Brotherly Wisdom: Lewis on Your Reading List

"It is a good rule, after reading a new book, never to allow yourself another new one till you have read an old one in between."
-C.S. Lewis in his introduction to St. Athanasius' De Incarnatione Verbi Dei

Last year I decided to put into practice the brotherly wisdom shared by Dr. Lewis. This advice works well for me, since I treat books much like a multi-course meal. I cannot move on to one course until I've completely finished the previous one. (There was one exception to this rule in 2010...sorry, Sam.) My experience in doing this was wonderful, and I highly recommend it to everyone. Four suggestions I would make coming out of 2010:
1. Read the Bible cover-to-cover in a relatively short period of time. I read it during Lent (40 days, plus Sundays), which amounted to 22 pages/day in my NIV thinline Bible. There are tons of reading plans out there, Chronological, Biographical, Topical, etc., but cover-to-cover, or you might say Canonical, can't be beat. I believe there is a reason the Bible is bound the way it is.
2. Use free resources for the older books. Most older books are in the public domain, which means the text itself is free. As a result websites like ccel.org can offer them free of charge.
3. Utilize your commute. Listening to books can be a beneficial way to pass the time in the car or at the gym, and can actually make the time pass more quickly. Christianaudio.com offers a free download of a professionally produced audiobook every month. Librivox.org has a huge audio library of public domain literature (read by amateurs) for free.
4. Broaden your definition of "old." I once heard a friend refer to the Puritan Era (400 years ago) as "the Early Church." This would be the equivalent of a 70 year old man referring to his late 50's as his childhood. Folks, our family tree is a lot taller than we think, and honestly, things are a lot flimsier out on the limbs. The branches are much stronger closer to the trunk, and we do well to spend some time there.

Below are the books I read in 2010, in order (I think):
Origen, On First Principles (I think I started this one in 2009)
Hans Georg Gadamer, Truth and Method
The Holy Spirit, The Bible
Irenaeus of Lyons, Against Heresies
J.I. Packer, Knowing God (Summer Staff book)
Joshua Harris, Dug Down Deep (TAG Team book)
C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity (Audiobook)
Kevin DeYoung, Just Do Something
Jaroslav Pelikan, The Emergence of the Catholic Tradition (100-600)
Daniel Treier, Introducing Theological Interpretation of Scripture
Augustine of Hippo, On Christian Doctrine (Audiobook)
Robert Letham, The Holy Trinity
John Calvin, Of Prayer and the Christian Life (Audiobook)
Justin Martyr, First Apology
Justin Martyr, Second Apology

*It may appear that I failed to keep Lewis' standard, but if you consider that the work by Origen actually consists of four books, and the work of Irenaeus five, I actually came out a little heavy on the old book side.

What did you read this year? What recommendations do you have for 2011?

Brotherly Wisdom

"I've often reflected on the rather obvious thought that when his disciples were about to have the world collapse in on them, our Lord spent so much time in the Upper Room speaking to them about the mystery of the Trinity. If anything could underline the necessity of Trinitarianism for practical Christianity, that must surely be it!"
-Sinclair Ferguson, in a person email to Robert Letham (cited in The Holy Trinity, p. 375)

Two things scare us away from considering the Trinity as a practical truth of the Bible:
1. Its status as a "mystery." We think a doctrine's being mysterious excludes it from our contemplation and adoration. (Note how many prayers of our could easily be prayed by Jesus Only Pentacostals, and how many of our hymns and praise songs could be sung to a unitarian god) Add to this the fact that the cross is a mystery, and we must conclude that a. we've overestimated our ability to comprehend the cross or b. mysteries can be and, in fact, do belong at the heart of a vibrant faith in an ineffable God.
2. A cultural separation between academic and devotional knowledge. (Historians, I know, our culture didn't create this, Scholasticism and then the Enlightenment did, but it thrives in our atheological climate.) Somewhere, someone started the ridiculous notion that there are some truths of the Bible that belong exclusively to seminary professors and academics. Nevermind the fact that they will nurture your faith, enrich your prayers, and vivify your affections for a God who so loved the world that He gave His Son so believers in Him could have His Spirit, the Giver of Life...you can't have those truths, they belong in the academy, and if they escape and creep their way into sermons, devotional materials, or favorite evangelistic Bible verses, those materials will become stale and cold.
I suggest an alternative. Worship, pray to, and know the God of the Bible. The God(the Father) in whose Light(the Spirit) we see Light(the Son). Ps. 36:9

Brotherly Wisdom: Niebuhr on the Source of American Propserity

"From the [Puritans' days] to this it has remained one of the most difficult achievements for our nation to recognize the fortuitous and the providential element in our good fortune. If either moral pride or the spirit of rationalism tried to draw every element in an historic situation into rational coherence, and persuades us to draw a direct continuity between our good fortune and our virtue and skill, we will inevitably claim more for our contribution to our prosperity than the facts warrant." Reinold Niebuhr, The Irony of American History, p. 48.

I've often been impressed with the Christian double talk that refers to their material wealth as their "being blessed," but clings tightly to those resources as if they belonged to them...as if they earned them. Allow me illustrate. It's no mystery that my family lives on support from generous donors. What would my supporters think if I bought a Corvette? Whose money am I spending on that Corvette? Would it be more appropriate for one of my supporters to buy a Corvette? Why? Whose money are they spending?

Brotherly Wisdom

"The measure of church effectiveness has to be different than 'Do people like it?' and 'Are more people coming?' Radically different."
-Mike Holmes

Mike Holmes is neither the CNN anchor nor (as you might expect from this blog) the NT and patristics scholar from Bethel. He is my former ministry leader and mentor. I love this statement because too often "effectiveness" is evaluated on these bases, however, the question is begged, "What is the measure of church effectiveness?" And yet the language of effectiveness itself, I think, betrays a cultural bent. The church is seldom evaluated on the basis of what it is. Rather, the starting point always seems to be what it does (or should do). A lot of ink has been spilled as of late over the "purpose" of the church. Very little on the nature of the church. Is this valid?

Brotherly Wisdom

"...My peers and I were among the first ones to experience grade inflation, where we got A's for excavating our feelings and "doing our best" at calculus. We were among the first to be programmed for self-esteem, as we learned that having a pulse made us wonderfully special. For as long as we can remember, we've been destined for superstardom. Some of us have been prepped for elite schooling since before we could use the potty, and we've been on the traveling soccer teams before we knew not to touch the ball with our hands. We've been stuffed full of praise for mediocrity and had our foibles diagnosed away with hyphenated jargon and pop psychology.
It's no wonder we expect people to affirm us for everything, criticize us for nothing, and pay us for anything we want to do." -Kevin DeYoung, Just Do Something: A Liberating Approach to Finding God's Will

DeYoung nails it. If you haven't read this book, you should. In the age of the adultolescent DeYoung's advice is sage, and his voice should be heard amidst and above the pseudo-spiritual ramblings of some/many popular Christian authors.

Brotherly Wisdom

"All performance is interpretation. All interpretation is highlighting." - Hans-Georg Gadamer Truth and Method p. 401

I vividly remember the class. The course was entitled "Issues in Theological Method." Dr. Kreider showed us this video:

[Scrapped it because I couldn't make it stop auto-playing...figure both of my readers have already seen it anyway. Otherwise, Youtube it: "NIN-Hurt"]

then he showed us this video:




He then leaned back in his chair slowly stroking his goatee and asked, "Was that the same song?" Silence ensued. You could tell by the smirk he was hiding behind his bearded grimace that there was a right answer and that he fully expected us to get it wrong. I decided whatever the first person said, I'd say the opposite. Don't remember what the right answer was, but I know what Gadamer would say. He'd say "Es ist das gleiche Lied." Which is German for "It's the same song." (Thank you, Babelfish) But he would go on (in German) to show how this is a perfect example of how each performance is another interpretation. Granted, Trent Resnor's interpretation at the Town Theatre in Kansas City may be very similar to his interpretation at the Paramount in Cedar Rapids, but they are different. (This was never more apparent than when James Taylor sang "Fire and Rain" on the 9/11 memorial special.) So, now allow me to sit back and stroke my baby's bottom chin and ask: What did Johnny highlight? What did Resnor highlight?

Brotherly Wisdom

"In both legal and theological hermeneutics there is an essential tension between the fixed text on the one hand and, on the other the sense arrived at by applying it at the concrete moment of interpretation, either in judgment or in preaching. A law does not exist in order to be understood historically, but to be concretized in its legal validity by being interpreted. Similarly, the gospel does not exist to be understood as a merely historical document, but to be taken in such a way that it exercises its saving effect." Hans-Georg Gadamer, Truth and Method, p. 307

Gadamer is reminiscing about a time when legal and theological hermeneutics were treated together. The benefit was that a text was not said to be "interpreted" until it had been applied to the readers current situation. This doesn't fit a culture where the pastor and the biblical scholar are two different people who got different degrees from different schools, or--at best--pursued two very different majors.

It's sad to say that our pastors have a lot to learn from our lawyers.

Brotherly Wisdom

"History does not belong to us, we belong to it." -Hans-Georg Gadamer in Truth and Method

Gadamer is speaking against an attitude toward history that sees it as an external object of research similar to scientific data. He suggests that only as a participant in history are we able to understand history. Imagine the implications this has for a view of Scripture. What if we forget an approach to Scripture that says, "read it like any other book" or "collect the facts, find out their meanings, and determine their significance," and instead view ourselves as living participants in the story itself?

Brotherly Wisdom

"I guess that's what bothered me so much about the 'are they brothers?' (spoken of two adopted sons) question. There was almost a note of implied pity--as though, if they were biologically brothers, well, at least they'd have each other. The query seemed to be asking, 'Is this a real family or just a legal fiction?' The question seemed to render them orphans again...
Our adoption is about more than just belonging. Our adoption is about the day when the graves of this planet will be emptied, when the great assembly of Christ's church will be gathered before the Judgment Seat. On that day, the accusing principalities and powers will probably look once more at us--former murderers and fornicators and idolaters, formerly uncircumcised in flesh or in heart--and they may ask one more time,'So are they brothers?' The hope of adopted children like my sons--and like (you and) me--is that the voice that once thundered over the Jordan will respond, one last time, 'They are now.'"
-Russell D. Moore 'Adopted for Life' pp. 26 and 57

Brotherly Wisdom

"The man who seeks to occupy himself with dogmatics and deliberately puts himself outside the Church would have to reckon with the fact that for him the object of dogmatics would be alien, and should not be surprised if after the first steps he could not find his bearings, or even did damage. Even in dogmatics familiarity with the subject must be there, and this really means familiarity with the life of the Church." -Karl Barth Dogmatics in Outline p. 10.

Theology as a (strictly) academic exercise is a contradiction. One cannot seek to know God and not be in relationship to His Son. This does not mean that theology cannot be done in academic contexts or to the greatest degree of erudition. It does mean that those in such contexts must always have in mind how their task of learning will be useful for the building up of the Body of Christ. They must pray with one of my favorite professors, "Lord be helpful to us, that we may be helpful to the Church."

Brotherly Wisdom

"Most people seem to assume it's God's job to love them. Of course God loves us. What else does he have to do? He is weak, small, and maybe even a little nerdy. He needs us. He pines for us. And if we pay him any attention--go to church, do a good deed, recycle, or maybe meditate while listening to soothing music--then we've done him a really big favor.
The love of God is wonderful news only when we understand his transcendence--when we tremble at his holiness, when we're awed by his perfection and power." -Joshua Harris Dug Deep Down p. 46.

Brotherly Wisdom

"The acute sense of the inadequacy of words explains why Augustine at the beginning of the Confessions experiences difficulty in finding any way of addressing God intelligibly, or speaking about God correctly. The answer to the question he finds in the reception of Scripture in the Christian community. The Bible consists of words, human indeed but for the believing community a gift of God so that within the sign there is also the divine reality..." --Henry Chadwick, "Introduction" to The Confessions p. 22.

The believing community receives the Word of God as a gift. A gift. A treasure. In it they find everything necessary for life and godliness. God has spoken and it is sufficient. It pains me to see so many today claiming to be part of this same believing community who are apparently dissatisfied with the Word of God. To say that God has spoken seems so "limiting." They want to say He speaks to them internally and privately. Now, that definitely sounds more exciting, more romantic. But think for a second about what they are saying about God's Word. (Without putting words in their mouths) I hear them saying, "Sure the Bible is useful for teaching, reproof, training in righteousness, etc, but I need more." It seems to me that Paul's concern in the context of that great passage on Holy Scripture is exactly our need for more. He warns "evil men and imposters will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. But as for you, continue in what you have learned and been convinced of. Because you know those from whom you learned it." (2 Tim 3:13-14) The main difference between Paul's opponents and what he is asking his readers (us) to be is continuance in what has been received. This is why he assures us in vs 16 that the Scriptures are sufficient. They are enough. Eat them. Listen to them. Dwell on them day and night. In the words of Ron Heine, "Inhabit them."

Brotherly Wisdom

"Jonathan Edwards, as a defender of the Great Awakening, always insisted that a living spirituality was the one indispensible thing. Yet Edwards also realized how vital it was to struggle toward distinctly Christian views of the world. To him there was no antithesis between heartfelt devotion and the most recondite labors of the mind." -Mark Noll Scandal of the Evangelical Mind p. 77.

You might ask which Brother's Wisdom is this, Jonathan Edwards' or Mark Noll's? History, as little as we like to admit, is always biased. Noll is not offering us an objective account of the demeanor of a Christian figure. He is holding Edwards up as an example of the Evangelical ideal. He even tells us in this quote those specific qualities that make him so venerable. Edwards becomes a vehicle for Noll to communicate the need for Evangelicalism to recapture the vision for critically thinking coupled with hearty devotion.

Brotherly Wisdom

"Sometimes we say and do the silliest things, but one of the silliest things we could possibly imagine, is that somehow within us naturally there dwells, apart from grace, the possibility of being authentically and truly pious." -D. Jeffrey Bingham, The Possibility of Piety (Sermon delivered at Redeemer Church)

Brotherly Wisdom

Everywhere I go I see You
--Rich Mullins, I See You

Brotherly Wisdom

"Once again hear Jesus' words in John 14:13: 'Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.' Suppose you are totally paralyzed and can do nothing for yourself but talk. And suppose a strong and reliable friend promised to live with you and do whatever you needed done. How could you glorify your friend if a stranger came to see you? Would you glorify his generosity and strength by trying to get out of bed and carry him? No! You would say, 'Friend, please lift me up...please put my glasse on for me.' And so your visitor would learn from your requests that you are helpless and that your friend is strong and kind." -John Piper Desiring God p. 160

A professor in seminary defined prayer as "a symbol of complete dependence on God." I think this is a very helpful explanation of why a sovereign God--who's desires for us are clearly better than our desires for ourselves--whould instruct us to pray...so that we would learn and teach that we are helpless and our Father in heaven is strong and kind.

Brotherly Wisdom

"The heart is also deceitful. It excuses, rationalizes, and justifies our actions. It blinds us to entire areas of sin in our lives. It causes us to deal with sin using only halfway measures, or to think that mental assent to the Word of God is the same as obedience." -Jerry Bridges The Pursuit of Holiness p. 64

So if my heart really is "deceitful above all things and beyond cure" (Jer 17:9), wouldn't it be just like it to pretend to be the Spirit talking to me?

Brotherly Wisdom

"What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us...For this reason the gravest question before the church is always God Himself, and the most portentous fact about any man is not what he at any given time may say or do, but what he in his heart conceives God to be like...Before the Christian church goes into eclipse anywhere there must first be a corrupting of her simple basic theology. She simply gets a wrong answer to the question, "What is God like?" and goes on from there." -A.W.Tozer The Knowledge of the Holy pp. 9-12

Or as Dr. Bingham would paraphrase, "The most important thought you think is the thought you think about God, because it effects every other thought that you think and everything that you do."

Brotherly Wisdom

"A new book is still on its trial and the amateur is not in a position to judge it. It has to be tested against the great body of Christian thought down the ages, and all its hidden implications (often unsuspected by the author himself) have to be brought to light...The only safety is to have a standard of plain, central Christianity ('mere Christianity' as Baxter calls it) which puts the controversies of the moment in their proper perspective. Such a standard can only be acquired from the old books. It is a good rule, after reading a new book, never to allow yourself another new one till you have read an old one in between." -C.S. Lewis Introduction to On the Incarnation by St Athanasius of Alexandria

Notice I have logged Lewis' quotes, not under "Fatherly Advice," but "Brotherly Wisdom." We might be tempted in our love affair with the new, to call Lewis' books "old books." However, what Lewis means by old books is not 20 year old books, but 2000 year old books. This quote comes from an introduction to a "book" written in the 4th Century AD.

Brotherly Wisdom

"For my own part I tend to find the doctrinal books often more helpful in devotion than the devotional books, and I rather suspect that the same experience may await many others. I believe that many who find that 'nothing happens' when they sit down, or kneel down, to a book of devotion, would find that the heart sings unbidden while they are working their way through a tough bit of theology with a pipe in their teeth and a pencil in their hand." -C.S. Lewis Introduction to On the Incarnation by Athanasius of Alexandria