The Audience of One

Only madmen, geniuses, and supreme egotists do things purely for themselves. It is easy to buck a crowd, not too hard to march to a different drummer. But it is truly difficult - perhaps impossible - to march only to your own drumbeat. Most of us, whether we are aware of it or not, do things with an eye to the approval of some audience or other. The question is not whether we have an audience but which audience we have.
This observation underscores another vital feature of the truth of calling. A life lived listening to the decisive call of God is a life lived before an one audience that trumps all other - the Audience of One. -- Os Guinness, The Call, p. 70

This passage really hit me as I thought about how much of my life is geared around audiences. Okay, so I'm not a theatrical actor, but it in one sense I am an actor. Much of who I am is because I think others will think more of me if I appear a certain way. After reading this, I realized that there is no person in the world (including my wonderful wife) whose opinion really counts. This is not to say that others cannot help us see ourselves more accurately, but rather that there is only one Supreme Opinion that in the end truly matters. He is the one that I must be striving please. All other opinions of me are mere window dressing. If I am living my life to please God, whether or not I please another living being on this earth doesn't matter. If they are pleased with me as well, great; if not, only One opinion truly counts.

The necessity of a split personality

Why are you downcast, O my soul?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God.

Psalm 43:5

It struck me, in reading the Psalms this morning how often David talks to himself. It is one thing to know the truth; yet when it comes to real life, it is another to actually live that truth out. Our need is not simply to learn more, read another book, explore another truth; it is to live the truth that we know. One of the ways that these truths will come to rest in our hearts and lives is to stop and truly examine our souls. Examining ourselves truly in this way will expose our hearts. And then, the exposed heart needs to be reminded of our Savior. I love the idea of preaching the gospel to ourselves daily, but in addition we need to be accurately assessing our soul. If I am struggling with fear or doubt, I want God's truth to illuminate that area. Unless I truly evaluate my soul it's easy to simply go through another exercise and not bring the truth to bear in the area of my struggle. So get the split personality going as we speak truth to ourselves.

The Approachable God

You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm; to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them, because they could not bear what was commanded: "If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned." The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, "I am trembling with fear."

But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. (Hebrews 12:18-24)

Imagine you are a first century Hebrew believer in a first century church... What would your concept of God be? Well, you had followed the Torah (or Law) all your life. It was through this Law that you knew of God. The God you know is the same one that the Israelites knew in the wilderness. You know of the holiness, sovereign reign, and complete otherness of God; much is said in the old covenant about God's holiness. As demonstrated by Mount Sinai (the mountain referred to in verse 18), God was - for the most part - unapproachable. With the coming of Jesus, your concept of God is expanding.

Now forward to today... Often we, like the old covenant believer, can teach / preach / and relate to God as the Holy and fearsome God. This is good; but only good in the sense that the law was good. Matthew Henry states, "The gospel state is mild, and kind, and condescending, suited to our weak frame." Through gospel of Jesus Christ, we need not say with Moses, "I am trembling with fear." Why? Because we no longer relate to God through Mount Sinai and through the law. We are made part of a better covenant, a grace and joy filled covenant; we come to God - yes, God the judge - but as a "church of the firstborn" (all the rights of His firstborn) and mediated through the sprinkled blood of Jesus Christ. John Calvin writes, "God's glory displays itself more illustriously in the Gospel than in the Law."

God is indeed approachable.

Explicit proclamation

From John Piper's book Don't Waste Your Life

 

Since September 11, 2001, I have seen more clearly than ever how essential it is to exult explicitly in the excellence of Christ crucified for sinners and risen from the dead. Christ must be explicit in all our God-talk. It will not do, in this day of pluralism, to talk about the glory of God in vague ways. God without Christ is no God. And a no-God cannot save or satisfy the soul. Following a no-God - whatever his name or whatever his religion - will be a wasted life. God-in-Christ is the only true God and the only path to joy. [emphasis mine] p. 38

 

How easy it is to slip into god-talk without Christ being present. As Dr. Piper says this is a no-God. (I would say this is talk of god, not God).  If we don't make and effort to speak specifically and explicitly of Christ, how will it happen? Both Muslim, Hindi, Jew, and Christian can subscribe to the adage, "In God We Trust." Each, however, brings a different understanding of that god/God. Our challenge in our pluralistic world is to "declare the praises of him [Christ, the crucified God] who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light." What practical steps will you take to make that happen today?