Was it possible that so complicated a phenomenon could have so simple and terrible an explanation? Could it really be that all the talk about freedom, justice, goodness, law, religion, God and so on was nothing but so many words to conceal the grossest self-interest and cruelty?
(Leo Tolstoy)
God is glorified not only by His glory's being seen but by its being rejoiced in.
(Jonathan Edwards)
What a man is alone on his knees before God, that he is and no more.
(R.M M'Cheyne)
Just as God's Word must reform out theology, our ethics, and practices so on must it reform our praying.
(D.A Carson)
He loves Thee too little who loves anything together with Thee which he loves, not for Thy sake.
(St. Augustine)
True saints have their minds, in the first place, inexpressibly pleased and delighted with the sweet ideas of the glorious and amiable nature of the things of God.
(Jonathan Edwards)
Error can never be eradicated from the heart of man until the true knowledge of God has been implanted in it.
(John Calvin)
But my recovery cannot spring from any cause in me, I can destroy but cannot save myself.
(Valley of Vision)
Where Christ is, cheerfulness will keep breaking in.
(Dorothy Sayers)
Anchora Imparo.
[Yet I am learning.]
(Michelangelo)
Sunday, January 31, 2010
A Life Full of Mindless Joys is Not Easy to Enjoy...
24 By faith Moses, when he was grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, 25 choosing rather to be mistreated with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. 26 He considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking to the reward.
(Hebrews 11: 25-26)
I've been reading.
It's funny how a night with a book and a cup of chai is so much more satisfying than the ordinary 3 hours with a computer and a tv is, isn't it?
It's interesting; there are so many things that capture our attention, and most of them don't have much that is concrete and thought-provoking to add to it. Aren't we called to think on the things that are true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, and worthy of praise? (Phil. 4:8)
So, why are our minds filled with endless thoughts of that cute guy over there, or what exactly happened on that tv show, or what all did go on last Saturday night, or what the heck just happened to Nick and Kendra?!? Things like this in my opinion are just another way to waste your life. Mark Helprin tells us that intellect, when focused on things like this, "has been sentenced to death. The mind you see is like a muscle. For it to remain agile and strong, it must work. Television rules that out."
Things like these are just taking up way too much of our time.
I know that I have been convicted of things like this- to be honest, my time is mostly spent on things like facebook and tv shows. I've been reading this book called "Don't Waste Your Life" by John Piper, and it's really showing me that my life can't be focused around mindless joys. My mind, my feelings, my life should be focused around what is pleasing and glorifying to Him. The mindless joy of tv, or a computer is not.... really glorifying Him, when I don't even taking 15 minutes out of my day to talk with Him.
Moses considered the Lord and the pursuit of Him to be worth far more than any amount of riches, fame, glory, respect etc, that he could have had through being the son of Pharaoh's daughter. He forsook it, because he was so in love with the Lord, and His promises. He put the Lord over his earthly joys and comfort, and in return he turned out to be one of the most respected men in the Bible. He is believed to have written the Torah, or in other words the first 5 books of the Old Testament, he is the one of the only people ever that have seen glimpses of the glory of God, and he is one of the 5 people that were allowed to be on the mountain during Jesus' transfiguration . He had such a close walk with God, and while he wasn't perfect by any means, he was definitely someone to look up to as an example.
There are so many people like this that have given up a lot to be with God. They love, and are faithful to Him, spot on pictures of true, Godly radiance, some gave their lives for His sake, and look at me? I don't give Him even a few hours throughout the day for His glory. Reasoning? Oh yeah- lamest in the book. "I just don't feel like it."
If you really think about, in my pursuit towards "happiness" in the form of an iPod, or a computer... I am ultimately rejecting the only pure and true happiness I'll ever find. The Lord.
I have fallen short. I have turned aside from His generosity, and despised those perfect gifts that He has given me. Lord, don't let me continue in the life of the fast and easy but press on towards eternal happiness. Let my life reflect who You are and please, don't let me say at the end of my life on earth that I have wasted my life towards the attainment of mindless joys, and forsaken the true Lord.
(Hebrews 11: 25-26)
I've been reading.
It's funny how a night with a book and a cup of chai is so much more satisfying than the ordinary 3 hours with a computer and a tv is, isn't it?
It's interesting; there are so many things that capture our attention, and most of them don't have much that is concrete and thought-provoking to add to it. Aren't we called to think on the things that are true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, and worthy of praise? (Phil. 4:8)
So, why are our minds filled with endless thoughts of that cute guy over there, or what exactly happened on that tv show, or what all did go on last Saturday night, or what the heck just happened to Nick and Kendra?!? Things like this in my opinion are just another way to waste your life. Mark Helprin tells us that intellect, when focused on things like this, "has been sentenced to death. The mind you see is like a muscle. For it to remain agile and strong, it must work. Television rules that out."
Things like these are just taking up way too much of our time.
I know that I have been convicted of things like this- to be honest, my time is mostly spent on things like facebook and tv shows. I've been reading this book called "Don't Waste Your Life" by John Piper, and it's really showing me that my life can't be focused around mindless joys. My mind, my feelings, my life should be focused around what is pleasing and glorifying to Him. The mindless joy of tv, or a computer is not.... really glorifying Him, when I don't even taking 15 minutes out of my day to talk with Him.
Moses considered the Lord and the pursuit of Him to be worth far more than any amount of riches, fame, glory, respect etc, that he could have had through being the son of Pharaoh's daughter. He forsook it, because he was so in love with the Lord, and His promises. He put the Lord over his earthly joys and comfort, and in return he turned out to be one of the most respected men in the Bible. He is believed to have written the Torah, or in other words the first 5 books of the Old Testament, he is the one of the only people ever that have seen glimpses of the glory of God, and he is one of the 5 people that were allowed to be on the mountain during Jesus' transfiguration . He had such a close walk with God, and while he wasn't perfect by any means, he was definitely someone to look up to as an example.
If you really think about, in my pursuit towards "happiness" in the form of an iPod, or a computer... I am ultimately rejecting the only pure and true happiness I'll ever find. The Lord.
I have fallen short. I have turned aside from His generosity, and despised those perfect gifts that He has given me. Lord, don't let me continue in the life of the fast and easy but press on towards eternal happiness. Let my life reflect who You are and please, don't let me say at the end of my life on earth that I have wasted my life towards the attainment of mindless joys, and forsaken the true Lord.
Friday, January 22, 2010
The Folly of Indifference
So, I'm just sitting here. I was bored, the others are watching a movie, and I was feeling like writing.
The funny thing was that I was trying to think of something to write about, and I never seem to write about anything other than Christianity, so I was trying and trying to think of something like that to write about. (I really need to get more original, right? Oh well, if I learn by writing, like I am convinced I do, then I'd be happy to write about Christianity for a longgg time.)
Indifference was finally the topic I came up with. Like you all probably know by now, I always write about stuff that I'm going through; kinks in the spiritual life that I need to acknowledge and give over to God.
So, anyways, I was thinking about it. Indifference is probably one of the most dangerous things that we as Christians can fall into.
Sin? Well, since I am of the once saved always saved belief, I believe that when we are truly saved, then we can't exactly fall out of our perfection that we attain through Christ. Jesus doesn't do a job halfway- once He redeems us, we are redeemed. He will not give us back to our sinful ways, and any assuming that we can fall back into the completely Godless life is, in my opinion, a slap in His face. Like I said, this is just my beliefs take them or leave them.
So, I don't think that we really need to fear sin as much. We need to constantly lean on Christ for support though, and trust in Him to deliver us, but we shouldn't fear it as much as there are other things to be wary of.
Lack of friends / social standing? Well, the answer to that is simple.
Friends are important to me tremendously, but as far as being scared when we don't have any... that's kind of far out there. God is our Friend, and if we have Him, we shouldn't really need anyone else.
Murder? Well, I would say that a true Christian doesn't need to worry about that either. When we die, we will see our Lord and be received into perfect glory. What more could a lover of Christ need?
Anyways, the more I think about it, the more I see that indifference to God is something to be feared.
Charles Spurgeon said that "anything is better than the dead calm of indifference".
I have seen in my experience, that the bad days, the days when I am the most scared of what is going on in my spiritual life are not the days when I'm having a flat out terrible day, frustrations galore, insanely busy etc, etc. Nope. Those are advantageous days, because if I really tried to spend the time with my Lord, I would be learning.
The days that are bad are when they are "dead calm". They are good in a sense, but I haven't thought of God, and I haven't given Him much of anything, and those are my "good" days. That is when I think to myself, and those are the days that I am terrified of.
I mean, what is it? Why am I indifferent? What possible reason for indifference could I have? I have God; A perfect, loving, just, gracious, redeeming, all together lovely God. He is my Lord- the one to whom I owe my life, because He saved it, and isn't that what I need to do with it? Devote it to Christ's service?
The answer is yes, by the way.
So, in my opinion, indifference to God is sin against God.
God is to be adored, not shoved aside.
God is to be glorified, not ignored.
God is to be honored, not despised.
God is to be the source of our life, the fire that burns within us, the one who keeps us going.
How can we see Him as that, when we are lukewarm?
When we become indifferent to Him we are not glorifying Him, and as we are doing that, we are forsaking true, lasting joy, and wasting our lives. (Christian hedonism for the win!)
"For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries"
(Hebrews 10: 26:27).
Philip Schaff talks about the church in Laodicea as being: "in that most dangerous state of indifference and lukewarmness from which it is more difficult to return to the former decision and ardor, than it was to pass at first from the natural coldness to faith"
Don't let that happen. Don't deliberately exercise the sin of indifference.
Don't return to that stupidity.
Love. Live. Glorify Him in all that you do. Constantly watch against indifference.
"Turn away from evil and do good;
seek peace and pursue it."
(Psalm 34:14)
The funny thing was that I was trying to think of something to write about, and I never seem to write about anything other than Christianity, so I was trying and trying to think of something like that to write about. (I really need to get more original, right? Oh well, if I learn by writing, like I am convinced I do, then I'd be happy to write about Christianity for a longgg time.)
Indifference was finally the topic I came up with. Like you all probably know by now, I always write about stuff that I'm going through; kinks in the spiritual life that I need to acknowledge and give over to God.
So, anyways, I was thinking about it. Indifference is probably one of the most dangerous things that we as Christians can fall into.
Sin? Well, since I am of the once saved always saved belief, I believe that when we are truly saved, then we can't exactly fall out of our perfection that we attain through Christ. Jesus doesn't do a job halfway- once He redeems us, we are redeemed. He will not give us back to our sinful ways, and any assuming that we can fall back into the completely Godless life is, in my opinion, a slap in His face. Like I said, this is just my beliefs take them or leave them.
So, I don't think that we really need to fear sin as much. We need to constantly lean on Christ for support though, and trust in Him to deliver us, but we shouldn't fear it as much as there are other things to be wary of.
Lack of friends / social standing? Well, the answer to that is simple.
Friends are important to me tremendously, but as far as being scared when we don't have any... that's kind of far out there. God is our Friend, and if we have Him, we shouldn't really need anyone else.
Murder? Well, I would say that a true Christian doesn't need to worry about that either. When we die, we will see our Lord and be received into perfect glory. What more could a lover of Christ need?
Anyways, the more I think about it, the more I see that indifference to God is something to be feared.
Charles Spurgeon said that "anything is better than the dead calm of indifference".
I have seen in my experience, that the bad days, the days when I am the most scared of what is going on in my spiritual life are not the days when I'm having a flat out terrible day, frustrations galore, insanely busy etc, etc. Nope. Those are advantageous days, because if I really tried to spend the time with my Lord, I would be learning.
The days that are bad are when they are "dead calm". They are good in a sense, but I haven't thought of God, and I haven't given Him much of anything, and those are my "good" days. That is when I think to myself, and those are the days that I am terrified of.
I mean, what is it? Why am I indifferent? What possible reason for indifference could I have? I have God; A perfect, loving, just, gracious, redeeming, all together lovely God. He is my Lord- the one to whom I owe my life, because He saved it, and isn't that what I need to do with it? Devote it to Christ's service?
The answer is yes, by the way.
So, in my opinion, indifference to God is sin against God.
God is to be adored, not shoved aside.
God is to be glorified, not ignored.
God is to be honored, not despised.
God is to be the source of our life, the fire that burns within us, the one who keeps us going.
How can we see Him as that, when we are lukewarm?
When we become indifferent to Him we are not glorifying Him, and as we are doing that, we are forsaking true, lasting joy, and wasting our lives. (Christian hedonism for the win!)
"For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries"
(Hebrews 10: 26:27).
Philip Schaff talks about the church in Laodicea as being: "in that most dangerous state of indifference and lukewarmness from which it is more difficult to return to the former decision and ardor, than it was to pass at first from the natural coldness to faith"
Don't let that happen. Don't deliberately exercise the sin of indifference.
Don't return to that stupidity.
Love. Live. Glorify Him in all that you do. Constantly watch against indifference.
"Turn away from evil and do good;
seek peace and pursue it."
(Psalm 34:14)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)