Against Pragmatism

Jesus Christ said "What is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?" But we live in a time when people (both non-Christians and Christians) oftentimes give more time and thought-and-consideration, while standing in the check-out line at Wal-Mart, as to whether or not to purchase an extended-warranty on their newest electronic gadget, than the time and thought-and-consideration they give for their soul. And so in this sense, our priorities are severely upside down.

We invest the majority of our time in things of little importance, and, regarding things pertaining to the eternal, our investments are small, while our deductions are large.

But why is this? For starters: we are sinful, and not only sinful, but Totally Depraved. Sin affects everything: our mind, our thoughts, our hearts, our desires. So, we desire and care for the temporal and short-term over the eternal. Additionally, we live in a society that does not encourage long-term thought; it does not engender thinking about one's own soul. As the saying goes, it is difficult to swim against the current.

One thing we need to acknowledge is that American Pragmatism is the engine driving much of American Culture; by-and-large our society cares about the short-term and immediate over-and-against the ethical and eternal. We are, sadly, a ready-made and instantaneous-results infatuated culture. We want solutions now! for the problems we are faced with. ("I want the baby! Not the labor pains!") And whether or not they are genuine solutions are irrelevant so long as we can get over the current hump-of-a-problem. And if the new solutions create future problems, then so-be-it. The attitude is: we'll just cross that bridge when we get to it.

The danger of pragmatism is that it works . . . sorta. You can "get by" with pragmatic policies; in fact, you may even be really good at it--you may gain the whole world--but if you did so without the fear of the Lord, if you did so without righteousness, that is, without having God's law written on your heart by the Holy Ghost, if you did so with the relativistic attitude that, "My duty is to do whatever it takes to make things work, to accomplish the thing I feel is important to accomplish," then it simply means, in the final analysis, that you are not concerned with truth; you are not concerned with your soul; you are not concerned with God's glory. And sadly, this means in the end, as J.C. Ryle put it, hell will be the truth you know best.

This sort of pragmatism is antithetical to Christian-living. We don't just do "whatever works" - and we certainly aren't relativists - we don't believe that the thing you're supposed to do is different than the thing I'm supposed to do because your truth is your truth and my truth is mine. Christians, contrary to pragmatic and relativistic thought, believe that God has revealed to us what is true, and revealed to us what is ethical--what is wrong and right, what we may or may not do. These soul-sensibilities, which are derived from Scripture, they are, as one author says somewhere, the thingamajigs that provide the shape of our souls. These holy thingamajigs, aka Scriptural sensibilities, will run counter-clock-wise against the ticking-time-bomb of pragmatism. Pragmatism is disinterested in Scripture, and this is its downfall; pragmatism, in the final analysis, is not interested in listening, only doing . . . but the deeds of pragmatism are done without a moral rudder, and the results are disastrous, not only for culture, not only for a society, but even more tragically, the results are disastrous and damning for many souls.

And how often do we find ourselves operating with pragmatic sensibilities? In our relationships? Interacting with a spouse, or disciplining and raising our children? We care more about what works rather than what God says in Scripture. And sure: we balance a budget, we paid down the mortgage, we stayed married all of life, and the kids grew up to be basically normal . . . but if we didn't do it according to Scripture, if we didn't do it while waiting before the Word and listening to God, if we gained the world but in the process lost our souls, then what profit is it?

Wisdom of Eeyore

"A little Consideration, a little Thought for Others, makes all the difference."
                 -- Eeyore (in Christopher Robin Leads and Expotition)

Wisdom Learned

"We learn wisdom primarily by dwelling in a community that worships the source of all wisdom and studies his Word and world" (Quentin Schultze, An Essential Guide to Public Speaking, 54).

Against Restlessness of Mind

"A mind on wheels knows no rest; it is as a rolling thing before the tempest. Struggle against the desire for novelty, or it will lead you astray as the will-o'-wisp deceives the traveler. If you desire to be useful, if you long to honor God, if you wish to be happy, be established in the truth, and be not carried about by every wind of doctrine in these evil days, 'be ye steadfast, unmovable' (Spurgeon's Sermon Illustrations, 78).

Right. And a will-o'-wisp is this.

Be a Wise-Writer

Words are powerful and words are reality-defining. Therefore, as J. C. Ryle said, "Be wise in your youth. Write the word "poison" on all earthly pleasures" (Thoughts for Young Men, 29).

Beware of Pride

"Young men, if you would be wise, if you would be happy, remember the warning I give you--Beware of pride" (J. C. Ryle, Thoughts for Young Men, 26).

"Young men, take to heart the Scriptures just quoted."

"Young men, take to heart the Scriptures just quoted [Romans 12:3; 1 Corinthians 8:2; Colossians 3:12; 1 Peter 5:5; John 13:15 (Christ is a young man's great example.); 2 Corinthians 8:9; Philippians 2:7, 8; 1 Kings 3:8 (Regarding the wisest man that ever lived--King Solomon.); Proverbs 26:12]. Do not be too confident in your own judgment. Stop being so sure that you are always right, and others wrong. Don't trust your own opinion when you find it contrary to that of older men and especially to that of your own parents. Age gives experience, and therefore deserves respect" (J. C. Ryle, Thoughts for Young Men, 25-26).

Parenting

"Children need to be sheltered, to be protected. They need to be protected from themselves, and from those who would lead them astray. They are not ready to reason out the will of God in all circumstances; far less are they ready to defeat temptation in whatever form it comes. While God certainly can and does use sin for god, just as He can use a storm, we cannot sin that providential grace might abound all the more" (R.C. Sproul Jr., Eternity in Our Hearts: Essays on the Good Life, 23).

Parenting

"Some argue against homeschooling on the grounds that such is sheltering children. I always reply, "What are you going to accuse us of next--feeding and clothing our children?" This parenting philosophy, that we must throw our lambs to the wolves so that they might become brave, is thinly veiled folly" (R.C. Sproul Jr., Eternity in Our Hearts: Essays on the Good Life, 22).

A Living Faith - A Living Wisdom

Doug Wilson on wisdom that is alive. An excerpt below, but you really should go read article in full.

"Like termites need wood, so also unbelief needs the structures of faith that a living faith once built. They can’t get at the wood when it is still alive and growing, but once the living truth has gone through the sawmill of accreditation and become a standardized two by four of truth — watch out. A brief review will make the point — just imagine Fuller sitting in on a few classes at Fuller Seminary, Carl Henry dropping in at CT after reading the three most recent issues, or Thomas Cranmer trying to make it through the homily of the most theologically-minded dyke in the diocese...."

And he concludes: "Unbelief drifts. Wisdom walks, and fights as it goes."

Unifying Approach to Life: 'Is this wisdom or folly?'

"But it [Book of Proverbs] is not a portrait-album or a book of manners: it offers a key to life. The samples of behaviour which it holds up to view are all assessed by one criterion, which could be summed up in the question, 'Is this wisdom or folly?' This is a unifying approach to life, because it suits the most commonplace realms as fully as the most exalted. Wisdom leaves its signature on anything well made or well judged, from an apt remark to the universe itself, from a shrewd policy (which springs from practical insight) to a noble action (which presupposes moral and spiritual discernment). In other words, it is equally at home in the realms of nature and art, of ethics and politics, to mention no others, and forms a single basis of judgment for them all" (Derek Kidner, The Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries: The Proverbs, 13).

LOL and Wisdom: My Son (Moses) on Growing-Up

Verbatim conversation at dinner table the other day. I kid you not. (Moses is three-and-a-half years old.)

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CCS: Moses, what are you going to do when you grow up?

MLS: Die.

CCS: Right, someday you will die, but before that...what kind of work do you want to do?

MLS: Use hammers, a lot.

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Christ - Wisdom of God

In the third chapter of Ephesians Paul says, "Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power. Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ: To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God, According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Here we see Paul teaching that God is using the church on earth as a means by which to display his power to the angels--those who are the "principalities and powers in heavenly places." Paul says that by the church--the bride of Jesus Christ--the manifold wisdom of God is made known to the angels. The "wisdom of God" encompasses a great many things, but namely it is none other than the incarnate Jesus Christ, the God-Man, "the heir of all things, by whom [God] made the world" (Heb 1:2). "But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumbling-block, and unto the Greeks foolishness; But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God" (1 Cor 1:23-24).

Humanity teaching angels is no small thing to overlook, for it marks an important development in the maturation in the sons of Adam. In former times God used angels as means by which to deliver his word to humans (Hebrews 2:2). However, after the first advent of Jesus Christ, who is the Second Adam, we see that true humanity--the church/bride of Jesus Christ--delivers a word to the angels, a message which makes "manifold [much variegated; a wide spectrum like colors] the wisdom of God."

Humanity is maturing, and Jesus Christ is both the reason and the proof that humanity is maturing. How so? God eternally purposed to reveal Jesus Christ--"the manifold wisdom of God"--by the church. You cannot talk about Son of God--Jesus Christ the God-Man--without talking about the church, and vice versa. In times past God spoke to humanity by the angels and prophets, however, now the Lord speaks to us (humanity) by his incarnate Son, Jesus Christ (Hebrews 1). Thus, now true humanity--the church--teaches the angels about the "manifold wisdom of God." Because of Jesus Christ humanity has been transformed from glory to glory (2 Cor 3:18). Humanity has put on the new man: Col 3:10--"And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him." Truly humanity in Jesus Christ (and united to Jesus Christ and counted righteous in Jesus Christ) is maturing, for in putting on the new man we are "created in righteousness and true holiness" (Eph 4:24).

So, humanity is growing up because true-humanity/the Church knows Jesus Christ. We know Him, He who is the Son and Wisdom of God. Humanity: we are maturing, we are growing up, we are becoming wiser. Praise God!

Spiritual Laziness

A meaningful warning to those who have “zeal for orthodoxy and neglect for daily practical godliness,” myself included. Believe you me; there is nothing orthodox about neglect or, as they use to say, Acedia.

Skeptical Scholarship, Again

Is Skeptical Scholarship contrary to the Word of God? If so, then it is sin and folly.

Is Skeptical Scholarship contrary to the Word of God? If so, then it is to be hated.

Theological Suggestion

If you know the Lord's Prayer, then, by all means, pray it well and often.

Hating Folly

"Anything contrary to the Word is folly and to be hated (Steve Wilkins, Face to Face, p. 29)."

Proverbs 29:11, 29: Speech - Sanctification

"A fool uttereth all his mind: but a wise [man] keepeth it in till afterwards (11)."

"Seest thou a man [that is] hasty in his words? [there is] more hope of a fool than of him (20)."

A very important part of our sanctification is learning how to speak with wisdom, both in content and form (God cares what, how, and when we speak). Our speech is part of us, and it will be transformed through the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit.

Speaking is an art, but speaking wise counsel at the appropriate time is an even greater art. The Lord, however, is gracious, and readily provides instruction; the Lord teaches us what, how, and when to speak through Scripture, prayer, worship, and the Holy Spirit.

Stories

A good-story addresses the backwardness in the universe, particularly in humankind, and that is why there are more than a few bad stories.

History - Money - Basic Principle: Curse

“Indeed, there is a basic principle that is always at work throughout history: “The wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous” (Prov. 13:22), “for evildoers will be cut off, but those who wait on the LORD will inherit the earth” (Ps. 37:9). A God-fearing nation will be blessed with abundance, while apostate nations will eventually lose their resources, as God inflicts the Curse upon rebellious people and their culture” (David Chilton, Paradise Restored, p. 36).