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In theological terms, God is archetypal and man is ectypal.
That is, God is the self-existent one and man is derivative of Him; man owes his entire being to God. Man is dependent upon God for his existence and cannot exist apart from God.
When man is struggling with issues of identity – with wanting to feel comfortable in his own skin – it does him no good to solely examine himself. In order to fully know himself and fully understand himself, man must seek God and endeavor to know Him.
John Calvin was very wise when he wrote in the opening pages of his Institutes:
“Nearly all the wisdom we possess, that is to say, true and sound wisdom, consists of two parts: the knowledge of God and of ourselves…In the first place, no one can look upon himself without immediately turning his thoughts to the contemplation of God, in whom he, “lives and moves,” [Acts 17:28].”
And again a little bit later on:
“Moreover, although our mind cannot apprehend God without rendering some honor to Him, it will not suffice simply to hold that there is One whom all out to honor and adore, unless we are also persuaded that He is the fountain of every good, and that we must seek nothing elsewhere than in Him.”
Not only must we recognize that apart from knowledge of God will we never truly know ourselves, but also that a true knowledge of God consists of worship, reverence, awe, and humility.
To know God will cause us to worship God, and to worship God will allow us to see His magnificence, and accordingly our place in His plan and His kingdom.
“Our knowledge should serve first to teach us fear and reverence; secondly, with it as our guide and teacher, we should learn to seek ever good from Him…you cannot behold Him clearly unless you acknowledge Him to be the fountainhead and source of every good.”
Do not feel insecure, inadequate, or anxious. Know God has created you – as you – specifically.
Turn to Him, seek Him, and worship Him.
“You will seek me and find me when you search for me with all your heart”
- Jeremiah 29:13
“God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth”
- John 4: 24
Only when you lose sight of yourself in all that God is, will you truly find yourself.
Pilgrimage.
A tried and true ancient practice steeped in asceticism, mysticism, and spirituality.
The Emergent church movement has seen a re-introduction of ancient church practices, thereby making candles, incense, and liturgy cool again.
Along with this, apparently, has come an interest in ancient church practices. Accordingly, Thomas Nelson has published a line of books on these practices, and recently I was afforded the opportunity to review the latest installment, The Sacred Journey By Charles Foster, through the Thomas Nelson Blogger Review Program.
Image Courtesy of Booksneeze.com
I have nothing against spirituality – so long as it is a scripturally-informed spirituality that is ultimately redemptive in nature; that is, so long as it points to Jesus Christ and a more intimate walk with Him.
My fear regarding this newfound avid desire for “ancient practices” is that spirituality and mysticism will be vague, nondescript, and detrimental rather than beneficial.
Charles Foster intertwines faith traditions, affording the reader an opportunity to learn and grow from the offerings of other religions. I have no issue with this practice, and indeed value the chance to learn from others.
However, Foster presents his work in an ecumenical spirit that makes one uncomfortable. In his talk of the “Yahweh-man who wanders,” one sees more an affirmation of the postmodern Gospel that Christ came to make us whole rather than holy. And such an affirmation makes me nervous.
I think journey and pilgrimage are wonderful things, and can be magnificent times of introspection, discovery, and worship. Further, I think all such journeys will lead the wanderer ultimately to Christ (‘You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart – Jeremiah 29:13). And I see no need to set boundaries against pilgrimage as Foster rightly indicates the Protestant traditions have a tendency to do.
However, Foster appears biased, believing so much in the value of journey and pilgrimage that he decries the settled life. My fear is that to do so assumes God to be small, assumes that God is limited by the settled life and cannot work in the heart. Yes, certain things may be learned through the practice of pilgrimage, certain things not learned while living in a “safe,” settled life. However, the converse is true as well – certain things are learned while living the sedentary life that would not necessarily be learned through pilgrimage.
As Keller loves the city, so Foster loves the journey, and for this I can find no fault. My hope is that Foster would not automatically associate the marginalized wanderer as “holy” while scoffing at the settled as “sinful” or “ignorant.”
So go, wander and journey. Be free in spirit to know and worship God in new ways. But remember God is mighty and sovereign over all walks of life, not just the ones that “feel” holier.
My wife is a full-time high school science teacher, and I work as a substitute teacher in addition to being a seminary student and a youth pastor.
Needless to say, my wife and I have constant interaction with youth.
So let me say this: our youth and our school systems need as much prayer as you can muster.
The casual observer says there is no reason to worry; every generation of parents looks to their child’s social group with horror and disdain.
As far as parents were concerned, the roaring 20′s were wrought with rebellious teens dancing and drinking, the 60′s were full of hippies strung out on LSD, the 70′s were consumed by disco and bell-bottoms, the 80′s saw the birth of MTV, and the 90′s were defined by the grunge and post-grunge movement.
And each generation of parents simply looked at their kids and shook their heads.
Yet each time, the youth came out seemingly unscathed and well-equipped to lead the country into the future.
And so the casual observer would look at the apparent horrors of today’s youth and assume the same will happen: the qualified will mature, grow out of their adolescence, and become adept business professionals, capable of assimilating into the business world, starting a family, and providing the backbone of the country.
I, however, am not so optimistic.
There is one thing that separates today’s youth from generations in times past, and that is postmodernity.
Throughout the early and middle years of this century, modernity was still in full-swing, meaning that objective truth existed somewhere and was capable of being attained. Putting aside the notion of our Judeo-Christian worldview for a second, at the very least everybody agreed that truth existed.
There was a common underpinning of society to which everybody could agree and relate.
There was a single common denominator which leveled the playing field and everybody strove for.
However, the 80′s and 90′s began to feel the very first effects of postmodernity – relativism, plurality, extreme tolerance – and those youth grew into today’s leaders.
And so that segment of the population are now becoming parents, and while they may only mildly influence their children with the faintest hints of postmodernity, their children are seeped in it.
At school and through the media, pluralism and relativism are the war-cries of the culture today.
The baby boomers were influenced by their parents – the so-called Greatest Generation – and worked harder for the American Dream than any who had come before them. They were influenced by their parents and strove to enjoy the freedom their parents had earned. However, that influence has deteriorated over the years.
And today’s youth, rather than being influenced by the Greatest Generation, are influenced by the Tolerant Generation.
Our culture as a whole encourages and teaches the plurality of truth and the acceptance of all; not realizing that in accepting all it affirms none, cutting its own feet out from under it.
The education system, cultural trends, societal norms, moral systems…these are all institutions once desperate for truth that are now held hostage by the culturally dependent nature of truth and the fall of the mighty mettanarrative in favor of the context-driven micronarrative.
And so while there was always a failsafe to fall back on for generations preceding ours – the assumed existence of ultimate truth to guide and direct our efforts – today that does not exist.
So now what are we left with?
The words of the great Puritan Thomas Watson ring in my heart:
Truth is ancient; it’s gray hairs make it venerable; it comes form Him who is the ancient of days.
God is truth, and all truth is His.
Society is turning away from truth as further evidence of its turning its back on God.
As Oswald Chambers would say, society has itself on the throne of its heart and not God.
We need not be surprised and we need not be discouraged:
Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary.
– Galatians 6:9
God is good and God is faithful, and God will provide through this season.
Affirm God and glorify His name, and truth will abound.
Seek truth honestly and humbly, and God will reveal Himself to you.
And now, O Lord God, you are God, and your words are true
– 2 Samuel 7:28
God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth
– John 4:24
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”
– John 14:6
You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.
– Jeremiah 29:13
