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Saturday Thoughts on Theological Language
By Dan | August 2, 2008
I’m going to quote for you from a section of Isaac Watts I was reading in a devotional the other day.
How the wondrous doctrine of the blessed Trinity shines thorugh the whole of our religion, and sheds a glory upon every part of it! Here is God the Father, a king of infinite riches and glory; He has consituted his beloved Son the high treasurer of heaven, and the Holy Spirit is the divine and inestimable treasure. What amazing doctrines of sacred love are written in our Bibles! What mysteries of mercy, what miracles of glory are these! Our boldest desires and most raised hopes durst never aim at such blessings; there is nothing in all nature that can lead us to a though of such grace. . .
A little different than most of the theological and religious language you hear today huh. Probably a good thing overall as I’m thinking most people would either get lost in such language or hear it as out of touch with today’s people.
At the same time, part of me wonders if we’re missing something today in our God talk. Reread those words above. Listen to the poetry and grandeur. Listen to the passion in its praise of God. Where do you get to hear that still today? Maybe a little in our music, but not in any of the theology books I read. Most of those seek to be so down to earth that their language actually gets a little too earthy sometimes. As I read Scripture though, I’m struck by how authors like Paul are writing theology one second and are swept up into praise and doxology in the middle of theological thoughts sometimes. It’s kind of neat.
What do you think? How would you react to such words? Should we reclaim some of this poetry and how?
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August 2nd, 2008 at 10:13 pm
Our depth of language has really suffered as a result of being a primarily visual culture. Maybe we eschew such language for fear of not being considered “relevant”. We’d do well to read more Luther, the Puritans, and others whose hearts were aflame with love for Christ and God’s glory.