Tuesday, March 03, 2009

Monday, March 02, 2009

Making our God small

I've been reading Spectacular Sins by John Piper. It's a very good book, and I highly recommend it. (Unlike most Piper books, it's short and to the point!) It's not just informative but it's given me a greater understanding and appreciation of God's sovereignty, especially in the area of sin and God's sovereignty over it. One statement that struck me was: "Wimpy worldviews make wimpy Christians". How often we talk, sing, read about the greatness of God, and I have no doubt that if I was to ask a Christian, or specifically someone from GOC what he/she thought about God, I'd probably get some responses ranging from "holy, awesome, powerful, omniscient, omnipresent, all-knowing, wise, faithful, etc" but how do those beliefs manifest themselves in our daily lives? I for one often lack faith when I choose to rely on myself on how I am going to get this or that done, deciding my future, or even making everyday decisions. Where is God in that picture? I am doing the exact opposite of what it says in Proverbs 3:5-7:

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the Lord and turn away from evil."


We are supposed to build our faith on the solid rock of God, not the sinking sands that are ourselves. Christianity is more than facts but not less. We as Christians often say we read the Bible to "know more about God". That statement might be inadequate depending on your definition of "knowing". "Knowing" more about God does not do the Bible, or our Lord justice. After all I could pick up a book on USC sports history and know more about it, but I could care less about it. Plainly reading or hearing the Bible does not make us more like Christ, the Pharisees knew the Word of God inside and out but all that knowledge meant nothing for their perishing souls in the end. They were exactly the kind of people James warns us not to become when he says, "Prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves." The greater our understanding of God through the application of His word, the more faithful our worldviews will be. Let's not be wimpy Christians, I don't want to be one.