christianity: the all-transforming principle

In the midst of writing a 20-page paper of on Athanasius I found an incredible quote from Johann Eduard Eerdman's History of Philosophy, Volume 1:

“Christianity shows itself as an all-transforming principle also in the field of philosophy. For, as far as philosophy could penetrate, without receiving an impulse from this new principle, so far it has succeeded in advancing, in a way that irresistibly brings before our eyes, as we look back, the course of many a far-famed stream. For in the first period we saw what had sprung from the most various sources, gradually drawing nearer and nearer; in the second all these branches had united into a great stream flowing along in majesty; in the third it once more separated into many branches, which seem to lose themselves partly in the sands of skepticism, partly in the marsh of syncretism, but which really nevertheless contribute sustenance to the ocean of Christian philosophy.”

It is often assumed--wrongly--that Christianity is a flimsy, few-stranded religion that molds to the wearer. It is not. Jesus Christ transformed history and continues to transform the lives of those who see him still--born and crucified in real history, savior of humanity, friend of sinners. I have appreciated again Socrates, Plato, Aristotle. All men who spoke as well as they could. But their thoughts could not save the Greek city-state from the encroaching might of Rome. Rome met one mightier, but did not know it by looking at him. His kingdom was not of this world. Philosopher and monarch alike were humbled by Jesus. They put their best foot forward and were tripped by his unexpected response. They did not fall by idea or sword, but by the reality of the cross were "sorrow and love flow mingled down," where God became man and entered the world.

build on calvary

"O Young man, build your studio on Calvary! there raise your
observatory, and scan by faith the lofty things of nature. Take a
recluse's cell in the garden of Gethsemane, and wash your face
with the waters of Siloam. Let the Bible be your standard classic, your
last appeal in matters of contention. Let its light be your
illumination, and you will become more wise than Plato, more
truly learned than the seven sages of antiquity." - Spurgeon

saturday, sunday, monday

Saturday night I was up until 4am. Midnight brought the call you hope to never receive. "You're where? On a bridge and going to jump? Don't! I'll be right there."

Sunday afternoon I went to a going away party for a friend. She is leaving to study at the Mayo clinic in Arizona for a year. The party was hosted at her boyfriends house. The design of the house was creative. It was built rustic and livable with plenty of exposed beams and three decks. There was enough bushes and trees around the property, which is placed next to duplex-ville in Bremerton, to make it feel country. It was fall. The air had the lingering touch of morning dew and the sun shared space with the chill. It seemed very removed from the night before.

In the last three days I have finished Lewis's book The Great Divorce. Besides having an unfortunate name I can say that his writing has finally spilled over my trenches. That is to say, I admire him. You see, I have not wanted to. It seems like everyone defaults to Lewis. I will say that one of the most brilliant things about Lewis is that God gave him the ability to see outside of himself and to appreciate all of creation. His book Surprised By Joy tells of his early desires to try to capture joy when he felt it most profoundly. He tried to feel it to the greatest extent and to hold himself there (or hold joy to himself) as if to fulfill the wish of Peter on the Mount of Transfiguration. To his disappointment he could not hold joy (I believe that joy in The Great Divorce is tied inextricably to "Reality", and thus he could not hold the realest reality). Joy was not that moment or that feeling. The substance is in the object of desire. "Guard your heart for it is the wellspring of life!" Understanding can be tested by action.

grown-ups

It does not good to try to catch-up when you have fallen behind blogging--life cannot be related that easily--so I will tell you about the last two days. Last night we had two boys stay at our house. One was 19 and the other 24. Both homeless. One dressed smartly with a vest, tie, and button up shirt. He likes to ballroom dance. The other has visible scars on face and arms to mark the battles he that his life has been. Both slept on a blow-up mattress that we have ready in expectation of having weekly guests. One upstairs and one downstairs. I am reminded as I go to bed that I cannot be a child anymore. I wake up with mouths to feed and a concern for their daily schedule. But I do not think this responsibility is the crown of moving into adulthood. There is no trumpet cry, cymbal clash, or cheering crowd to welcome you into eldership. For many it is actually marked by decline or disappointment. It is marked by loneliness and unattainable expectation. A child is taught to pray, "Dear Lord, help me be small well and grow up strong." The adult is expected to learn from experience. If you adult were to pray, "Dear Lord, help me be big well," what do you think the response would be? Listen. Perhaps Jesus is asking you to come to the garden and simply be with him for a time. Perhaps the stress of attainment or responsibility is too much for you alone. Let us not forget that we can learn and listen again that He ready to help the humble and willing...even grown-ups.

helpful words

I found Oswald Chambers very helpful today:

"He would not drink it, but poured it out to the Lord —2 Samuel 23:16"

"What has been like “water from the well of Bethlehem” to you recently— love, friendship, or maybe some spiritual blessing ( 2 Samuel 23:16 )? Have you taken whatever it may be, even at the risk of damaging your own soul, simply to satisfy yourself? If you have, then you cannot pour it out “to the Lord.” You can never set apart for God something that you desire for yourself to achieve your own satisfaction. If you try to satisfy yourself with a blessing from God, it will corrupt you. You must sacrifice it, pouring it out to God— something that your common sense says is an absurd waste.

How can I pour out “to the Lord” natural love and spiritual blessings? There is only one way— I must make a determination in my mind to do so. There are certain things other people do that could never be received by someone who does not know God, because it is humanly impossible to repay them. As soon as I realize that something is too wonderful for me, that I am not worthy to receive it, and that it is not meant for a human being at all, I must pour it out “to the Lord.” Then these very things that have come to me will be poured out as “rivers of living water” all around me ( John 7:38 ). And until I pour these things out to God, they actually endanger those I love, as well as myself, because they will be turned into lust. Yes, we can be lustful in things that are not sordid and vile. Even love must be transformed by being poured out “to the Lord.”

If you have become bitter and sour, it is because when God gave you a blessing you hoarded it. Yet if you had poured it out to Him, you would have been the sweetest person on earth. If you are always keeping blessings to yourself and never learning to pour out anything “to the Lord,” other people will never have their vision of God expanded through you."

brokenness

This morning I was reminded by an article a poem written by a man centuries before mine, broken before God:

"You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it;
you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;
a broken and contrite heart,
O God, you will not despise" - Psalm 51:16-17

Why is this what you want God?

Am I broken? I am.

But why this? What about this brings you pleasure?

God delights in the the healing of the innermost parts of us. He does not work from the outside in, but from the inside out. Before the world began the salvation story started with the hope and glory of Jesus being able and willing to be everything, meet every need, and be all satisfying forever.

God if what you want is my brokennes, then here I am.

I don't know how to not be despised for that brokenness, because I have despised it in myself.

But this is your treasure when I present it to you.

A vessel willing to be pieced back together, mended, and filled.

some men

I am thankful that God helps other men see me.

"There have been men before now who got so interested in probing the existence of God that they came to care nothing for God Himself...as if the good Lord had nothing to do but exist! There have been some who were so occupied in spreading Christianity that they never gave thought to Christ" - CS Lewis

camus

In the midst of studying for a sermon on the attributes of God I ran across an essay by Albert Camus titled "The Unbeliever". Camus added to a philosophy called absurdism, which opposed nihilism, but to no distinct end. The soul of Camus had longing and that gave him a small boat to ride above the sea of nothingness that was nihilism. He was certain that there was meaning, but could give it no specific name. He, like the woman at the well, only knew that they did not have the ability to personally draw eternal water themselves. Camus wrote this as a speech to present to a group of monks that asked him if he would tell them what, according to his view, Christians should do or do differently. Here is part of that response:

“What the world expects of Christians is that Christians should speak out, loud and clear, and that they should voice their condemnation in such a way that never a doubt, never the slightest doubt, could rise in the heart of the simplest man. That they should get away from abstraction and confront the blood-stained face history has taken on today. The grouping we need is a grouping of men resolved to speak out clearly and to pay up personally. When a Spanish bishop blesses political execution, he ceases to be a bishop or a Christian or even a man; he is a dog just like the one who, backed by an ideology, orders that executions without doing the dirty work himself. We are still waiting, and I am waiting, for a group of all those who refuse to be dogs and are resolved to pay the price that must be paid so that man can be something more than a dog.”

Hold out the hope you have. Speak in love and speak loudly.

Savannah

"No man can stay alive when nobody is waiting for him. Everyone who returns from a long and difficult trip is looking for someone waiting for him at the station or airport. Everyone wants to tell his story and share his moments of pain and exhilaration with someone who stayed home waiting for him to come back" - Henry Nouwen in Wounded Healer

Tonight is my last night in Savannah, Georgia (imagine me saying that with a southern accent. It catches on very quickly). A wedding yesterday of two people that look forward to each other. He was stable and strong and she commanded his attention with sweet glances. The parents exchanged prayers over their new children and the pastor shared some words about the parents prayers over the children being answered. With only a few words my mind was find with thoughts of how my parents have always and still do pray for me. Prayer is true and I will be proof. The grooms family made me one of their own many years ago and I am included me in their family photos. Savannah has made me new in many ways. Verse for the week was Philippians 4:6-7 "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." We cannot be dishonest with this verse. It asks for complete trust. The kind of trust that holds the heart in the fire long enough for shaping. We feel the desperate heat, but do not known what shape it will take. By God's grace these wound will heal to become a tool for the healing of others. Lord, I pray for grace in the shaping and songs in the night. And sometimes known, often unknowingly, all along Joy holds us.

Went alligator hunting for the bachelor party...

to perceive and live

"No person can consistently live in a manner that is inconsistent with how he perceives himself. You must see yourself as a child of God in order to live like a child of God." - Neil Anderson