Today I’d like to talk about balance.
If you know much about me, you know I loathe debating social issues. I don’t mind listening to debates, but usually refuse to get involved. The standard viewpoints are so extreme – and emotional.
My own views never fall squarely within either camp so, rather than make everyone mad, I keep my opinions mostly to myself.
As my daughters have grown into young women, they challenged this practice, and I have come to suspect my reticence may lack balance – and I place a lot of importance on balance.
We all have a picture of what balance looks like. Some see a gymnast on a beam – not wanting to fall in either direction. Others would view that same person as wishy-washy – a fence sitter – not wanting to make a commitment in any direction. Some may see a straight-line continuum, with extreme “right” and extreme “left” views on the ends and more moderate views at various points in-between. Others see a see-saw or a scale, requiring balance to keep things even and steady.
I find none of these helpful. I think balance looks more like a pendulum; absolute truth at the top center fixed point – the farther away from that fixed point the more incorrect the opinion – the swinging discs at one extreme to the other representing completely opposite but equally false ideas. We achieve balance by staying as close as possible to that top, fixed point.
I have attempted a diagram here to show what I mean, but, let’s be honest, fitting life’s complexity into a simple drawing is beyond my abilities.
Any tool we use to understand concepts breaks down and fails to illustrate every contingency. Even Jesus’ pictures are not all-encompassing, because he employed the varied relationships of father->child, husband->wife, shepherd->sheep, master->servant, and many others to describe his relationship with his church. If we choose just one picture and expect it to define our entire relationship with Christ we lose out on some other aspect of the relationship.
It reminds me of a jewel with so many beautiful facets as we turn and look at it from different angles and in different lights. Each facet is part of the whole, but not one can completely define the whole.
Although . . . God never uses this analogy about himself . . . so maybe I’m way off base!
Our minds, even though created in the image of God, are not capable of the same degree of complexity. We think in terms of “either-or”, not “both-and”. We imagine God must suspend Justice to display Mercy, for instance, but not so. God is 100% merciful at all times and 100% just at all times. The fact that we can’t understand it does not make it less true.
So, what is a Christ-follower to do? As we navigate life, is mercy the plumb line we use? Or should we use justice? Should we be people known for compassion, or for righteousness? Should we be defenders of the truth, or defenders of people?
The short answer is “all of the above” and “none of the above”. Love is our calling. Love brings balance to these “opposites”.
Some see love itself as being on one of these either-or continua. The false choice between love and “dead orthodoxy” is touted as the decision churches must make. But the opposite of love is pride and selfishness – not orthodoxy, dead or otherwise. The church should be defined by love demonstrating compassion and mercy to others, holding to truth, practicing righteousness, and defending justice (among other things.) Love does not dismiss truth or turn away from justice. Neither does it proclaim truth and demand righteousness as a point of pride.
So . . . does any of this apply to social issues?
I believe my marching orders, as given by God, are to preach the gospel to non-believers and be a witness of who God is and what He has done; and toward believers to strengthen and encourage them in faith.
I have not located any mandate to create a Christian society.
I believe the early American cultural view of the church as a positive social influence paved the way for the church’s acceptance of a phony mission; substituting God’s purpose for His people (love, holiness, worship, and witness) with a cheap assignment as hall monitor to a nation. The result has been harmful to the nation as well as the church.
Other than many verses calling Christians to preach the gospel and be witnesses, I think the passage of Scripture that most clearly addresses the Christian’s relationship to social issues is Mathew 5:13-16
You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless.
You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden.
No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house.
In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.
So, how would Christian salt lose its flavor? I think reading all of chapter 5 (and on through chapter 7) makes it clear that Christians are to live by completely different standards than the world. I think we lose flavor when we stop living the strange life and start mimicking the world. There is no indication that the salt should try to make its environment as salty as possible to facilitate staying flavorful.
The same goes for the light illustration. We simply are a light on a hilltop as we “let your good deeds shine out”. Not hiding good deeds is very different from a lamp on the offensive.
So, I focus on my witness, and stay out of the political fray. I vote according to my conscience and discuss my opinions when asked, but I will never join any crusade to impose Christian principles on American society (or society in general).
But, my daughters object, how can the church stay silent in the face of injustice – when people are abused?
Hmmm . . . has my approach been too “all or nothing”?
A utopian society may not be my mission, but as I live in society – according to the bizarre principles of Mathew 5 – 7 – I should point out truth when encountering harmful distortions. Jesus certainly did. And I should give aid to victims – supported, I believe, by many verses requiring Christians to help the poor, outcast, and aliens, and take care of widows and orphans.
The entire book of Daniel is a portrait of life in exile, along with these:
Jeremiah 29:7 And work for the peace and prosperity of the city where I sent you into exile. Pray to the LORD for it, for its welfare will determine your welfare.”
Esther 10:3 Mordecai the Jew became the prime minister, with authority next to that of King Xerxes himself. He was very great among the Jews, who held him in high esteem, because he continued to work for the good of his people and to speak up for the welfare of all their descendants.
My views on my primary aim are unchanged – but I suppose there is a place for working toward the “peace and prosperity of the city” and speaking up for the welfare of the oppressed. Maybe I can influence the world even while living as a stranger.
Going back to my “balance pendulum”, each of the extreme false views may (and probably do) have elements of truth, but a lie with pieces of truth is still a lie. Just ask Eve about that.
Satan delights in keeping our focus on those discs (or crystals as in my picture) – and all points between the two sides. As long as everyone is fighting and arguing over two erroneous ideas, no-one steps back to see the third option – which is God’s point of view.
A great example of breaking free from this mesmerizing pendulum is John Piper’s book, “Bloodlines” – about race in America.
He lays out one side of the issue in detail and then the other side of the issue in detail, then throws them both out as unable to solve the problem. I won’t try to summarize the book here, and this is a gross over-simplification, but he basically puts forth God as the real solution, describes what that looks like, and calls on Christians to lead the way.
(Excellent book, by the way . . . definitely recommend it.)
I certainly don’t claim to be a happy resident of “God’s Center of Truth” – I am too fallible for that – but I know it is there. I know God reveals himself through the Scriptures, through Christ, and through the Holy Spirit. As I consider my attitudes and actions on any given topic, these are my guideposts . . . maybe why I don’t fit in any camp. Christians think I’m too permissive, non-Christians think I’m too Christian-y, liberals think I’m too conservative and conservatives think I’m too liberal. feminists think I am a sell-out and misogynists think I’m a feminist.
Don’t get me started on labels!
I gave an example above (race in America) – an issue clearly born of spiritual ills with a scriptural prescription. However, many situations affect us – such as forms of government and political ideology – which cannot be addressed this same way because there is no “true” political ideology (at least on this earth.) Focusing on the choice between two equally faulty political systems distracts from and, in my opinion, destroys our usefulness to the kingdom of God. With Christians embroiled in that fight, Satan wins no matter what.
Going forward, I may take a moment to urge a more balanced relationship with the culture we live in. Some topics may touch on political controversies. The probability of offending some is high (not intentionally of course.)
Ultimately, I consider myself a visitor to my culture, traveling through on a different path. Maybe some will benefit as I describe this alternate path.
My hope is to encourage others to check the Scriptures, their motives, and the call of God in their life . . . not blindly agree or disagree with my musings.
