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LIBERTY UNIVERSITY BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY

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C. S. Lewis and the Divinity of Christ: A Conversion from Atheism to Christianity

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Submitted to Dr. Paul Jacobs,
in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the completion of

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SEMI 500 DU12
Introduction to Seminary Studies

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by

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Paul Darwynn Y. Garilao
April 25, 2015

Contents

Introduction ...1
Encounter with Christ . 2
Childhood suffering 2
Non-existence to existence .....2
Reluctant convert 3
Evidence of Divinity ..4
Liar, lunatic, or Lord ...4
Forgiveness of sin ...6
Perfect atonement 7
Empowered by the Gospel 8
Growing reputation.8
Testing by faith ...9
Leaving a legacy .9
Conclusion....10
Bibliography ....11

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Introduction
Studying the life of C. S. Lewis is like observing a tug of war competition. On one hand,
there is team atheism that is mightily pulling him to believe in the non-existence of God. On the
other hand, there is team Christianity that is drawing him into a relationship with God through
the person of Jesus Christ.
While every believer has a different and personal encounter with Christ, a former atheist
like Lewis experienced a tough situation in pulling both the opposite ends of a rope: imagine the
tug of war as an anger-love relationship between Lewis and God. As an avid fan of atheism, he
used to express his rage against God who created a universe that is so cruel and unjust.1
Surrendering his life to Christ never happened overnight, but took years through series of
discussions and invitation by his friends.2
Convinced that the gospel embodies the truth, Lewis became a staunch advocate of
Christianity. At the core of his conversion is Christ, whose divinity served as a major topic in his
broadcasts, books, and essays. He scrutinized Christs God-man nature who, pays our debt, and
suffers for us what He Himself need not suffer at all.3 His curiosity led him to examine Christs
forgiving attitude and the power of His atonement, which shed light on the divinity of Christ.
This paper will demonstrate how Lewis came to know Christ through a personal
examination of His divinity as revealed by the gospel, which dramatically changed his life and
propelled him produce best-selling books about Christian apologetics.
1

C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity, in The Complete C. S. Lewis Signature Classics (New York, NY:
HarperCollins, 2007), 30.
2 C. S. Lewis, Surprised by Joy: the Shape of my Early Life (New York, NY: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich,
1958), 212.

Lewis, Mere Christianity, 39.

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Encounter with Christ

Childhood suffering
Jack, as Lewis was fondly called by his relatives, treated his mothers death as his first
religious experience: religious in a sense that he equated faith with a false promise of God or his
idea about God.4 While his mother was ill in bed, he thought that prayers offered in faith would
be granted and so he is convinced that his prayers, by will power, will be achieved.
With my mothers death all settled happiness, all that was tranquil and reliable,
disappeared from my life, Jack said and allegorically referred his experience to the sinking of
Atlantis.5 David Downing believes that the loss of Jacks mother and the absence of his volatile
father are critical factors that contributed to his conversion to atheism.6
Non-existence to existence
In its strictest sense, an atheist is a person that actively denies the existence of God of
theism. 7 But Jacks belief is opposite to this definition. At the whirl of contradictions, he felt
three guilt-driven thoughts: God did not exist, was very angry with God for not existing, and
was equally angry with Him for creating the world. 8
Every atheist loves to touch a topic on evil. Jack supported this claim by an argument
from Lucterius who believed that the world is not frail and faulty if God designed it. 9

Lewis, Surprised by Joy, 20.

Ibid., 21.

David Downing, The Most Reluctant Convert: C. S. Lewis Journey to Faith (Downers Grove, IL:
InterVarsity Press, 2002), 20.
7

C. Lorkowski, Atheism, Philosophical Compass, 8 (May 2013): 523.

Lewis, Surprised by Joy, 220.

Downing, The Most Reluctant Convert, 53.

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Underscoring the meaning of life, the young atheist sympathized, Nearly all I loved I believe to
be imaginary; nearly all that I believe to be real. I thought grim and meaningless. 10
But no matter how strong the atheistic viewpoint of Jack is, circumstances were drawing
him closer to God. When he read GK Chestertons book The Everlasting Man, he realized that
Christianity was sensible apart from Christianity. 11
Reluctant convert
In the grounds of Magdalen College, he engaged discussions with Hugo Dyson and Lord
of the Rings author J. R. R. Tolkien who asserted the existence of God to him. His friends
pursuit to draw him to God paid off but this greatly feared the young atheist. In the Trinity term
of 1929 I gave in, and admitted that God was God and knelt and prayed: perhaps that night, the
most dejected and reluctant convert in all England, he confessed . 12 At this time, he considered
himself a theist and was not yet totally open to accept Christianity.
Two years after, Dyson and Tolkien strongly influenced his view and shared the story of
a god sacrificing himself to himself. He faced his prejudices that he was content with these
[pagan] stories from all over the world except when he found it in the Gospels. 13 Four days
after in his brothers motorcycle side car, he experienced the gospel of Jesus. When we set out
[to the zoo] I did not believe Jesus is the Son of God and when we reached the zoo I did, Jack
declared and he eventually became a member of the Church of England. 14
10

Ibid., 63.

11

Ibid.,130.

12

Lewis, Surprised by Joy, 266.

13

P.H. Brazier, C. S. Lewis on Atonement: A Unified Model and Event, the Drama of Redemption
Understanding and Rationalizing the Tradition, The Heythrop Journal, 56 (March 2015): 291.
14

Lewis, Surprised by Joy, 272.

Evidence of Divinity
A believer commonly investigates the credibility and integrity of Christ after he has
accepted and committed to follow Him. When Lewis accepted Christ, he did not only critically
assess the Savior but also provided strong pieces of evidence that support His divinity.
Liar, lunatic, or Lord?
Claiming His sonship was a reason why Jesus was sentenced to death. In Mark 14:61-64,
the high priest asked Jesus, Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One? And Jesus said,
I am; and you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One, and coming
on the clouds of heaven. 15 This has caused the priest to tear his clothes and convict Jesus to be
punished for having an equal-footing with God.
One crystal clear concept for the Christian author and Oxford professor is that Jesus is
God Himself. Lewis observed people remark foolish thing about the Messiah who only accept
him as a great moral teacher but dont claim his divinity. 16 He furthered:

That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of
things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic on
the level with the man who says he is a poached egg or else he would be the Devil of
Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a
madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill
him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come
with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that
open to us. He did not intend to. 17

15

Unless otherwise noted all biblical passages referenced are in New International Version (Nashville, TN:
Thomas Nelson Publishing, 2014) .
16

Lewis, Mere Christianity, 36.

17

Ibid., 36.

From the aforementioned statement of Lewis, Josh McDowell coined the term Lewis
trillema. A truth seeker may consider three options about the nature of Christ: either he is a liar, a
lunatic, or the Lord. McDowell argued, If when Jesus makes His claims He knew that He was
God, then He was lying. But if He was a liar, then He was also a hypocrite because He told
others to be honest, whatever the cost, while himself teaching and leaving a colossal lie.18
Assuming Jesus did not know His claims were false, He is suspected to have sincere
delusion or worse he is a lunatic person. McDowell added, for someone to think that He is God,
especially in a culture that is fiercely monotheistic, and then to tell others that their eternal
destiny depends on believing in Him is no flight of fantasy but the thoughts of a lunatic in a
fullest sense. 19 But the way a lunatic person speaks is far different from Jesus who presented
Himself during His time, which resonated thousands of years and has changed people from all
walks of life.
Among the categories in Lewis trillema, the lordship of Jesus stands out the most logical
argument. Now it seems to me obvious that He was neither a lunatic nor a fiend: and
consequently, however strange or terrifying or unlikely it may seem, I have to accept the view
that He was and is God. God has landed on this enemy-occupied world in human form, the
atheist-turned-Christian writer echoed. 20 By personally experiencing Christ himself, he was
upholding the passage in 2 Corinthians 4:5 that professed, For what we proclaim is not
ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus sake.
18

1992), 77.

Josh McDowell, The New Evidence that Demands a Verdict (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishing,

19

Ibid., 78.

20

Lewis, Mere Christianity, 37.

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Forgiveness of sin
There are passages in the Bible that deal with the forgiving characteristic of Jesus. A
paralytic person, who was lying on a mat, was brought to Jesus. When Jesus saw their faith, he
said to the man, Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven. At this point, some of the teachers of
the law said to themselves, This fellow is blaspheming (Mat 9:2-3). Other cases that deal with
messianic forgiveness include the Parable of the Debtors (Luk 7:48) and the Last Supper (Mat
26:28).
Because believers hear it so often, the claim of Jesus to forgive sins seems to slip past us
unnoticed and they no longer see what it amounts to. Lewis articulated, We can all
understand how a man forgives offences against himself. You tread on my toes and I forgave
you, you steal my money and I forgive youYet this is what Jesus did. He told people that their
sins were forgiven, and never waited to consult all the other people whom their sins have
undoubtedly injured. 21
Dr. Donald Carson attested, Of course, the Resurrection was the ultimate vindication of
his identity. But of the many The only person who can say the sort of thing [forgiving attitude]
meaningfully is God himself, because sin, even if it is against other people, is first and foremost
a defiance of God and his laws.22 Since Jesus is the person chiefly offended in all offences,
such is only attributed to God the Father making Jesus equal with God. 23

21

Ibid., 35.

22

Lee Strobel, The Case for Christ: A Journalists Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus (Grand
Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1998), 157.
23

Lewis, Mere Christianity, 36.

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Perfect atonement
We are told that Christ was killed for us, that His death was washed out our sins, and
that by dying He disabled death itself. That is the formula. This is Christianity. That is what has
to be believed, the Christian author and professor summed up Mere Christianity in a nutshell. 24
While Christ made the ultimate sacrifice in the cross, no any human being other than the
Messiah Himself can perform such act. As Lewis pointed out the basic doctrine: the fall of man
is the original sin that generates the need for atonement, the need for reconciliation that cannot
be achieved by simply forgiving penitent individuals because something needs to be done to
correct the entire human race. 25
What needs to be done is already a done deal in the cross. Lewis expressed, we cannot
share Gods dying unless God dies; and He cannot die except by being a man. That is the sense
in which He pays our debt, and suffers for us what He Himself need not suffer at all. 26 This
statement is mirrored by Apostle Paul who wrote, He was delivered over to death of our sins
and was raised to life for our justification (Rom 4:25).
The perfect atonement would be worthless without touching the Resurrection for this is
the defining moment of Christs divinity. The empty tomb, as an enduring symbol of the
Resurrection, is the ultimate representation of Jesus claim to being Godit is the supreme
vindication of Jesus divine identity and his inspired teaching, Strobel commended. 27

24

Ibid., 38.

25

Brazier, C.S. Lewis on Atonement, 5.

26

Lewis, Mere Christianity, 39.

27

Lee Strobel, The Case for Christ, 206.

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Empowered by the Gospel

Growing reputation
The life changing message of the gospel has influenced Lewis, particularly his writings.
He published several books about Christian apologetics, though he doesnt have a formal training
or school in theology. His theology translated as ordinary speech make it more intelligible to
laypeople 28.
The Christian authors writings have been received by avid readers of literature,
especially in America as streams in the desert. 29 Embodying the life of early disciples, Lewis
is not ashamed to share the gospel of Christ because it is the power of God that brings salvation
to everyone who believes (Rom 1:16).
On top of his high rating radio broadcasts and increase of his book sales, the prolific
Christian writer still attended to mountains of snail mails. Biography writer Lyle Dorsett shared,
the famous author believed it was Gods will for him to answer most of this mail by himself
he took time to write with care to each correspondent regardless of age, education, or place in
society. This enterprise consumed many hours each week. 30 For example, he wrote to an
English girl that the important part of spiritual life is to keep on doing what Jesus demands
even if the right feelings are not present.

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28

Steven P. Mueller, Beyond Mere Christianity, Christian Journal, 27 (May 2004): 1.

29

Malcolm Guite, C.S. Lewis: On Both Sides of the Wardrobe, Religious Studies Review, 37 (June 2011):

85.
30

Lyle W. Dorsett, Seeking the Secret Place: The Spiritual Formation of C. S. Lewis (Grand Rapids, MI:
Brazos), 112.

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Testing by faith
Despite his growing reputation as a Christian writer, Lewis is not spared from testing and
trial. The death of his wife Joy Davidman, whose bone cancer recurred the second time, has
made the Christian defender reflect on grief. On any view whatever to say, H [Joy] is dead, is
to say All that is gone. It is part of the past. And the past is the past and that is what time
means, he accepted such brutal fact.31 Treating pain as a wake up call of God, he expressed,
We can ignore even pleasure. But pain insists upon being attended to. God whispers to us in our
pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is his megaphone to rouse a deaf
world. 32
Leaving a legacy
Between 1933 and 1963, Lewis wrote books about Christianity: Chronicles of Narnia,
The Scretape Letters, The Great Divorce, A Grief Observed, God in the Dock, Surprised by Joy,
and Mere Christianity among others. In 1941, he initiated a series of 20 radio talks from the
British Broadcasting Corporation radio. He decided not to raise his living standards but instead
invested his money to charities. 33 Lewis left a legacy to the world that needs more answers about
the existence of God and the possibility of a relationship with His Son Jesus Christ. His books
and essays remain significant today as basis of Christian doctrines and literature.

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31 C. S. Lewis, A Grief Observed, in The Complete C. S. Lewis Signature Classics (New York, NY:
HarperCollins, 2007), .449.
32 C. S. Lewis, The Problem of Pain, in The Complete C. S. Lewis Signature Classics (New York, NY:
HarperCollins, 2007), .405
33 Lyle W. Dorsett, C. S. Lewis: A Profile of His Life, Christian History Institute, last modified January
2015, accessed March 15, 2015, https://www.christianhistoryinstitute.org/magazine/issue/c-s-lewis-his-life-thoughtand-theology/.

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Conclusion
Though he was engaged in a tug of war competition between atheism and Christianity,
Lewis relinquished his non-existent view of God but instead totally surrendered his life to Jesus.
Finding out that the Messiah is not just a historical person but the living God who manifested in
flesh, Lewis has gained much confidence to entrust his salvation and circumstances to his Savior.
By showing pieces of evidence about His divinity, Lewis emphasized on the lordship, forgiving
nature, and perfect atonement of Christ. His strong claim on lordship has strengthened his faith.
More importantly, Christ as the perfect atonement has saved him from the clutches of sin.
Empowered by the gospel, the famous author and broadcaster served Christ through
writing faith doctrines about Christianity. Lewis has exemplified in his life testimony that he
can do all things through Christ who gives me strength (Phil 4:13). Though being battled by
severe trails, he remained strong and relied on the grace of God.
C. S. Lewis serves as a model among atheists, agnostics, and skeptics and those who
question the mighty power of God. The next time anyone is engaged in a tug of war competition
and is undecided either to pull a rope for atheism or for Christianity, learn from the life of an
atheist-turned-Christian. If Christ can change a person who was as atheistic and skeptic as Lewis,
and so He can change anyone else. As his words remain true today, Lewis declared, Look for
yourself, and you will find in the long run only hatred, loneliness, despair, rage, ruin, and decay.
But look for Christ and you will find Him, and with Him everything else thrown in. 34

34

Lewis, Mere Christianity, 118.

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Bibliography
Brazier, P. H. C. S. Lewis on Atonement: A Unified Model and Event, the Drama of
RedemptionUnderstanding and Rationalizing the Tradition. The Heythrop Journal, 56
(March 2015): 285305. Accessed March 23, 2015. http://doi:10.1111/heyj.12146

Dorsett, Lyle W. Seeking the Secret Place: The Spiritual Formation of C. S. Lewis. Grand
Rapids, MI: Brazos.

Dorsett, Lyle W. C. S. Lewis: A Profile of His Life. Christian History Institute. Last Modified
January 2015. Accessed March 15, 2015. https://www.christianhistoryinstitute.org/
magazine/article/c-s-lewis-a-profile/.

Downing, David C. The Most Reluctant Convert: C. S. Lewis Journey to Faith. Downers Grove,
IL: InterVarsity Press, 2002.

Guite, Malcolm. C. S. Lewis: On Both Sides of the Wardrobe. Religious Studies Review, 37
(June 2011): 8591. Accessed March 23, 2015. http://doi:10.1111/j.
1748-0922.2011.01502.x

Lewis, C. S. A Grief Observed. In The Complete C. S. Lewis Signature Classics, 11-118. New
York, NY: HarperCollins, 2007.

______. Mere Christianity. In The Complete C. S. Lewis Signature Classics, 11-118. New
York, NY: HarperCollins, 2007.

.The Problem of Pain. In The Complete C. S. Lewis Signature Classics, 311-370. New
York, NY: HarperCollins, 2007.
. Surprised by Joy: The Shape of my Early Life. New York, NY: Harcourt Brace
Jovanovich, 1958.
Lorkowski, C. Atheism. Philosophy Compass, 8 (May 2013): 523538. Accessed March 27,
2015. http://doi:10.1111/phc3.12037

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McDowell, Josh. The New Evidence that Demands a Verdict. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson
Publishing, 1992.

Mueller, Steven P. Beyond Mere Christianity. Christian Journal, 27 (May 2004): 1-8.
Accessed March 26, 2015. http://www.equip.org/article/beyond-mere-christianity/
#christian-books-3

Strobel, Lee. The Case for Christ: A Journalists Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus
Christ. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1998.

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