Category: The Christian Spirit

Reflections on living as a disciple of Christ.

Finney: Effective Prayer

  

Charles Finney writes of “agonizing prayer.” What he means by this is a deep connection of the individual with the heart of God for the salvation of others. It’s not an external effort—the harder we pray, the more will happen—but an internal identification with the will of God and a sincere desire to see His will fulfilled. Properly understood, this type of prayer stems from humility and will never become proud when an answer is received. Finney explains it this… Read more »

Remembering—and Rereading—C. S. Lewis

  

Fifty years ago yesterday, C. S. Lewis, just one week shy of his 65th birthday, slipped into eternity. At the ripe young age of twelve, I was unaware of his death. The whole world was watching the unfolding events surrounding the JFK assassination, so the passing of a university professor whose writings had awakened a generation to the vibrancy of Christianity, went virtually unnoticed. Lewis himself felt his influence had waned in his later years. Most observers agreed, and they… Read more »

Finney: The Foundation of Our Moral Obligations

  

Charles Finney can get into some pretty deep waters at times in his Systematic Theology. Yet if we understand the aim of his discussion, we see there is always a practical application of any theory he dissects. For instance, he takes on philosophers and/or theologians who say the foundation of our moral obligations is “will the right for the sake of the right.” Not so, says Finney: The law of God does not, cannot require us to love right more… Read more »

C. S. Lewis on “Being Good”

  

C. S. Lewis shows in Mere Christianity how the typical understanding of “being good” is in direct contradiction to the real Biblical explanation: The Christian is in a different position from other people who are trying to be good. They hope, by being good, to please God if there is one; or—if they think there is not—at least they hope to deserve approval from good men. But the Christian thinks any good he does comes from the Christ-life inside him…. Read more »

The God of the Second Chance: A Personal Testimony

  

I was a young man on fire for the Lord. At age 22, just after graduation from college, I became part of the ministry of the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN). As an on-air radio announcer, I played contemporary Christian music and offered whatever spiritual insights a 22-year-old could possibly offer. Then my church started a Christian school and looked around for someone with a degree of some kind to become its headmaster. My radio, television, and film degree seemed to… Read more »

Finney: Effective Preaching

  

A few Sundays ago, I drew from Charles Finney’s autobiography some of his comments on how other ministers criticized his speaking style. Today, again from that autobiography, a few more thoughts from that evangelist along the same line: I used to say to ministers, whenever they contended with me about my manner of preaching, and desired me to adopt their ideas and preach as they did, that I dared not make the change they desired. I said, “Show me a… Read more »

Lewis: Discerning Good & Evil

  

The apostle Paul notes that “the god of this world [i.e., Satan] has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel.” Scripture also talks often about how those without the truth are walking in darkness. C. S. Lewis picks up on this theme in Mere Christianity when he explains how sin warps our understanding of our very sinfulness: The right direction leads not only to peace but to knowledge. When a… Read more »