As we quickly close in on our second full week in Kanchanaburi, Thailand, it is now safe to say that we have been here long enough to feel “settled in”. The sunburns have already turned from pink to pinkish brown and from pinkish brown to fully brown, the gorgeous sunsets are almost second nature, and the fact that we sleep in tents every night is no longer a new phenomenon. In my last blog (“We Are Happy Here, ‘Cause the Wild Wind Blows”), I wrote about how the very realness of our experience here "the sweat on my eyelids and the dirt on my hands "helped me to feel very much “in touch”, not with an impersonal life force, but with a person, "the creator God of the universe. Since the time that I wrote that, though, that too has become second nature.
The fact that it has become second nature does not mean that it is any less important, nor any less true, but merely that it is no longer the all-consuming spiritual focus of my mind and heart. Instead, this past week, God has been teaching me about a verse that is central to the practical out-workings of the daily Christian life. I try not to create a false dichotomy between the grandiose theology of our triune God and the more “practical side” of the faith, as doing so tends to cast God as “out of touch”. Quite the opposite is true, of course, as our God is both more heavenly than we could ever believe and more in touch with our day-to-day earthly struggles than we could ever believe "at the same time. That logic-defying juxtaposition is found in verses like:
“God in his holy dwelling is a father of the fatherless, and a champion of widows. God provides homes for those who are deserted.” (Psalm 68:5-6).
So, all of this goes to say that, though what God has been teaching me recently may be considered by some to be on the “deeply practical” end of the spectrum, there is indeed no dichotomy, and that which is central to our day-to-day battles “on the ground”, as Christians, is also central to bringing God unprecedented glory in the heavenly realms.
Anyway, the verse that has been so important to my thinking this past week, "and really these past two months, though especially in this past week, "has been 1 Corinthians 6:12:
“Everything is permissible for me, but not everything is beneficial.” (1 Corinthians 6:12).
This verse, I have found, is one that can be applied to just about any situation. It is the ultimate argument-killer. This verse is both the theology student’s best friend and the pragmatic’s best friend. This verse is also the reason, it seems, for the Bible’s apparent “silence” on so many other issues.
When Paul says that “everything is permissible for (the Christian), he wasn’t overstating his case "he meant it literally. Everything "literally everything "is permissible for the Christian, both in the simple sense that technically, as beings with free wills, we can decide to do as we please, and also in the more theological sense, in that as beings covered by the righteousness of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21), and heirs to imperishable inheritances (1 Peter 1:3-4), “everything is permissible” in the sense that our salvation is not in jeopardy.
The second half of the verse, however, is what gets me every time. “But not everything is beneficial”, "to my Christian walk, others’ Christian lives, to the witness of the Gospel, for the saving of souls, to the advancement of the glory of God "you name it. So many times, we ask ourselves or others things like, “Is a Christian allowed to (fill in the blank)?” The answer was, is, and always will be a resounding yes! “Everything is permissible”. Nine times out of ten, however, that thing about which we asked ourselves, “Is a Christian allowed to (fill in the blank)?” turns out not to be beneficial at all. “But not everything is beneficial.”
Lest we think that the Christian life is all about what we avoid, we can easily rephrase “Is a Christian allowed to (fill in the blank)?” to “Does a Christian have to (fill in the blank)?” to see the other side of the picture. Both manifestations of this question have cropped up in my daily life, especially in this past week. “Can I just leave the trash full and let someone else take it out, and still be considered a ‘good Christian’?” “Am I allowed to quote raunchy Will Ferrell movies?” The answer, I am finally realizing, is “No, technically I don’t have to,” and “Yes, I am allowed.” Both of these answers, which remain the same, are beginning to be answered, however, with the resounding follow-up thought: “But why? Does this glorify God more than any other imaginable alternative?”
The more that this has become my mindset the more silly much of our modern debates on the minutiae of “what is allowed” and “what is required” become! For example, we may ask ourselves, “Can a Christian have pre-marital sex?” Theoretically, yes, because our salvation is not dependent on our actions, but on Christ’s. Is pre-marital sex the best way of exalting God’s name through the enjoyment of his plan for human sexuality, however? No. Is pre-marital sex an action that is representative of a heart that is lovingly and joyfully submitting itself to Christ? No. Is pre-marital sex a good way to glorify God and lead others to Christ? No. Will pre-marital sex bring you the most amount of deep, long-term joy? No.
I am sad to admit that it is usually not until I am looking at the days’ events in hindsight that I realize just how much of a “what is permissible?” mindset I had during the day. “Do I have to clean the extra dish? Do I have to swing the hammer an extra time, when I’m already tired?” I’ve thought of all of these things, though these questions are representative of the fact that my heart was not in the right place. I pray that my questions would gradually become questions of how I can most glorify God and serve others, rather than questions of minimalism.
I am realizing that the “What is permissible?/What is required?” mindset that I so often take is both silly and dangerous. Logically speaking, it is silly, because it tries to a) set limits on the inherently unlimited grace of God, and tries to b) pose official “requirements” over and above the beautifully simple and free, “If you confess with your mouth that ‘Jesus is Lord’, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Romans 10:9). Practically speaking, it is dangerous because the questions we are asking are tantamount to asking, “how close can I get to a sinful lifestyle, or at the very least, a lukewarm Christian lifestyle, but still be considered a Christian?” Though there is no official, works-based, line that, once crossed, thrusts us immediately into the classification “un-Christian”, I would avoid it at all costs if there were. Instead of spending all of our energy trying to root out exactly where that line is, let us spend all of our energy running as fast as we can away from that line, in the direction of potent Godliness.
In the end, the reasoning behind this verse as the cornerstone of our sanctification is not all that different from the reasoning behind the method of our salvation. God could have easily forcibly coerced every creature that breathes into worshipping his Son, yet he did not. Willing acceptance of Christ brings far more glory to his name. Likewise, God could tightly regulate our post-salvation Christian walk and could use a set of rewards and punishments that would all but compel us into obedience, but he does not. Willing, joyful pursuit of God, "a pursuit that takes us quite far from that “line” we spend so much time trying not to cross "brings far more glory to the name of Yahweh.
My prayer for you, "and especially for myself, "is that we become Christians who focus on “What is beneficial?”, rather than “What is permissible?”. It is only with this mindset that the Kingdom of God will be advanced.
