Saturday, August 20, 2005
Why Theology Matters
Miscellanies On The Gospel had a great post yesterday, looking at the gospel in light of the movie "Million Dollar Baby." He cross-posted it on Adrian Warnock's UK Blog while Adrian is "on holiday" and using guest bloggers. Since Adrian has invited me to guest blog as well, I will cross ost this there as well.
If you haven't heard, the movie ends with the Hillary Swank character beggin Clint Eastwood to kill her after a completely dibilitating injury and Clint granting here wish. Rob makes a great point about the priest character in the movie that I will leave to him, but this passage in his post really caught my interest.
You see, if you have too simplistic a view of the gospel -- that Jesus died to save ME, then you would in the same situation be as hopeless as the the gospel-less character portrayed. "Why?" you ask. Well, if Jesus' death and resurrection was all about you, wouldn't him allowing you into that position appear to be abandonment.
The more I am a Christian, the more I find that Christianity is not much about me at all, but almost exclusively about God. Being a Christian is about denying myself, and glorfying God, not God glorifying me.
So here is my question -- am I being a wife beater with this post?
If you haven't heard, the movie ends with the Hillary Swank character beggin Clint Eastwood to kill her after a completely dibilitating injury and Clint granting here wish. Rob makes a great point about the priest character in the movie that I will leave to him, but this passage in his post really caught my interest.
At the risk of sounding like Rick Warren, God did have a purpose for Maggie Fitzgerald in her condition, and it was to glorify Him by enjoying Him forever. The power of God in the gospel of Christ finds a testimony through such vessels of weakness who carry in themselves the very marks of Christ and what it means to suffer for His glory. Who knows but that 35 year old Maggie Fitzgerald might have become successor to the Joni Earekson Tada legacy!Her purpose was to enjoy God...What an incredibly Calvinistic statement! When I think about it, it's not just the gospel that matters here, but the theology too.
But without a gospel-centered worldview, her life was in fact meaningless. The poor woman had no hope as she lie in bed there, with a breathing tube connected into her throat.
You see, if you have too simplistic a view of the gospel -- that Jesus died to save ME, then you would in the same situation be as hopeless as the the gospel-less character portrayed. "Why?" you ask. Well, if Jesus' death and resurrection was all about you, wouldn't him allowing you into that position appear to be abandonment.
The more I am a Christian, the more I find that Christianity is not much about me at all, but almost exclusively about God. Being a Christian is about denying myself, and glorfying God, not God glorifying me.
So here is my question -- am I being a wife beater with this post?
