The Naturalistic Christian

A.W Tozer writes in his book “The Attributes of God”

“The Bible knew nothing about “the laws of nature.”  The Bible knows only that God was there.  If it rained, it was God watering His hills from His chambers.  If there was lightning, it was God, and if there was thunder, it was the “voice of the LORD” that “maketh the hinds to calve” (Psalm 29:9).  The writers of Scripture were acutely God-conscious, and they were never lonely because God was there.  “Surely the Lord is in this place; and I knew it not.” said Jacob (Genesis 28:16).  This Idea that god is an absentee engineer running His universe by remote control is all wrong.  He is present in perpetual and continual eagerness, with all the fervor of rapturous love pressing His holy designs.  If you don’t feel that way about it, it’s unbelief that makes you feel otherwise; it’s preoccupation with this world.”

In the age of Science, we now have laws of nature, where we explain everything away into a tight little package.  This is how we want to explain God, but He will not, and cannot be explained away like this!  How much of the life of the common Christian is just explained away by nature?  This leads us to think naturally about everything, and expect nothing supernatural.  It’s a walking unbelief and preoccupation with the world, says Tozer!

No wonder we have so many skeptic Christians in this world.  Romans 12 tells us to renew our minds, but the average Christian thinks that he or she only needs to renew enough of their mindset to acquire a get out of Hell free card.  Or that sure the Bible is God’s Word, but modern man needs more.  Sure they might venture further into the renewing of their mind when a crisis comes, say their marriage is in trouble, or they have a wayward child; but it doesn’t say to renew just a piece of their mind.

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind…” Romans 12:2

The World thinks naturally – is not that, the basis of Philosophical Naturalism?  That Nature and the Laws of Nature are all that exist.   It brings the view of God down to something manageable, or not there at all.  People have used the tools of Science, not for the good of man, but for the elevation and deification of man.  It’s natural for man to think he can handle this life on his own.

Even this is how the average Christian operates, with little consciousness of God in the midst of all things.  He is conformed, not to the Word of God, but to the rudimentary things of this world.  He has such a low view of God, and creates a high view of himself.   When Jesus says to deny ourselves and pick up our Cross, the Skeptic Christian does not see it as a divine command to be obeyed, but a natural consequence of being a Christian.

Oh what misery, this naturalistic view of God has done in my life!  C.S. Lewis rightly said that to be free from myself is like a drop of water to a man in the desert!  Be pricked in your heart and ask God whatever shall I do?  And He will say – repent, and turn to Me!  To see God as the author and finisher of our faith, to count it all as loss and to be found in Him!