The quotations from Packer and Lewis on pages 5 and 6 really resonated with me. It is such a happy thought that the pleasures and goodness we encounter in life are not merely illusions, nor are they so fleeting as to be lost forever once the moment has passed. Rather, the fundamental substance of these moments is God’s own everlasting goodness, which we will enjoy fully and eternally when the perfect comes in the redemption of all things.
For those in Christ, all things received from God are received by faith alone. This includes our final salvation, when we see God face to face and our joy is made complete, but it also includes the temporary, partial joys we receive now, as though looking in a mirror dimly. These too are received by faith.
This truth comes as a great relief to me. If true enjoyment of life is received by faith, then it cannot be obtained through works. I am often tempted to create, by my own effort and power, “the good life” for myself. In my experience, this always results in anxiety rather than enjoyment. For by my works, I cannot produce what I truly long for: an enjoyment of life that does not slip away with the passing of time and is secure forever.
But to receive by faith is to enjoy truly. For, as Lewis said, our object of enjoyment is not really the thing itself, but something yet ahead. And because the fullness of that joy is yet to come, we do not have to despair when the foretaste passes. Packer too was right in saying that the Christian is the one who can truly enjoy this life, because our life—and all the meaning and goodness within it—is preserved and secured by Christ.
I am reminded of our Lord’s teaching: truly happy are those who are poor in spirit, who have no power within themselves to obtain the good life, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven—that is, all things and all the promises of God.
The quotations from Packer and Lewis on pages 5 and 6 really resonated with me. It is such a happy thought that the pleasures and goodness we encounter in life are not merely illusions, nor are they so fleeting as to be lost forever once the moment has passed. Rather, the fundamental substance of these moments is God’s own everlasting goodness, which we will enjoy fully and eternally when the perfect comes in the redemption of all things.
For those in Christ, all things received from God are received by faith alone. This includes our final salvation, when we see God face to face and our joy is made complete, but it also includes the temporary, partial joys we receive now, as though looking in a mirror dimly. These too are received by faith.
This truth comes as a great relief to me. If true enjoyment of life is received by faith, then it cannot be obtained through works. I am often tempted to create, by my own effort and power, “the good life” for myself. In my experience, this always results in anxiety rather than enjoyment. For by my works, I cannot produce what I truly long for: an enjoyment of life that does not slip away with the passing of time and is secure forever.
But to receive by faith is to enjoy truly. For, as Lewis said, our object of enjoyment is not really the thing itself, but something yet ahead. And because the fullness of that joy is yet to come, we do not have to despair when the foretaste passes. Packer too was right in saying that the Christian is the one who can truly enjoy this life, because our life—and all the meaning and goodness within it—is preserved and secured by Christ.
I am reminded of our Lord’s teaching: truly happy are those who are poor in spirit, who have no power within themselves to obtain the good life, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven—that is, all things and all the promises of God.