Christ: Our Only Grounds for Boasting
A.W. Tozer's sermon emphasizes that Christ is the sole foundation of Christian faith, independent of human philosophy and sufficient for all needs.
A.W. Tozer emphasizes that the foundation of Christian faith rests solely on Christ, who is complete and self-sufficient, independent of human philosophy or science. He asserts that while we can appreciate the contributions of philosophy and science to our lives, they should never be equated with or relied upon for our faith in Christ. Tozer highlights the uniqueness of Christ as the embodiment of Godliness and the source of true richness, stating that possessing Christ alone is sufficient for fulfillment. He encourages believers to pursue knowledge while recognizing that true wealth comes from a relationship with Christ, not from worldly achievements. Ultimately, Tozer calls for a clear distinction between faith in Christ and reliance on human intellect.
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The faith of the Christian rests upon Christ Himself. On Him we repose and in Him we live. Christ gains nothing from any human philosophy, however pure and noble it may be. He owes nothing to Plato or to Aristotle. If these men had never lived the Christ in whom dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily would have been all He ever was and is world without end. His redemptive work was completed centuries before the dawn of modern science, and of course seeks no aid from science.
Christ is unique in the only sense that word will bear. He is the mystery of Godliness, a miracle, an emergence of the Deity into time and space for a reason and a purpose. He is complete in Himself. Because we Christians live on two life-levels simultaneously, the spiritual and the natural, we do, as sons of Adam, owe to philosophy and science a lasting debt of gratitude. Music, literature, art, state-craft, economics, learning contribute to our welfare and make the world a more comfortable place in which to live while we wait for the manifestation of the sons of God and the redemption of our bodies.
So it is good that we gain all the knowledge we can in the short time that is ours. Whatever we learn that is true will remain our treasured possession in the world to come. For these reasons I believe in education, as full as possible for as many as possible as quickly as possible. That is one thing. It is quite another to try to equate the faith of Christ with Philosophy or science or any other or all of the products of superior human minds. And to make that faith dependent upon these things is in the light of Christs deity not only preposterous but near to sacrilegious. Christ is enough. To have Him and nothing else is to be rich beyond conceiving. To have all else and have not Christ is to be a cosmic pauper, cut off forever from all that will matter at last.
Sermon Outline
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I
- The centrality of Christ in faith
- Christ's independence from human philosophy
- The completeness of Christ
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II
- The dual life of Christians
- The role of philosophy and science
- The importance of education
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III
- The danger of equating faith with human intellect
- The sufficiency of Christ
- The consequences of lacking Christ
Key Quotes
“Christ is unique in the only sense that word will bear.” — A.W. Tozer
“To have Him and nothing else is to be rich beyond conceiving.” — A.W. Tozer
“To have all else and have not Christ is to be a cosmic pauper.” — A.W. Tozer
Application Points
- Prioritize your relationship with Christ above all else.
- Pursue education and knowledge, but do not let it overshadow your faith.
- Recognize the danger of relying on human wisdom instead of the sufficiency of Christ.