior every day?
Friday, January 15, 2010
Plantinga - Chapter 3
Chapter 3 of Plantinga’s book provided a very interesting perspective on the difference between sin and evil. “Evil is what’s wrong with the world,” “Sin is culpable evil.” According to this distinction, evil is all that “spoils shalom.” Shalom is what God intended for the world. It is not only peace, but something more glorious and pure; it is what God had planned for the whole of his creation. After the fall, shalom not only introduced sin into the world, it also distorted God’s creation. God’s creation is not experiencing “shalom” because when sin entered the world it also affected God’s creation (i.e. natural disasters). While sin might have introduced evil to the world, all evil is not sin. On the other hand, all sin is evil.
Sin is a difficult concept to struggle with. Sin is what can be attributed to a human; I would say sin is a choice that deviates from God’s path. However I would argue that men are not necessarily always aware that they are making a choice when they sin because they have been blinded. You could argue that according to one person’s cultural values and beliefs, they have no sense of conviction that they are doing something wrong because they have been taught that their actions are right. However the question is not whether a person believes they are doing something right when measured by cultural standards; the question is whether the person is acting in step with the moral law which God has written on their hearts. As Lewis argued in his essays every man has God’s moral law written on his heart. Therefore every man has the opportunity to know when he is sinning and to know what God will one day judge him for.
The concept of sin is difficult in another way. Sin must be an action that is premeditated and that displeases God. Sin cannot be an unintentional occurrence. I think Plantinga’s example of the two year old that mistakenly kills someone with a gun is very ambiguous. I believe that the reason the two year old has not sinned is not based on the fact that he is a two year old, but it is based on the fact that the child mistakenly and unintentionally killed someone. We could use the same example with an adult. An adult who is “playing” with a gun and unintentionally fires a shot that kills someone does not commit a sin. But if the adult (or even a two year old, although it is impossible) premeditates the murder, then they have sinned. In my opinion Plantinga’s example of the two year old does not suggest that the two year old has not sinned because he is too young to understand that murder is a sin; he has not sinned because he mistakenly fired a shot. If this is what Plantinga is saying, I think this helps us understand why we cannot say that someone who “does not know” (culturally) that they are sinning is still held responsible for their sin.
Sin is a difficult concept to struggle with. Sin is what can be attributed to a human; I would say sin is a choice that deviates from God’s path. However I would argue that men are not necessarily always aware that they are making a choice when they sin because they have been blinded. You could argue that according to one person’s cultural values and beliefs, they have no sense of conviction that they are doing something wrong because they have been taught that their actions are right. However the question is not whether a person believes they are doing something right when measured by cultural standards; the question is whether the person is acting in step with the moral law which God has written on their hearts. As Lewis argued in his essays every man has God’s moral law written on his heart. Therefore every man has the opportunity to know when he is sinning and to know what God will one day judge him for.
The concept of sin is difficult in another way. Sin must be an action that is premeditated and that displeases God. Sin cannot be an unintentional occurrence. I think Plantinga’s example of the two year old that mistakenly kills someone with a gun is very ambiguous. I believe that the reason the two year old has not sinned is not based on the fact that he is a two year old, but it is based on the fact that the child mistakenly and unintentionally killed someone. We could use the same example with an adult. An adult who is “playing” with a gun and unintentionally fires a shot that kills someone does not commit a sin. But if the adult (or even a two year old, although it is impossible) premeditates the murder, then they have sinned. In my opinion Plantinga’s example of the two year old does not suggest that the two year old has not sinned because he is too young to understand that murder is a sin; he has not sinned because he mistakenly fired a shot. If this is what Plantinga is saying, I think this helps us understand why we cannot say that someone who “does not know” (culturally) that they are sinning is still held responsible for their sin.
The Poison of Subjectivism
“Are these things right because God commands them or does God command them because they are right? [...] God neither obeys nor creates the moral law. […] God is not merely good, but goodness; goodness is not merely divine, but God.”
Lewis’ statement first confused me. But when I reread this paragraph and thought about his point, I found it to be very insightful. In order to come to a better understanding of Lewis’ statement, I had to think back to creation and the nature of God. God is relationship because he is the Trinity; this means he is perfect love and perfect goodness. Out of the abundance of his love he chose to create the world; the world was therefore created out of the essence of who God is. Just as a piece of art bears the mark of the artist, creation bears the fingerprint of its creator. Therefore man, part of God’s creation, bears the moral law (which reflects God’s goodness) in his heart.
God did not “create” the moral law. My first reaction to this suggestion was surprise. God created everything in existence; nothing came about apart from God. Yet, 1 John 4:8 says “Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.” God is not only loving, just as Lewis says that God is not merely good. God is love. He is goodness. And God is eternal. He has always existed. He did not create goodness or love, because goodness and love are the essence of who God is. The moral law which Lewis is discussing stems from goodness and love. This then also means that the moral law reflects the essence of who God is.
The notion that God is love is incredibly powerful to me. The highest command we were given is to love God and love our neighbor. We live our life craving for love in any way we can receive it. As we have talked about concepts such as longing and our desire to be united with the beauty that we see in this class, the concept that God is love is greatly powerful. We seek to receive love from people and from God throughout our lives in our lives. Yet ultimately what we long for is not only to engage with those who are by nature human (or other) and by characteristic loving, we long to be united with love itself. We long to be united with God.
Lewis’ statement first confused me. But when I reread this paragraph and thought about his point, I found it to be very insightful. In order to come to a better understanding of Lewis’ statement, I had to think back to creation and the nature of God. God is relationship because he is the Trinity; this means he is perfect love and perfect goodness. Out of the abundance of his love he chose to create the world; the world was therefore created out of the essence of who God is. Just as a piece of art bears the mark of the artist, creation bears the fingerprint of its creator. Therefore man, part of God’s creation, bears the moral law (which reflects God’s goodness) in his heart.
God did not “create” the moral law. My first reaction to this suggestion was surprise. God created everything in existence; nothing came about apart from God. Yet, 1 John 4:8 says “Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.” God is not only loving, just as Lewis says that God is not merely good. God is love. He is goodness. And God is eternal. He has always existed. He did not create goodness or love, because goodness and love are the essence of who God is. The moral law which Lewis is discussing stems from goodness and love. This then also means that the moral law reflects the essence of who God is.
The notion that God is love is incredibly powerful to me. The highest command we were given is to love God and love our neighbor. We live our life craving for love in any way we can receive it. As we have talked about concepts such as longing and our desire to be united with the beauty that we see in this class, the concept that God is love is greatly powerful. We seek to receive love from people and from God throughout our lives in our lives. Yet ultimately what we long for is not only to engage with those who are by nature human (or other) and by characteristic loving, we long to be united with love itself. We long to be united with God.
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Mere Christianity
Lewis’ Mere Christianity presents a great case in support of the existence of a universal moral law. I enjoyed Lewis’ essay as it presents arguments that do not require someone to adhere to the Christian faith to follow with his logic and agree with his arguments. Not many have taken it upon themselves to defend morality and Christianity with an intellectual approach, as does Lewis in Mere Christianity.
Lewis’ arguments are compelling and logical. I thought Lewis’ comparison between morality and mathematics was very applicable and interesting to the concept of morality. Just as there are absolute truths in mathematics, there are absolute truths of morality. This then means there is such a thing as absolute right and absolute wrong. In a world of increasing relativism, the existence of right and wrong is constantly contested, yet is foundational to Christian beliefs.
The story of the Gospel rests upon the existence of the moral law. When God created the universe, he said it was good. But sin entered the world when Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit, thus committing the first wrong action. Christ, the good and perfect sacrifice, took the penalty for our sin. In Christ, we may experience forgiveness for our wrong actions and are being transformed into the good creation God originally intended. Each step of this story includes the concept of right and wrong. Why would we need to be saved if we have nothing to repent of?
One of the points that struck me as we discussed morality in class was the idea that the moral law is applicable across all time and place. However morality may be applied differently in different cultures. I believe the reason for this is that morality is tied to the meaning and significance of the action. This is where relativity comes into play. An action in one culture may represent one meaning and motivation, while in another culture it has a fully different meaning. However the moral principles are the same in every situation and they all sum up to one word: love.
Lewis’ arguments are compelling and logical. I thought Lewis’ comparison between morality and mathematics was very applicable and interesting to the concept of morality. Just as there are absolute truths in mathematics, there are absolute truths of morality. This then means there is such a thing as absolute right and absolute wrong. In a world of increasing relativism, the existence of right and wrong is constantly contested, yet is foundational to Christian beliefs.
The story of the Gospel rests upon the existence of the moral law. When God created the universe, he said it was good. But sin entered the world when Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit, thus committing the first wrong action. Christ, the good and perfect sacrifice, took the penalty for our sin. In Christ, we may experience forgiveness for our wrong actions and are being transformed into the good creation God originally intended. Each step of this story includes the concept of right and wrong. Why would we need to be saved if we have nothing to repent of?
One of the points that struck me as we discussed morality in class was the idea that the moral law is applicable across all time and place. However morality may be applied differently in different cultures. I believe the reason for this is that morality is tied to the meaning and significance of the action. This is where relativity comes into play. An action in one culture may represent one meaning and motivation, while in another culture it has a fully different meaning. However the moral principles are the same in every situation and they all sum up to one word: love.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Screwtape Letters
“But do remember, the only thing that matters is the extent to which you separate the man from the Enemy. It does not matter how small the sins are provided that their cumulative effect is to edge the man away from the Light and out into the Nothing.”
This is the ultimate goal of the Devil. And yet God’s ultimate purpose and desire is to have a personal and intimate relationship with men. These two agendas are opposed in every way. Where God’s plan is relationship, the Devil’s goal is isolation and discontentment; where God is truth, Satan is lies; where God is perfect goodness, the Devil is perfect evil. Yet it is not always the type of blatant evil we so often imagine.
What I find most insightful, as well as most disturbing, is that “the safest road to hell is the gradual one.” What is so dangerous about Satan’s lies is that they become believable when we are not wearing the armor of God. Lies begin small and seemingly “harmless.” We can give in to one small lie, compromise one small thing, and live our way just once, because it will have no eternal consequence or impact. This is how we are persuaded to think. What I find most disturbing is that Satan is at his best when he eats away at our hearts and spirits’, yet has us convinced that we are “good Christians” because of our outside actions. He may not attack our outside actions until he has our hearts and minds perfectly convinced of a lie. Only then will he move on to influencing our actions. Our actions are always preceded by a thought. This is why the mind is so powerful. And that is why Scriptures gives us this command:
“Demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” -2 Cor. 10:5
In the face of such lies, we must always be aware of the roaring lion seeking to destroy us. But we do not live in fear, because we live in the victory of Christ:
“Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” -James 4:7
If we resist these lies at their roots and discern even the smallest lie, we will cease to become Satan’s prey. He will quickly give up on those constantly seeking truth and turn his attention to those who are willing to receive his small seeds of sin.
This is the ultimate goal of the Devil. And yet God’s ultimate purpose and desire is to have a personal and intimate relationship with men. These two agendas are opposed in every way. Where God’s plan is relationship, the Devil’s goal is isolation and discontentment; where God is truth, Satan is lies; where God is perfect goodness, the Devil is perfect evil. Yet it is not always the type of blatant evil we so often imagine.
What I find most insightful, as well as most disturbing, is that “the safest road to hell is the gradual one.” What is so dangerous about Satan’s lies is that they become believable when we are not wearing the armor of God. Lies begin small and seemingly “harmless.” We can give in to one small lie, compromise one small thing, and live our way just once, because it will have no eternal consequence or impact. This is how we are persuaded to think. What I find most disturbing is that Satan is at his best when he eats away at our hearts and spirits’, yet has us convinced that we are “good Christians” because of our outside actions. He may not attack our outside actions until he has our hearts and minds perfectly convinced of a lie. Only then will he move on to influencing our actions. Our actions are always preceded by a thought. This is why the mind is so powerful. And that is why Scriptures gives us this command:
“Demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” -2 Cor. 10:5
In the face of such lies, we must always be aware of the roaring lion seeking to destroy us. But we do not live in fear, because we live in the victory of Christ:
“Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” -James 4:7
If we resist these lies at their roots and discern even the smallest lie, we will cease to become Satan’s prey. He will quickly give up on those constantly seeking truth and turn his attention to those who are willing to receive his small seeds of sin.
The Weight of Glory
I greatly enjoyed C.S. Lewis’ “Weight of Glory.” Lewis touched on so many interesting points and
tackles the concept of glory. Lewis identifies five scriptural promises regarding heaven. First, we will be united with Christ; secondly, we will be made like him; thirdly, we shall have glory; fourthly, we will be fed and entertained; fifthly, we will have an official position in the universe.
I appreciate that C.S. Lewis does not shy away from pointing out that these promises may seem somewhat odd to us from our standpoint. He brings up a very interesting question, which I have often wondered before: what is the glory that God promises us which is supposed to be so wonderfully appealing? I appreciated Lewis’ description of his initial understanding of glory, “Either glory means to me fame, or it means luminosity.” Yet Lewis goes on to thoroughly explore what Scriptures are referring to and how we currently see our longing for glory. He reaches the conclusion that glory means “good report with God, acceptance by God, response, acknowledgement, and welcome into the heart of things.”
If this is the glory that God is referring to, which I believe it is, then humanity is already desperately displaying its longing and desire for this type of glory. Man’s desire to be noticed, acknowledged, and valued is blatantly obvious in our relentless pursuit of success, recognition, and love in life. We seek to be known and loved in so much of what we do every day. I thought Lewis gave another insightful example that indicates that we are also destined for glory. He pointed out that we become enthralled with the beauty of this world, yet we feel limited. We do not want to merely observe glory and feel insignificant before it; we want to be a part of such glory ourselves. I think our desire to have recognition from God and man, and our desire to be a part of the beauty we see in the world reveals that we were created for glory. Yet we will never experience the fullness of the glory God intended us for until we reach heaven.
tackles the concept of glory. Lewis identifies five scriptural promises regarding heaven. First, we will be united with Christ; secondly, we will be made like him; thirdly, we shall have glory; fourthly, we will be fed and entertained; fifthly, we will have an official position in the universe.
I appreciate that C.S. Lewis does not shy away from pointing out that these promises may seem somewhat odd to us from our standpoint. He brings up a very interesting question, which I have often wondered before: what is the glory that God promises us which is supposed to be so wonderfully appealing? I appreciated Lewis’ description of his initial understanding of glory, “Either glory means to me fame, or it means luminosity.” Yet Lewis goes on to thoroughly explore what Scriptures are referring to and how we currently see our longing for glory. He reaches the conclusion that glory means “good report with God, acceptance by God, response, acknowledgement, and welcome into the heart of things.”
If this is the glory that God is referring to, which I believe it is, then humanity is already desperately displaying its longing and desire for this type of glory. Man’s desire to be noticed, acknowledged, and valued is blatantly obvious in our relentless pursuit of success, recognition, and love in life. We seek to be known and loved in so much of what we do every day. I thought Lewis gave another insightful example that indicates that we are also destined for glory. He pointed out that we become enthralled with the beauty of this world, yet we feel limited. We do not want to merely observe glory and feel insignificant before it; we want to be a part of such glory ourselves. I think our desire to have recognition from God and man, and our desire to be a part of the beauty we see in the world reveals that we were created for glory. Yet we will never experience the fullness of the glory God intended us for until we reach heaven.
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