On weekdays during Advent we are posting the daily reflection from our Abundance Advent booklet here on our blog. You can download the booklet in its entirety here.
“Batter my heart, three-personed God; for You
As yet but knock, breathe, shine, and seek to mend;
That I may rise & stand, o’erthrow me, and bend
Your force, to break, blow, burn, and make me new.
But seems like I’m betrothed to Your enemy;
Divorce me, untie or break that knot again.
Take me to You, imprison me, for I,
Except You enthrall me, never shall be free,
Nor ever chaste, except You ravish me”
— John Donne, Holy Sonnets
Advent should be about abundant awe. After all, doesn’t my heart see the Good News of Jesus Christ as abundantly awesome? Ah… that may be (depending on the moment you ask me), but do I see HIM as abundantly awesome throughout my busy days? Do I see HIM as Perfect Love?
Recently, I have been reviewing Jonathan Edwards’ insights on “True Virtue” [See his Nature of True Virtue wherein the reader is asked, “Do you see God as beautiful, or as merely useful?”]. This insight is toppling my “virtuous” idols of the heart: for example, love of family. If my highest goal in life on any given day becomes the good of my family, then, Edwards says, I will tend to care LESS for God… not to mention OTHER families! Likewise, if my highest goal in a given conversation is the good of our nation, or tribe, or race, then at that moment I will tend to be nationalistic or racist. This is why Edwards concludes the LORD—not merely His Good News (and certainly not family or race)—should be seen by me as my Supreme Affection. HE should be Ultimate, receiving my abundant allegiance. Could I, during my busy days of Advent, “seek HIM first”—His righteousness, His Kingdom? That’s what Jesus has been reminding me this autumn (Matthew 6:33).
Jesus also reminds me that true virtue (seeing Him as supremely beautiful) will indeed result in behavioral virtue—though it’ll be imperfect in this broken life. Under radical grace, not under bridle (like a horse), I’ll want to please Him because of the abundant beauty of His holiness. My favorite “Christmas” film as a youth became The Black Stallion (having watched it several Christmas breaks in a row). The boy, Alec Ramsey, saw the stallion submit in obedience not because of a bridle—but because of grace extended him. So, like a stallion under grace—convinced that I’m loved and abundantly forgiven in the Gospel by a holy LORD—there will be an abundant “spillage” effect: TRUE (not phony) virtue. Phony virtue flows from the bit and bridle. TRUE virtue flows from the abundantly sufficient Savior Who not only captivates me—but Whose beauty of holiness will also capture my affection and my allegiance.
As Edwards might’ve said, “Only under grace could we truly regret our (daily) sin—not because we’re afraid to be punished, but because we missed the Life of the Party and the Source of All Joy.” “There is no fear in love—but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love” (1 John 4:18).
May I see HIM as Perfect Love throughout all these busy days of Advent!