Analysis/exposition in part of some points made in John Piper's points in his book "Let the Nations be Glad"
On the point of Worship being ultimately important-
Yes, missionary activity is not an end in itself. Missionary work is embarked up for the sake of bringing people to God that they may worship Him. Ultimately, the universe and all the people who are in it will give God glory and honor willingly or unwillingly. Our job as a the Church is get as many people as we can to do it willingly and happily. To take this statement to its full logical conclusion, God is the center of the universe not man. Missionary activity happens to be good for us: i.e. its better to amongst the belieiving saved than not, but it seems that in Piper's ananlysis that missionary activity and the saving of souls (which if you are Calvinist is strictly God's purview also) is a means to an end, an instrumentality used by God to garner Himself more praise. This all seems remarkably megalomaniacal until you encounter John Piper's other point: :
"Missions is the overflow of God's delight in being God."
One of the traditional western dictums about the nature of God, arising partly out of the Greek philsophical tradition
(Platonic Forms, Aristotle's unmoved mover, etc.) , as well as the Old and New Testaments, is that God is by definition a being who is so effulgent and manifoldly wonderful, that He is ultimately worthy of all serious praise and attention in the Universe. Even His own. His perfection is so complete, that when He considers His own perfection, He cannot help but take delight and wish others to share in His appreciation for His own perfection and beauty. How gracious of Him to make us strictly for the sake of comprehending and being eternally giddy over Him. Boring it will not be. Praise be to God. We as humans cannot bear this sort ofthing in each other, and rightfully call people who take part in this behavior megalomaniacs, fascists, and dictators. And perhaps this is as it should be, because only God is worthy of such adoration and attention, and our rightful place is at His feet giving credit where credit due, not being morbidly introspective at the outskirts of the Heavenly City, plumbing the depths of our own glory (or lack thereof).
Yes, missionary activity is not an end in itself. Missionary work is embarked up for the sake of bringing people to God that they may worship Him. Ultimately, the universe and all the people who are in it will give God glory and honor willingly or unwillingly. Our job as a the Church is get as many people as we can to do it willingly and happily. To take this statement to its full logical conclusion, God is the center of the universe not man. Missionary activity happens to be good for us: i.e. its better to amongst the belieiving saved than not, but it seems that in Piper's ananlysis that missionary activity and the saving of souls (which if you are Calvinist is strictly God's purview also) is a means to an end, an instrumentality used by God to garner Himself more praise. This all seems remarkably megalomaniacal until you encounter John Piper's other point: :
"Missions is the overflow of God's delight in being God."
One of the traditional western dictums about the nature of God, arising partly out of the Greek philsophical tradition
(Platonic Forms, Aristotle's unmoved mover, etc.) , as well as the Old and New Testaments, is that God is by definition a being who is so effulgent and manifoldly wonderful, that He is ultimately worthy of all serious praise and attention in the Universe. Even His own. His perfection is so complete, that when He considers His own perfection, He cannot help but take delight and wish others to share in His appreciation for His own perfection and beauty. How gracious of Him to make us strictly for the sake of comprehending and being eternally giddy over Him. Boring it will not be. Praise be to God. We as humans cannot bear this sort ofthing in each other, and rightfully call people who take part in this behavior megalomaniacs, fascists, and dictators. And perhaps this is as it should be, because only God is worthy of such adoration and attention, and our rightful place is at His feet giving credit where credit due, not being morbidly introspective at the outskirts of the Heavenly City, plumbing the depths of our own glory (or lack thereof).
posted by Troy at 5:07 PM
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