thinking about thinking

It is impossible to know and love God without thinking. He has revealed himself not only in his Son, but also by the many words of Scripture. There is content, and much to learn about God. We cannot love him without knowing about him.

But thinking is not the end in itself, it is the means. Here's John Piper on the role and place of thought in loving God...

"I will suggest that loving God with the mind means that our thinking is wholly engaged to do all it can to awaken and express the heartfelt fullness of treasuring God above all things. Treasuring God is the essence of loving him, and the mind serves this love by comprehending (imperfectly and partially, but truly) the truth and beauty and worth of the Treasure.

"The upshot is that the task of all Christian scholarship—not just biblical studies—is to study reality as a manifestation of God’s glory, to speak and write about it with accuracy, and to savor the beauty of God in it, and to make it serve the good of man.

"In summary then, all branches of learning—and this book about thinking—exist ultimately for the purposes of knowing God, loving God, and loving man through Jesus Christ. And since loving man means ultimately helping him see and savor God in Christ forever, it is profoundly right to say all thinking, all learning, all education, and all research is for the sake of knowing God, loving God, and showing God. 'For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen' (Rom. 11:36)."

(John Piper, Think: The Life of the Mind and the Love of God)

Comments

JLTan said…

God is amazing. He created the fish that fly and the birds that don't.

July 17, 2011 at 10:30 PM

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