I have had a book called Christianity & Liberalism by J. Gresham Machen for a while. The book has been sitting on my shelf collecting dust, but recently I found the urge to begin reading it after seeing it mentioned on Challies. Challies also previewed the book by quoting Machen’s own thoughts about the purpose of writing his book.
In my little book,Christianity and Liberalism, 1923, I tried to show that the issue in the Church of the present day is not between two varieties of the same religion, but, at bottom, between two essentially different types of thought and life. There is much interlocking of the branches, but the two tendencies, Modernism and supernaturalism, or (otherwise designated) non-doctrinal religion and historic Christianity, spring from different roots. In particular, I tried to show that Christianity is not a “life,” as distinguished from a doctrine, and not a life that has doctrine as its changing symbolic expression, but that—exactly the other way around—it is a life founded on a doctrine.
It seems like the disparity rings true today. Read with me!
HT: Tim Challies
That word ‘awesome’ is one of the most misused words in our culture. These days, anything vaguely exciting is described as awesome. Everything from the special effects in the latest blockbuster movie to the taste of a fast-food hamburger is apparently awesome – or quite literally, worthy of awe. We hear fans tell their celebrity heroes “I’m in awe of you” – but this cannot be the case either. If these fans were truly in awe, they would be flat on their faces. The Bible tells us that awe is something reserved for God, and God alone:
Dominion and awe belong to God, (Job, 25:2)
- Matt Redman
I have delayed posting on this thing for far too long.
I think it’s a concoction of procrastination, writer’s block, confusion, and a handful of other factors kept me away from the press (WordPress that is). I actually had a lot of things that I wanted to write about such as: life as a 1L (first year law student), observations from life and books, but most of all, China.
A while back, I heard a pastor say the word “Awesome” was reserved for God and that the way “Awesome” has entered into colloquial English has very much depreciated the value of the word for it to be used for God and God alone.
With that NOT in mind, I had a conversation over pho a while back and I said Diamond Bar was awesome (which I do not retract). The colloquial definition of awesome has been reduced to “that’s really cool” or something of that nature. I guess many may disagree. These days, I doubt the average teen to 30′s american would “awesome” to be something that strikes awe in an individual.
Because the modern version of awesome is what is described above, i.e., really cool, saying awesome doesn’t really bother my conscience. But it did make me think about things or people that leave me in awe. So here’s a short list.
- Sickkk electric guitar solos (see specifically John Mayer’s Pink Pop version of Gravity)
- Live bands with a tight groove (see generally Mute Math)
- Kobe Bryant
- David Blaine
I think those guys up there are pretty awesome.
The author of Job writes this (Job 25 ESV)
Then Bildad the Shuhite answered and said:
2 “Dominion and fear are with God;
he makes peace in his high heaven.
3 Is there any number to his armies?
Upon whom does his light not arise?
4 How then can man be in the right before God?
How can he who is born of woman be pure?
5 Behold, even the moon is not bright,
and the stars are not pure in his eyes;
6 how much less man, who is a maggot,
and the son of man, who is a worm!”
Matt Redman quoted Job 25:2 in the NIV, which says, “Dominion and awe belong to God.”
It wasn’t too long before I realized that many men are amazing, but even at the peak awe inducing abilities, they are like maggots and worms in comparison to God. Shouldn’t I be amazed and in awe of God who commands even the wind and the sea? John 4:41.
I often start my with “Lord you alone are God and worthy of all my praise.” Too often, however, I fail to consider what I’m actually saying. Aren’t these words, words indicating an effect of a cause? And wouldn’t this “cause” be something that would induce awe in me?
I can’t wait for the day I meet with my Lord face to face where I am sure that at the moment of meeting, I would fully know that there was absolutely nothing in the world before me that would have measured up to my savior. Like a speck of dust would be to the expanse of the universe, so is any man, being, and thing is to God. The more I think of the cross, creation, and community, I can’t help but be in awe of my God who died on the cross and who holds all creation in the palm of his hands.
Finally finished.
Learned this:
Adam is a type of Christ
Joseph is a type of Christ
David is a type of Christ
Melchizedek is a type of Christ
Jesus is the Christ.
Appreciated this: Genesis 50:20.
As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.
All of history’s spectacular sins such as the sin of Adam, the sale of Joseph, and the betrayal of Judas Iscariot, was for the the global purpose in the glory of Christ. ( Classic Piper 
)
History’s most “Spectacular Sin”, being Judas Iscariot’s betrayal of Jesus Christ, is quite telling of the significance of the culmination of these sins, in that the entirety of these sins amounted to the crucifixion of Christ, predestined by God from eternity past. To add fuel to the fire. God was pleased in it (Is 53:6 KJV).
Divine Child abuse? By no means!
I like how Piper ends the book. (Spoiler alert!)
If you embrace the biblical truth (and I pray you will) that God ordains spectacular sins for the global glory of his Son, without God in any way becoming unholy or unrighteous or sinful in that act, then you will not shrink back from the cross of Christ as a work of God. You will not be among the number of those who call the world’s most loving act ‘divine child abuse.’ you will come to the cross and fall on your face. And you will say: This is no mere human conspiracy. This is the work of God and the love of God.
The title is subjective to the reader. I guess.
This is Jonathan Edwards on a revelation that he had while Northampton, of which he was pastor of, was experiencing an awakening.
What distinguishes saints from the unconverted is that the Holy Spirit dwells within converted persons and so gives them the power to apprehend the things of God…it is the power [of God] necessary to appreciate the spiritual light that radiates from God, the power to hear the communication of God’s love that pervades the universe…It’s a power to appreciate beauty or excellency, specifically the beauty and excellency of Christ.
These next three are gold. (The Word of God is platinum)
Such knowledge… is qualitative and affective, not simply rational or theoretical.
The “Spiritually enlightened” person does not “merely believe, rationally, that God is glorious, but he has a sense of the gloriousness of God in his heart.
But, people of “an ordinary degree of knowledge”, are capable, without a long and subtle train of reasoning to see the divine excellency of the things of religion.
With all my heart I would extol the precious gift of God in the noble art of music… Music is to be praised as second only to the Word of God because by her all the emotions are swayed
Martin Luther
