This blog begins what I hope to be a step forward in the direction and purpose of this blog. In the past, I’ve used blogs as a somewhat unproductive method to disperse my internal thoughts, with the clear understanding that the blogs were written for nobody other than myself. However, I wanted to see if it were possible to move into a more productive route of writing, by giving a commentary on the book “Knowledge of the Holy” by A.W. Tozer.
For those interested, I’ve provided a free copy of this book on this website under the “Good Reads” section. If you click on the main book title, you can download the entire PDF, free of charge. If you prefer to read chapter-by-chapter, you can also do that. My suggestion would be to print off the pages and make as many notes as you feel comfortable. I trust you find the commentary challenging as an addendum to what Tozer writes.
Knowledge Of The Holy: Preface
“The low view of God entertained almost universally among Christians is the cause of a hundred lesser evils everywhere among us. A whole new philosophy of the Christian life has resulted from this one basic error in our religious thinking.”
In the preface, Tozer makes an excellent observation about the overall state of the church; that it has lost its high respect and thought of the Creator. This “low view” of G-d has caused infinite problems within the church, and is not a problem that is easily fixed.
The problem: Christianity has created an image of G-d that is far less from the majesty, respect, and fear the Creator is worthy of.
How does this affect us? Well, it’s similar to a marriage between a man and woman. During the ceremony, there is a very clear understanding between the two people that what they are doing is sacred, lifelong, and a binding agreement connected through love. However, as they walk down the aisle, newly-pronounced man and wife, they begin taking steps away from a moment that is supposed to be a lifelong promise.
Perhaps the couple will remember and cherish this moment, using it as the foundation to build a lifelong connection on top of; each day falling more in love with each other, always striving to be a better couple. Or, the couple will use this moment as a pinnace of which to jump from; they will view it as the ultimate moment of their love, with each day passing being one step lower and further from that moment of true love. When you use a moment like this as a foundation, you can build great things. When you use this moment as a ‘pinnacle’ of time, you can expect a quick demise to hitting the ground.
This same idea applies to our Creator. Were we to acknowledge the majesty, power, love, among the infinite number of characteristics that apply to the Creator, we could take this moment and use it to build a strong foundation for our faith. However, we have grown in a culture that takes the short moments where we come to realize these truths, from a ‘good’ worship service to a challenging sermon, and have hung these moments in time as a period where we felt “closest” to God. Thus, every moment afterwards will only seem like a moment that is somehow “less” than that one moment in time, rather than a progression forward from it.
Historically, Tozer writes, we have taken a lower and lower view of G-d over time. Where we once existed in a world that had a deep reverence and fear for our Creator, we now exist in a time and place where the eternal G-d can be confined to a Sunday morning service. This transformation can only be detrimental to our well-being and source of awe of the Creator.
“The Church has surrendered her once lofty concept of God and has substituted for it one so low, so ignoble, as to be utterly unworthy of thinking, worshipping men. This she has done not deliberately, but little by little and without her knowledge; and her very unawareness only makes her situation all the more tragic.”
My personal belief of why this has occurred is that we have taken the concept of a powerful G-d and used the vehicle of religion and denominational explanations to approach a subject that could once only be approached with wonder and awe. Moses tread upon Holy ground and had to hide his face with a veil, lest he be overtaken by the spirit of G-d. We, on the other hand, have reduced this awe-demanding Creator to a simple “relationship” available through any corner church, so long as we attend every Sunday, are ‘connected’ through a small group, and make proper (10%) offerings of our income.
I fear the issue of associating the Creator with a vehicle as imperfect, unorganized, and even irreverent as the church is something that creates great internal spiritual chaos. We associate many of these “god moments” (caps intentional) with our spiritual experiences in the church, yet are greeted by its inconsistencies on a daily basis through internal church quarreling, generational irreconcilable differences, and internal corruption.
Where this becomes especially damaging is when an individual stop utilizing the church as a method of getting to know G-d in a better way (which I have a fundamental problem with as it stands) and ultimately sees the church as the only way to know and experience G-d. The challenge occurs when they begin to associate their experiences in the church with the nature of G-d. Perhaps it’s a healing at an altar, tears flowing down a face, or well-sung worship chorus that has now become their image of who the Almighty is.
Tozer writes that in order to fix a problem, we must meet it where it has begun. In this respect, we must begin to ask ourselves whether or not our image of G-d has become diluted from the respect and honor that ought to be due his name. If we have identified that our ‘version’ of G-d is somehow less than what it ought to be, we now have a place to start as we begin working towards a renewed understanding and respect of the Creator.
Questions to ask:
1.) When you hear the word “God” what comes to mind?
2.) If you had to describe the Creator, how would you do it?
3.) What does the “Fear” of G-d mean to you?
4.) What would change in your life if you had a true mentality of G-d?
Further reading: https://aaronplaatsite.wpengine.com/good-reads/knowledge-of-the-holy/preface/
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