Thoughts on a Sermon 10 - The Cost of Freedom

(Written Sunday evening)

“Freedom is never free.”

It’s something we have all heard many times, but something we don’t necessarily think about often, especially in the context of our freedom as Christians. But it is an extremely important concept, which I was reminded of very strongly today. This evening’s sermon focused on this topic, particularly upon the freedom that Christ died to give us, and what that freedom means.

Many times, perhaps, we are tempted to reduce and oversimplify the true depth of what it was that Christ came to do for His people. He didn’t just come to live a pure life as the perfect example to us, nor did He come merely to expose the corruption of the religious leaders of the day and bring a message of peace and freedom and love for all men. These elements had their place in Christ’s ministry, of course, but first and foremost, He came to set His people free from their bondage to sin. We know the truth of this, of course, but we don’t think about it enough—nor do we think enough about the cost at which this freedom came. We need to be reminded of the reality over and over again: our freedom cost Jesus everything. From His coming to the earth as a man, enduring the trials and temptations of human existence (yet without sin), to His humiliation and physical anguish on the cross, suffering that knew no bounds, spiritual separation from the Father that caused the perfect Lamb to cry out in torment—this was the cost of our freedom from sin.

That reality must always be before us. We can never forget—we must never allow it to lose its astonishing impact—that this suffering of the spotless lamb of God was to grant us freedom from our sin. If we keep that truth always before us, how could we possibly ever sin? Does that ultimate sacrifice mean so little to us? When we see the reality of Christ’s suffering clearly, we will better understand how every single sin is equivalent to spitting in the face of the crucified Savior. Every sin that we commit says that we regard that sin more highly than the sacrifice of Christ.

When we sin, we are not holding Christ before us, observing the crown of thorns and the nails in the cross. Instead, we are esteeming that sin more highly than our suffering Savior. When we sin, we are in effect spitting in the face of the One who bought our freedom at such a horrific price. How can we sin when we truly remember the cost of our freedom? How can we spit in the face of the Savior who is full of nothing but love and mercy toward us? How can we in when we remember that our freedom from bondage was anything but free?

Books, books, and more books!

I bought another new book at work today. Something must be wrong with me! My to-read list grows ever longer, and I am still, as always, notoriously slow about taking books off my list, though I have no trouble whatsoever adding them on! Ah, for an unending supply of time in which to digest all these lovely books. . . In any case, the new one is The Making of America: The Substance and Meaning of the Constitution. It is full of detail and fascinating content, and I cannot wait to dive into it. I have had my eye on it at work for months now, every time I go into the book room, and I finally caved today and bought it. The temptation of being able to buy books at discount is too much for me sometimes. =D

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I did finish The Revolution earlier this week, though. One more off the list! It was terrific. In my opinion, it should be required reading for every American who cares about our country and its future. Barry Goldwater Jr. says that it is "the real truth about Liberty" and "take a wrecking ball to the political establishment". Throughout the book, Dr. Paul argues that the fundamental questions Americans need to be asking about government and society have become taboo; they are so far off the table that it's almost impossible to bring them up in political discussion in modern society. Despite politicians' endless promises of "change", we should know better. True change is not coming. As Dr. Paul puts it in the preface, "Real change would mean something like the opposite of [what politicians end up giving us]. It might even involve following our Constitution. And that's the one option Americans are never permitted to hear."

Instead of asking serious questions in the political arena, Dr. Paul argues, our mainstream media "focuses our attention on trivialities and phony debates as we march toward oblivion." The Revolution brings these serious questions to the forefront of discussion once again. Dr. Paul analyzes our modern world in light of the Constitution and the principles that shaped it. He recognizes the radical importance of such principles: "These ideas cannot be allowed to die, buried beneath the mind-numbing chorus of empty slogans and inanities that constitute official political discourse in America."

Through the next six chapters, Dr. Paul asks--and more importantly, answers!--fundamental questions about society and government. These chapters cover "the false choices of American politics, the foreign policy of the founding fathers, the constitution, economic freedom, civil liberties and personal freedom, and money: the forbidden issue in American politics."

Though not incredibly detailed (readers looking for exhaustive studies of the topics should look elsewhere), Dr. Paul's survey and overview is concise, clear, and extremely insightful. It is, at times, encouraging, depressing, and sometimes downright shocking in its honesty.

It is, in short, a must-read for anyone who cares about liberty and the future of America. It is a fascinating read, even for someone who has but little interest in politics. It is very near the top of my list of the most influential books I have read. I simply cannot recommend it enough.

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Now I am working my way through the rest of Postmodern Times. I cannot wait to review this one when I'm done. It is absolutely fantastic. I'm coming to the conclusion that I will read just about anything by Gene Veith. He is intellectual and yet very readable, full of depth and yet accessible. He is rapidly becoming one of my favorite authors.

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This post has become a ramble to a much greater extent than I intended it to be. My days of summer are rapidly dwindling, however, and I am attempting to take advantage of the time and do as much reading as I possibly can before I am hit with textbook syndrome again.

The rest of my evening will probably consist of several chapters of Postmodern Times, looking through The Making of America, and, if I don't fall asleep first, a few dozen pages of Anna Karenina.

What is your favorite way to spend a summer evening? This is certainly one of mine. =)

"The Scarlet Pimpernel" by Baroness Orczy

It is 1792, and the reign of terror has engulfed the beautiful city of Paris in a sea of blood. Madame la Guillotine has claimed hundreds upon hundreds of lives, and day by day more of Paris’s leading citizens are being thrown into the jaws of death—each of them guilty of no crime but being aristocrats, the bitterest enemy of the new social order. But now there seems to be a small ray of hope for the innocent French families accused of crimes they did not commit. Many aristos are daily being snatched away from Madame la Guillotine, and the stories grow stronger and more fantastic—stories of a small band of Englishmen, willing to risk their lives to rescue their fellow men from an untimely death, and of their leader, the mysterious and enigmatic man known as... the Scarlet Pimpernel.

It is against this backdrop that Emma Magdalena Rosalia Maria Josefa Barbara Orczy narrates what has been called “one of the most enthralling novels of historical adventure ever written.” Within the pages of The Scarlet Pimpernel, we meet the elusive Pimpernel himself, the brilliant man who has pledged himself to rescuing innocent human beings from unjust condemnation; his cunning and merciless arch-enemy, the Frenchman Chauvelin, who has in his turn pledged himself to hunting down once and for all the man who keeps meddling in the affairs of the Revolution; members of the loyal band of nineteen Englishmen who are willing to risk all for the sake of their brave and bold leader; and above all, Lady Marguerite Blakeney, the “cleverest woman in Europe” and also perhaps the most beautiful, a former actress who led the French stage and who now finds herself caught in a terrifying dilemma that will test all her loyalties and her love.

The Scarlet Pimpernel is perhaps the grandest novel of the French Revolution, with a vivid story that captures both the imagination and the heart. Baroness Orczy is a supremely talented writer, bringing her tale to life with superb wit and passion. On the surface, it is a classic tale of adventure, with all the right elements of conflict, suspense, and drama. At its heart, though, The Scarlet Pimpernel. is also one of the most captivating and beautifully compelling love stories ever written. This is a tale that must not be missed!

Most highly recommended.

The Joy of Thy Salvation: Thoughts on Psalm 51

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence, and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me by Your generous Spirit. Then I will teach transgressors Your ways, and sinners shall be converted to You.” - Psalm 51:10-13

I once heard a distinction made about this passage, referring specifically to the phrase “restore to me the joy of Your salvation.” It is easy to become spiritually discouraged at times, to feel alienated from the Lord, to struggle with Christian duties, and above all, to lose the joy of being a Christian. We look back on times of joy and great spiritual blessings, and it is easy to become despondent during times when we find ourselves so far from that state. But perhaps we look in the wrong place for that joy to return.

The distinction I heard—I believe it was through a story our pastor once told—was of a man despairing at how he had lost the joy of his salvation, until a friend reminded him that it was not the joy of his salvation, but the joy of Christ’s salvation. David does not beg the Lord to “restore to me the joy of my salvation” but to “restore to me the joy of THY salvation.” When we look to ourselves—my experience of salvation, my joy in the Lord, my spiritual encouragement—it is, of course, incredibly easy to become discouraged. Why? Because our hearts are sinful! This is why we are directed to look to Christ, and not to ourselves.

The joy of my salvation will never be evident unless I see it as the joy of His salvation. My spiritual zeal and encouragement does not come from looking into my own heart, but from looking to the cross and to Christ, at whose feet my burden fell.

Lord, never restore to me the joy of MY salvation, but always restore to me the joy of THY salvation!

Contentment vs. Complacency

Back in January, our pastor gave his usual pastoral message at our annual congregational meeting, and something he said in that message really resonated and has “stuck” with me ever since. It is a thought that can sometimes be encouraging and can sometimes be overwhelmingly convicting: the idea of contentment versus complacency. Pastor talked about how, as Christians, we are commanded to be content, but that command should never be used as a license for complacency.

This idea could, of course, be applied in a plethora of ways. A man should not envy his neighbor’s possessions, but instead be content with what God has given him; however, that doesn’t mean that he should become complacent about his job and not care whether or not he is working hard to make his situation better for himself and his family. A student should not be jealous of a fellow classmate’s higher grade, but that doesn’t mean he should become complacent and not care whether he is doing good work or not because, after all, that other student is going to score higher than him anyway. A music student should not give up in despair if she doesn’t have the talent of a concert pianist, but nor should she become complacent and fail to exercise the gifts that God has given to her, for His glory.

Being content has to do with being satisfied and rejoicing in what one does have, while refusing to dwell on what one doesn’t have; being complacent, on the other hand, has to do with thinking that one is “good as is” and not having the willingness to work hard in order to grow and mature.

This issue goes hand in hand with another concept that I hold very near and dear: namely, that our lives are to be an experience of constant learning in nearly every aspect, whether it is formal education or not. Many people—especially, I will freely admit, young people of my own generation—seem to think that education happens during the K-12 and college years, but that once a person graduates with a diploma, whatever that diploma might be, he or she is done learning. Such young people cannot wait to “get through school,” and there seems to be some sort of misconception among my generation that “real life” cannot possibly begin until after graduation. The reality, however, is that a person’s whole life should consist of learning, to one degree or another. When formal education is over, a student should not think, “Oh good, that’s over—now I can get on with my life and forget about school.” While this is true to a certain extent, I believe that we should never abandon learning; we should continue to seek knowledge through various means, learning and growing and educating ourselves in every way we can throughout the balance of our lives. Contentment with one’s formal education (which is a good thing, by the way) should not be used as an excuse for complacency with regard to learning for the rest of our lives.

Of course, there are even more profound spiritual applications to this as well. Yes, we are to be content and rejoice wherever God has placed us, but that does not give us a license to become complacent and start acting as if we have nothing left to learn. I believe that this is a particularly great danger in the Reformed community, almost to a greater extent than anywhere else. We often tend to think that we “know our stuff” so well, and that we don’t really need to try to learn anything more. We assure ourselves of how we know so much more than the vast majority of the rest of the Christian community, so why should we bother to keep learning more when we already have a level of spiritual maturity that’s so much higher than the average American Christian?

What an incredibly dangerous idea this is! How easy it would be to move from this position to arrogance, haughtiness, and selfish favoritism! Instead of such hypocritical complacency, we need to practice humility, always recognizing how much we still have to learn and not becoming apathetic through the argument that we “know enough.” Our Christian lives should be a journey of constant learning and maturing, and we should never use a false “contentment” as a shield behind which to hide and avoid spiritual growth. As Christians, we are called to be sanctified, to become more like Christ each day, and that means constantly growing and never becoming complacent. We should have a hunger for the Word and for spiritual things that is never satisfied; we should never be “content” with where we are, but always push ourselves and seek to grow and learn more throughout the entirety of our spiritual lives.

Contentment, when it is godly and in the proper context, is a blessing and a gift from God. But we must never let that contentment become an excuse for laziness and a reason to grow stagnant in our growth, whether it is spiritual or otherwise.

Do It With Your Might

Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might.
- Ecclesiastes 9:10

‘Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do’ refers to works that are possible. There are many things which our heart finds to do which we never shall do. It is well it is in our heart; but if we would be eminently useful, we must not be content with forming schemes in our heart, and talking of them; we must practically carry out ‘whatsoever our hand finds to do.’ One good deed is of more worth than a thousand brilliant theories. Let us not wait for large opportunities, or for a different kind of work, but do just the things we ‘find to do’ day by day. We have no other time in which to live. The past is gone; the future has not arrived; we never shall have any time but time present.

Then do not wait until your experience has ripened into maturity before you attempt to serve God. Endeavor now to bring forth fruit. Serve God now, but be careful as to the way in which you perform what you find to do – ‘do it with thy might.’ Do it promptly; do not fritter away your life in thinking of what you intend to do tomorrow as if that could recompense for the idleness of today. No man ever served God by doing things tomorrow. If we honor Christ and are blessed, it is by the things which we do today. Whatever you do for Christ, throw your whole soul into it. Do not give Christ a little slurred labor, done as a matter of course now and then; but when you do serve Him, do it with heart, and soul, and strength.

But where is the might of a Christian? It is not in himself, for he is perfect weakness. His might lies in the Lord of Hosts. Then let us seek His help; let us proceed with prayer and faith, and when we have done what our ‘hand findeth to do,’ let us wait upon the Lord for His blessing. What we do thus will be well done, and will not fail in its effect.

~ From Spurgeon’s morning reading for November 26

Pemberly Reading Room - first reading!

I have finally updated the Pemberly Reading Room blog, and sent out an email with information about getting started and our first reading. I believe I included everyone who expressed interest, but if for some reason, I've left anyone out, please let me know! I tried to get y'all on the list, but I can't vouch for my brain these days. . .

You all should be able to log on to the blog and post entries now. Please let me know if anything is not working properly. I will try to respond to emails as promptly as possible.

Looking forward to seeing you all in the reading room!

Six years ago today. . .

May we never forget.

Pemberly Reading Room - update

Just an update, and an apology to those of you who have been eager to get started with The Pemberly Reading Room. My life has been extremely crazy lately; I just started a new job this week (which is excessively exciting, but is taking some getting used to as far as scheduling goes), I’m getting ready for college classes to begin at the end of the month (woo!), trying to figure out how I’m going to continue with my tutoring job, and as of this week, getting ready to leave for vacation on Saturday! Needless to say, I have not been able to work on getting the blog set up at all, and unfortunately, I probably won’t have things together until after I get back from vacation in about two weeks. I must beg your indulgence and ask that you be patient with me these next couple of weeks as I attempt to figure out my new life.

My sis is helping me with the website layout and design, so hopefully we’ll be able to get that set up and ready to go very shortly after we get back from vacation. Those of you who have seen Marissa’s work before know that she’s extremely talented, and I’m certain she’s going to give us a beautiful layout.

I did decide which book we’re going to start with, so if you all want to order/pull off the bookshelf/dust off your copy of Pride and Prejudice, that would be great! I decided that it would be best to begin with one of the better-known titles and then progress to the more obscure. I love all of the books so much, it was tough to choose a “favorite” to start with, but I think this will work great.

Also, I don’t know how many of you would be interested, but I thought it would be really fun for us to go ahead and watch the movie adaptations of each book (on our own time) after we finish reading each one, and then we could have some discussions about the movie versus the book and how the two compare. This can give some really excellent insight into the book, as you compare a slightly different take on the story and certain aspects begin to stand out. In many cases (Pride and Prejudice, Emma, Persuasion), there is more than one adaptation, so we might even get to watch a couple different versions. I know some of them aren’t the best (for example, the new Keira Knightley version of Pride and Prejudice is hardly worth watching, in my own humble opinion…), so I’ll try to choose the versions that are the most faithful to the book as we go along.

So there are a few more things to be thinking about in the upcoming weeks. As I said, I’m hoping we’ll be set up and ready to go shortly after I’m back home again—I’ll send out an email just as soon as the blog(s) is(are) up and running.

Hope you all are enjoying these beautiful weeks of summer!

The Pemberly Reading Room

I’m posting this on all three of my blogs, so hopefully it will be seen by as many ladies as possible! *grin*

After some conversations lately with a dear friend about how lovely it would be to read through Jane Austen’s novels together and have informal discussions as we do so, I have been inspired with an idea: The Pemberly Reading Room! (Credit to my dear sister for the name.) Here are my general ramblings so far.

I will set up a new blog—probably both a Xanga account and a Blogger account, since I know some people have quite distinct preferences—dedicated to the group. Members will have the login information, so each member will have the ability to post to the blog. We will read through each of Jane Austen’s six major novels (Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, Mansfield Park, Emma, Persuasion, and Northanger Abbey) at a reasonably sedate pace; I’m estimating it would probably be two to five chapters per week, depending on how busy we are. As we read, we will have informal discussions via the blog. If you come across a favorite quote, post it and share. If you have a question, post it so others can (hopefully!) answer. If you have a comment on a particularly brilliant section of prose, post it. Et cetera, et cetera. In this way, we would be able to have informal but hopefully informative discussions of the books as we read through them together.

Now. I will need to know that I’m going to have enough active members to justify setting up the blog. I’m not saying that you have to agree to post once a day in order to join or any such nonsense, but I do need to know that I will have at least a core group of ladies who will be reasonably consistent in contributing to the discussions. It would be no fun if I was the only one posting!

I will also need to know that members are serious enough to use proper mechanics when they post. Proper mechanics means a proper use of spelling, grammar, punctuation, et cetera. Call it a pet peeve, but I can’t abide people who cannot be bothered to proofread their own writing! I will be a “stickler” about this one, so beware.

All of that said, however, I would love to see some of you ladies out there join. I’m not setting any restrictions/qualifications besides these three: 1) Be willing to keep up with the reading schedule (as I said, probably two to five chapters each week), 2) Be committed to contributing to blog discussions, and 3) Be serious enough to write as Jane Austen would have—carefully!

Do I have any takers? Please leave me a comment/Xanga message/email/IM if you’re interested. And please do let me know if you have any questions or suggestions. I hope to hear from some of you soon!