In my preparation for the next sermon I am preaching on July 17, I am reading C.S. Lewis’ The Weight of Glory. The quote below reminds us that our hope is in the glory of God, but we do not know that glory fully at once. Just like when we learn to write, we don’t start immediately start writing poetry, or when we start talking we don’t immediately start reciting Shakespeare, we don’t experience the fullness of God’s glory simply by believing in it…
Archive for the CS Lewis Category
This is another note I wrote on Facebook back in October 2009, with some minor edits. Quotations are from C.S. Lewis’ sermon, “The Weight of Glory.”
“If you ask 20 good men today what they thought were the highest of the virtues, 19 would reply ‘unselfishness’. But if you asked any of the great Christian of old, he would reply ‘love’.”
I’ve heard it more than a few times that the opposite of love is not hate, but selfishness. This can translate into the statement that if the opposite of love is selfishness, that means love and unselfishness are the same. However, there is a problem with this statement.
The virtue of unselfishness “carries with it the suggestion not primarily of securing good things for others, but of going without them ourselves, as if our abstinence, not their happiness was the important point.”
As I have observed our society and the actions of others, including myself, I have seen a huge emphasis on the value of personal sacrifice, as though that is the pinnacle of a godly or virtuous life.
I don’t want to devalue the importance of sacrifice, however, I want to question the motives of those who place higher value on their own personal sacrifice than the well-being of others. This is not to say that an unselfish act won’t benefit another person. The pursuit of unselfishness means that the well-being of another person as a result of our sacrifice is a side effect and not the intended purpose. This is not the Christian virtue of love.
Christ’s sacrifice was indeed an act of unselfishness, however, it was an act of love first. The successful intent was the salvation of humankind, it was not a side effect on the road to another goal.
As a Christian with a desire to become more like Christ, the goal is not to abstain from as much worldly pleasures as possible and hope that a life of sacrifice will get us entry into heaven. The goal is to receive the good gifts of the Holy Spirit, which enable us to see others the way Christ sees them and to live a life of love, joy and peace.
In the book “The Voyage of the Dawn Treader”, a spoiled little boy named Eunice is turned into a creature that resembled very much his own character, a dragon. Of course, he is devastated, but over time, he finds uses for becoming a dragon.
Eunice begins to help people. The Dawn Treader is in need of repairs, so Eunice helps with the heavy lifting. Over the next few days, the crew members of the ship notice a change in character. Eunice has gone from a spoiled, whiney little brat, to a helpful dragon.
When the Dawn Treader is once again ready to put to sea, Eunice decided he didn’t want to be a burden to King Caspian and his crew so he slips away into the forest, with the intention of living on the island for the rest of his dragon life. However, Aslan, the Great Lion shows up and guides him to a lake, where Eunice is supposed to take a bath. But first, Eunice must remove his “clothes”.
“But I’m not wearing any clothes,” Eunice thinks to himself. What Aslan wants him to do is shed his outer dragon skin. Eunice does this, but afterwards the skin is still dry and scaly. So, he proceeds to shed another layer, and another. After a few attempts, the skin doesn’t get any better.
Aslan is the One who must shed the skin. Only the Great Lion can completely remove the dragon skin from the boy. So, with His sharp claws, Aslan claws deep into the dragon skin and tears it with great pain to Eunice until there is nothing left but a naked boy. Eunice points out that he is now without clothes. Aslan responds, “I will dress you”.
I have more to say about this story, but for now, let this sink in…
It’s not a question of God “sending” us to Hell. In each of us there is something growing up which will of itself be Hell unless it is nipped in the bud.
C.S. Lewis, God in the Dock
I get so tired of people talking about how God can’t be a God of love if he sends us to hell.
God has given us an option between Heaven and Hell, and if we continue to ignore the fact that we are sinful people, Hell will eventually take over and heaven will no longer be an option.
If we should not allow God’s hand to guide us, and continue to try on our own, He will attempt to show us what it is really like without His guidance by removing His hand completely.
God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world.
C.S. Lewis, The Problem of Pain
From Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
When you teach a child writing, you hold its hand while it forms the letters: that is, it forms the letters because you are forming them. We love and reason because God loves and reasons and holds our hand while we do it.
There can be no love, no compassion, no justice, no grace, but by the hand of God. We are in our most proud moments when we give ourselves credit for offering another what only God could have offered by putting His hand on ours.
Of course, a child will say “I did it Daddy!” when she has written her name with guidance by the father’s hand. However, let the father take away his hand, and she will soon stop saying “I did it!” and ask for her fathers help once more.
