What R.C. Ryle wrote in my previous post is a hard saying, but it is a hard saying with much comfort. God's demand of holiness is essential to the gospel, because it is the gospel. Christ death and resurrection secured for us a means of grace that included justification, sanctification, and glorification. Each one of these obtained solely by grace. So the grace that brought us into this salvation also sanctifies us.
It is in this that there is comfort. We could in no effort of ourselves bring about our salvation and likewise we in no work or effort can make ourselves holy. So this command to be holy must be fulfilled in Christ. And so as Paul addresses the Galatians, he tells them that what they have begun in faith, must be continued to be walked out in faith.
So if you want to be holy, you must begin with Christ, you must press into Christ, and you must rely on Christ. You must believe the Gospel. And this is not an idle promise, sanctification has been secured by the quarantee of the Holy Spirit, to those who are being saved.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
We must be Holy - We can't, except by faith, and so we behold the Lamb
We Must Be Holy
R.C. Ryle, 1816-1900
The righteousness which Jesus Christ brought in must be our only confidence,—the blood of atonement our only hope. All this is perfectly true, and yet we must be holy.
(First published as a "Helmingham Series" Tract in Helmingham, Suffolk)
We must be holy on earth before we die, if we desire to go to heaven after death. If we hope to dwell with God for ever in the life to come, we must endeavour to be like Him in the life that now is. We must not only admire holiness, and wish for holiness: we must be holy.
Holiness cannot justify and save us: holiness cannot cover our iniquities, make satisfaction for transgressions, pay our debts to God. Our best works are no better than filthy rags, when tried by the light of God's law. The righteousness which Jesus Christ brought in must be our only confidence, the blood of atonement our only hope. All this is perfectly true, and yet we must be holy.
We must be holy, because God in the Bible plainly commands it. "As He which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy" (1 Peter 1:15, 16).
We must be holy, because this is one great end for which Christ came into the world. "He died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto Him which died for them, and rose again" (2 Cor. 5:15).
We must be holy, because this is the only sound evidence that we have a saving faith in Christ. "Faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone." "As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also" (James 2:17, 26).
We must be holy, because this is the only proof that we love the Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. What can be more plain than our Lord's own words? "If ye love Me, keep my commandments." "He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth Me." (John 14:15, 21).
We must be holy, because this is the only sound evidence that we are God's children. "As many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God." "Whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God" (Rom. 8:14; I John 3:10).
Lastly, we must be holy, because without holiness on earth we should never be prepared and meet for heaven. It is written of the heavenly glory, "There shall in no wise enter into it anything that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie" (Rev. 21:27).
Ah, reader, the last text I have just quoted is very solemn. It ought to make you think. It was written by the hand of inspired man: it is not my private fancy. Its words are the words of the Bible: not of my own invention. God has said it, and God will stand to it: "Without holiness no man shall see the Lord."
What tremendous words these are! What thoughts come across my mind as I write them down! I look at the world, and see the greater part of it lying in wickedness; I look at professing Christians, and see the vast majority having nothing of Christianity but the name; I turn to the Bible, and I hear the Spirit saying, "Without holiness no man shall see the Lord."
Surely it is a text that ought to make you consider your ways, and search your hearts. Surely it should raise within you solemn thoughts, and send you to prayer.
You may try to put me off by saying you feel much, and think much about these things, far more than many suppose. I answer, This is not the point. The poor lost souls in hell do as much as this. The great question is, not what you think and what you feel, but what you DO. Are you holy?
You may say, It was never meant that all Christians should be holy, and that holiness such as I have described is only for great saints, and people of uncommon gifts. I answer, I cannot see this in Scripture. I read that "every man who hath hope in Christ purifieth himself" (1 John 3:3). "Without holiness no man shall see the Lord."
You may say, It is impossible to be so holy and to do our duty in this life at the same time: the thing cannot be done. I answer, You are mistaken: it can be done. With God on your side, nothing is impossible. It has been done by many: Moses, and Obadiah, and Daniel, and the servants of Nero's household, are all examples that go to prove it.
You may say, If you were so holy, you would be unlike other people. I answer, I know it well: it is just what I want you to be. Christ's true servants always were unlike the world around them,—a separate nation, a peculiar people; and you must be so too, if you would be saved.
You may say, At this rate very few will be saved. I answer, I know it: Jesus said so eighteen hundred years ago. Few will be saved, because few will take the trouble to seek salvation. Men will not deny themselves the pleasures of sin and their own way for a season; for this they turn their backs on an inheritance incorruptible, undefiled, and that fadeth not away. "Ye will not come to Me," says Jesus, "that ye might have life" (John 5:40).
You may say, These are hard sayings: the way is very narrow. I answer, I know it: Jesus said so eighteen hundred years ago. He always said that men must take up the cross daily, that they must be ready to cut off hand or foot, if they would be His disciples. It is in religion as it is in other things, "There are no gains without pains." That which costs nothing is worth nothing.
Reader, whatever you may think fit to say, you must be holy if you would see the Lord. Where is your Christianity if you are not? Show it to me without holiness, if you can. You must not merely have a Christian name and Christian knowledge, you must have a Christian character also: you must be a saint on earth, if ever you mean to be a saint in heaven. God has said it, and He will not go back,—"Without holiness no man shall see the Lord." "The Pope's calendar," says Jenken, "only makes saints of the dead, but Scripture requires sanctity in the living." "Let not men deceive themselves," says Owen, "sanctification is a qualification indispensably necessary—unto those who will be under the conduct of the Lord Jesus unto salvation: He leads none to heaven but whom He sanctifies on the earth. This living Head will not admit of dead members."
Surely you will not wonder that Scripture says, "Ye must be born again" (John 3:7). Surely it is clear as noon-day that many of you need a complete change, —new hearts, new natures,—if ever you are to be saved. Old things must pass away, you must become new creatures. Without holiness, no man, be he who he may,—no man shall see the Lord.
Reader, consider well what I have said. Do you feel any desire to be holy? Does your conscience whisper, "I am not holy yet, but I should like to become so"? Listen to the advice I am going to give you. The Lord grant you may take it and act upon it!
Would you be holy? Would you become a new creature? Then begin with Christ. You will do just nothing till you feel your sin and weakness, and flee to Him: He is the beginning of all holiness. He is not wisdom and righteousness only to His people, but sanctification also. Men sometimes try to make themselves holy first of all, and sad work they make of it: they toil, and labour, and turn over many new leaves, and make many changes, and yet, like the woman with the issue of blood before she came to Christ, they feel nothing bettered, but rather worse. They run in vain, and labour in vain: and little wonder, for they are beginning at the wrong end. They are building up a wall of sand: their work runs down as fast as they throw it up. They are baling water out of a leaky vessel; the leak gains on them; not they on the leak. Other foundation of holiness can no man lay than that which Paul laid, even Christ Jesus. Without Christ we can do nothing. It is a strong but true saying of Traill's, "Wisdom out of Christ is damning folly; righteousness out of Christ is guilt and condemnation; sanctification out of Christ is filth and sin; redemption out of Christ is bondage and slavery."
Would you be holy: Would you be partakers of the Divine nature? Then go to Christ. Wait for nothing: wait for nobody: linger not. Think not to make you yourself ready: go, and say to Him, in the words of that beautiful hymn,—
"Nothing in my hand I bring,
Simply to Thy cross I cling;
Naked, flee to Thee for dress;
Helpless, look to Thee for grace."
There is not a brick nor a stone laid in the work of our sanctification till we go to Christ. Holiness is His special gift to His believing people; holiness is the work He carries on in their hearts, by the Spirit whom He puts within them. He is appointed a Prince and a Saviour, to give repentance as well as remission of sins: to as many as receive Him He gives power to become sons of God. Holiness comes not of blood,—parents cannot give it to their children; nor yet of the will of the flesh,—man cannot produce it in himself; nor yet of the will of man, —ministers cannot give it you by baptism. Holiness comes from Christ. It is the result of vital union with Him: it is the fruit of being a living branch of the true vine. Go then to Christ, and say, "Lord, not only save me from the guilt of sin, but send the Spirit, whom Thou didst promise, and save me from its power. Make me holy. Teach me to do Thy will."
Would you continue holy, when you have once been made so? Then abide in Christ. He says Himself, "Abide in Me, and I in you. He that abideth in Me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit" (John 15:4, 5).
He is the Physician to whom You must daily go, if you would keep well; He is the Manna which you must daily eat, and the Rock of which you must daily drink. His arm is the arm on which you must daily lean, as you come up out of the wilderness of this world. You must not only be rooted, you must also be built up in Him.
Reader, may you and I know these things by experience, and not by hearsay only! May we all feel the importance of holiness, far more than we have ever done yet! May our years he holy years with our souls, and then I know they will be happy ones! But this I say once more, "We must be holy."
Monday, February 23, 2009
May I loose myself
If you seek to impress people, you create an expectation you cannot live up to. But if you lay down you life and point to Christ boasting only in Him, then you are pointing to the place where true confidence can be given.
What I would like to be
This is a man that understands that he does not uphold himself or has anything to boast in, but boasts in and depends only in Christ.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Monday, February 16, 2009
". . . who is more to you than seven sons"
A letter from the guys at my church to the girls at my church for valentines:
Women Theologians
Ladies,
As men, we can read the passages such as 1Timothy 2:9-15 or Corinthians 14:33-38 and see in them only restrictions on women. We can react and say, “You have to obey this rule and this restriction”. Although there is a reason for these verses, and we must take them very seriously, if this is our attitude we don’t understand these verses. These verses are not there to give us an attitude of “placing restrictions on women”; these verses instead challenge us as men to lead and honor the women around us.
We can look at the scriptures and see God’s heart for women. A Godly woman is described with eloquence and dignity throughout. We have women like Sarah, Ruth, and Esther, and many more who stand out in the history of Israel. We watch and listen as Jesus treats women with honor. They were always near ministering to him, and he to them. Paul walked with the women around him, relying on the gifts that God had given them. And there is so much more, but for times sake, I am barely even touching the surface of how the scripture describes the beauty of women. My point is I don’t believe that the majority of heroes of the faith should be men. As we see these scriptures opened up and obeyed we will see the churches littered with the heroines of the faith. There is no place for any thought that women have less to offer. The Bible screams against this and rebukes any man who contemplates this. It is not God’s heart to put restrictions on women. In the scriptures, He has provided an amazing protection of the beauty and the expressiveness that only a woman can provide. It is God’s heart for a woman to bloom, under the nourishment and protection of His word.
Our pastor has recently been talking about how Mary’s act of anointing Jesus before His death was a powerful and poignant act. In that act, one women out-theologized all the many men that were in the room. If anyone thinks because a women cannot preach or teach, she has less expression of theology they are wrong. Christ made it clear, what this woman had done would be told everywhere the Gospel was preached. By her act she has challenged both men and women over the ages wherever the Gospel has been preached. Jesus had no intention to limit this woman’s expression of theology . . . nor do the scriptures.
As men, God has called us to lead in the church, but we’d be a fool if we thought we were more than what we are, fellow servants in the Lord, co-laborers in the gospel of God’s grace, with no more influence and strength then the women around us. What Mary did was powerful and meaningful. And she out shone the men around her. A woman can express theology and influence the direction of the church in a way that a man could never do. The church cannot be all God has called it to be without the women, co-laboring with the men.
God has called us men to lead, but He has also called us to honor and cherish the women in our lives. Peter tells husbands that if they do not honor and value their wives, their prayers will not be heard. I don’t believe this just applies to a husband and a wife. If we as men do not honor and cherish the women in our church, we are in danger of having our prayers not heard. A woman has a desire to be captivating and God has left her with a means for that desire to be filled. A woman shouldn’t have to force herself on us to show her theological insight. No, instead as men, we should treat women as captivating and valued. We should seek out what their hearts and what their ideas are. We should be in awe of the insight that God has given women.
Sisters, as your brothers, we want to learn how to encourage you to express theology in the fullness of being a woman and to treat you with the eloquence and dignity that the scriptures dictate. We want you to feel valued and cherished. We want to fight for you with our prayers and actions. Not by convention; by loving you like Jesus, laying our lives down, letting our lives point to one who is truly Romantic, your Savior and Lord. May we be stripped away, so that you will see Jesus. Be patient, we still have a lot to learn, but we pursuing to learn more and grow together through God’s stunning grace in becoming men who treat you with honor, and with God’s help we will. He will grant what He commands . . . by grace alone.
May Our Eyes Always Be Upon Jesus
(written by Landon Lewis)
May our eyes always be upon Jesus,
The founder and perfecter of our faith,
So that we may not grow weary or faint
As we attempt each day to run the race.
Do not grant our eyes the chance to wander
Lest we will give in to the temptation
To stop and marvel at our endurance
Or cringe at our lack of motivation.
Direct our eyes to the one who came down
And though tempted to quit, ran for His church
In perfect, perpetual righteousness
And endured the cross to finish the work.
As our eyes behold your Son’s bloody stripes
May we rest in His race and perfect time
Because it is His hands that will carry us
And His legs that have crossed the finish line.
May God cultivate and bring your heart to full bloom,
Your brothers
Women Theologians
Ladies,
As men, we can read the passages such as 1Timothy 2:9-15 or Corinthians 14:33-38 and see in them only restrictions on women. We can react and say, “You have to obey this rule and this restriction”. Although there is a reason for these verses, and we must take them very seriously, if this is our attitude we don’t understand these verses. These verses are not there to give us an attitude of “placing restrictions on women”; these verses instead challenge us as men to lead and honor the women around us.
We can look at the scriptures and see God’s heart for women. A Godly woman is described with eloquence and dignity throughout. We have women like Sarah, Ruth, and Esther, and many more who stand out in the history of Israel. We watch and listen as Jesus treats women with honor. They were always near ministering to him, and he to them. Paul walked with the women around him, relying on the gifts that God had given them. And there is so much more, but for times sake, I am barely even touching the surface of how the scripture describes the beauty of women. My point is I don’t believe that the majority of heroes of the faith should be men. As we see these scriptures opened up and obeyed we will see the churches littered with the heroines of the faith. There is no place for any thought that women have less to offer. The Bible screams against this and rebukes any man who contemplates this. It is not God’s heart to put restrictions on women. In the scriptures, He has provided an amazing protection of the beauty and the expressiveness that only a woman can provide. It is God’s heart for a woman to bloom, under the nourishment and protection of His word.
Our pastor has recently been talking about how Mary’s act of anointing Jesus before His death was a powerful and poignant act. In that act, one women out-theologized all the many men that were in the room. If anyone thinks because a women cannot preach or teach, she has less expression of theology they are wrong. Christ made it clear, what this woman had done would be told everywhere the Gospel was preached. By her act she has challenged both men and women over the ages wherever the Gospel has been preached. Jesus had no intention to limit this woman’s expression of theology . . . nor do the scriptures.
As men, God has called us to lead in the church, but we’d be a fool if we thought we were more than what we are, fellow servants in the Lord, co-laborers in the gospel of God’s grace, with no more influence and strength then the women around us. What Mary did was powerful and meaningful. And she out shone the men around her. A woman can express theology and influence the direction of the church in a way that a man could never do. The church cannot be all God has called it to be without the women, co-laboring with the men.
God has called us men to lead, but He has also called us to honor and cherish the women in our lives. Peter tells husbands that if they do not honor and value their wives, their prayers will not be heard. I don’t believe this just applies to a husband and a wife. If we as men do not honor and cherish the women in our church, we are in danger of having our prayers not heard. A woman has a desire to be captivating and God has left her with a means for that desire to be filled. A woman shouldn’t have to force herself on us to show her theological insight. No, instead as men, we should treat women as captivating and valued. We should seek out what their hearts and what their ideas are. We should be in awe of the insight that God has given women.
Sisters, as your brothers, we want to learn how to encourage you to express theology in the fullness of being a woman and to treat you with the eloquence and dignity that the scriptures dictate. We want you to feel valued and cherished. We want to fight for you with our prayers and actions. Not by convention; by loving you like Jesus, laying our lives down, letting our lives point to one who is truly Romantic, your Savior and Lord. May we be stripped away, so that you will see Jesus. Be patient, we still have a lot to learn, but we pursuing to learn more and grow together through God’s stunning grace in becoming men who treat you with honor, and with God’s help we will. He will grant what He commands . . . by grace alone.
May Our Eyes Always Be Upon Jesus
(written by Landon Lewis)
May our eyes always be upon Jesus,
The founder and perfecter of our faith,
So that we may not grow weary or faint
As we attempt each day to run the race.
Do not grant our eyes the chance to wander
Lest we will give in to the temptation
To stop and marvel at our endurance
Or cringe at our lack of motivation.
Direct our eyes to the one who came down
And though tempted to quit, ran for His church
In perfect, perpetual righteousness
And endured the cross to finish the work.
As our eyes behold your Son’s bloody stripes
May we rest in His race and perfect time
Because it is His hands that will carry us
And His legs that have crossed the finish line.
May God cultivate and bring your heart to full bloom,
Your brothers
Sunday, February 15, 2009
“Beauty in my arms”
I watch as the leaves flew up;
I smiled and chased the flury,
Following the path of disheveled leaves.
In a moment, all fell still . . . silence. . .
There she was waiting,
I held her in my arms and we danced . . .
And now I look into her eyes,
She just smiled at me.
How could I have imagined how much our love would grow,
And how much more beautiful she would become?
She is in the distance helping a child,
But we are saying so much to each other without words.
We dance together, as we serve the Lord,
And now when I hold her in my arms . . . it is more.
I smiled and chased the flury,
Following the path of disheveled leaves.
In a moment, all fell still . . . silence. . .
There she was waiting,
I held her in my arms and we danced . . .
And now I look into her eyes,
She just smiled at me.
How could I have imagined how much our love would grow,
And how much more beautiful she would become?
She is in the distance helping a child,
But we are saying so much to each other without words.
We dance together, as we serve the Lord,
And now when I hold her in my arms . . . it is more.
Friday, February 13, 2009
Christians are not morally superior than non-Christians
"The Gospel is the only faith system I know that leads you to expect that people who don't believe like you believe will be better than you. What!? Yes! Because the Gospel says your not saved because your wise; your not saved because your good; your not saved because your virtuous; your not saved because your performing the truth. You are saved because Jesus performs the truth. And you can't get a salvation unless you admit that you are not any better than anyone else, that you are a sinner and that you need grace. And therefore the Gospel leads you to expect that the people who don't agree with you could easily be and usually are better people than you, wiser, nicer, more disciplined, more self controlled, kinder, less likely to fly off the handle; and they are. Every other system of thought leads you to believe that you will be better than the people who do not believe the right things, but the Gospel says if you believe the Gospel you are likely to see other people who don't believe the Gospel better than you. In other words, the Gospel humbles you before the people who don't agree with you. Humbles you! I don't know of any other system that would do that."
--Timothy Keller
Exclusivity of Christianity
--Timothy Keller
Exclusivity of Christianity
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
A godly husband who can find?
To my sister,
What are you looking for in a husband? My beloved sister, stop and hear this counsel from a godly mother. These words were written to her son, but this advice is also for the heart of a woman as she contemplates on what to look for in a husband. She teaches her son, "Do not give your strength to women, your ways to those who destroy Kings." (Proverbs 31) In seeking a husband, there are many things that via for our attraction in the opposite sex, whether it is physical, emotional, social, or financial, but the counsel of the scriptures is to not give your heart to these superficial things. My sister, it is my desire that you protect your heart and your way from being led astray by these things that can so easily destroy and ravage your heart. “Keep your heart with all vigilance for from it flow the springs of life.”
Come close and listen, to the wisdom and counsel of a godly mother, as she speaks to her son in love. She advises her son to find a godly woman in whom he can trust. "The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain." Beloved sister, find a man you can trust, who will lead you and your family in the Lord. Find a man you know your heart is safe with. This is surpasses all and will strengthen your heart as a woman. Find a man who will cherish you, a man who seeks your good, in the Lord, even when it hurts. He is not afraid to make a stand on what is good.
I just watched a movie I received during Christmas. And there was a scene where the daughter was talking with her mother about romance. and her godly mother told her, "Do not despise meager beginnings." My sister, many of us men are still learning what it means to lead. We definitely are not perfect. But if you find a man who is devoted to the Lord and devoted to honoring you and loving you and leading his family, the Lord will give him the strength to be good husband. If his foundation is firmly planted in the Lord and scripture, then the house will stand. I have found that that the Lord enables what He commands and will be there close, walking beside a man like this. And that is why you can give your heart to him, because God is near. Find a man attractive, because God is near him.
My sister, you should not have to question the integrity of man’s heart. A godly man will labor to be a man you can trust in his actions and words. His character will be one that does not shy away from accountability, but instead welcomes it. He is a man who is proven. And he does not seek his own gain, but seeks to lead under the headship of Christ. This is a man, who understands that he does not uphold himself or has anything to boast in, but boasts in and depends only in Christ. His heart is the Lord's, first and only.
Here is another quote from the movie I just saw; the mother says, “Just remember, that God has written His own story for you. And it is not the feelings of your heart that it should be based upon, but rather the thoughts of your heart that you need to hear, . . . that tells you that this man will care for you no matter what, that he is someone who will kiss you when you are old and gray, tend to you when you are sick, honor you. . . . a man like that is as rare as a diamond in the rough.”
Beloved sister, don't go for the guy with a lot flair or for the vain things that pull at your heart and attractions, go for the man who has a strong foundation, a man whom you can trust.
In love,
Your brother
What are you looking for in a husband? My beloved sister, stop and hear this counsel from a godly mother. These words were written to her son, but this advice is also for the heart of a woman as she contemplates on what to look for in a husband. She teaches her son, "Do not give your strength to women, your ways to those who destroy Kings." (Proverbs 31) In seeking a husband, there are many things that via for our attraction in the opposite sex, whether it is physical, emotional, social, or financial, but the counsel of the scriptures is to not give your heart to these superficial things. My sister, it is my desire that you protect your heart and your way from being led astray by these things that can so easily destroy and ravage your heart. “Keep your heart with all vigilance for from it flow the springs of life.”
Come close and listen, to the wisdom and counsel of a godly mother, as she speaks to her son in love. She advises her son to find a godly woman in whom he can trust. "The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain." Beloved sister, find a man you can trust, who will lead you and your family in the Lord. Find a man you know your heart is safe with. This is surpasses all and will strengthen your heart as a woman. Find a man who will cherish you, a man who seeks your good, in the Lord, even when it hurts. He is not afraid to make a stand on what is good.
I just watched a movie I received during Christmas. And there was a scene where the daughter was talking with her mother about romance. and her godly mother told her, "Do not despise meager beginnings." My sister, many of us men are still learning what it means to lead. We definitely are not perfect. But if you find a man who is devoted to the Lord and devoted to honoring you and loving you and leading his family, the Lord will give him the strength to be good husband. If his foundation is firmly planted in the Lord and scripture, then the house will stand. I have found that that the Lord enables what He commands and will be there close, walking beside a man like this. And that is why you can give your heart to him, because God is near. Find a man attractive, because God is near him.
My sister, you should not have to question the integrity of man’s heart. A godly man will labor to be a man you can trust in his actions and words. His character will be one that does not shy away from accountability, but instead welcomes it. He is a man who is proven. And he does not seek his own gain, but seeks to lead under the headship of Christ. This is a man, who understands that he does not uphold himself or has anything to boast in, but boasts in and depends only in Christ. His heart is the Lord's, first and only.
Here is another quote from the movie I just saw; the mother says, “Just remember, that God has written His own story for you. And it is not the feelings of your heart that it should be based upon, but rather the thoughts of your heart that you need to hear, . . . that tells you that this man will care for you no matter what, that he is someone who will kiss you when you are old and gray, tend to you when you are sick, honor you. . . . a man like that is as rare as a diamond in the rough.”
Beloved sister, don't go for the guy with a lot flair or for the vain things that pull at your heart and attractions, go for the man who has a strong foundation, a man whom you can trust.
In love,
Your brother
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Death
"Death". . . When we use this word to describe spiritual death, I used to feel that the word "death" used here was symbolic, a way of describing spiritual separation from God and Hell. This however is death. It is death in the truest sense of the word. We are dead, without Christ. This should sink into our hearts. This is what death means! When we use the word "death" to refer to physical death, it is only symbolic of what death is. Physical death is a means of giving us a glimpse into what true death really is.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
It takes a community to know someone
"In each of my friends there is something that only some other friend can fully bring out. By myself I am not large enough to call the whole man into activity; I want other lights than my own to show all his facets. Now that Charles [Williams] is dead, I shall never again see Ronald's [Tolkien's] reaction to a specifically Charles joke. Far from having more of Ronald, having him "to myself" now that Charles is away, I have less of Ronald . . . In this, Friendship exhibits a glorious "nearness by resemblance" to heaven itself where the very multitude of the blessed (which no man can number) increases the fruition which each of us has of God. For every soul, seeing Him in her own way, doubtless communicates that unique vision to all the rest. That, says an old author, is why the Seraphim in Isaiah's vision are crying "Holy, Holy, Holy" to one another (Isaiah 6:3). The more we thus share the Heavenly Bread between us, the more we shall have."
--C.S. Lewis
--C.S. Lewis
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