Old Erich Proverb - Bigger

God is bigger than all the things that would try to scare us.

A Voice from the Past - Lewis

(Advice from an experienced older devil, Screwtape, to his nephew Wormwood on how to tempt humans.)

I do not think you will have much difficulty keeping  the patient in the dark. The fact that 'devils' are predominately comic figures in the modern imagination will help you. If any faint suspicion of your existence begins to arise in his mind, suggest to him a picture of something in red tights, and persuade him that since he cannot believe in that (it is an old textbook method of confusing them) he therefore cannot believe in you.

C. S. Lewis, 1898-1963, The Screwtape Letters, 7 (Harper Collins Publishers, 2001, p.32)

Is there a danger of confusing our picture of a thing for the thing itself? If so, how do we avoid it?

Root of Legalism

Augustine of Hippo stated that good works done in order to earn something from God are not good works. If I give only to get back, am I really fulfilling God’s Law (Matthew 22:37-39; Acts 20:35)? Augustine also said that pride was the mother of all sins (Proverbs 8:13; 16:18; Genesis 3:5; Isaiah 14:13,14). But if I can earn my salvation, how can I avoid pride, which leads to boasting--which Scripture says is excluded (Romans 3:27; 4:2; Ephesians 2:8,9)? Or to look at it another way, we can look at life as if everything depends on our performance. This is not limited to the religious context; secular legalism (I need to be successful, have money, have fame, be highly attractive to the opposite sex) can be worse than religious legalism. And what I find is I am trapped in a perpetual treadmill, where it can never be clear that I have done enough. Or I can jump to the other extreme and adopt the “accept yourself” philosophy and claim that I am good, no matter who I am and what I do. The result of this is to leave us with no goals and no direction, and stuck in our current situation with no way to change.

There is a legend from ancient times which may not be true, but it makes a point. There was a town named Gordium, which had a reputation for being famous for knots. It was claimed they had one very complicated knot , which was extremely difficult to untie. And they had a tradition that whoever untied it would conquer the world. The story says that one day Alexander the Great came by Gordium on his mission of conquest. He had heard of the tradition and pulled out his sword and cut the knot in two at the center. He then went out and proceeded to conquer the world.

The gospel is like Alexander’s sword; it cuts apart the tangle made by looking at our performance. First, it allows us to love God, not to get something from Him, but out of love and thanksgiving for His having already saved us (1 John 4:19; 2 Corinthians 5:14,15; Colossians 3:1-4). Our boasting is destroyed because we cannot save ourselves (Romans 3:23; Isaiah 64:6; Jeremiah 17:9), but must rely on the work of another (Romans 5:8; 1 Peter 1:18, 19; Colossians 2:13,14). We can stand before God forgiven, based on what Christ has done (Romans 8:33,34; Ephesians 1:7; Philippians 3:9). But we are still called to go on with Christ and grow, based on our love for Him (Ephesians 2:10; Philippians 3:12-14; Titus 2:11-14). But sometimes we as believers in Christ can forget this (2 Peter 1:9) and can get caught up again in the trap of trying to impress God by what we do. And when we do, we need to remind ourselves that the battle is already won for us by Christ (Romans 8:37; 2 Corinthians 2:14; John 19:30).

Behaving Becomingly

It says in 1 Corinthians 13:5 that love does not act unbecomingly. And the question then comes: What does that mean? This word and its related forms are rare in the New Testament and in the ancient Greek translation of the Old Testament, but it has the idea of something that is dishonored and looked down on. While it can used in a more neutral sense, it is generally used of inappropriate behavior, particularly of a sexual nature (Romans 1:27; Genesis 34:7; Revelation 16:15). The implication here is that genuine love is responsible and restrained and does not just follow its impulses, wherever they lead. This is important, because in our present culture love is frequently viewed as encouraging people to simply follow their feelings. Now there is a form of ethic that views self-control as being the center of ethics and ends up harsh and unloving (Colossians 2:20-23; 1 Timothy 4:1-6; Titus 1:15). But self-denial is clearly part of God's commandment (Galatians 5:23; Matthew 16:24-26; Romans 13:11-14). Underlying this is the idea that we are sinners and all our impulses are not good things (Romans 3:23; Jeremiah 17:9; Isaiah 64:6). Love then, Scripturally, does not mean following our impulses and encouraging other people to follow theirs, but a reasoned putting of the welfare of others before our own (Philippians 2:4-11; Galatians 6:1-10; Mark 10:42-45). This results in a love that thoughtful and intentional, not just a vague feeling. And one that is concerned whether it acts unbecomingly.

Celebrating Communion

God from the beginning has instituted various ordinances that have marked out His people. The response to these is in danger of going to two extremes. There is a tendency to magnify the ordinances to the extent of making the ordinances, and especially doing the ordinances the right way, one of the chief things in being right with God or living in obedience to God. Then there is the opposite reaction, which tends to minimize them and make them of only incidental significance. (We do them because God said so, but wander why He bothered.) It is not within the scope of this post to try to resolve all of the contentions regarding the ordinances. But I do want to look at what the Scripture says about them, and specifically about communion, to try to come up with underlying principles that, to some extent, transcend the disagreements. In Romans 4:11 it speaks of circumcision as a sign and a seal. As I mentioned under baptism I believe this is a general principle for all the ordinances. A sign is something that indicates or declares something, like a banner before an army. A seal is something that speaks of ownership. People put a seal on something to identify it as belonging to them or as being from them. Therefore, the ordinances identify us as being God’s and show it forth for all the world to see. They remind us of who we are (1 Corinthians 11:24,25) and are a proclamation to those around us (1 Corinthians 11:26).
 
Now the Scripture makes it clear that simply going through the motions of any form of worship is meaningless (Matthew 6:1-18; Malachi 1:10,11; John 4:23,24). Also, that the main issue involved is that of faith (Romans 4:9,10; Hebrews 11:6; 4:1-3). But for those who have faith, it is important that we take upon ourselves the sign and seal of faith, that we may remind ourselves and proclaim to the world that we are His. Being human, we need periodic reminders of what God has done for us, and He has instituted them throughout history (Deuteronomy 5:15; 16:1-3; Joshua 4:6,7). Therefore, communion was instituted to remind us that we are His. (Baptism, being a one-time event, does not serve as a constant reminder, but we can look back on it and remind ourselves we took that step of faith.) Communion also serves as an open proclamation to others of where we stand. It sets us off as a people belonging to God (Deuteronomy 14:2; Titus 2:14; 1 Peter 2:9). Therefore, while it is faith that saves (Ephesians 2:8,9; Romans 4:4,5; Acts 16:31), we should not minimize those things God has appointed as an expression of that faith. For they are the sign and seal of who we really are.

A Touch of Humor - Pageantry

Is there a place for pageantry in Christian worship? If so, what should it look like?

Old Erich Proverb - Only Source

If the scientific method is the only legitimate method of arriving at truth, there are large areas of knowledge that cannot even be explored.