SoCal Theologica: Theological Musings from the West Coast

Thank you for posting these. It humbles me every time to read them! How awesome it is to be sharpened by great people of the faith!

I have not yet posted on your two previous, posts of the resolutions partially because I do not know what to say in light of such commitment, and partially out of the realization that should I reflect and write on one, I would become an absolute hypocrite if I did not try to do what is right in conforming to these wise maxims. I never want to be someone in public that I am not before God alone. That being the case I think that the #20 is very wise and something that I need to consider. I eat out to much, and I eat to much. I do not take into account my diet and sometimes forget to eat. The puritans embraced the goodness of food, and drink, and sex, and fun; they just believed in moderation. Like proverbs says “have you found honey, eat only until you are satisfied”. I need to be more moderate in everything I do especially food and drink.
Also #19 is important. The world is purposefully set up so that you can carry out your day, indeed your whole life without God. T.V., stores, sports, all good things potentially and yet none of them in our country leads one to consider God, Heaven, Hell, the most important things are left out of the nightly news. What things would I not do if I knew that Christ or death would take me? I will think on this!

Can I just start off by saying Jonathan Edwards is incredible! As I read through these statements I found it hard to even find one of them I fully do. The one that really struck me was number 17.

“Resolved, that I will live so, as I shall wish I had done when I come to die.”

Maybe this is because I am young, but thoughts of death never cross my mind. Reading statements like this always seem to sober me and give me such a better perspective on life. As James says, “Life is a vapor that appears for a little time then vanishes away.” Thanks for posting this. It was incredibly helpful for me to hear.

16. Resolved, never to speak evil of anyone, so that it shall tend to his dishonor, more or less, upon no account except for some real good.

I am faced with the situation of talking bad on people almost constantly as I am an RA in the Dorms at CBU for the freshmen boys. I hear conversations and am in conversations all the time that either are talking bad on someone or go that route real quick. But I want to also be resolved to never do this anymore, and instead to be someone who uses my words to build people up, and to edify them. I want to treat them either in light of them being my brother or sister in Christ, which in case they are also a part of my body. Or I want to treat them in light of them not being a believer, yet created in God’s image, and still dead in their sins and talking bad about them behind their back is not the answer to helping them hear and know the Gospel to salvation. So, I am resolved now to never speak evil of anyone at any time, unless it is called for for example a heretic. So here I go, today is a new day!

I think of Romans 2:1 where it says “in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself.” There are few things that exhibet more clearly the hypocrisy of man than when he judges. I’ll be driving with my wife and i’ll exhale as someone cuts me off. She gets kicks by thinking out loud and figuring out how many minutes, or if I’m lucky, how many hours or days its been since I did the same thing. My exhale has just judged me. Resolution #17 says ” Resolved, that I will live so, as I shall wish I had done when I come to die.” My consciense has found a new ability to reveal my hypocrisy; imagining lying on my death bed i do not want to think of myself as a hypocritical judge.