Living Wisely
Tags: wisdom, the christian life
Between the Lines
A MAN IN TATTERED CLOTHES COMES WALKING toward you late at night as you are leaving a downtown restaurant. He asks, "Can you give me a dollar?" Of course you can, but should you? Is giving the dollar an act of compassion toward a needy individual, or one which reinforces and enables an irresponsible and destructive lifestyle?
For sometime now I have been thinking about how Christians must largely live their lives in the land described above, the land "between the lines" of Scripture's explicit statements. There are relatively few commands which directly address specific behavior. The 6th Commandment forbids murder. That's clear enough. The 7th Commandment forbids adultery. I think that I know what that is. Both legalists and libertines want to interpret their Bibles as narrowly as possible, checking off the explicit behaviors forbidden, avoiding them, and then claiming victory while indulging everything not specifically mentioned. Jesus attacks the Pharisees in the Sermon on the Mount at this very point (Matthew 5:21-48). They wanted to avoid murder but indulged hate and thought they were fulfilling the law. They wanted to avoid adultery but indulged lust and whatever the hand and eye might do to stir up lust. It's absurd to think that your life can be right while your heart is all wrong, but that is how they were trying to live. They aimed to restrict the requirements of the law to a spot on the ground. There it is right there!, they said. Then they placed a chair over the spot, put up a tent, and threw a party all around it.
Thus does the legalist become the libertine. They are two sides of the same coin. Their attitudes are different. The legalist wants to justify himself, to demonstrate his self-righteousness. See how good I am, he says. The libertine is celebrating grace. He's not under law! No sir! Of course he's not going to murder, fornicate, steal or lie. But beyond the biggies, he's into freedom. His whole life is pressed up against the boundaries of the law, every bit as narrowly defined as the legalist's. Just as surely as the legalist, he violates the spirit of the law while keeping the letter.
If we are to walk in obedience we must conform to the intent of the law as well as its explicit statements. For us to do so requires the Holy Spirit and wisdom. For example, the 6th Commandment forbids unrighteous anger, but not righteous anger. Yet at what point does righteous anger become unrighteous? No rulebook can define that for you. No verse will spell that out. If the 7th Commandment forbids lust and the 10th coveting, at which point do admiration or appreciation cross the line into illicit desire? At what point does modesty cross the line into immodesty? At what point does wise stewardship cross the line into extravagance and excess? At what point does charity cross the line into enabling? A thousand times a day we make decisions about how we will relate to people, our resources, our jobs, and God. We are commanded to love and be kind to our neighbors, to make wise use of our things, to work hard on our jobs, to rejoice and reverence our God. There is no book that can tell us at what point exactly we have either begun or ceased to do any of these things. We can only know them by the Holy Spirit and wisdom. The Scripture provides the essential reference points in its "thou shall nots" and "thou shalls." But 99 out of 100 applications are beyond the verses themselves, in the land between the lines, where the Holy Spirit must lead.
This is a revelation and frustration for both the legalist and the libertine. The legalist wants a book to tell him exactly what to do in every circumstance. He wants ten thousand times ten thousand commandments. God has refused to write such a book. The libertine wants a book that tells him exactly what he can't do so that he'll be free to do everything else. God has not provided that book either, but one whose commandments are "exceedingly broad" (Psalm 119:96). To live by that Book more than rules are needed. God's grace, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, and wisdom are necessary.
Whatever Happened to Wisdom?
"THE BIBLE DOESN'T SAY YOU CAN'T." How many times have I heard that rebuttal to an application of Biblical principles?! It serves as the "last word" in any discussion in some circles. The meaning of the rebuttal is, because there is not a specific Bible verse forbidding or requiring a given thing, nothing definitive can be said about it. All we're left with is opinion. You think one thing, I think another; you go your way, I'll go mine. No more can be said. Because the Bible is silent, it is a matter of Christian liberty. This model of decision-making sees only two reference points: Scriptural commands and Christian liberty. Between these polls it sees nothing.
But whatever happened to wisdom? Previous generations lived the Christian life asking not just "is it Biblical" (in the narrow sense of "is there a verse that forbids or requires it") but "is it wise?" Because they did, consensus on cultural issues was possible. Wise choices could be "identified" and agreed upon. United and mutually supportive decisions followed. A Christian counter-culture and a Christian cultural mandate were possible.
Let me give a mundane example. What are we to say about a parent who allows his 8-year-old child to stay up on a school night until 11:00 p.m. to watch TV? Should we say something like this?:
This is a Christian liberty issue. The Bible has given us no instructions about a child's bedtime or TV viewing. Each parent must make this decision for him/herself.
Or should we say:
This parent lacks wisdom. It is foolish to expect an 8-year-old to function well on only 7-8 hours of sleep. The parent should not allow this to continue.
Beyond this we could even say,
Our authority for saying this is the Bible-not a specific verse, but its command to be wise and avoid foolishness-and given the nature of the one involved (8-year-old child) and the occasion (school nights) this is foolish.
This last strong claim is not the same as saying, "Wisdom requires that all 8-year-olds go to bed at 7:30 p.m." That kind of claim would go too far. We are to apply general principles, not make specific claims. Still wisdom can circumscribe certain behavior and identify regions which lie outside its realm (say bedtime at 11:00 p.m.? or midnight? at 2:00 a.m.?) and those regions that are within (probably somewhere between 7 and 9 o'clock in most circumstances).
Reading Christianity Today's debate on "Openness" Theology (the heretical notion that God is mutable, that He doesn't always know what's coming next and changes his mind; therefore He is "open" and vulnerable just like we are; therefore He is so much more likeable than the unchanging and inflexible God of traditional orthodoxy) the other day it struck me that there is much foolishness in the evangelical world today. The guardians of sola Scriptura suffer from a terrible lack of discernment. I wanted to write them a letter asking, "What next, the Trinity?" Some issues should be settled. Or shall we debate the Trinity, the dual nature of Christ, justification by faith, and monogamous/heterosexual marriage?
The culprit, in my opinion, has been a naive proof-texting approach to life, not unlike that of the Pharisees. Even as they refused to apply the Bible beyond its liberal words (adultery = adultery, nothing more), so also do many well-intended Christians today. The effect is to rob the Bible of its authority in about 90% of our decisions. Its effect also is to destroy the cultural mandate. Except for the couple of dozen things it overtly forbids, it's open season.
So whatever happened to wisdom? If there is one thing that we are to pursue, it is wisdom (e.g. Prov 1:1-6; 4:3-13, 20-27; 5:1,2; 6:20-24, etc.). If there is one thing Paul prays for his churches, it is for wisdom (Eph 1, Phil 1, Col 1). Why? Because that is what it takes to apply general Biblical principles to the specifics of day-to-day living.
For example, the Bible does not forbid skirts that are 5" above the knee, plunging necklines or breathlessly tight-fitting clothes. There is not one single verse specifically addressing any of this. Not one! But given that Jesus warns us that lustful thoughts are adulterous, and that the offending instruments and occasions of lust are to be violently removed (Matthew 5:27-30), is it wise to dress in this manner? Given that the distinctives of the female form are precisely the problem for lusting men, will the discerning woman not dress modestly (1 Timothy 2:9) and rigorously avoid the sensuous, the tight, and the revealing? Will not the wise husband and father require it?
Similarly there are no Bible verses specifically addressing our reading, viewing and listening material. Our world is full of pornographic or at least provocative books, magazines, TV Shows, movies, concerts, radio stations, and so on. Therefore, what? Therefore I can read, see, view, and listen to anything that I want? Can I claim, "there is no verse that forbids it?" Tell me then what is this "discernment" for which we are to pray? What is this "knowledge," this "wisdom;" this "understanding?" Paul wants the Philippians to have wisdom so that "they may approve the things that are excellent" (Phil 1:9). He wants the Colossians to have it so that they may "walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work," and so on (Col 1:10-12). Instead I should ask, is it wise to indulge these things? Or should they be avoided so that our minds may dwell on the things that are lovely and pure (Philippians 4:8)?
The irony today could not be more pronounced. Many professing Christians are making foolish lifestyle choices, and doing so in the name of the Bible! There's no verse to forbid it! - and so, off they go, plunging ahead with foolish decisions touching marriage, parenting, recreation, entertainment, fashion, schooling, and so on. There is much foolishness abroad today. The antidote is Biblical wisdom applied to all of life.
Perceiving the Nature of Things
WISDOM IS CRUCIAL IN THE CULTURAL DECISIONS that we have to make, so many of which lie right on the line separating virtue from vice (e.g. fashion, entertainment, recreation, stewardship). If anything it is even more crucial in relationships. Peter tells husbands to live with their wives in an "understanding way," particularly emphasizing that she is a "weaker vessel" as well as a "fellow heir of the grace of life" (1 Peter 3:7).
Ask yourself, what does this mean? Fail to live with her in an understanding way and a husband violates this command and sins. Yet, no details are given. What is meant by an "understanding" way? In what sense is she a "weaker vessel?" What difference does it make that she is a "fellow heir of the grace of life?" To answer these questions (and a thousand others like them) requires wisdom.
Let's say a husband gets a job offer in another city. Should he take it? To answer that question he must understand three factors:
1. What is the nature of God?
2. What does the Bible say on this subject?
3. What is wise given the nature of things?
First, he must know God. The "fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" (Prov 1:7, 9:10, 15:33; Ps 111:10; Eccl 12:13). Because God is who He is certain things must follow.
Second, he needs to understand what the Bible teaches about husbandry, lawful callings, and family, and the relative weight he ought to give to each.
Third, of equal importance, is the correct perception of the nature of people and things. Who is he? What are his gifts? What are his capacities? Do job, place, and he fit? Also, who is his wife? What impact will this have on her? How will she be affected by relocation? How will she see it affecting the children? How will she be impacted socially? What are her capacities? her gifts? her weaknesses? In other words, for a husband to live with his wife in an understanding way he must know God , Scripture, and his wife. Am I saying the obvious? I hope so. But I suspect that many zealous husbands have thought that accurate husbandry only required the faithful application of Bible verses. I can remember having those very thoughts-‘Here is what the Bible says and so here is what we must do'-quoting Bible commands salted with reminders about submission and thinking that I was being a godly husband.
The problem was, I had only a part of the equation, and all three elements are necessary if we are to understand the will of God.
Thus with any issue the wise Christian will want to ask two questions: What does the Bible say about these things, and what is necessary given the nature of things (the nature of God and the world that He has made).
Consider the exhortation to speak the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15). How are we to fulfill this requirement? We must know the truth. That is one side of the equation. But the other side is to speak it "in love." What that means in any given circumstance requires correctly perceiving the nature of things. Who am I in relation to the one to whom I am speaking? If I am speaking to an older man, I am to speak to him as a father; if a younger man, as a brother; if an older woman, as a mother; if a younger woman, as a sister (1 Timothy 5:1, 2). In other words, I must correctly perceive who I am, who they are, who I am in relation to them, what the occasion is, and what is needed. My words are to be edifying, meeting the "need of the moment," which means that they are to be suited to the situation, giving "grace to those who hear" (Ephesians 4:29). To speak appropriately in any given situation requires wisdom. This is why it is possible to know lots of the Bible and be a fool. One may know what the Bible says and yet not correctly perceive the nature of the things around you, and so misapply its teaching at every turn.
Why does the wise farmer plant in the spring and harvest in the fall (Proverbs 10:5, 20:4)? Not because there is a verse in the Bible that tells him to do so. He does so because he correctly perceives the nature of things and acts in harmony with it. Those who don't are fools. God wrote both books, the book of Special Revelation (the Bible) and the book of General Revelation (nature). The ungodly abandon the "natural" for the "unnatural" (Romans 1:26, 27). They reject the lessons that "nature" teaches (1 Corinthians 11:14). We are wise only when we conform our lives to the reality that both books (nature and the Bible) reveal.
Serving Between the Lines
For he who in this way serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men. (Romans 14:18)
THE APOSTLE PAUL IDENTIFIES DIFFERENCES IN THE WAYS that Christian people serve Christ. Some serve "in this way," some in another. Yet both are "acceptable to God" and (ought to be) "approved by men." There is diversity both in kinds of gifts (Romans 12:6-8; 1 Corinthians 12:1-31) and in types of service (Romans 14:1-23). Paul's point: Some serve by abstaining from certain foods and drinks (especially on "holy days"); some serve by enjoying them all. These are matters of individual judgment. We have the liberty to eat or not eat, drink or not drink, observe or not observe. We are not to judge one another in these things (Romans 14:1, 3-5, 10, 12, 13), but recognize that in our choices we all serve Christ, though we serve differently.
Let's extend this principle to other areas of service, especially in the church. Each of us is called to serve. There are jobs to be done. We must all share in the doing of them. That is not an option. We have gifts and we must serve. This is not a burden, but our joy. But no one can tell us how exactly to identify our particular obligations in service. We must humbly and prayerfully ask God to show us how to balance our various responsibilities and yet also "bear (our) own load" (Galatians 6:5).
Our ability to serve in the church will be closely related to our station in life. For example, those with care-taking responsibilities at both ends of life, those with young children and those with elderly parents, are severely restricted in their ability to serve at church. They serve plenty, but most of it is at home, where all service begins. Paul even warns,
But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith, and is worse than an unbeliever. (1 Timothy 5:8)
I often think of one young mother with three small children. Every time I look at her exhausted face I think, no one should ask her to do one thing around here. We need to throw our arms around her, thank her for devoting herself to the thankless but eternal work of nurturing immortal souls, and make the church for her a true sanctuary and refuge. Instead we are more likely to assign her several tasks which keep her from adult fellowship, from Bible teaching, and add to her already overburdened schedule.
All of this is to say-many of us must learn to say yes to service, some of us need to learn to say no, and all of us need to look charitably upon decisions of others. But in a church like ours, with our many devout and zealous disciples of Christ, it is easy to take on too much, become over-burdened, and disillusioned.
Here's what can happen. We can get busy doing-we're ushering, teaching Sunday School, cleaning up the Fellowship Hall, and attending meetings; we're raising our children, working in the nursery, doing Children's Church, hosting missionaries, attending committee meetings, baking for Circle, baking for a funeral, baking for the hospitalized. We can be doing, doing, doing, then overdoing, then become burned-out, bitter and resentful. This happens in part because we have taken on tasks for the wrong reasons. We can even become competitive about it. She can do it all. Why can't I? People will think less of me or talk bad about me if I don't. So and so doesn't complain, he manages. Why can't I keep up? All the while bitterness and resentment builds. Service driven by guilt and the perceived opinions of others is a formula for spiritual disaster. Jesus says, your Father sees "in secret." The Apostle Paul says, the Lord "will both bring to light the things hidden in darkness and disclose the motives of men's hearts" (1 Corinthians 4:5). The Bible says, "man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart" (1 Samuel 16:7).
Why are you doing what you are doing? God knows! Is it for love of God and compassion for others? Is it because you are convinced that it is what He wants you to do? Or is it in order to be seen by men? Is it for reputation's sake? Is it so that others will think that you can do it all? Are your commitments guilt-driven? Where is your heart?
Preachers can preach for the sake of the people's good opinions, as can elders lead and deacons "deac." In the name of God we can end up serving self if we are not careful, and hating our Taskmaster in the process.
What is the solution? To be "convinced in (your) own mind" about your areas and levels of service (Romans 14:5). Pray, meditate, seek wise counsel, discuss it as a family, measure yourselves by God's word, and decide. No one else can make this decision for you. No book can make this decision for you, not even the Bible. Service itself is a fixed reference point of Christian discipleship. We must serve, and we sin if we fail to serve. But where, when, and how we serve falls "between the lines" of Scripture, where the Holy Spirit must lead the enlightened conscience, where wisdom must guide, and where no one else can judge.