I don’t move in the same circles I once did. About a week
had passed before I learned that author, pastor-teacher, theologian and my
second-favorite Calvinist, R. C. Sproul had graduated to his eternal reward on
December 14. In the meantime, a friend had posted a video of him on Facebook.
Perhaps, it was a tribute, and I did not catch it. The post did not generate
much response, but I liked it and re-posted it. Again, it did not generate much
response.
In the video, Dr. Sproul was seated on a stage at some
conference for a question-answer session. A query was raised to this effect:
“Since God is gracious, why was His punishment of Adam so severe?” The question
seemed to vex Sproul. After a fervent reminder to the audience of the holiness
of God, the “creatureliness” of Adam, and the terms of the Eden arrangement,
he asked, “What’s wrong with you people?” He added that the problem with
the modern church is that we don’t understand Who God is and we don’t
understand who we are. Through the years, Sproul has written prolifically on a
number of topics, but some of his greatest contributions have touched on the
Person of God and, in particular, His holy “otherliness.” In retrospect, I
wondered if his impassioned response to what he perceived to be an idiotic
question was a desperate plea to the modern church to finally start to wrap our
collective heads around the holiness of God.
A few decades ago, the church went through a kind of grace
awakening. In reaction to the sternness and perceived legalism of a previous
generation, we came to grips with how loving, longsuffering and “nice” God
really is. But, as we are often prone to do, our fixation on certain aspects of
God’s character tend to undermine our appreciation for some of His other
attributes. We are currently abiding in nothing short of a crisis regarding the
typical believer’s lack of awe at God’s holiness.
What else can explain why so many believers are reticent to
declare as “sinful” behaviors and lifestyles to which God has spoken from
ancient times? Are we more fearful of the world calling us names than we are of
God’s holy nature? Why are so few today grievously undone by their own sins? With
open eyes, they do as they please, sure that grace will cover them. Why is
worship discussed in terms of human tastes and relevance rather than in terms
of honoring the Holy One Who is the sole audience of our worship? I remain a
bit old-school in my worship attire, even to the point of being good-naturedly
teased on occasion. I abide six days in my Father’s presence wearing work
clothes, comfortable clothes and even jammies. I would not show up to an event
specifically convened to honor my earthly father in such attire. I would not
attend an audience with a royal or a president in such attire, regardless of
party affiliation. I would not show up in court before a robed human judge that
way. A worship service is not my daily abiding in God’s presence. It is a
special event held in His honor.
Whatever we think we understand about worship …
Whatever we think we understand about service …
Whatever we think we understand about grace …
Whatever we think we understand about stewardship …
Our understanding of anything pertaining to God is
significantly diminished and diluted when we fail to be adequately captivated
by His holiness. I choose my words carefully. I am not suggesting that we can
grasp or understand this holiness, only that we must stand in awe of it.
The Bible speaks of a “fear” of God. We avoid that word. We
redefine it as “awe” or “reverence” because nobody wants to fear One Who has
been refashioned into our benign and indulgent “Daddy.”
We tend to misunderstand
the purpose of all our human emotions; love peace contentment, anger. We confuse
the fallen versions of each of these with the real thing. Holy fear may top the
list, for there is little modern fear of God. However, only as this posture
before God is restored will the church make any significant progress toward
fulfilling her role as salt and light for this age.
