Because he is eminently quotable. Lewis most certainly wouldn’t have seen himself as embracing the same Reformed theology I embrace. Many are quick to pounce on his even more egregious errors, causing us to wonder if Lewis was even within the pale of evangelicalism. There’s a reason for that- Lewis was not a gifted theologian. My father was right on target when he affirmed that everyone is a theologian. CS Lewis happened to be a bad one, no, a terrible one. If I were looking for an explanation of the atonement of Christ, Lewis would be near the bottom of the list of those I would seek help from. If I were seeking a careful examination of the nature of the incarnation, it wouldn’t cross my mind to seek out what Lewis had to say.
No, what he provides is something so much better. Lewis has an uncanny ability to take a biblical truth, whether it be about the atonement, the incarnation or the nature of man, and show us the perfect angle by which we not just understand it better, but are more deeply touched by it. His gift is bringing together heart and mind.
His is a gift so beautiful and potent that I alternate between a raging hunger to acquire some meager semblance of the gift and a disconcerting certainty that I’ll never be able to come close. And there is an irony there. Wouldn’t Lewis say to me, “RC, if you are right about me and the gifts God has given me, can’t you see that your longing is like Simon the Magician’s? He, fool that he was, just like the rest of us, was more interested in receiving the gift of giving the gift of the Spirit than he was in receiving the gift of the Spirit. If you are right about me, and I’m not sure that you are, wouldn’t the wiser thing to be to receive the gift itself?’
The wiser thing as a reader is for me to read more Lewis. The wiser thing as a writer is for me not to try to mimic Lewis more, but to quote Lewis more. My calling isn’t to pick up his mantle. It may be instead to merely point it out, to say to you who read, “I’m glad you’re here. But if you really want the good stuff, you’ll find it here, in Lewis, who said, ‘…….’”.
Please don’t send me comments blasting the errors of Lewis. I’m well aware of them. The glory of God is that He is pleased to use men with terrible flaws to bless other men with terrible flaws. Highlighting the flaws doesn’t undo the blessings. It simply highlights God’s glory in using flawed men like Lewis, and like me and like you. “We,” after all, “are mirrors whose brightness is wholly derived from the sun that shines upon us.” And you can quote, not me, but CS Lewis, on that.
I have to tell you that you and your wife have been such an encouragement and blessing to me. I loved your Dad from afar as someone that to this day loves watching him teach and preach on video.
Your story touches me on a personal level. I too have disappointed myself more times than I can count. I sin to this day. I do the things I don’t want to do…….to borrow from Paul. I am terribly flawed………the difference between now in my senior years and 20 years ago is that I know it is only by the grace of God that I am saved. I have earned only wrath……..but have been given mercy. I rest in that. Mercy. What a magnificent God we worship that would have mercy on me.
You are impacting lives everyday whether you realize it or not. Please keep up the good work. Christians need to hear from you.
Thank you so much Steve. I read this to Lisa so she would also be encouraged. She is such a precious gift to me. We aim to keep going.
Never give up. We need your voice today more than ever.