Posted on 06/20/2005 4:38:37 AM PDT by HarleyD
”Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God" (Rom. 11:22). “
In the early part of this century liberalism took mainline Protestant churches by storm. It might be argued that the first half of the present century ushered in the most serious spiritual decline since the Protestant Reformation. Evangelicalism, which had dominated Protestant America since the days of the founding fathers, was virtually driven out of denominational schools and churches. Evangelicalism managed to survive and even thrive outside the denominations. But it never regained its influence in the mainline groups. Instead it has flourished chiefly in relatively small denominations and non-denominational churches. In a few decades, liberalism virtually destroyed the largest Protestant denominations in America and Europe.
One of the most popular spokesmen for liberal Christianity was Harry Emerson Fosdick, pastor of the Riverside Church in New York City. Fosdick, while remaining strongly committed to liberal theology, nevertheless acknowledged that the new theology was undermining the concept of a holy God. Contrasting his age with that of Jonathan Edwards, Fosdick wrote,
Fosdick was never so right. He correctly saw that liberalism had led to a warped and imbalanced concept of God. He could even see far enough ahead to realize that liberalism was taking society into a dangerous wasteland of amorality, where "man's sin, his greed, his selfishness, his rapacity roll up across the years an accumulating mass of consequence until at last in a mad collapse the whole earth crashes into ruin." 2
Despite all that, Fosdick ultimately would not acknowledge the literal reality of God's wrath toward impenitent sinners. To him, "the wrath of God" was nothing more than a metaphor for the natural consequences of wrongdoing. Writing in the wake of World War I, Fosdick suggested that "the moral order of the world has been dipping us in hell."3 His theology would not tolerate a personal God whose righteous anger burns against sin. Moreover, to Fosdick, the threat of actual hell fire was only a relic of a barbaric age. "Obviously, we do not believe in that kind of God any more."
Fosdick wrote those words almost eighty years ago. Sadly, what was true of liberalism then is all too true of evangelicalism today. We have lost the reality of God's wrath. We have disregarded His hatred for sin. The God most evangelicals now describe is all loving and not at all angry. We have forgotten that "It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God" (Heb. 10:31). We do not believe in that kind of God any more.
Ironically, this overemphasis on divine beneficence actually works against a sound understanding of God's love. It has given multitudes the disastrous impression that God is kindly but feeble, or aloof, or simply unconcerned about human wickedness. Is it any wonder that people with a such a concept of God defy His holiness, take His love for granted, and presume on His grace and mercy? Certainly no one would fear a deity like that.
Yet Scripture tells us repeatedly that fear of God is the very foundation of true wisdom (Job 28:28; Ps. 111:10; Prov. 1:7; 9:10; 15:33; Mic. 6:9). People often try to explain the sense of those verses away by saying that the "fear" called for is a devout sense of awe and reverence. Certainly the fear of God includes awe and reverence, but it does not exclude literal holy terror. "It is the Lord of hosts whom you should regard as holy. And He shall be your fear, and He shall be your dread" (Isa. 8:13).
We must recapture some of the holy terror that comes with a right understanding of God's righteous anger. We need to remember that God's wrath does burn against impenitent sinners (Ps. 38:1-3). That reality is the very thing that makes His love so wonderful. We must therefore proclaim these truths with the same sense of conviction and fervency we employ when we declare the love of God. It is only against the backdrop of divine wrath that the full significance of God's love can be truly understood. That is precisely the message of the cross of Jesus Christ. After all, it was on the cross that God's love and His wrath converged in all their majestic fullness.
Only those who see themselves as sinners in the hands of an angry God can fully appreciate the magnitude and wonder of His love. In this regard our generation is surely at a greater disadvantage than any previous age. We have been force-fed the doctrines of self-esteem for so long that most people don't really view themselves as sinners worthy of divine wrath. On top of that, religious liberalism, humanism, evangelical compromise, and ignorance of the Scriptures have all worked against a right understanding of who God is. Ironically, in an age that conceives of God as wholly loving, altogether devoid of wrath, most people are tragically ill-equipped to understand what God's love is all about!
The simple fact is that we cannot appreciate God's love until we have learned to fear Him. We cannot know His love apart from some knowledge of His wrath. We cannot study the kindness of God without also encountering His severity. And if the church of our generations does not regain a healthy balance soon, the rich biblical truth of divine love is likely to be obscured behind what is essentially a liberal, humanistic concept.
Notes
1. Harry Emerson Fosdick,Christianity and Progress (New York: Revell, 1922), 173-74 (emphasis added).
2. Ibid., 174.
3. Ibid (emphasis added).
Does that mean that wars that didn't include Christians, were immoral, but wars that do include Christians are moral?
How is the evildoer determined between 2 Christian countries that are at war?
Is it morally wrong to take an innocent human life as collateral damage, when bombing from 25000ft?
To Himself.
Do you believe in the God of the Old and New Testaments, stuart?
Who is your God?
LOL. Pass that info along if you get it. I might be relatively persuaded, too.
Where did I say I did not believe in logic?
As I have said repeatedly..I do trust God's word, it's just that what I hear from Him, is different than what you hear from Him.
These discussions always end up in circles, just as they have since man started having them...because there is no way for any of us to prove our faith while we are alive.
There is only one God.
jk,
stuart is spiritually dead and incapable of trusting God's Word to be his guide. Until and unless the Holy Spirit gives him life he will not know truth, nor receive God's blessing.
God will determine the evildoer
No
I differ with you in how the Holy Spirit interacts with someone. I do not wish to argue the point, but I will present my belief. The Holy Spirit works through the Word of God to bring about belief.
But "these discussions" wasn't what the original thread was about.
I think these discussions "end up in circles" because that's where you seem to prefer them to go.
You hesitate to articulate your "faith," while we're trying hard to figure out just what you believe (although that's becoming less and less interesing as the circles expand.)
Can the Holy Spirit fail in its mission?
I never said the Holy Spirit doesn't work in people's lives. I just disagree on how it works. I am not interested in debating this point at this time.
No disagreement here.
It seems to me, that you are saying...sometimes it's ok to take human life, and sometimes it's not. Is this correct?
I agree, I believe that stuart is anti-Christian rather than non-Christian and derives pleasure from christian FReepers assuming that he is a christian and falling into his circular arguments.
I'll ask the question again, because it's an easy one, IMO, and very specific.
Do you believe in the God of the Old and New Testaments?
Lots of people can mouth the words "There is only one God." But that singular diety can take the form of Zoroaster's "Ahura Mazda," or the Great Polar Bear in the Sky, or a tree, or some esoteric, amorphous "Oneness"...
On the FR Religion Forum, it's not too invasive a question to ask a posting member: Do you believe in the God of the Old and New Testaments?
Correct, but not in an arbitrary fashion as you believe.
That is why I will pray that he decides to read and study the Word of God.
Ping to #169, sorry.
Well, of course, when everyone agrees on a basic premise, they don't end up in circles, but, we don't agree.
Sometimes, as is obvious, threads go off on tangents. This is one of them.
If all these discussions end up in circles, then after a while, it would seem obvious, that that is just the way it is.
How have I hesitated to articulate my faith? I have said that I believe in God...that is the faith I have. I have told you many times, but you don't seem to be able to grasp it. What do you want me to say?
I mean #174, double sorry.
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