Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
Week 27: Book IV, Chapter 4 — Good Infection
Read Book IV, Chapter 4 of Mere Christianity ('Good Infection').
Lewis returns to the joyful metaphor of the 'good infection' — the way divine life spreads through the Body of Christ — and develops it into one of the book's most hopeful passages.
Discussion Questions
6 questions1.Lewis revisits the idea of the Son of God as the source of Zoe — the divine life — and argues that through Christ this life is 'catching.' What does the infection metaphor capture that a more formal theological explanation might miss?
2.He argues that the relationship of love between Father and Son is eternally self-generating — the Son is not a 'result' of the Father in the way a child results from parents. What does this suggest about the nature of love within the Trinity, and why does it matter for how we understand grace?
a.Lewis says the Son is the 'express image' of the Father — that seeing the Son is seeing the Father. What does the life of Christ therefore tell us about the character of God?
b.How does the eternal love within the Trinity overflow into creation and redemption?
3.Lewis develops the picture of God 'becoming man' not merely as an addition to human history, but as the Father's Son entering human nature to spread divine nature. How does this Incarnational logic change the way we think about the church — as the body through which the infection continues to spread?
Closing Prayer
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