Lesson to Learn in Life: Take Your Faith Seriously & Graciously

Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. (Matthew 10:16)

Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person. (Colossians 4:6)

I was minding my own business lately, just checking me Google Reader for any articles of note.  I admire the writing of Randy Alcorn over at Eternal Perspectives, he usually puts on quality stuff.  He referred in a recent post to a quote made by Christopher Hitchens, the evangelical atheist.  I read the quote and had a wry smile, later on Randy (pictured left) gave the link to the transcript of the interview as a whole so that I could check the quote in its context.  As you’ll note there’s also the chance to actually listen to the interview take place where you get more that you do in the transcript, i.e. tone of voice, added extras that shape the points made, etc.

I don’t usually give 34 minutes of my life over to hearing a staunch evangelical atheist espouse his beliefs especially to someone whose claims to be a Christian were so palpably weak that it didn’t seem to be that far from the view Hitchens proposed anyway.  I could find better things to do with my time, like sleep, or watch paint dry, or possibly listen to the Greatest Hits of New Kids on the Block (obviously it would be on repeat as those two tracks wouldn’t last the 34 minutes).

On this occasion however I gave the interview a listen and was amazed by some of the things that came out of it, more for me than anything else.  The following two crucial lessons was gleaned from the interview.

Take Faith Seriously:

Christopher Hitchens (right) takes faith seriously.  Serious enough to put forward a book arguing against the goodness and indeed existence of God and taking on anyone who would wish to oppose those views.  In the interview the room he’s given to verbally decimate any value that faith in God has showed that this guy had taken the subject seriously.  Not only was it an attack against faith but a stand for a more appealing alternative which was derived from the argument of reason and proofs of science.  Without excluding that which cannot be explained currently, his reference to an ‘X’ factor (thankfully not the ‘hit’ television programme) was an exception that reinforced the rule that we need not submit our lives to an unknown deity-type figure.  Rather what our wonderful discoveries and developments have shown is that we’re more than capably of living a good life with no reference to God.  Which reminds me of something …

The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds, there is none who does good. (Psalm 14:1)

What I love about the commentary and interpretation of this verse is that this is not the atheist’s mantra as it were.  The fool says in his heart – no God.  It is not a denial in the existence of God, it is a denial of the meaning in the existence of God and thus the ability to live life with no reference to Him.  Whether He exists or not is not the issue.  His very existence can even remain a ‘mystery’ because it’s all about how you work out your own rules in this life – no God, you need not interfere, no God, you need not have any bearing on anything of any substance or value.

So although this is not the atheist’s mantra, underneath it is what Hitchens stands for.  The tragedy is, unhelpful ‘Christian’ perspectives as offered by the Unitarian representative who interviews Hitchens and even by others who make a more solid claim to follow Jesus reinforce Hitchens’ argument.  They do so by acting as if there is no holy God, no gracious and merciful God, no God who reveals Himself in Jesus Christ as a suffering servant who is the King.  The human condition does not need that much to keep it away from God and by not taking the faith seriously and conveying it graciously there is every chance that we will doing a disservice to the Christ who died to set us free.  We would be taking the name of God in vain when His name alone can rescue us from the deadly consequences of the sinful human condition.

Sharing Faith Graciously:

In as much as the interview highlighted the importance of taking faith seriously, it also highlighted the manner in which that faith is to be shared.  Hitchens’ approach was rather pompous and self-righteous.  His self-assurance in his own opinion oozed out of a sense in which he could never be proven wrong, whatever argument was put to him.  One can imagine he’s been in a number of serious debates with theologians, pastors, etc. and not once has he left any of them ever seriously challenged about his position and would on the contrary arrogantly propound his views further castigating others for daring to stand against it.  The Bible stories are a nonsense, the whole thing is a charade and those who follow it are deluding themselves and others.

This is antagonistic language, designed to spark a reaction from those who believe.  Notice, however, what kind of reaction it sparks.  That arrogant, self-assured, pompous manner isn’t reserved for the likes of Hitchens.  You just have to touch the right nerve with people and they will get all haughty and up in your face defending their position as right and discrediting any opposing views and even scorning those who would have the sheer temerity to mention anything other than their position.  That is a Christian failing as well as any human failing, because that reaction to lambaste Hitchens and his kind is understandable.

Don’t get me wrong, I believe in holy anger as well as the next fella.  I believe there are times where Christians ought to get angry, not just at situations, but at the people who perpetuate them – those safely ensconced in their blindness and the dark deeds of the one whom they serve wittingly or otherwise.  Stating that however, is no excuse to actually act out of short-tempered fury and a desire to ram words down a person’s throat.  That is counter-productive and plays right into the hands of people who thrive on argument almost like warfare – prove you’re right or die at the sword of my rational superiority.  Jesus’ call to be harmless as doves and Paul’s suggestion to ensure our speech is seasoned with salt all suggests that sometimes the best argument is left unsaid.

You know the typical scenario, one guy is ranting and raving about his position, whilst his opponent remains unruffled and unperturbed and patiently tolerates his rival as he gets more and more heated up at the lack of reaction from him.  Eventually the hot head will blow up whilst the cool one keeps his head and emerges from it with more credit and with people more willing to consider what he has to say than whatever hot-head was getting heated up about.  That is taking the faith seriously enough to endeavour to remain as gracious as possible in the line of torrential hostility.  Is that easy?  Of course, not.  That’s the whole reason why only Jesus could commission such an approach, because only He could enable His followers to live that out.

It would be easy to mock Hitchens and it would play well to some of the converted.  In the bigger picture, however, it would be in the best interests to actually be composed in delivering a passionate statement of the faith position and leaving it at that.  In these issues, it’s nothing personal – it’s everything spiritual.

These are not words to feel under pressure or feel a rebuke, it’s a word for you to notice that life is not about anything other than taking faith seriously, loving God seriously, loving others seriously.  In so doing, not being an over-bearing, grumpy, self-righteous, pompous bigot and likewise not a lily-livered, pathetic, over-accommodating, super-liberal wimp.  Rather following the example of a man unafraid of upsetting the status quo with the ushering in of the Kingdom of God and likewise unafraid to die meekly and humbly for this peace.

For His Name’s Sake

Shalom

dmcd