The Danger of Forgetting

I mentioned in an earlier post that D. A. Carson's book, "For the Love of God" accompanies the daily Bible reading plan of Robert M. M'Cheyne.  Of course, the scripture itself is inspirational, occasionally difficult to understand (book of Job, for example), challenging and comforting, but I am also incredibly blessed by the daily readings in Carson's book. 

Exodus 1, Job 18, Luke 4 and 1 Corinthians 5 were on the schedule for today.  Carson's particular emphasis was the following:  "One cannot long read  Scripture without pondering the sad role played by forgetting."  He goes on to list specific examples, including how one would think that after the flood, you would expect mankind to behave in a way that would avoid God's wrath or that after God lead the Israelites out of bondage, you would expect it to take more than a few weeks for them relapse into worshiping a golden calf.  

But here is the part of his discourse that is the most chilling to me, and I quote:

"Not far from where I am writing these lines is a church that draws five or six thousand on a Sunday morning.  Its leaders have forgotten that it began as a church plant a mere two decades ago.  They now want to withdraw from the denomination that founded them, not because they disagree theologically with that denomination, not because of some moral flaw in it, but simply because they are so impressed by their own bigness and importance that they are too arrogant to be grateful.  One thinks of seminaries that have abandoned their doctrinal roots within one generation, of individuals, not the least scholars, who are so impressed by novelty that clever originality ranks more highly with them than godly fidelity.  Nations, churches, and individuals change, at each step thinking themselves more "advanced" than all who went before.  To our shame, we forget all the things we should remember."

The specific church is not important, nor is the specific action of the church.  Rather, the chilling part is that it is so easy for ALL of us to forget our roots and to forget that we are "encompassed about by such a great cloud of witnesses" who are, in great part, responsible for providing the opportunity for us to learn about and then understand/accept God's free gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ.

Lord, I pray for the Christian church in America today; help it remember it's purpose and not be distracted or drawn away from that purpose by it's own self-importance.  Lord, I ask that you would help me to overcome the sin of pride so that I can remain a humble servant.  Help me to remember that I am nothing more than a poor sinner saved by your marvelous and undeserved grace.
  

Are you reading the Bible?

I am ten days in to my Bible reading and devotional plan for 2014.  I heard about this from Pastor David Platt’s posting on Facebook.  It is the plan that he is doing with his congregation at The Church at Brookhills.  It has been several years since I completed a “through the Bible in a year” plan; it sounded like just the right thing for 2014. 

The plan was prepared by the 19th Century Scottish minister, Robert Murray M'Cheyne, who lived from 1813-1843.  The plan takes readers through the New Testament and Psalms twice a year, and through the rest of the Bible once each year. 

In 1998, D. A. Carson, theologian and seminary professor, slightly modified this reading plan and published it in his book, For the Love of God.

In addition to the plan, he provided his “devotional” comments regarding each day's scriptural passages.  Here’s what Carson has to say about his book:

“the rising biblical illiteracy in Western culture means that the Bible is increasingly a closed book, even to many Christians.  As the culture drifts away from its former rootedness in a Judeo-Christian understanding of God, history, truth, right and wrong, purpose, judgment, forgiveness and community, the Bible seems stranger and stranger.  For precisely the same reason, it becomes all the more urgent to read it and reread it, so that at least confessing Christians preserve the heritage and outlook of a mind shaped and informed by holy Scripture . . . . Here you will find a plan that will help you read through the New Testament and the Psalms twice, and the rest of the Bible once, in the course of a year.  Comment is offered for each day, but this book fails utterly in its goal if you read the comment and not the assigned biblical passages.

I said all of this to let you all know that I believe I will be quoting the Bible and Carson quite often this year.  As I said, I’m just ten days in and I can’t resist sharing what he said today:

Anyone with the slightest familiarity with history knows how frequently and chillingly these prophecies (Matthew 10:22-23, persecution of Christians) have been fulfilled.  The fact that many in the West have for so long been largely exempt from the worst features of such persecution has let us lower our guard—even Christians may think that a hassle-free life is something that society owes us.  But as the Judeo-Christian heritage of the West weakens, we may one day be caught up in realities that missions specialists know but that the rest of us sometimes ignore:  the last century and a half have seen more converts, and more martyrs, than the first eighteen centuries combined.

In any case, a fundamental principle is at stake.  This is the way Christians view things; indeed, it is bound up with being a Christian.  “Anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.  Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”  Matthew 10:38-39

Lord, help me not to take your Word for granted.  Help me to live out its principles in my daily life.

P.S.  If you'd like to start this plan or any other, you can download the free Bible app from YouVersion here:  http://www.a.youversion.com/free-bible-apps  Once you have the app, you will find hundreds of different reading plans--one is bound to be right for you.