That Incredible Christian
by A. W. Tozer
The current
effort of so many religious leaders to harmonize Christianity with
science, philosophy and every natural and reasonable thing is, I
believe, the result of failure to understand Christianity and, judging
from what I have heard and read, failure to understand science and
philosophy as well.
At
the heart of the Christian system lies the cross of Christ with its
divine paradox. The power of Christianity appears in its antipathy
toward, never in its agreement with, the ways of fallen men. The truth
of the cross is revealed in its contradictions. The witness of the
church is most effective when she declares rather than explains, for the
gospel is addressed not to reason but to faith. What can be proved
requires no faith to accept. Faith rests upon the character of God, not
upon the demonstrations of laboratory or logic.
The
cross stands in bold opposition to the natural man. Its philosophy runs
contrary to the processes of the unregenerate mind, so that Paul could
say bluntly that the preaching of the cross is to them that perish
foolishness. To try to find a common ground between the message of the
cross and man's fallen reason is to try the impossible, and if persisted
in must result in an impaired reason, a meaningless cross and a
powerless Christianity.
But
let us bring the whole matter down from the uplands of theory and
simply observe the true Christian as he puts into practice the teachings
of Christ and His apostles. Note the contradictions:
The
Christian believes that in Christ he has died, yet he is more alive
than before and he fully expects to live forever. He walks on earth
while seated in heaven and though born on earth he finds that after his
conversion he is not at home here. Like the nighthawk, which in the air
is the essence of grace and beauty but on the ground is awkward and
ugly, so the Christian appears at his best in the heavenly places but
does not fit well into the ways of the very society into which he was
born.
The
Christian soon learns that if he would be victorious as a son of heaven
among men on earth he must not follow the common pattern of mankind,
but rather the contrary. That he may be safe he puts himself in
jeopardy; he loses his life to save it and is in danger of losing it if
he attempts to preserve it. He goes down to get up. If he refuses to go
down he is already down, but when he starts down he is on his way up.
He
is strongest when he is weakest and weakest when he is strong. Though
poor he has the power to make others rich, but when he becomes rich his
ability to enrich others vanishes. He has most after he has given most
away and has least when he possesses most.
He
may be and often is highest when he feels lowest and most sinless when
he is most conscious of sin. He is wisest when he knows that he knows
not and knows least when he has acquired the greatest amount of
knowledge. He sometimes does most by doing nothing and goes furthest
when standing still. In heaviness he manages to rejoice and keeps his
heart glad even in sorrow.
The
paradoxical character of the Christian is revealed constantly. For
instance, he believes that he is saved now, nevertheless he expects to
be saved later and looks forward joyfully to future salvation. He fears
God but is not afraid of Him. In God's presence he feels overwhelmed and
undone, yet there is nowhere he would rather be than in that presence.
He knows that he has been cleansed from his sin, yet he is painfully
conscious that in his flesh dwells no good thing.
He
loves supremely One whom he has never seen, and though himself poor and
lowly he talks familiarly with One who is King of all kings and Lord of
all lords, and is aware of no incongruity in so doing. He feels that he
is in his own right altogether less than nothing, yet he believes
without question that he is the apple of God's eye and that for him the
Eternal Son became flesh and died on the cross of shame.
The
Christian is a citizen of heaven and to that sacred citizenship he
acknowledges first allegiance; yet he may love his earthly country with
that intensity of devotion that caused John Knox to pray "O God, give me
Scotland or I die."
He
cheerfully expects before long to enter that bright world above, but he
is in no hurry to leave this world and is quite willing to await the
summons of his Heavenly Father. And he is unable to understand why the
critical unbeliever should condemn him for this; it all seems so natural
and right in the circumstances that he sees nothing inconsistent about
it.
The
cross-carrying Christian, furthermore, is both a confirmed pessimist
and an optimist the like of which is to be found nowhere else on earth.
When
he looks at the cross he is a pessimist, for he knows that the same
judgment that fell on the Lord of glory condemns in that one act all
nature and all the world of men. He rejects every human hope out of
Christ because he knows that man's noblest effort is only dust building
on dust.
Yet
he is calmly, restfully optimistic. If the cross condemns the world the
resurrection of Christ guarantees the ultimate triumph of good
throughout the universe. Through Christ all will be well at last and the
Christian waits the consummation. Incredible Christian!