By Rev. Landon Coleman
Pastor, Immanuel
Somehow I made it through two seminary degrees and almost two decades of pastoral ministry without reading The Confessions of Augustine. Having read the book over the last month, this is equal parts lamentable and embarrassing. The Confessions is a remarkable piece of literature. Most scholars regard it as the world’s first autobiography. In addition to the literary value of The Confessions, the book contains important truth about the character of God, the nature of man, the grace of God, and the experience of salvation. Admittedly, there are some challenging portions relating to Platonism, the world of memory, and the categories of ideas and forms. Nevertheless, The Confessions has stood through the centuries as a deposit of insightful, gospel truth.
Consider the following quotes, and consider reading The Confessions for yourself!
“For Thou hast made us for Thyself and our hearts are restless till they rest in Thee.” (I:I, pg 2) This is likely the most famous quote from The Confessions. Here Augustine is reflecting on God’s design for human beings and our built-in-need to find rest in knowing our Creator.
“I have dared to say that You were silent, my God, when I went afar from you.” (II:III, pg 31) This is Augustine reflecting on his attitude about God before he was converted. He blamed God for his silence, but in reality it was Augustine who had wandered from the Lord.
“Wherever the soul of man turns, unless towards God, it cleaves to sorrow, even though the things outside God and outside itself to which it cleaves may be things of beauty.” (IV:X, pg 73) This is Augustine explaining that when human beings elevate good-things to become ultimate-things, we find ourselves clinging to sorrow and sin.
“For in that instant, with the very ending of the sentence, it was as though a light of utter confidence shone in all my heart, and all the darkness of uncertainty vanished away.” (VII:VII, pg 195) This is Augustine describing the actual moment of his conversion. He had been reading Scripture for some time, and after reading Romans 13:13-14 in the courtyard of a monastery, Augustine was finally and soundly converted.
“But You, Lord, are good and merciful, and Your right hand had regard to the profundity of my death and drew me out of the abyss of corruption that was in the bottom of my heart. By Your gift I had come totally not to will what I willed but to will what You willed.” (IX:I, pg 198) This is Augustine reflecting on his conversion, and giving all credit to the mercy and saving power of Almighty God.
“Men are a race curious to know of other men’s lives, but slothful to correct their own.” (X:III, pg 231) This is Augustine reflecting on human nature in a way that seems remarkably contemporary for people living in the age of social media.
In The Confessions we find the testimony of a man who was saved, changed, and captivated by the sovereign grace of God. I pray that you would know this God and his grace. I pray that you would confess your sin to God and find life in the good news about Jesus Christ.
