If Our Lord's words are taken in the unqualified sense which the Pacifist demands, we shall be forced to the conclusion that Christ's true meaning, concealed from those who lived in the same time and spoke the same language, and whom He Himself chose to be His messengers to the world, as well as from all their successors, has at last been discovered in our own time. I know there are people who will not find this sort of thing difficult to believe, just as there are people ready to maintain that the true meaning of Plato or Shakespeare, oddly concealed from their contemporaries and immediate successors, has preserved its virginity for the daring embraces of one or two modern professors. But I cannot apply to divine matters a method of exegesis which I have already rejected with contempt in my profane studies. Any theory which bases itself on a supposed "historical Jesus" to be dug out of the Gospels and then set up in opposition to Christian teaching is suspect. There have been too many historical Jesuses - a liberal Jesus, a pneumatic Jesus, a Barthian Jesus, a Marxist Jesus. They are a cheap crop of each publisher's list, like the new Napoleons and the new Queen Victorias. It is not to such phantoms that I look for my faith and my salvation.
10 October 2009
Lewis on "new" interpretations
From "Why I Am Not a Pacifist":
07 October 2009
Kung Fu Panda and progressive sanctification
A few weeks ago, I watched Kung Fu Panda with six lttle Hajdas and Amelia at the Tiffany Theatre in Broken Bow for $4. That was quite an adventure. While Kids' Movie Day was primarily an oasis of activity in a desert week of babysitting, I was actually taken in a bit by the film, particularly one scene.
It was when Chifu, emboldened by his conversation with Master Ugwe, approached Po and told him that he would train him to defeat Tai Lan. Po's response communicated the deepest lesson that the movie had to offer. He asked of Chifu, "How are you gonna change *me* into the Dragon Warrior?" He pressed his point, demanding, "How?" three times. Finally Chifu admits, "I don't know." I could not help comparing this to the Christian's walk of faith.
Po's question is similar to what Christians ask of their own lives, often while studying Galatians 5:22 or 2 Peter 1. "How?" we ask, "How do I become the sort of person the Bible says I am to be?" We, like Po, seek constantly for someone, some book, some program or class, to make us into the Dragon Warrior... or, rather, to make us Christlike, mature believers. However, the problem with our question, like Po's, is a failure to recognize ontological realities. For Po, the reality was that Chifu was not *making* him into the Dragon Warrior- he already was the master, and had only to realize what was already written in the stars for him. Similarly we can focus so hard on working to *become* like Christ that we fail to consider the change which God already worked at salvation, when he imputed our sin to Christ on the cross and imputed Christ's righteousness to us. The ontological change has already taken place in the believer's spirit, even if there are changes yet to come in his heart, soul, mind, and body.
I also mused on a later scene, when Po discovered "There is no secret ingredient." He found that there really was nothing left to do to be the Dragon Warrior, he was ready to face Tai Lan as he was, because of who he was. This reminded me of how the chastisement for our peace has already been spent on the Cross. There remains nothing for us to do to win God's favor.
A final thought came to me as I watched the video on Peter's birthday. It is especially poignant that, although Po needed to stop trying to become the Dragon Warrior and needed to just be the Dragon Warrior, that did not mean he did not have to work hard, under the discipline and training of a mentor. Thus we watch a ten-minute training montage, with Po mastering his gluttony and self-pity, becoming a strong, heroic Panda. However, this was all a result, not the cause of his position as the Dragon Warrior.
So, one can say, the christian strives to resemble Christ, not in order to become a Christian or even to become spiritually mature, but as a necessary result of his true identity. As Paul said, the believer is crucified with Christ. His identity with Christi is thus complete, and his righteousness is perfect in God's sight. However, as he continues in Galatians 2:20-3:3, Paul's point becomes even clearer.
Identifying himself as having been "crucified with Christ," Paul said,
Hmmm, I that seems to have gotten more convoluted the longer I have steeped in it. What say ye?
It was when Chifu, emboldened by his conversation with Master Ugwe, approached Po and told him that he would train him to defeat Tai Lan. Po's response communicated the deepest lesson that the movie had to offer. He asked of Chifu, "How are you gonna change *me* into the Dragon Warrior?" He pressed his point, demanding, "How?" three times. Finally Chifu admits, "I don't know." I could not help comparing this to the Christian's walk of faith.
Po's question is similar to what Christians ask of their own lives, often while studying Galatians 5:22 or 2 Peter 1. "How?" we ask, "How do I become the sort of person the Bible says I am to be?" We, like Po, seek constantly for someone, some book, some program or class, to make us into the Dragon Warrior... or, rather, to make us Christlike, mature believers. However, the problem with our question, like Po's, is a failure to recognize ontological realities. For Po, the reality was that Chifu was not *making* him into the Dragon Warrior- he already was the master, and had only to realize what was already written in the stars for him. Similarly we can focus so hard on working to *become* like Christ that we fail to consider the change which God already worked at salvation, when he imputed our sin to Christ on the cross and imputed Christ's righteousness to us. The ontological change has already taken place in the believer's spirit, even if there are changes yet to come in his heart, soul, mind, and body.
I also mused on a later scene, when Po discovered "There is no secret ingredient." He found that there really was nothing left to do to be the Dragon Warrior, he was ready to face Tai Lan as he was, because of who he was. This reminded me of how the chastisement for our peace has already been spent on the Cross. There remains nothing for us to do to win God's favor.
A final thought came to me as I watched the video on Peter's birthday. It is especially poignant that, although Po needed to stop trying to become the Dragon Warrior and needed to just be the Dragon Warrior, that did not mean he did not have to work hard, under the discipline and training of a mentor. Thus we watch a ten-minute training montage, with Po mastering his gluttony and self-pity, becoming a strong, heroic Panda. However, this was all a result, not the cause of his position as the Dragon Warrior.
So, one can say, the christian strives to resemble Christ, not in order to become a Christian or even to become spiritually mature, but as a necessary result of his true identity. As Paul said, the believer is crucified with Christ. His identity with Christi is thus complete, and his righteousness is perfect in God's sight. However, as he continues in Galatians 2:20-3:3, Paul's point becomes even clearer.
Identifying himself as having been "crucified with Christ," Paul said,
"The life I now live I live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not nullify the grace of God, for if justification were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose."The next few verses at the beginning of chapter 3 continue this thought, saying in essence that, if this is how justification was wrought to bring us to Christ, then this is how it will continue to work out. By grace, not by working under the law. So, do Christians live in sin, forgetting the law of God entirely? No, rather he is moved by the Holy Spirit from the inside to obey God's law (the law that the Christian obeys is another issue or two, but basically I think this is the royal law, loving your neighbor as yourself). To sum up the last couple chapters of Galatians, the seesaw of Resting in Christ versus Striving to be holy seems to be balancing on the fulcrum of the Holy Spirit's ministry in the believer's life. He bears witness in our spirits that we are the sons of God, and his presence and activity in us brings forth his fruit.
Hmmm, I that seems to have gotten more convoluted the longer I have steeped in it. What say ye?
06 October 2009
Instant Gratification?
Splish-splosh. I'm mopping the floor at Runza again, wondering if we'll have any more customers between now and the blessed hour of 4pm when I make my way back to the coziness of Home. I glance up at the TV screen and see the headline:
Starbucks to Cash in on Billion-Dollar Instant Coffee Market
I gasp. What? Starbucks making...gulp... instant coffee? Instant coffee? My mind jumps to a few evenings prior when Steve and I were digging around in my parents' pantry for ground coffee.
"Nope, nothing," I sigh.
"Wait...what's this?" Steve reaches for a small container on a high shelf. I stop him as his hand touches the container.
"Oh, no. That's instant coffee."
Our simultaneous shuddering indicates that we would rather drink nothing at all than that...brown liquid. Now, here in Runza, I am informed that the reliable, consistent, mood-lifting Starbucks has betrayed my coffee snob sensibilities and gone over to the dark side.
As I continue my responsibility to the mop bucket, I begin to process why this is such an unpleasant development. It seems that the foremost difficulty is taste. Like a pre-packaged apple pie from a gas station, instant coffee is but a faint resemblance of the robust, warm flavor of the real deal. But the instant coffee in question is from Starbucks. Surely the taste wouldn’t be compromised.
Perhaps there is a greater issue at hand. We live in a time-oriented culture. Each day begins with an alarm clock signaling the time to rise and prepare for the day. The majority of our jobs begin and end according to a time-clock, not upon the completion of a project. Arriving late at a meeting or for church results in condescending glances. When we live as if we will pay for every moment lost, it makes sense that something like instant coffee would appeal to the masses. Who has time to stop and wait in a drive-thru while Ashley brews an espresso?
Interestingly, coffee is grown in traditionally event-oriented cultures, like South America or Africa, while popular coffee and espresso beverages have their origin in the predominantly relaxed cultures of Italy or France. Older cookbooks like The Fannie Farmer Cookbook or Irma Rombauer’s The Joy of Cooking feature extended discussions on the importance of taking the necessary time and paying the required attention to brew a good pot of coffee. Too often the enjoyment of drinking a quality beverage is thwarted by the perceived inability to simply wait.
In a sense, Starbucks is a franchised attempt to merge an event-oriented beverage into a time-oriented culture. In purchasing coffee from Starbucks we sense that we have participated in something greater and more elite than the normal routine of grabbing a quick cup of joe from the nearest grocery store. Now the production of Starbucks instant coffee reminds that not even this is immune from the hurried state of American lives. Herein lies the great difficulty.
But who am I to ramble on in this vein? I stand in a fast-food restaurant waiting for…beep! The drive-thru signal sounds in my headset. Someone wants a cheeseburger (plain), a large fry….
Starbucks to Cash in on Billion-Dollar Instant Coffee Market
I gasp. What? Starbucks making...gulp... instant coffee? Instant coffee? My mind jumps to a few evenings prior when Steve and I were digging around in my parents' pantry for ground coffee.
"Nope, nothing," I sigh.
"Wait...what's this?" Steve reaches for a small container on a high shelf. I stop him as his hand touches the container.
"Oh, no. That's instant coffee."
Our simultaneous shuddering indicates that we would rather drink nothing at all than that...brown liquid. Now, here in Runza, I am informed that the reliable, consistent, mood-lifting Starbucks has betrayed my coffee snob sensibilities and gone over to the dark side.
As I continue my responsibility to the mop bucket, I begin to process why this is such an unpleasant development. It seems that the foremost difficulty is taste. Like a pre-packaged apple pie from a gas station, instant coffee is but a faint resemblance of the robust, warm flavor of the real deal. But the instant coffee in question is from Starbucks. Surely the taste wouldn’t be compromised.
Perhaps there is a greater issue at hand. We live in a time-oriented culture. Each day begins with an alarm clock signaling the time to rise and prepare for the day. The majority of our jobs begin and end according to a time-clock, not upon the completion of a project. Arriving late at a meeting or for church results in condescending glances. When we live as if we will pay for every moment lost, it makes sense that something like instant coffee would appeal to the masses. Who has time to stop and wait in a drive-thru while Ashley brews an espresso?
Interestingly, coffee is grown in traditionally event-oriented cultures, like South America or Africa, while popular coffee and espresso beverages have their origin in the predominantly relaxed cultures of Italy or France. Older cookbooks like The Fannie Farmer Cookbook or Irma Rombauer’s The Joy of Cooking feature extended discussions on the importance of taking the necessary time and paying the required attention to brew a good pot of coffee. Too often the enjoyment of drinking a quality beverage is thwarted by the perceived inability to simply wait.
In a sense, Starbucks is a franchised attempt to merge an event-oriented beverage into a time-oriented culture. In purchasing coffee from Starbucks we sense that we have participated in something greater and more elite than the normal routine of grabbing a quick cup of joe from the nearest grocery store. Now the production of Starbucks instant coffee reminds that not even this is immune from the hurried state of American lives. Herein lies the great difficulty.
But who am I to ramble on in this vein? I stand in a fast-food restaurant waiting for…beep! The drive-thru signal sounds in my headset. Someone wants a cheeseburger (plain), a large fry….
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