The moral precepts in the Bible are relatively few, while its points of doctrine, and the implications thereof are multitudinous. And the way I see it at this point in my life, we could come close to mastering the former, while we could never master the half of the latter. But instead of going after excellence in morality, so many let that slide, even as they make much ado over their camp’s official doctrines, half-baked as they may be.
This practice is morally wanting, and goes to show that the mature morals are not what so many of us want nearly as much as we want to be gathered into adamant/ignorant camps, whether fussing with the other camps over sloppily-crafted doctrines, or quietly feeling superior about them. We somehow find more reward in this than in pleasing God by the quality of the lives we lead. And this says a great deal about us, I’m afraid.
Consider the advice given by the apostle Paul to the young evangelist, Timothy:
11 Command and teach these things. 12 Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity. 13 Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching. 14 Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through prophecy when the body of elders laid their hands on you.
1 Timothy 4:11-16. NIV.
15 Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. 16 Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.
Beyond what I have highlighted in the passage above for your consideration, I would make especially these points, which are too rarely heard today:
- Paul considered a young man completely capable of being exemplary in the conduct of his life. If young believers can do this, why shouldn’t we all be doing it? Why should this be considered as optional in the churches? Why should it be expected only of spiritual “overachievers”? I think it is to be the standard work of all followers of Jesus.
- Yes, the doctrine is important, too―or at least it was for the evangelists, we can reason. (And we know from other passages that Paul held the non-leaders accountable for what they listened to and believed.) When it comes to life and doctrine, Paul doesn’t not put the one over the other. Yet so many today appear obsessive in their focus on doctrine, when compared to their lesser concern with the quality of the lives they are living.
Others, of course―even in the churches―don’t care about either very much, and are just trying to enjoy their lives while they are here. And this defies both the life and the doctrine with which Paul seemed concerned.
Why Must It Be So Unreasonable?
I understand that determining sound doctrine can be very tricky. Indeed, I have quit teaching on certain subjects that I once thought were certain, but can no longer hold such a view of today, as I see some of the problems with my previous “proofs”. Meanwhile, I also see problems with many of the proofs offered up by others. What I don’t find, however, is an environment in which we can discuss these things objectively. Rather, it seems that each camp picks its explanation of this or that, and rather than seeing it as here human work, chooses to paint at as if God himself told them to see it this way or that. And then, to defend that view―however blindly or rudely―becomes what they consider to be an act of “faith”. Indeed, to adjust that view after further study would be considered by such camps to be an unfaithful act! And this makes me wonder just what the real object of their worship is―God, or the doctrines their camp has approved.
I, for one, don’t see where we gain anything from pretending to be so certain over matters we know that we have not thoroughly vetted ourselves. And I don’t see where repeating the hearsay of the camp, and its authorized memes, has much at all to do with either having faith in God or living a godly life in Christ Jesus.
In my view, we’re supposed to understand things, and not just repeat them as true. Yet so few seem to value understanding nearly as much as they value having memorized that when this comes up, they’re supposed to say that. And these things are so often said mindlessly, without much understanding their meaning or their implications. And this, we consider faithful Christian behavior?
It reminds me quite a lot of what Paul had written to Timothy earlier in the same letter:
6 Some have … turned to meaningless talk. 7 They want to be teachers of the law, but they do not know what they are talking about or what they so confidently affirm.
1 Timothy 1:6-7. NIV.
Do you see the similarity? They seem to beconflating having something to say with being a good teacher. But Paul seems to count as good teachers only those who “know what they’re talking about”.
So what’s the point of attending a camp that has something to say about this or that, but that doesn’t know what they’re talking about? Paul seems to think this is immoral behavior, and I certainly agree (late in my life, that is, after having long been a knucklehead like Paul is criticizing here). I gained nothing from it, and left it bit by bit as I learned better.
And even now, at 58 years old, I continue to learn (practically every day) about both life and doctrine. And in my daily discussion and observation of this world, I see doctrinal error quite regularly, even among those who are busy criticizing the doctrinal errors of others. Yes, this is ironic, and it goes all over again to my earlier point, that such people must enjoy finding fault in others more than they enjoy finding it (and correcting it) in themselves.
And this seems immoral to me―and all the more as I consider the fact that while I may correct my neighbor, I cannot make him heed the correction, while I am 100% in charge of my own self-correction. This, I could tend to wholeheartedly, and be very fruitful with it. Or instead, I could set up a camp where we pick our own favorite doctrinal positions and puff ourselves up over how great we and our doctrines are, while looking down on those in other camps.
And I think it’s fairly obvious which choice would please God more.
So why can’t we be humble about how hard it is to figure out all the doctrine in a way that’s honest, rational, responsible, and consistent with all the scriptures? Why can’t all the virtues promoted in the Bible be our sincere daily work, whether we can figure out the doctrine or not?
It would seem we would have to have that sort of disposition―that sort of spirit about ourselves―that sort of will―if we were going to invest in such godliness of character. We would have to want it. And lacking that, we might as well build our vying camps―which we have done, have we not?
And I find the camps less impressive with each passing year of my life, while the virtues fascinate me more and more.
It Takes Virtue To Figure Certain Things Out
I’ve recently been re-impressed with this fact: It takes virtue to figure certain things out. So what if a certain camps cares relatively little for virtue, and a lot for doctrine? Are they going to be hindered from ascertaining all the doctrine correctly?
I think so. Consider the simple virtue of patience. The one without it will make a poor Bible student. And how about honesty? If one lacks that, won’t he be liable to cheat on his Bible proofs? But these sorts of things are more matters of morality and virtue than they are of doctrine. The have more more to do with virtue than do, say, eschatology or soteriology or ecclesiology, don’t they?
Of course, they do. But if we are disinterested in acquiring such virtues, are we really doing ourselves and the world any favors to plow ahead in these various areas of doctrine? Indeed, so many churches boast of being “loving” churches, but how can they count themselves as loving when they subject their neighbors to their own unrefined/untrained behaviors instead of repenting so that they can treat them as Jesus would?
So, the way I see it, there’s no getting around the need for godly character. There’s no sense in trying to cheat it. Rather, it seems to come down to one’s willingness to be like Jesus. And I ask you, what kind of person would be interested in that?
It seems to me that a great many more are interested in matters of doctrine. And this may well explain what we’re seeing today in the churches and in the online discussion groups, where one can hardly find a partner with whom to discuss life and doctrine openly and robustly.
