The Fundamentals edited by R. A. Torrey (Available from Amazon or free here) - Read Chapter 9 (God in Christ the only revelation of the fatherhood of God).
Firstly he asks us to consider the relationship of this revelation that Jesus Christ made of the father-character of God in himself to our own religious faith.
Secondly Speer asks us whether we are realizing in our lives all the practical implications of this revelation of the father-character of God in Jesus Christ. For example, how it:
(i) interprets the mystery and the testing of life;
(ii) inspires and rectifies the ideals of our lives;
(iii) makes obedience rational and sweet;
(iv) brings new courage and hope into a man's life.
Thirdly Speer urges us to think of the light that this conception of God throws upon our life of prayer.
His conclusion after examining the Old Testament is: 'And if in all the great body of the religious poetry of Israel there are only two or three distinct notes of the fatherhood of God, we cannot believe that that idea filled any very large place in the heart of Israel. And in the very last of all the Old Testament prophecies, the complaint of God is just this, that the Israelites would not conceive of Him as their Father, and that even the political conception of God as the Father of the nation was no reality in the experience of the people.'
Just because the fatherhood of God was not a reality for some Israelites does not mean that the fatherhood of God was 'only' revealed in Christ. I think Speer could have been a little more careful in avoiding such sweeping statements.
Next week's reading
Now it's your turn
Please post your own notes and thoughts in the comments section below.
2 comments:
I found this an odd, rather dis-consonant chapter. Mr. Speer made the point well that we must conceive of God as Our Father, in order to truly understand the trials and delights of this world; that it is not just blind, arbitrary fate, but the works of a Father who loves us, and there is so very much comfort in that knowledge!
His disconnect with the God of the Old Testament though was troubling, as if the God of Abraham, Moses and David was not the exact same loving Father as He is to us, even if their conception of Jesus the Son was dimmer and more shadowy. Such a view, to me at least, really diminishes the importance and edification of the Old Testament.
Yes CJ, I agree with your point.
I think this chapter was a step down from some of the other fine chapters in the book.
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