The Holdfast

Yes, we are all guilty of it. I am guilty of it in my dealings every day. Even with Christians, but especially with non-Christians. It’s not that we don’t “preach the gospel” or “witness” to the world. Some of us do that, sometimes. We think of it as a separate activity. But what about the 99% of the rest of the time, when we pursue our unwritten, unspoken agreement with the world, to live life publicly among them as if we share a common foundation?

(Yes, Reformed theologians, I know the doctrine of common grace, and I’m not contradicting it here.)

We essentially allow our neighbors, friends, co-workers to believe that what motivates them motivates us. But it simply can’t. At times like 9/11, we realize how utterly futile any motives and trustings are which aren’t rooted in the one true God. But most of the time, we guiltily go along with the public fiction that we are, essentially, pulling in the same direction as most of our fellow men and women. Even if we know differently inside, we aren’t willing to say so. Where is our duty to fellow man?

This posting is just a weak reflection of the excellent musings I found today on Rob Wilkerson’s post on Adrian Warnock’s blog. Thanks brother for the careful thinking.

I could post this once a week, but here it is anyway, as if today is worse than any other.

How can God continue to forgive and love his people when we act so hateful towards him? Derek Webb wonders this in his own unique way:

So could you love this bastard child
though I donâ??t trust you to provide,
with one hand in a pot of gold
and with the other in your side? *
I am so easily satisfied
by the call of lovers less wild
that I would take a little cash
over your very flesh and blood…

* Reference is to John 20:27.

I am, indeed, far from agreeing with those who think all religious fear barbarous and degrading and demand that it should be banished from the spiritual life. Perfect love, we know, casteth out fear. But so do several other things - ignorance, alcohol, passion, presumption, and stupidity. It is very desirable that we should all advance to that perfection of love in which we shall fear no longer; but it is very undesirable, until we have reached that stage, that we should allow any inferior agent to cast out our fear.

– “The World’s Last Night“