In The Magician's Nephew, Aslan appears for the first time, singing Narnia into existence. Among the few people present to witness the Creation is a horse-carriage driver, who is rather overwhelmed by its beauty and makes the following comment:
This is why I love C.S. Lewis so much - he's so good at taking my preconceived notions and turning them upside down! For example, it would make a lot of sense to me if someone was given a glimpse of hell and had that thought - 'if i'd known this existed, I would've lived a much better life!' Regret would arise from sheer terror!
But Lewis doesn't place the Cabby in Hell; he places him in Paradise. He still experiences some form of remorse, but the motivation is completely the opposite. The Cabby wished he would have done things differently, but not out of fear of pain and torture. Rather it was beauty and awe that stirred a desire in him to live to his full potential.
Things with God are exactly the same way - He cheers when we do what's right and is overwhelmingly proud of us every time we choose to put others before ourselves. But He doesn't want us to live according to a list of rules, motivated by guilt and a fear of pain and punishment. He wants us to live freely and joyfully, knowing that He Himself has already paid our punishment! And every time we understand just a little more clearly and a little more deeply what that means, we'll react in exactly the same way as the Cabby. Seeing the beauty and awesomeness of God, we will naturally want to live more holy lives, continuously being cheered on by God our Father and ever wanting to make him prouder.
While it may seem like the end goal is the same - living a better life - the paths are drastically different. One leads to guilt, fear, and self-condemnation; the other to freedom and surpassing joy. And so it comes down to an issue of the heart - which path will you choose??
"Glory me." said the Cabby. "I'd ha' been a better man my whole life if I'd known there were things like this."
This is why I love C.S. Lewis so much - he's so good at taking my preconceived notions and turning them upside down! For example, it would make a lot of sense to me if someone was given a glimpse of hell and had that thought - 'if i'd known this existed, I would've lived a much better life!' Regret would arise from sheer terror!
But Lewis doesn't place the Cabby in Hell; he places him in Paradise. He still experiences some form of remorse, but the motivation is completely the opposite. The Cabby wished he would have done things differently, but not out of fear of pain and torture. Rather it was beauty and awe that stirred a desire in him to live to his full potential.
Things with God are exactly the same way - He cheers when we do what's right and is overwhelmingly proud of us every time we choose to put others before ourselves. But He doesn't want us to live according to a list of rules, motivated by guilt and a fear of pain and punishment. He wants us to live freely and joyfully, knowing that He Himself has already paid our punishment! And every time we understand just a little more clearly and a little more deeply what that means, we'll react in exactly the same way as the Cabby. Seeing the beauty and awesomeness of God, we will naturally want to live more holy lives, continuously being cheered on by God our Father and ever wanting to make him prouder.
While it may seem like the end goal is the same - living a better life - the paths are drastically different. One leads to guilt, fear, and self-condemnation; the other to freedom and surpassing joy. And so it comes down to an issue of the heart - which path will you choose??
'It's not about sinning less; it's about loving God more.'
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