Book 3, Chapter 1: The Three Parts of Morality

C.S. Lewis compares directing human behavior to directing a fleet of ships. In the first place, the ships must get along with one another. In the second place, the ships must be mechanically operable. Finally, they must be directed by a noble commander.
We see how profound this illustration is when we apply it to our lives in God's world. The civilized world spends most of its time trying to get the first part in order. We point the ships in the direction we want them to go and assume all is well. For instance, organizations like the United Nations would have us lay down our arms and just be nice. Since most of us do not like killing, this purpose seems noble. Lining the ships up so they don't collide seems sufficient until we see that people continue to kill each other even after they have promised not to. This is what takes us to the second part of Lewis's illustration.
People get along well with each other when they share a common purpose—that is—the internal driving force is a shared one. If you want the ships in your fleet to stop running into each other, their engine rooms and steering mechanisms must be properly tuned. When working with people we might agree with Paul and say that they need to be "one in spirit and purpose."
But more information shows us why this stool needs a third leg. What if you successfully keep the ships from colliding by uniting them in purpose (parts one and two) but find that their purpose is directed by an evil leader intent on destroying every other fleet of ships in the ocean? It really does make a difference who owns the ships. We wrongly assume that our vessels are independent of all the others and that our own behavior makes no difference as long as we allow the other ships to stay afloat. But this is not the case if we are owned by another. Lewis puts it this way: "If somebody else made me, for his own purposes, then I shall have a lot of duties which I should not have if I simply belonged to myself."
Here is why I think this chapter is very relevant you. You are at the point in your life when you are making decisions about relationships with the opposite sex, establishing standards for your personal entertainment and setting priorities for the use of your time, treasure and talents. It is very difficult to have other people tell you what kind of standards to set, but you must remember that you are not your own. Be patient with parents and institutions who apparently want to control your life. Is it possible that they have a better picture than you of where the Admiral wants his ships to go (or not go)? Our Great Commander designed the ships and not only knows how they should run, he knows where the mission will take them. As I told a friend who was destroying his life: "You were built for better purposes."

What do you think?

Book 2, Chapter 5: The Practical Conclusion

This may be one chapter in which you will find disagreement with C. S. Lewis (sacramental view of baptism and communion). Please don't throw the rest of the chapter out, however. He roars back like a fiery, Calvinistic evangelist and says this: "[The Christian] does not think God will love us because we are good, but that God will make us good because He loves us; just as the roof of a greenhouse does not attract the sun because it is bright, but becomes bright because the sun shines on it." Notice the warning Lewis gives at the end of the chapter: "When the author walks on to the stage the play is over. God is going to invade, all right: but what is the good of saying you're on His side then, when you see the whole natural universe melting away like a dream..." The question for discussion: When, in our desire to win a person to Christ, does it become necessary to warn them about hell?

Book 2, Chapter 4: The Perfect Penitent

In this chapter Lewis is answering the two crucial questions answered first in the Gospels: "Who is Jesus Christ?" and "What did he do?" On the first reading it looks like Lewis is downplaying theology. Quite the opposite is true. While he is hesitant to dig deep (remember his target audience), his bare-bones presentation calls the reader to embrace the death of Christ on his own behalf. That is theology. A chapter summary would have to be what Lewis calls "the catch." He says: "Only a bad person needs to repent: only a good person can repent perfectly. The worse you are the more you need it and the less you can do it. The only person who could do it perfectly would be a perfect person—and he would not need it.” Two questions for you: First, how does this knowledge that we are calling sinners to do what they have no power to do affect our theology? And, second, how does this affect our attitude when we seek to evangelize lost people?

Mere Christianity, Book 2, Chapter 3: "The Shocking Alternative"

I forgot to blog this last week for all of you non-Facebook people. Sorry. Here it goes:

Lewis gets to the heart of idolatry: men trying to "invent some sort of happiness for themselves outside God, apart from God." It is easy to throw stones at the list of consequences Lewis gives that result from trying to find substitutes to happiness in God: "money, poverty, ambition, war, prostitution, classes, empires, slavery." I think I should be more concerned about the consequences of my own God substitutes. When I think happiness is bound up in people liking me, I am controlled (and often crushed) by the opinions of others. When I seek joy in things I am convinced I am "way good at," I get depressed when people fall asleep during the sermon or when my Hebrew instructor humbles me with my own ignorance. The answer, then, is found in the "shocking alternative." If I merely admire his teachings I can add Jesus to my shelf full of idols. If he is Lord and God, my joy in him is complete no matter how I perform in the pulpit, the classroom or in front of my peers.

I will try to post Facebook or e-mail comments.

Book 2, Chapter 1: The Rival Conceptions of God

Something I like about this chapter is that, in classic Mere Christianity form, Lewis makes "good" the standard and "bad" the perversion. In other words, even the unspeakable evil around us points us to redemption. God is in the process of making everything right. Be humbled if you are part of the army God is using to rescue captives from the kingdom of darkness. Be humbled if you are having a hard week because your Redeemer is faithful and true. He is going to straighten it out—perhaps using your uncomfortable week as his hammer. "If the whole universe has no meaning, we should never have found out that it has no meaning." What do you think?

Mere Christianity, book 2, chapter 1: "The Rival Conceptions of God"

Let's work on this book in bite-sized chunks. I will raise one item for discussion and see how many of you respond. This is a short chapter:) Here's my thought for your response: You have to bless God because you are one of a handful out of 7 billion people on the planet who can comprehend what Lewis is talking about in this chapter. We know what injustice is because we know what justice is. We know what crooked is because we know what straight is. We know what wet is because we know what dry is. We know all this because we claim to know this personal God of absolutes, who rules absolutely. Here is where I have to squirm. I've been complaining this week about all the meaningless tasks I have to do. Counsel me. Why is my attitude inconsistent with the contents of this chapter?

Old study; new venue

Welcome back! Since it is very difficult to get all of you together in a brick-and-mortar establishment, our MC discussions will primarily be electronic discussions this year. Facebook (search "Phrisbee Phellowship" and ask to join the group) will be our primary venue, although I hope to share content between this blog and that one.

To make things easy, our first set of discussion questions will cover all of Book 1 in Mere Christianity. This will be review for some of you, but will allow others to catch up. Participate as you are able. You'll get as much out of it as you put in.

Some atheists and agnostics get very uncomfortable around people who talk about morality in absolute terms. You don't even have to mention the name of Jesus to be accused of shoving "religion" down people's throats. That is where Lewis is taking us as we approach Book 2. He wants to make us uncomfortable. He has not yet gotten to an introduction of Jesus Christ as a remedy for man's problems and already, as a former atheist, he anticipates the impatience of his detractors.

It is that very impatience which serves to prove a point Lewis has been trying to make. Our discomfort with the thought of having a judge watching us shows that we are "haunted" by the idea of a sort of behavior we ought to practice. There must be some explanation for this universal uneasiness and an explanation for why we continue to do what makes us feel uneasy. The anger some people express when they perceive they are being judged is evidence that their conscience is already judging them.

Here we go:

1. We have all known people who are "doctrinally pure" but have no passion for Christ. The Emerging Church movement is urging people to seek a more experience-based Christianity as a reaction. In reading the preface to Mere Christianity, do you think Lewis would agree that doctrine is a substitute for a real relationship with God? Why or why not?


2. How do people reveal that they believe in moral absolutes even when they say they do not? How does this demonstrate the claim of Romans 2:14-16?


3. Why is discomfort a good thing when you are searching out ideas that are new to you?
   
4. "Christianity tells people to repent and promises them forgiveness." Describe how Christians offer an explanation for how we got into our present state of hating goodness and loving it?

Good Discomfort (Mere Christianity, chapter five)

Our "live" discussion will take place at the Svendsen home on Saturday night at seven o'clock (note the change of days). For those of you who wish to comment from "afar," feel free to post comments beyond the discussion questions listed here. For local purposes, we will stick to chapter 5 (the end of book 1).

Some atheists and agnostics get very uncomfortable around people who talk about morality in absolute terms. You don't even have to mention the name of Jesus to be accused of shoving "religion" down people's throats. That is where Lewis is taking us in chapter five. He wants to make us uncomfortable. He has not yet gotten to an introduction of Jesus Christ as a remedy for man's problems and already, as a former atheist, he anticipates the impatience of his detractors.

It is that very impatience which serves to prove a point Lewis has been trying to make. Our discomfort with the thought of having a judge watching us shows that we are "haunted" by the idea of a sort of behavior we ought to practice. There must be some explanation for this universal uneasiness and an explanation for why we continue to do what makes us feel uneasy. The anger some people express when they perceive they are being judged is evidence that their conscience is already judging them.

1. What are the two bits of evidence in the third paragraph of chapter 5 about the "Somebody"?


2. Why is looking only at the universe Somebody made cause for us to conclude that this Somebody is quite merciless and no friend to man?


3. If we are left with two options, the universe is either governed by an absolute goodness or it is not, why is either option a hopeless one for people like us?


4. Why is discomfort a good thing when you are searching out ideas that are new to you?


5. "Christianity tells people to repent and promises them forgiveness." Describe how Christians offer an explanation for...

• How did we get into our present state of hating goodness and loving it?


• How can God be an impersonal mind at the back of the moral law, and yet also a person?


• How can the demands of this law, which you and I cannot meet, be met on our behalf?


• How can God himself become a man to save men from the disapproval of God?

Mere Christianity, Lewis' Preface

We're back! Now meeting at the UWBC commons area in Meggers Hall at noon on Mondays, we will soon wade deeply into Mere Christianity. After meeting informally on Monday, April 2, we will jump into the preface, "The Law of Human Nature" and ""Some Objections" on April 9. In discussion questions I will plan to identify the section I was reading by book number (four books) and chapter number (1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 2.2...) rather by page since we do not all have the same edition of the book.

Here is a discussion agenda to get you started:

1. (preface) Why does Lewis call his series "mere" Christianity?


2. (preface) Do you think Lewis assigns any value to the doctrinal areas where Christians disagree?


3. (1.1) How do people reveal that they believe in moral absolutes even when they say they do not? How does this demonstrate the claim of Romans 2:14-16?


4. (1.1) Is it necessary to know what is right in order to claim something is wrong?


5. (1.2) What is more powerful than both the "herd instinct" and the "instinct for self-preservation"?


6. (1.2) Why is following a love for humanity "at all costs" a dangerous guide that can make us into "devils"?


7. How do you see this discussion fitting both Nazi-era England and our own nation in 2007?

DWTL, Chapter Nine

Whether you fall into the category, "Passionate about Missions" or you come to this chapter "With No Interest or Knowledge" regarding missions, it is great to consider the texts presented in chapter nine:

All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the LORD, And all the families of the nations will worship before You. For the kingdom is the LORD'S And He rules over the nations. (Psalm 22:27-28)

Let the peoples praise You, O God; Let all the peoples praise You. Let the nations be glad and sing for joy; For You will judge the peoples with uprightness And guide the nations on the earth. Selah. (Psalm 67:3-4)

Tell of His glory among the nations, His wonderful deeds among all the peoples...Say among the nations, "The LORD reigns; Indeed, the world is firmly established, it will not be moved; He will judge the peoples with equity." (Psalm 96:3, 10)

Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. (Matthew 28:19-20).

And thus I aspired to preach the gospel, not where Christ was already named, so that I would not build on another man's foundation; but as it is written, "THEY WHO HAD NO NEWS OF HIM SHALL SEE, AND THEY WHO HAVE NOT HEARD SHALL UNDERSTAND." (Romans 15:20-21).

And they sang a new song, saying, "Worthy are You to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. "You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth." (Revelation 5:9-10).

Questions for discussion:

1. Having read these texts, what do you think should be the great motivation to participate in global missions?


2. What, then, is the reason most of us are not active at home and abroad?


3. Why do stories of missionaries like Adoniram Judson have such an impact on Christians?


4. Why might some people be afraid to write a letter like the one Judson wrote to Ann Hasseltine's father (page 158)?


5. Picture yourself in ten years in the vocation you currently think you will occupy at that time. How can that role fit God's bigger plan for missions and mercy?

We will not be meeting again until February 19 to wrap up DWYL discussing chapter ten and to prepare for the new study. You locals, particularly from UWBCC, need to get your eye on a campus meeting place. Calling people to higher satisfaction in Christ starts at UWBCC (or where'er you may roam). I plan to order some extra copies of Mere Christianity, assuming you have some friends to invite.

Let me know if you already own one.

DWYL, Chapter Eight

This chapter is vital for college students because college is, in part, a preparation for a career. Your life work has to be more than a means to purchase all the things you want or your life will be wasted. This chapter sets your work in a biblical framework.

1. Read 1 Corinthians 10:31. What does "glory" mean? (see DWYL page 32).



2. What does it mean to do something "to the glory of God?"



3. According to this chapter, where is the war of the Christian life being fought?



4. Explain why "secular vocations" are strategic in this war.



5. Put into your own words each of Piper's six ways to make your life count in your workplace.