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NASB | 2 Timothy 2:15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | 2 Timothy 2:15 Study and do your best to present yourself to God approved, a workman [tested by trial] who has no reason to be ashamed, accurately handling and skillfully teaching the word of truth. |
Bible Question:
There is much coverage of C. S. Lewis, his life, and his writtings of late. I am concerned that to much is being drawn out of the stories he made up, especially in relating it to Jesus. I am just not sure that so much of Christ was intended to be assumed nearly fifty years later. Perhaps, am I wrong? I heard his step son on PBS say that smoking and drinking were acceptable for Christians. I have serious problems with ever saying smoking is not totally bad for our health and not a habit I would ever defend. Could someone please help me to better understand this confussion. If at all possible use Scripture to explain your understanding. |
Bible Answer: Greetings Justme! Being familiar with both of the works and biographies of C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien, I believe that it is safe to say that both of these Oxford professors came from backgrounds that were very different from our own. It is a widely known fact that they were friends (and sometimes intellectual adversaries as well), and were part of a group at Oxford known as the "Inklings." Both of these writers used their gift to promote Christianity and aspects of Christianity in their works. Tolkien wrote "The Hobbit" and then "The Lord of the Rings" from his largely Catholic, linguistical, and medieval perspective to show that any single person can be used by God to make a difference in the world, and to abstain from evil temptation to do that which God has placed us in the world to do. As for C.S. Lewis, he wrote "The Chronicles of Narnia" from his Protestant Christian perspective as allegorical children's stories to help pave the way for a saving knowledge of the Gospel of Christ. Christianity and Christian elements are certainly present in both works, especially in "The Chronicles of Narnia." And C.S. Lewis wrote many, many other books, such as "The Screwtape Letters" and "Mere Christianity" that prove that he sought to promote, evangelize, and spread the Gospel message. We know that C.S. Lewis was undoubtedly a Christian, and he most certainly showed himself as "a workman who does not need to be ashamed" by reviewing the evidence of his works. I believe that C.S. Lewis wrote from a Christian perspective ON PURPOSE. He wanted us to know that he was writing about Christ. A person can gain this perspective by simply reading his works, which all promote a Christian perspective. I believe that you cannot understand "The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe" accurately by reading it in any other way than in a "Christian" way, since its main character dies for the sin of another main character, so that character can be and would be redeemed. There is absolutely no question about "The Screwtape Letters" and "Mere Christianity", which are books that any Christian would find useful, helpful, and at the very least, spiritually edifying. As for C.S. Lewis drinking and smoking, I believe that he probably did engage in those things, even though it is now socially believed that smoking and drinking are things that we all should abstain from. Believe it or not, there was a day that I am sure that you could probably remember better than I can, when the Surgeon General did not say that smoking can cause cancer. Smoking was, at one time, an accepted social activity that was engaged in with great frequency and regularity within society. But without promoting either bad habit, we know that these activities are harmful to our health, and we are very conscious of that today. However, in 1950's United Kingdom society, I am not so sure that within the clique of the "Inklings" or in the Christian circles in which C.S. Lewis was a part, that smoking from a pipe and drinking the occasional beer were activities that were paricularly singled out and brought under close scrutiny, even by fellow Christians. Again, I am not saying that these activities are to be promoted, but I hardly believe that C.S. Lewis consciously made a case of promoting these activities as things that fellow Christians should do themselves, even though he did them. If C.S. Lewis were alive today, perhaps the changes in society, health awareness, and the acknowledgement of his worldwide fame would prompt him to kick some of these 'non-Christian' habits. C.S. Lewis should never be seen as a 'poster Christian' supporting drinking and smoking. The vices of drinking and smoking (and how much of each) were reacted to very differently in the time and place of C.S. Lewis than they are now. Granted, it has never been a "Christian" thing to do to drink and smoke, but in C.S. Lewis's time, no one ever feared excommunication from the church for those activities. But hindsight is always 20-20 vision. I believe that it would be extremely unkind to tarnish the image of such an obviously Christian man by remembering him more for his bad habits rather than that for which he did with his time - which was to promote the Gospel of Christ through the books in which he wrote. I hope that this helps! Blessings to you, Makarios |