The Wisdom of Gandalf the Grey

School is school. Sometimes I like it, but other times I really don't. Sometimes when I don't (especially when studying), I like to take breaks and give my brain a chance to rest. So I read.

I have always been a big reader. I liked mostly fantasy as a kid, but growing up I like to read all kinds of things; novels, blogs, history, etc. Most of the books I brought with me were theological books. But sometimes I just want to read some fantasy and enjoy the imagination of others.

When I was last home, I made sure to grab The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien. I haven't read all of them and I love the story, so I decided to from the beginning. When I read (even when it's for pleasure and to rest), I tend to analize things. I think about what the author says and I compare and contrast to world views and beliefs (mainly Christian). Today I was reading the second chapter of The Fellowship of the Ring and something stood out to me.

"'There is only one way: to find the Cracks of Doom in the depths of Orodruin, the Fire-mountain, and cast the Ring in there, if you really wish to destroy it, to put it beyond the grasp of the Enemy for ever.'

'I do really wish to destroy it!' cried Frodo. 'Or, well to have it destroyed. I am not made for perilous quests. I wish I had never seen the Ring! Why did it come to me? Why was I chosen?

'Such questions cannot be answered,' said Gandalf. 'You may be sure that it was not for any merit that others do not possess: not for power or wisdom, at any rate. But you have been chosen, and you must therefore use such strength and heart and wits as you have.'

'But I have so little of any of these things! You are wise and powerful. Will you not take the Ring?

'No!' cried Gandalf, springing to his feet. 'With that power I should have power too great and terrible. And over me the Ring would gain a power still greater and more deadly.' His eyes flashed and his face was lit as by a fire within. 'Do not tempt me! For I do not wish to become like the Dark Lord himself. Yet the way of the Ring to my heart is by pity, pity for weakness and the desire of strength to do good. Do not tempt me! I date not take it, not even to keep it safe, unused. The wish to wield it would be too great for my strength. I shall have such a need of it. Great perils lie before me.'"


Most of that is just context for the last paragraph. When I read Gandalf's response to being offered the ring, I was struck by his passion and fear of giving in to temptation. He is scared of what would happen if he gives in and takes the Ring. That got me thinking about my response to my sin.

I wondered about the response to temptation in this life. My reaction to sin and temptation (more often than not) is that it's not that serious; especially the "respectable sins." They're common. Everyone does them. Surely they aren't that serious.

In Matthew 5, Jesus shows people their sinfulness, not through there sinful actions, but through their sinful thoughts. He one-ups the view of sin by taking what they knew about it through the law and showing them that their hearts are corrupt. Even those "little sins" (those "little thoughts") are sins that issue us a one-way ticket to Hell.

Sin should scare us. Consider this line: "Yet the way of the Ring to my heart is by pity, pity for weakness and the desire of strength to do good." Sin affects us in our weakest areas and just spreads around. It's seductive. One thing that Gandalf does here, that I wish I could apply more, is that he identifies the lie that sin tells him. Sin tells us that what we are doing is right, when it is clearly wrong. Or it tells us that it is better than what Jesus promises. And it all leads to destruction. This should make us react fearful of sins affects and defensively as Gandalf did.

But there is a remedy to both our fear and our sin: the cross of Christ. Christ died to bear the punishment for our sins. We will not experience the lasting, condemning affects of sin in our lives. Christ has paid that price. We no longer have to.

And because of that we no longer have to be fearful. Jesus has given us the power to fight sin. We don't have to fear anymore, because we can fight it. Why can we fight it? Because Jesus has destroyed it already. This is the great hope of the gospel! We live no longer in fear, but in hope! We no longer are dead, but alive! We no longer fight in vain, but trust in God's grace!

The Fall

Right now I'm going through three books of the Bible: Genesis, Matthew and Romans. I alternate chapters so that I can get into different parts of the Bible while actually studying it, rather than just reading it. My Reformation Study Bible has been very helpful in explaining difficult passages.

Today I am reading in Genesis 3. Between the beginning of Genesis and Romans, I've been getting a lot on the sinfulness of man and condemnation that follows. It's been very sobering and good to reflect on my sin the way God sees it. Verse 6 says:

"So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate."

Here are some of the notes that I have in my Bible:

"tree...wise - Her decision was based on practical values, aesthetic appreciation, and intellectual gratification."

"took of its fruit - By this act, she sealed an alliance with the prince of death and darkness. God's loving election and plan of redemption are her only hope."

Notice that this isn't said of "and ate" it is said of "she took the fruit." If we intend to sin, we have allied with the devil. Sin doesn't start with an action. It starts with our heart, thoughts and intensions. Eve first sinned when she commit to sin, not when she committed the sin. Her heart desired the forbidden, even if she hadn't eaten yet.

"he ate - Man becomes a rebel: surrounded with sufficient motives to trust and obey God, he chooses disobedience against God (6:5, 8:21). Salvation depends entirely upon the Lord, not the rebel. By God's appointment Adam represented the race as its federal head and brought death upon all (Romans 5:12-19). He also represents, as a model and prototype, mankind's hostility against God.

I want to dwell on these things to get an accurate view of myself. Too often sin is not serious to us. Gossip is normal, prideful thoughts are expected (after all you're only human), and anger is the fault of others. There is no excuse. Yes we are human and we do sin, but this reality isn't supposed to make us think that certain sins ("little sins" or "respectable sins") are alright. It's supposed to make us turn and run to God because He is the only one who can save us from those sins.

Those thoughts and intents have condemned us to hell, but Christ has saved us! He has taken the punishment for those sins and now we can run to the Father. We are no longer under condemnation. We are under Christ's blood, which has the power over our sins. And he has given us this power. He has promised us his Spirit and that he would never leave us or forsake us. He can help fight those "little sins" that have cause so much damage. He already destroyed them on the cross! They have no power! Christ has the ultimate power! This should give us joy!

Word of God

I have been reading through "Desiring God" by John Piper. The whole point of the book is for us to view our Christian life as Hedonistic. Hedonism means to pursue your own happiness. Most Christians would say that we are not to do this but we should seek to glorify God. Piper argues that we are to pursue our joy (which isn't necessarily the same as happiness) by asking God to change our desires to want to glorify Him. Obeying God is the only way we will have true joy.

I have come to a chapter called "Scripture: Kindling for Christian Hedonism" and this quote stuck out to me:

"Satan's number-one objective is to destroy our joy of faith. We have one offensive weapon: the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God (Ephesians 6:17). But what many Christians fail to realize is that we can't draw the sword from someone else's scabbard. If we don't wear it, we can't wield it. If the Word of God does not abide in us (John 15:7), we will reach for it in vain when the enemy strikes. But if we do wear it, if if lives within us, what mighty warriors we can be!"

When I read this, a couple thoughts came to me. First, that it is foolish for someone to go into battle without a sword. We can't expect to fight against sin without anything to fight with. Sin will win every time and very easily.

Second, was that a sword must always be kept up. It must be cleaned after every battle; polished and always kept in the best condition. Battles occur often, and the sword must be tended to even more so. This doesn't mean that we fix any problems in the Bible (by the way, there aren't any), but that we keep up our knowledge of them. Memorization and meditation is key to fighting against sin. Memorizing it keeps it in your mind and helps you to always have your sword with you. Even if you don't have the hard copy, it's still just as effective.

Third, you have to know how to use a sword. You would grab the blade and swing the handle around, otherwise you will cut yourself. So it is with the Bible. We can't throw verses around flippantly if we don't know what the context is, or what it is really saying. This is where meditation comes in. Meditating (on your already memorized scripture) helps you understand your weapon. It shows you how to use it so that you know the moves to use on different enemies. Don't fool yourself or condemn others because you assume on the scriptures. Know what they say, then live by them.

The Word of God is just that; God speaking to us. We need to listen. It's the only thing worth listening to. And it should give us joy to hear God speak. Honor Him and reap joy for yourself by knowing and understanding His Word. It's useless otherwise.

Just As I Am

Just as I am, without one plea
But that thy blood was shed for me,
And that thou bidd’st me come to thee,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

Just as I am, and waiting not
To rid my soul of one dark blot,
To thee, whose blood can cleanse each spot,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

Just as I am, though tossed about
With many a conflict, many a doubt,
Fightings and fears within, without,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

Just as I am, poor, wretched, blind,
Sight, riches, healing of the mind
Yea, all I need in thee to find,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

Just as I am! Thou wilt receive,
Wilt welcome, pardon, cleanse, relieve;
Because thy promise I believe,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

Just as I am! Thy love unknown
Has broken ev’ry barrier down;
Now, to be thine, yea, thine alone,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

- Charlotte Elliot