Andy Naselli

Thoughts on Theology

Practical Theology

Theological Pride

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“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” –Jesus (Matt 5:3)

Poverty of spirit is the personal acknowledgment of spiritual bankruptcy. It is the conscious confession of unworth before God. As such, it is the deepest form of repentance. . . .

Poverty of spirit cannot be artificially induced by self-hatred. Still less does it have in common with showy humility. It cannot be aped successfully by the spiritually haughty who covet its qualities. Such efforts may achieve token success before peers; they never deceive God. Indeed, most of us are repulsed by sham humility, whether our own or that of others.

I suspect that there is no pride more deadly than that which finds its roots in great learning, great external piety, or a showy defense of orthodoxy. My suspicion does not call into question the value of learning, piety, or orthodoxy; rather, it exposes professing believers to the full glare of this beatitude. Pride based on genuine virtues has the greatest potential for self-deception; but our Lord will allow none of it. Poverty of spirit he insists on—a full, honest, factual, conscious, and conscientious recognition before God of personal moral unworth. It is, as I have said, the deepest form of repentance.

–D. A. Carson, Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount and His Confrontation with the World: An Exposition of Matthew 5–10 (Grand Rapids: Global Christian Publishers, 1999), 18 (emphasis added; originally preached in 1975 and published in 1978).

Related: Doug Moo on Theological Humility

Safely Home

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This week my wife and I listened to the audio book of Randy Alcorn‘s novel Safely Home (Tyndale House, 2001). We finished the six audio CDs last night after our church’s cross-centered Good Friday service. The novel is excellent, and it was a means of grace for both of us. It helped broaden our horizons on multiple levels (e.g., re persecution of Christians in China in particular and a heavenly perspective on persecution in general). Highly recommended.

It’s available in the following formats: paperback, hardcover, Kindle, audio download, and audio CD.

Related resources:

  1. introduction to the novel
  2. excerpt: chapter 1
  3. discussion questions
  4. a biographical note from Randy (including this: “100% of royalties from Safely Home will go to help persecuted Christians and to spread the gospel in their countries.”)
  5. articles on China (including this: “Is there still persecution of Christians in China today?“)
  6. articles on the persecuted church
  7. readers’ responses
  8. a 43-second clip of Randy talking about the book:

It Is Finished

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That’s what Jesus said on the cross some 1,980 years ago.

That’s why “Holy Week” pictures like these are so sad.

Comment 66 is mine:

Thanks for the quality photos. As usual, they are first-class. I profit immensely from looking at the photos posted here each week.

The actions captured in these photos, however, simultaneously sadden and infuriate me. This is not pure Christianity as found in the Old and New Testaments. These are warped traditions that have turned the good news about Jesus Christ on its head.

For an explanation of why Jesus died (and why acts like self-inflicted wounds are not only unnecessary but actually offensive to God), see John Piper’s book The Passion of Jesus Christ: Fifty Reasons Why He Came to Die. Free PDF here.