Notes About The Poem
Dedicated to the memories of Drs. Cornelius Van Til [1895-1987] and Greg L. Bahnsen [1948-1995]
The Distance of Thought
In the quiet halls where Truth is sought
We ponder words God alone has wrought
His voice, the standard, sure and true
Our minds the mirror, catching the hue
From His own measure, all is weighed
The world’s deep meaning gently laid
What He reveals, inerrant stands
No challenge meets the work of His hands
Yet here we sit, with longing eyes
Beneath the vast and endless skies
Man’s thoughts, jumbled and drifting wide
In search of wisdom God won’t hide
We learn in fragments, pieces and in part
Our discoveries are mere echoes of the Maker’s heart
God does not walk the stairs of time
Nor hunt in drawers for reason's rhyme
His knowing shapes the things that are
He speaks through galaxies afar
While we kneel, stand or are prone
The facts we find are the ones He’s shone
What God creates, we merely see
His thought are original, ours secondary
In every field, from humble pen
To wonders wrought by learned men
No matter how profound or philosophical
All thoughts are God’s, criteriological
Our greatest work, inventions shine
Are but reflections of His Light
We do not make, but we stage
The truths by which God will gage
To measure right, to hit the mark true
We intuit skyward and to You
O God, whose thoughts are standards nigh
Of them man’s decree must testify
To truth, unless it’s found in Thee
Your Word the mark of certainty
When men are hailed as wisest one
Even experts’ brilliance can’t touch Your echelon
For You, O Lord, revise no thought
No error lingers, nothing’s fraught
Your thinking, ultimate and pure
Makes every argument demure
Let God be true, though all men liars
Your wisdom towers over the inferno fires
And there, between Creator and creation
Dwells the Jesus propitiation
Not arrogance, but holy awe
That men approach with lowered jaw
A student may draw near a sage
And wisdom grows with every age
Yet soon the teacher stands revealed
As human, finite, knowledge sealed
But with our God, there’s journey’s length
Each step we take is with His strength
For every truth of Him we learn
Our awe grows deeper, hearts discern
That knowing Him does not diminish
The reverence that stands at the finish
The more we grasp, the farther it seems
The height from which His glory gleams
So let philosophy reflect
The vast differences of the intellect
Of God, whose mind is never known complete
In Eternity will spend learning at His feet
We marvel at the chasm wide
Where humble knowledge stands beside
The One whose wisdom made the sky
We bow in wonder with a trembling sigh
O God, Original, Supreme,
Your thoughts begin, our thoughts teem
You are the Voice, we the echoes
Our awe persists and ever grows
Each truth You grant draws us near
Yet reverence deepens year by year
For as we study, learn, and see
The distance slowly unfurls Your majesty
Post Comments
Poetrysoup is an environment of encouragement and growth so only provide specific positive comments that indicate what you appreciate about the poem. Negative comments will result your account being banned.
Please
Login
to post a comment
Turn off ads, get more exposure for your poetry, and get more features with a
Premium Membership.
