True Boldness for Christ

Kevin DeYoung makes a great post of this text from Johnathan Edwards.
This is like the comments I've heard on S Lewis Johnson's Gospel of John Sermon Chapters 15-16 and I've read in our John Bunyan study. It's easy to fall into the trap where our reformed righteousness goes overboard and takes us back into the shoes of the Pharisee whom Jesus condemned in Luk 18:9-14. Read the whole post at the link below.

True Boldness for Christ

Here’s a paragraph from Jonathan Edwards that I’ve been reading and rereading. I think you’ll find it relates to yesterday’s post and, yes, to the Rob Bell controversy (doesn’t everything relate to that?). Let me give you the paragraph and then make a couple comments:

There is a pretended boldness for Christ that arises from no better principle than pride. A man may be forward to expose himself to the dislike of the world, and even to provoke their displeasure, out of pride. For ’tis the nature of spiritual pride to cause men to seek distinction and singularity; and so oftentimes to set themselves at war with those that they call carnal, that they may be more highly exalted among their party. True boldness for Christ is universal and overcomes all, and carries ‘em above the displeasure of friends and foes; so that they will forsake all rather than Christ and will rather offend all parties, and be thought meanly of by all, than offend Christ. And that duty tries whether a man is willing to be despised by them that are of his own party, and thought the least worthy to be regarded by them, is a much more proper trial of his boldness for Christ, than his being forward to expose himself to the reproach of opposers. (Religious Affections, 352)