Letters to a Young Calvinist

“Letters To A Young Calvinist” by James K.A. Smith is an EXCELLENT book! Talk about putting Calvinism in a nutshell! Back at Kuyper College I took a class called Calvinism and though that went way more in depth, I found myself going back to what I learned then. I would HIGHLY recommend this book for anyone who wants to understand the Reformed traditions and Calvinism in a nutshell. Some words are a little “big,” but overall, I think it’s a pretty easy book to understand.

Here are some things that I learned, pondered, appreciated, and enjoy (quotations are things directly quoted from book).

– It reminds the reader to not be afraid to ask questions! I LOVE that! “Don’t be afraid to ask hard questions” (pg. 3). That is a HUGE misconception I think – adults see questions as disbelief, where kids/teens see questions as trying to get understanding, but often questions aren’t asked because of fear of judgment or having the feeling of being “dumb.”

– Sometimes “Religious Pride” (chapter 2) can get in the way of a true relationship with others and even Christ. It says, “It sometimes sounds like you think you’ve achieved some new secret knowledge, which somehow gives you license to mock those who don’t have it.” WHEW! To be honest? I needed to hear that! Sometimes at the bookstore I get asked some of the craziest questions, but in all reality, I can’t sit here and mock them for their ignorance. I think sometimes as a Christian, we can get caught up in the “duh, everyone should know that” attitude. How naive OF US to think that!

The book goes on to say…”You become puzzled that they’re not seeing what you see. And slowly but surely you find yourself looking down your nose at them, treating them with something less than Christian charity – all while becoming puffed up with the kind of pride that stems from knowledge.” THAT, is RELIGIOUS PRIDE! As a Christian, weren’t WE ALL lost at some point? Weren’t we ALL at the point of not having the “book” knowledge? Aren’t WE ALL still THERE? I know I am! I know I don’t know as much as I want to know – so why should I look down on those who may not have the same knowledge as I do? Going to a Bible college, I kind of feel it is a breeding ground for this type of attitude. I remember sitting in some classes and someone would go on a rant about what they know and basically give off the feeling of “shouldn’t everyone know that?” Sometimes I really felt dumb to be quite frank! But it’s those moments that I have to remember how I felt and MAKE SURE I watch my every word and not make others feel the way I did.

– The author goes on to say…”I’ve become convinced that perhaps nothing is so important for our walk with the Lord as good friends. I think God gives us good friends as sacraments – means of grace given to us as indices of God’s presence and conduits for our sanctification.” Interesting thought I think! But really, how true? I look at the people in my life – my friends who challenge me in my Christian walk, those I do a Bible study with, are “friends who stick closer than a brother.” (Prov. 18:24). Who is your friend that challenges you? Who has God sent to YOU as a blessing and GIFT?

– A big “point” that the Reformed tradition emphasizes, is that of GRACE. “What do you have that you did not receive? (I Cor. 4:7). The answer, of course, is nothing; or stated positively, everything we have is something we have receives as a gift. So we have no reason to “boast,” Paul says, as if anything was “ours” in the first place.” I think this can be attributed to many different aspects of life, but GRACE is what it comes down to. Daily, I need to wake up with that attitude! I’m brought back to Q&A 1 of the Heidelberg Catechism – what is my only comfort in LIFE and death? That I am NOT my own, but belong body and soul, to my faithful savior Jesus Christ. That is GRACE. God did not have to create us. God did not have to give us His earth. God does not have to give us what he does DAILY. God owes us NOTHING. And we have done NOTHING to deserve ANYTHING He has given us! Yeah this sounds so negative, but really, don’t you now feel blessed? Blessed to have what you do? Blessed to call God, Abba? I know I sure do!

– Want to hear a bold statement? The book is talking about creation and the general fact that God does not give us answer to every question, nor does HE OWE us an answer. “Scripture is so silent on these before-the-world-was-created kinds of questions (though, admittedly, a lot of Reformed folks seem to have thought they had insider info on what God was thinking before creation.) Do you feel a little uncomfortable? I know I do – because I think that is what Reformers are sometimes good at – arguing over things that the Bible clearly has no say on. We are arguing over things that God doesn’t give clear answers to. Like creation! Oh my goodness, I have heard WAY too many arguments, way too many people get WAY too upset over this subject. Dan and I sat on our couch one night discussing this – this is our conclusion – we serve a God who could’ve created the world in 7 days and we also serve a God who could’ve created the world a LONG time ago. OUR GOD IS POWERFUL and ALMIGHTY – however He chose to create the world, was His decision to make NOT OURS. So, yes, you can say I have an opinion about the whole creation subject – but really, it’s an opinion of submission to God – that no matter how He created the world, I still believe He created in HIS perfect timing.

– In the same chapter about God not owing us anything, it says “If God were obligated to give an answer, then God would be in some way subservient to the creature, which would compromise his lordship as Creator.” SO TRUE! So why are we trying to be God and trying to demand answers? I’m not saying it’s wrong to study scripture and dig deep to see what God says about certain subjects – it’s when we try to BE God, act like we know all the answers, that God has specially given US the answer over someone else, and that God owes us the answer. All of creation was designed for the glory of God – not our own!

I think I will stop there…but as you can see, there are many reasons why this book made me ponder, appreciate, and HUMBLE me! I’m sure it’ll be available at your local Christian bookstore – it is in St. Joe! Check it out…

I will be writing more…but I think this is enough to chew on right now 🙂