The God of Christians is not merely the author of mathematical truths or the order of the elements, as perceived by the pagans and Epicureans. Nor is He simply a God who providentially directs the lives and fortunes of men to bless His worshipers with long and happy years, as was the belief of the Jews. Rather, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob—the God of Christians—is a God of love and consolation. He is a God who fills the souls and hearts of His own, who makes them aware of their inner wretchedness and His infinite mercy. He unites Himself with their inmost spirit, filling it with humility, joy, confidence, and love, rendering them incapable of pursuing any end other than Himself.
All who seek God apart from Jesus Christ, and who rest in nature, either find no light to satisfy them or create for themselves a means of knowing God and serving Him without a mediator. As a result, they fall into either atheism or deism—two beliefs that the Christian religion equally abhors.
The God of Christians is a God who makes the soul perceive that He is her only good, her only rest, her only joy in loving Him. He also makes her abhor the obstacles that prevent her from loving Him with all her strength. These obstacles—self-love and lust—become unbearable to her. This God reveals to her that the root of self-love is destructive and that only He can heal.
The knowledge of God without the awareness of our wretchedness creates pride. Conversely, the knowledge of our wretchedness without the knowledge of God creates despair. The knowledge of Jesus Christ is the middle way because, in Him, we find both God and the recognition of our wretchedness.
Scripture References:
- Psalm 51:1-10
- Romans 7:24-25
- Micah 7:18-20
