Practical Christian Living

I was recently asked the question, “What attributes of God have you been meditating on this past week?”  It caught me off guard.  Not because I didn’t have an answer, but because I did…In fact, I had several!  I am becoming more convinced that, at least in my life, the Lord works in “themes.” And, recently, it has been the theme of a right view of God…and the impact that has on all areas of my daily life.  So, this question, though somewhat unexpected, fit right in!

Jason and I heard C.J. Mahaney speak on the topic of humility earlier this year at the Shepherd’s Conference.  As a result, I once again picked up his book, Humility: True Greatness (which I purchased some time ago, and had on my “to-be-read” list for a while!).  The message he gave at the conference was packed with practical insights on how to pursue humility – both in day to day practices, as well as long-term.  The book is filled with the same practical advice…and more!  (An example: his recommendation to be “fully alert and, if necessary, fully caffeinated.” (pg. 87)  One of the many reasons I like this man…and yet another reason to add to my list of why he of reminds me of my dad…)

In chapter 7, “For Special Focus,” he recommends several practices that require going beyond our daily routine, and into times of extended concentration and study.  First on his list is the recommendation to study the attributes of God.

Study all of His attributes, but I recommend you study in particular what the theologians have identified as the incommunicable attributes of God.  These are the attributes of God for which no human reflection or human illustration can be found.  They’re attributes that God doesn’t share with us. (pg. 87)

As a result of this suggestion, I dusted off my copy of A.W. Tozer’s Knowledge of the Holy, and began incorporating a study of the attributes of God into my personal devotions for a little while.  In chapter 1, Tozer begins his study by saying that, “A right conception of God is basic not only to systematic theology but to practical Christian living as well.” (pg. 2) 

I don’t know about you, but meditating on the attributes of God is not something that I generally associate with “practical Christian living.”  It is one of those topics that I tend to (wrongly) relegate to the more “academic” areas of life…sermons, Sunday school lessons, or maybe those really theologically-minded bloggers…  Maybe if a direct question is posed, or “circumstances” call for it, I may focus in on one, maybe two attributes for a couple of hours.  But, Mahaney goes on to say that,

As we investigate such attributes, we become increasingly aware of the indescribably vast distance between ourselves and God.  Ironically, this distance from God will be even more real to us when we get “closer” to God in Heaven, as Jonathan Edwards reminds us: “The saints in glory are so much employed in praise, because they are perfect in humility, and have so great a sense of the infinite distance between them and God.” (pg. 89)

After finishing The Knowledge of the Holy, I moved on to A.W. Pink’s The Attributes of God, on my husband’s recommendation.  At the end of this book, in a chapter entitled “The Contemplation of God,” Pink says,

When we turn our thoughts to God’s eternity, His immateriality, His omnipresence, His almightiness, our minds are overwhelmed.  But the incomprehensibility of the Divine nature is not a reason why we should desist from reverent inquiry and prayerful strivings to apprehend what He has so graciously revealed to Himself in His Word.” (pg. 88)

These are exactly the attributes that Mahaney is suggesting we focus on – eternal, immaterial, omnipresent, almighty – attributes that we, as humans, do not share.  And, it is overwhelming to think about.  But, Pink goes on to echo Mahaney’s conclusion that focusing on these very attributes will ultimately lead to humility by saying, “Yes, the incomprehensibility of the Divine nature should teach us humility, caution, and reverence.” (pg. 89)  And those are things that can – and should – be incorporated into our everyday, practical, Christian living!

So, I’ll ask you the same question:

What attributes of God have you been meditating on this week?

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Thus says the Lord: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the Lord.”
~Jeremiah 9:23-24 (ESV)~