it's got me thinking...

Things that have got me thinking this week... 

Said N.T. Wright in this article, titled "Christianity Offers No Answers About the Coronavirus. It's Not Supposed To." 
"It is no part of the Christian vocation, then, to be able to explain what's happening and why. In fact, it is part of the Christian vocation not to be able to explain -and to lament instead. As the Spirit laments within us, so we become, even in our self-isolation, small shrines where the presence and healing love of God can dwell. And out of that there can emerge new possibilities, new acts of kindness, new scientific understanding, new hope. New wisdom for our leaders? Now there's a thought." 

• This somewhat speaks to my thoughts expressed here. I so deeply appreciate Wright's point that Christians must learn to lament and grieve rather than make sweeping statements about God's purposes during this pandemic. I also believe, however, that the believer ought to proclaim the source of true hope in a time of fear and can speak to our confidence in Christ and His overcoming of the things of sickness and death (and thus think the title is a bit misleading...). But that quote does sure pull at my heartstrings!

Said A.W. Tozer in The Pursuit of God: 
"Christian literature, to be accepted and approved by evangelical leaders of our times, must follow very closely the same train of thought, a kind of 'party line' of which it is scarcely safe to depart. A half-century of this in America has made us smug and content. We imitate each other with slavish devotion."

• I do think there's something (or: a million things) to be said about evangelical culture's undeniable ability to speak within its echo chamber. At times, I find myself frustrated that contemporary Christian literature and leadership seemingly lack vulnerability and raw admittance of sin (like, beyond just saying "I am a sinner"). Even testimonies and sermons largely follow the same format, consistently blurring the messiness and everpresent struggle of the sinner! To be clear: I do the same in my own conversations, and it angers me that I do so. I lament the lack of vulnerable accounts of the freeing gospel -and the "slavish devotion" that contributes to this trend. That said, I am reading Handle with Care by Lore Ferguson Wilbert at the moment - and praise God for those like her who break the mold. She is heartbreakingly, beautifully honest about the depth of her waywardness and her salvation in Christ. 

Said John Gresham Machen in Christianity and Liberalism: 
"The growth of ignorance in the Church is the logical and inevitable result of the false notion that Christianity is a life and not also a doctrine." 

• I know John Gresham Machen is known to be a fundamentalist (although, admittedly, I know very little about him and his work!) -but I do find this quote powerful and astute. In the past couple years, I have been reading and reflecting much about how theologically and biblically illiterate contemporary Christianity is becoming -whilst recognizing I, too, have much growth to do in this area. We have an entire generation of believers who are entirely divorced from Christian history and struggle to discern the difference between gospel, gospel-adjacent and full-on Christian culture (...and, ahem, American patriotism - but that's a whole other conversation). Could it be that this is because we overly emphasize Christianity as a life instead of a religious doctrine? I'm the *first* to admit I've sloganeered "I'm not religious, I follow Jesus!" which, over time, I've realized is erroneous. I'd agree that unorthodox Christianity often underestimates the role of obedience in the life of the believer, overemphasizes grace, trivializes the authority of Scripture and the discipline of a heavenly Father who hates sin (even typing that feels awkward to me...). BUT we also need to make sure the Christian message is not just an idea held in our head nor a sentiment in our heart, but one that seeps through every detail of our daily life. It's a doctrine that informs our lives, and a way of life that finds meaning in this doctrine. 

Just some thoughts floating around my head on this rather grey and blustery day.