Comments on: Prettying up people who are far from life

By: Tommy F.

Tommy F. — Sat, 11 Apr 2009 03:18:41 +0000

Oh JDuncan! You’ve gone and done it again. You keep making important corrections to NS and its siblings and cousins. This time you’ve ruined the appeal of this sort of language.

I think the “far from God” language is an incorrect step further down the path from the biblical language about sheep or coins being “lost.” Whereas the biblical concept is so … condemning, the newer language is appealing. Here’s why: It’s much better (so the NS-type churches think) to tell people that they are far from God, and all that needs correcting is that they must inch closer, and closer, until they are close enough (when is that point reached, btw?). On the other hand “lost” has a very different connotation. It seems to imply that they are clueless, and can’t find the way (much like a sheep that’s gone astray).

Being far from something is simply corrected by distance (far v. close), not orientation. Being “lost” is being disoriented, and helpless. So, while being lost and being far from God sound similar, they are implying very different concepts.
What’s the point? Words, as JDuncan keeps telling all of us, matter.

By: James Duncan

James Duncan — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 12:06:15 +0000

I was watching a biography of C.S. Lewis last night and noted how his testimony is a good example of God's irresistible grace. He became an atheist as a boy after his mother died and continued in his disbelief through his studies at Oxford. His friend, J. R. R. Tolkien, talked to him about God, but Lewis steadfastly refused to let go of his atheistic faith, even though he sensed it was crumbling. One night in his room he knew that God had drawn Lewis to himself and he gave in to grace. He said he was probably the saddest new convert in all of England that night. God had defeated him. He had other crises of his faith in his life, notably after his wife died, but God's grace never let him go. I pray that your friends will be defeated just as Lewis was.

By: Micah

Micah — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 06:16:50 +0000

Interesting. I haven’t really seen a post of this nature from you yet I don’t believe. This spoke to me on a more spiritual level than appealing on an argumentative one. The point that “When Jesus speaks to you, you change” is an interesting one in my life at this point. I have a couple of very close friends who have recently rejected the faith and consequently put our community in a bit of an uproar. It’s good to keep in mind in situations like these that God is sovereign and “If Christ does mercifully decide to save us, there’s nothing we can do to resist him.”

Anyways, that’s my reflection for the night, guess I’ll go back to working on my 315 paper now.