Dec
27
Idea or person?
Filed Under Christian Living
In preparing to preach this coming Lord’s Day on Mark 4:35-41, I have been blessed by J.C. Ryle’s ‘The Ruler of the Waves,’ which appears as a chapter in his book Holiness (which, by the way, is an essential part of any Christian library). Let me quote:
I fear the personality of our Lord is sadly lost sight of by many professors in the present day. Their talk is more about salvation, than about the Saviour; more about redemption, than about the Redeemer; more about justification, than about Jesus; more about Christ’s work, than about Christ’s person. This is a great fault, and one that fully accounts for the dry and sapless character of the religion of many professors.
As ever you would grow in grace, and have joy and peace in believing, beware of falling into this error. Cease to regard the gospel as a mere collection of dry doctrines. Look at it rather as the revelation of a might living Being in whose sight you are daily to live. Cease to regard it as a mere set of abstract propositions and abtruse principles and rules. Look at it as the introduction to a glorious personal Friend. This is the kind of gospel that the apostles preached. They did not go about the world telling men of love and mercy and pardon in the abstract. The leading subject of all their sermons was the loving heart of an actual living Christ. This is the kind of gospel which is most calculated to promote sanctification and meetness for glory. Nothing, surely, is so likely to prepare us for that heaven where we shall meet Christ face to face, as to realize communion with Christ, as an actual living Person here on earth. There is all the difference in the world bewteen an idea and a person.
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Holiness is one of my favorite books (as I’ve said on this blog before). Thanks, Phillip, for posting this great quote!