And the winner is…Wrap-up of Spring Reading Thing

The Spring Reading Thing ends today!

And I crossed the finish line! I finished reading all the books on my list—but only because they were on my list. I might have ditched a couple after 50 pages (my cut-off evaluation point) had I not committed to reading them (Hospitality and Intercession, for example), but in the end, every single book was worth the time.

And now, the book and author winners from my list of 
Spring Reading Thing 2009!

BOOKS
Most recommended for YOU to read
The Love Dare by Stephen & Alex Kendrick

Why? Because it’s so practical, so every day, so needed. It’s an invitation to step outside yourself, past your comfort zone, into Christ’s world of self-surrender. It’s more than a book to read; it’s a book to change who you are.

Most inspirational
Real Christianity by William Wilberforce
coupled with Amazing Grace in the Life of William Wilberforce by John Piper

Why? William Wilberforce is a great example of perseverance and sticking with your core beliefs, no matter what. He never compromised in his battle to end the slave trade in Britain.

Most personally challenging
A Christian View of Hospitality by Michele Hershberger

Why? It still hasn’t left me. It’s a book I had for a few years and couldn’t make myself read. But my list inspired me to finish it. I’m glad I did because it’s making me rethink hospitality in broader ways than just inviting people over for supper.

Most frustrating
Surprised by Hope by N.  T. Wright

Why? The syntax, the concepts, the loops. But much food for thought. Mental and spiritual exercise is important. I'll try to read it again. Later.

AUTHORS
Most encouraging
Tim Hansel

Why? Despite pain, hardship, struggles—he chooses joy. He drinks from the Living Water.

Favorite new authors
Leigh McLeroy (The Beautiful Ache) and Sue Monk Kidd (Firstlight; The Secret Life of Bees)

Why? Their writing is very similar—they spiritualize the everyday stuff. That’s what I need. That’s where I live.

Most convicting
John Piper (This Momentary Marriage; Amazing Grace in the Life of William Wilberforce)

Why? No matter the subject he’s writing about, Piper always challenges me to find greater satisfaction and joy in God. In This Momentary Marriage, he introduced me to an even deeper, more spiritual view of marriage than I’d ever had before. Read it!

* * * * *

What I learned from The Spring Reading Thing:

• I learned that if I commit to read a book to the end, that it can pay off. But not always.Use good judgment.
• I learned that I miss my library books and the randomness with which book selections come to me.
• I learned that it feels good to dust books off my shelves that have been sitting unread for too long.
• I learned that God has so much he wants me to learn from others (well, I really already knew that).

The power and number of words never ceases to amaze me. Thanks, Katrina at Callapidder Days, for encouraging us to jump into that bottomless pit of books. It’s a journey I never want to end.

~ Read other wrap-ups from Spring Reading Thing 2009

Practical Christianity (“Real Christianity”)

Chapter 7 “Conclusion: Practical Hints for Real Christianity”

Don’t undermine the difference between professing believers and true believers “as if it were merely a matter of form and opinion. The issue is the very heart of religion. The difference is of the utmost seriousness. We must speak out.”

And so William Wilberforce speaks out.

Examine Yourself
In this last chapter of his book, he advises his readers to avoid self-deception of victory over vices, if that victory is conditional only upon a change of life circumstances.

He lists several temptations that occur at different stages of life. In youth—thoughtlessness, idleness, and indulgences. In middle age—engrossed by worldly cares, family interests, pursuit of wealth and ambition.

Instead, continue in self-examination in light of the costly sacrifice of Jesus’ death.

Be Indifferent to Man’s Opinion
He also urges a comparative indifference to the favor of men. Resolve to not rate “human esteem beyond its true value.” Be aware of your own radical corruption and habitual weakness, and let God open your eyes and soften your hearts to please Him.

To unbelievers, he charges a serious examination of Christianity. To half-believers, he says there is no basis for a middle ground.

And to true Christians, he maintains they are the most important members of the community. They need “singleness of purpose, consistency of behavior, and perseverance in effort...Boldly assert the cause of Christ in an age when so many who bear the name of Christian are ashamed of Him.”

Do Something
One measure of progress is the service you’re giving others. Christianity is not a system of restraints, but a “large and liberal measure of voluntary service.”

Serve others. Be generous. Show self-denial. Be ashamed of idleness. Pray continually for your country.

He closes with a plea for his writings, “this feeble endeavor in the service of true religion,” to be successful, for “God can give effect to the weakest effort.”

Since we’re still reading and being encouraged by his words 200 years later, I’d say God has indeed blessed the efforts of William Wilberforce. May He continue on.

Others' thoughts on Chapter 7

Book Review: “Amazing Grace in the Life of William Wilberforce”

Short (only 76 pages).
Sweet.
Inspiring.

William Wilberforce is best known for his enduring fight against the British empire to first abolish the African slave trade, then outlaw slavery altogether. It encompassed almost 46 years of his life, from 1787 to 1833, ending in victory three days before his death.

What keeps a man fighting so long, when he meets defeat after defeat, for years on end? It was not political correctness or people-pleasing or social justice without a cause.

Wilberforce persevered for eternal reasons—first, to please God; second, to help mankind.

As Wilberforce would say: “You can’t endure in bearing fruit if you sever the root.”

He lived out Micah 6:8, “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” In his fights for justice (more than just anti-slavery), he linked social good with eternal good.

John Piper, in his typical fashion, authors this book with clarity, stressing the main points so you can’t miss them, and sharing enough anecdotes about Wilberforce to keep it personal. He suggests you read Wilberforce’s own book first (The Practical View of Christianity a.k.a. Real Christianity) so you can understand the Biblical passion that made him tick. (It's helpful, but not a prerequisite. I’m on the last chapter—close enough? )

But even if you read nothing else by or about Wilberforce, read Piper’s Amazing Grace (free on-line). It’s enough to inspire you to make a difference where you are, in the time that you’re in, for as long as it takes.

Piper’s last paragraph sums up the bigger picture of Wilberforce's life to include us:

• Never minimize the central place of God-centered, Christ-exalting doctrine
• Labor to be indomitably joyful in all that God is for us in Christ by trusting his great finished work
• Never be idle in doing good—that men may see our good deeds and give glory to our Father who is in heaven (Matthew 5:16).

Religion and society (“Real Christianity”)

Chapter 5 – The Excellence of Real Christianity

Major doctrines of faith should agree with its practical precepts.

While nominal Christianity “is satisfied with a tolerable appearance of virtue,” recommending love and charity, but tolerating pride and vanity, true Christianity “seeks the actual substance which will stand the scrutinizing eyes of God.”

It prefers moral rather than intellectual excellence, conducting its followers “to the higher heights of virtue than of knowledge.”

Chapter 6 – A Brief Inquiry into the Present State of Christianity

Summary: Christian behaviors bring out the best in a culture, and thus are politically advantageous as well as morally advantageous. Don’t pursue Christianity solely for its benefits, but expect those natural, positive effects to result.

Wilberforce laments the fall of morals in England in his time (late 1700’s). Some causes?

1. Too little persecution
As persecution usually quickens the opinion that it seeks to destroy, so in the lack of persecution, the “soldiers of the church militant will tend to forget they are at war.”

2. Pampered lifestyles
“The multiplication of large cities, and of luxury within them, also contributes to the decline in morals....The spirit of commercialism does not favor the maintenance of the religious spirit in a virile and lively state.”

3. Tolerated vices
Christianity declines when “those elements that are incompatible by nature, such as pride, luxury, and worldly-mindedness are allowed to increase.”

If man turns Christianity into a mere system of ethics instead of undergirding it with theological foundations, God is forgotten, his providence is explained away, and his hand is unseen.

The mark of a true Christian is his desire to please God in all his thoughts, words, and actions. He is to “adorn the doctrine he professes.” Such a motive allows him to carry on his vocation with vigor.

“His foremost concern would not be so much to succeed as it would be to have a principled life before God. So he would not be liable to the same disappointments as men who are active in labor for worldly gain or fame. And thus he would possess the true secret of a life that was both useful and happy.”

The disease of selfishness short-circuits this process. It prevents “the life’s breath of the state” to stay active and vigorous in reaching its true greatness and glory. This can be counteracted with the proper humility that Christianity encourages.

Wilberforce ends chapter 6 urging his readers to understand that political motives alone should not prompt us to act properly, but as we live out true Christianity, society improves as a natural consequence.

More thoughts from Chapters 5,6

Real Christianity or Substitute?

Thoughts from Real Christianity by William Wilberforce, Chapter 4

What if Christianity were to disappear? Would it matter in the behavior of people? Do you really need the religion of it in order to have the behaviors of it?

Scripture uses lots of BIG language: be PERFECT; be HOLY; do ALL in the name of Jesus. Very strict standards. All our abilities, time, and influence now belong and are consecrated to the honor of God and are employed in his service, not for our own gratification.

God wants all of us. For HIS use. Can Christian behaviors without that purpose still accomplish the same good?

DESIRE FOR PRAISE
We fail to realize how burdensome our sins are to ourselves and to God. Particularly the desire for human praise. Are our motives behind Christian behaviors for the praise of man, or the praise of God? Can we distinguish between true and substitute Christianity by our motives?

The desire for human admiration and applause is perhaps the most general passion and the most commanding authority. It doesn’t spare age or sex or condition of man. “It takes 10,000 shapes, the most artful disguises, and winds its way in secret when it dare not openly assert itself. It is often the master passion of the soul.”

Thus, a Christian should be suspicious when he is lavishly praised by the world. And when it comes unsolicited, accept it “as given by Providence for a present comfort and a reward for virtue....Watch for opportunities of doing kindness “ to turn them “to good account...and to the glory of God.”

Use a praised reputation for good: To remove or lessen prejudices. To conciliate goodwill. Step forward with benevolent and useful schemes. Seek the cooperation of men of goodwill.

"The Christian principle will operate uniformly whether approved or not. More than mortal firmness must nerve it in order for it to prove genuine."

MOTIVES FOR DOING GOOD
What about those who do good things, but not because of Christian love? Even amiable qualities of benevolence and usefulness cannot substitute for the supreme love and fear of God. The first commandment cannot be abolished in preference to obeying the second commandment. It is a body without a soul.

Only Christian practice can flow from Christian principle. God is to be obeyed as well as worshiped “in spirit and in truth” (John 4:23). In lacking faith, they cannot enter into the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 5:20).

SIN – DENYING GOD’S SOVEREIGNTY
Scripture considers sin rebellion against the sovereignty of God. Every different act of sin equally violates His law. If persevered in, it denies His sovereignty.

The main distinction between real Christianity and substitutes for Christianity is the differing place given to the Gospel. To the real Christian, the Gospel constitutes the center in which he gravitates, like the sun of his system, the source of his light, warmth and life, not like distant stars that twinkle with a vain and idle luster.

“If the affections of the soul are not supremely fixed on God, and if our dominant desire and primary goal is not to possess God’s favor and to promote His glory—then we are traitors in revolt against our lawful Sovereign.”

Others' thoughts on REAL CHRISTIANITY, Chapter 4

Review of Ch 3, "Real Christianity"

Chapter 3: Inadequate Conceptions of God and of Christian Behavior

While most Christians share certain basic doctrines, all of which exalt Christ’s sacrifice for our sin, William Wilberforce points out in Real Christianity that not all Christians share the same reaction to those truths, thereby “uncovering a major defect.” We have inadequate conceptions of God and of Christian behavior.

Small Sense of Sins

If we truly grasped the weight of our sins, our “hearts would have danced with joy at this invitation: “Come unto me, all you that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).

But because we (the collective “we,” covering both Wilberforce's 18th century audience and equally as easily our own) have such a small sense of our sins, we likewise have a small sense of God’s grace.

Try his experiment: engage a fellow Christian in a conversation about religion. Does the talk center only on religious generalities, or is there evidence there has been previous contemplation on specific realities?

Christian Behavior

Wilberforce suggests a Christian should reflect an “ardent, active, and patient zeal in his service. It is a zeal tempered with prudence and softened with meekness...supported by a courage that no danger can intimidate and a quiet constancy that no hardship can exhaust.”

(And doesn’t history prove that Wilberforce lived that out through his long-suffering in battling the slave trade in Britain?)

Validity of the Emotions within Religion

“It is surely presumptuous to propose excluding from the Christian religion such a large part of the composition of man.”

“Indeed, we can scarcely look into any part of the sacred volume without meeting abundant proofs that it is the religion of the affections that God particularly requires. Love, zeal, gratitude, joy, hope, trust—the Word specifies each of them. It does not allow for them as weaknesses. Instead the Bible commands them as our duty and commends them to us as our acceptable worship.”

Scripture does not “represent the worship and service of the glorified spirits in heaven as a cold, intellectual investigation.” Our worship and service likewise should be full of gratitude and love. Not with superficial feeling, but with permanent emotion and proven by actions of service and love (John 14:23; 1 John 5:3).

The chapter ends with Wilberforce’s imagery of the finger of God Himself engraving the name of Jesus deeply on our hearts in everlasting characters. How beautiful! This enables us to keep our burdens lighter when in sorrow, and fill us even more fully with joy when in happier moments.

I’m discovering more and more why Real Christianity is a classic. The timeless truths it contains apply to Christians of all eras.

Others' thoughts from REAL CHRISTIANITY, Chapter 3

Do we get it? (Ch 2, “Real Christianity”)

Christians don’t get it.

William Wilberforce in Real Christianity says we don’t understand how wretched humanity really is. We think we’re basically pure, and only occasionally, and perhaps involuntarily, overpowered by temptation.

We “either overlook or deny the corruption and weakness of human nature.”

Instead, we talk of “frailty and infirmity, of petty transgressions, of occasional failing, and of accidental incidents.” But where is talk of sin? Rarely is it so named.

Reality proves that we are fallen, disposed toward evil, and prone to vice. “Not slightly and superficially, but radically, and to the very core of his being.”

Mr. Wilberforce, you sound so harsh!

Okay, so perhaps our reason is often clouded, our affections perverted. Anger, envy, hatred, and revenge often spring up in our wretched bosoms. We can indeed be a slave to the meanest of our appetites. But to call us depraved?

Yes. He calls us depraved. Even amongst Christians who have higher morals, prosperity hardens our hearts; unlimited power is ever abused; habits of vice grow up by themselves.

Scripture also calls our bluff, if we think we’re anything other than fallen creatures. See Job 15:14; Psalm 51:5; Psalm 53:2-3; Proverbs 20:9; Jeremiah 17:9; Romans 7:24; Ephesians 2:3.

To make matters even worse, not only do we have to contend “with our own natural depravity, but also with the power of darkness, the Evil Spirit.” Yet even in Wilberforce’s day (much less ours!) we “have universally abandoned the Devil as a reality....Like ghosts and witches and other phantoms that haunted the night of superstition, it cannot in these enlightened times stand the test of our more critical scrutiny.”

Wilberforce calls us, instead, to wake up to the realness of our enemy, not as a “metaphysical speculation, but a practical matter. For having no sense of the malignity of our disease and of its dreadful issue, we do not work earnestly to obtain the remedy.”

God stands ready with help, if we'll admit that we're sick and we desperately need his healing.

“What better can we do, than prostrate fall
Before Him reverence; and there confess
Humbly our faults, and pardon beg; with tears
Watering the ground, and with our sighs the air
Frequenting, sent from hearts contrite, in sign
Of sorrow unfeigned, and humiliation meek?”

~ Milton, Paradise Lost, Book X

Others' thoughts on Real Christianity, Chapter 2

3 Questions to Ask Christians (from "Real Christianity")

[I finally watched Amazing Grace last Saturday. If you haven’t seen it yet, please take the time. It got me even more fired up to read William Wilberforce’s Real Christianity and seek out more of his story.]

In chapter 1 of his book Real Christianity, Wilberforce makes me ask—what do I mean when I say, “I’m a Christian”? What do others mean? Does it mean we live for Jesus? Or rather that we’re just trying to be good people, tolerant of others, etc.? The latter is not Christianity.

"...Examine these Christians’ profession a little closer. [They] do not pay homage to Christianity in particular. At best they pay homage to religion in general—perhaps to mere morality."

I like these three mini-tests that Wilberforce intimates about our Christian beliefs:

1. Are you teaching it to your children?
Wilberforce presses in: what are we telling our kids about faith? Are we passing along the gospel of Jesus Christ? Or is it that often the “attachment to Christianity is merely the result of early and groundless prepossession. He was born in a Christian country, so of course he is a Christian.” Many Europeans felt that way then; so do many Americans now. Wilberforce was seeking to overcome that.

2. Do you talk about it outside of “church?”
What do we “Christians” talk about in our “confidential hours?” Can you overhear us speaking about our love for God and our thanksgiving for his blessings? Or does the name of Jesus never cross our lips unless we're in a Bible class?

3. Do you spend time studying its sacred text, the Bible?
Wilberforce is appalled at the contradiction between claiming Christianity yet not being a student of the Scriptures. “How criminal, then, must this voluntary ignorance of Christianity and the Word of God appear in the sight of God. When God of His goodness has granted us such abundant means of instruction, how great must be the guilt, and how awful must be the punishment, of voluntary ignorance!”

Voluntary ignorance? A bold phrase that indicts us all.

“Bountiful as is the hand of Providence, it does not bestow its gifts to seduce us into laziness. It bestows gifts to arouse us to exertion. No one expects to attain to the heights of learning, or arts, or power, or wealth, or military glory without vigorous resolution, strenuous diligence, and steady perseverance. Yet we expect to be Christians without labor, study, or inquiry!....We cannot reasonably expect to become proficient accidentally.”

“Though the Gospel had been predicted, prayed and longed for, announced, characterized and rejoiced in, we scarcely accept this heavenly treasure even when it is poured in our lap in rich abundance. We turn from it coldly, or, at best, possess it negligently as a thing of no estimation.”
Romans 10:17. John 5:39. 1 Peter 3:15. Luke 10:24.

If we answer, “No, no, and no” to the above three questions, we need to rethink what our “religion” really is.

Others’ thoughts on Real Christianity, Chapter 1

Swapping Questions with Mr. Wilberforce

Today marks the official opening of the latest Reading Classics Together book group at Challies.com: Real Christianity: Discerning True Faith from False Beliefs by William Wilberforce. (Am I allowed to start reading even though I have yet to see the movie Amazing Grace?)

The Introduction to the edition I’m reading is by Senator Mark Hatfield, a WW2 veteran and long-time Republican senator from Oregon, now retired, often called “the conscience of the Senate.” His endorsement comes as an example of a modern-day Wilberforce, living out Christianity in government service.

It’s been said of him, using Wilberforce’s words: “How careful ought I to be, that I do not disgust men by the inconsistency between the picture of a Christian which I draw, and which I exhibit!”

That sentiment rattles among all of us who wear the name of Christ, but feel uncomfortable when others look beneath our label to see what is really there.

Sen. Hatfield found that in Wilberforce’s life was “the resolve, early in his career, to focus legislative and personal agenda on building relationships....He sought to continue the incarnation of the Word in loving acts of mercy, justice, and charity to those around him, even if they were adversaries.”

So my interest is piqued. I’ll read on about Wilberforce.

I want to see what undergirded his conviction to abolish the slave trade and reform manners in England. What compelled him to take on the “grand malady” of his day, and how can we do so in our day? In what ways did he build relationships to be an incarnation of the Word?

Perhaps Chapter 1 (that's next week) will begin answering some questions. It's entitled “Inadequate Conceptions of the Importance of Christianity”—lofty words...I’m now peeking at the end of the chapter...“Great indeed are our opportunities. Great also is our responsibility. And when finally summoned to the bar of God to give an account of our stewardship, what plea can we have to urge in our defense?”

So not only will I have questions for Mr. Wilberforce, it looks like he’ll have questions for me, too.