21 December
A God Distinct
The Christians are not claiming that simply 'God' was incarnate in Jesus. They are claiming that the one true God is He whom the Jews worshipped as Jahweh, and that it is He who has descended. Now the double character of Jahweh is this. On the one hand He is the God of Nature, her glad Creator. It is He who sends rain into the furrows till the valleys stand so thick with corn that they laugh and sing. The trees of the wood rejoice before Him and His voice causes the wild deer to bring forth their young. He is the God of wheat and wine and oil. In that respect He is constantly doing all the things that Nature-Gods do: He is Bacchus, Venus, Ceres all rolled into one. ....
On the other hand, Jahweh is clearly not a Nature-God. He does not die and come to life each year as a true Corn-king should. .... He is not the soul of Nature nor of any part of Nature. He inhabits eternity: He dwells in the high and holy place: heaven is His throne, not His vehicle, earth is His footstool, not His vesture. One day He will dismantle both and make a new heaven and earth. He is not to be identified even with the 'divine spark' in man. He is 'God and not man'. ....
Jahweh is neither the soul of Nature nor her enemy. .... She is His creature. He is not a nature-God, but the God of Nature—her inventor, maker, owner, and controller. To everyone who reads this book the conception has been familiar from childhood; we therefore easily think it is the most ordinary conception in the world. 'If people are going to believe in a God at all,' we ask, 'what other kind would they believe in?' But the answer of history is, 'Almost any other kind'.
—from Miracles
Compiled in A Year with C.S. Lewis
Miracles: A Preliminary Study. Copyright 1947 C. S. Lewis Pte. Ltd. Copyright renewed © 1947 C. S. Lewis Pte. Ltd. Revised 1960, restored 1996 C. S. Lewis Pte. Ltd. All rights reserved. Used with permission of HarperCollins Publishers. A Year With C.S. Lewis: Daily Readings from His Classic Works. Copyright © 2003 by C. S. Lewis Pte. Ltd. All rights reserved. Used with permission of HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved. Used with permission of HarperCollins Publishers. A Year With C.S. Lewis: Daily Readings from His Classic Works. Copyright © 2003 by C. S. Lewis Pte. Ltd. All rights reserved. Used with permission of HarperCollins Publishers.
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December 21
If thou hast done foolishly in lifting up thyself, or if thou hast thought evil, lay thine hand upon thy mouth. Surely the churning of milk bringeth forth butter, and the wringing of the nose bringeth forth blood: so the forcing of wrath bringeth forth strife (30:32-33).
For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. When we do something wrong, we can expect that we will have to suffer for it. Every day, the little boy had stopped to throw stones at the birds which roosted along the fence. He had never been much of a shot, and they always flew away before he could come close. Once day, he hefted a rather large stone, and let it fly at the unsuspecting birds. The rock flew straight, and hit a bird, knocking it from the fence. In shock and horror, the boy raced up to the fence and picked up the lifeless bird. He began crying, telling the bird he hadn't meant to hurt it. He felt sick inside, and helpless as he looked at his own handiwork.
Why is it that people tempt fate, and then are so shocked when something goes wrong? If we play with fire, we will eventually get burned. If you strike someone hard enough on the nose, it will bleed. If you churn milk long enough, it will turn to butter. If you dwell in wrong and sinful acts, then you will have to encounter the wrath of God. It is not speculation, it is reality, and the wise understand this and do everything they can to avert the disaster which must result.
prayer: O Lord, help me to keep from living so foolishly. I act as if I am immortal, without doing the things which are required of me. I have much to learn, and only you can teach me. Please do so, Lord, I pray. Amen.
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