Christians are encouraged from childhood to think of the church building as “God’s house,” and most of them could think of their houses or farms or shops or factories as holy places only with great effort and embarrassment. It is understandably difficult for modern Americans to think of their dwellings and workplaces as holy, because most of these are, in fact, places of desecration, deeply involved in the ruin of Creation.
— Wendell Berry, Christianity and The Survival of Creation
[God] is not to be fenced in, under human control, like some domestic creature; he is the wildest being in existence.
– Wendell Berry, Christianity and The Survival of Creation
God’s fire only falls on sacrifice. An empty altar receives no fire!
When holiness loses its sweetness, it is a fierce thing to come in contact with.
The self-righteous never apologize.
– Leonard Ravenhill
As Thomas Aquinas is supposed to have said, the Western church can no longer say “Silver and gold have I none” but neither can we say, “Rise up and walk.”
The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and left untried.
“Run, John, run,” the law commands
But gives me neither feet nor hands.
Yet better news the gospel brings;
It bids me fly and gives me wings.
– After John Berridge (1716-1793)
“Truth without enthusiasm, morality without emotion, ritual without soul, are things Christ unsparingly condemned. Destitute of fire, they are nothing more than a godless philosophy, an ethical system, and a superstition.”
“Revival and change are almost synonymous terms and both clearly cut across traditionalism. There is no way true revival can occur without major changes disrupting and reordering the life of the Church… God is no traditionalist. While God is orderly, He is always fresh and vital. If a church can run according to forms and traditions of men, it will run without the presence and power of God … Is it any wonder the love of tradition is an enemy to revival? Revival and new life go hand in hand … Let every church realize that the inordinate love of tradition is a great opponent to revival … When a church slays the love of tradition, a major obstacle to revival will be slain with it.”