I’ve grown mostly tired of online theological debates. It is not that theology doesn’t matter—it does. It’s just that rarely is anything accomplished on social media. I’m still convinced that most of the New Testament was written to local churches and such things ought to be worked out in a local church context where relationships are central. That’s not to say there isn’t a place for online discussion it’s just that it should not be the place.
Though my disdain for these arguments continues to grow, I must confess at times I get sucked back in. I’m a nerd. I like reading through arguments. And if I’m being honest there is quite likely much within my heart that still longs to watch a good train wreck. I’ve still got much to learn in obeying Paul’s admonitions against creating factions. I got sucked back into another one of these discussions a couple days ago.
Last night, I was laying in bed watching the horrors of what happened in Nice, France. It feels like our world is coming unraveled. As a lover of history I know that times have been crazier. Certainly if they had CNN during the Crusades or Fox News during the Fall of Rome, it would feel similar. But they didn’t. We do, and it feels less and less hopeful each day. We know that Christ is on the throne. But that was also true as other societies in history crumbled. Only one kingdom will stand at the end of the day. And we might be watching western civilization crumble before our very eyes.
I tried getting to sleep but couldn’t. So I decided to check in on that theological debate. After all, nothing like a riveting discussion on minor points of theology to get me bored enough to fall asleep. As I read through the comments I’d missed (many posted before the incident in France) I felt sick to my stomach. It all seemed so pointless and trivial. People are losing their lives. The world is unraveling before our very eyes. And what are many Christians doing? Arguing online with fellow Christians about minutiae.
This brings to mind a really good illustration by Mark Buchanan in his book Your Church Is Too Safe. He uses the Lord of the Rings to make a point about the difference between fellowship in Rivendell and fellowship in Mordor:
In the place where life is easy, where good things abound, where no threat encroaches, it’s impossible to get a dwarf and an elf to trust each other—even to be civil with one another—if their lives depended on it, precisely because in a place like that their lives will never depend on it. They can live forever there in their prideful independence. They need rely on no one. They need not trust anyone. they can simply become more entrenched in their belief that they are superior, all else are fools. (62)
That is life in Rivendell. And I think many Christians are assuming we are still in Rivendell. Or perhaps that Rivendell is where God wants us this side of eternity. And with a few well-timed votes and a couple great politicians we can make Rivendell great again. As Buchanan perceptively writes, “They started caring about fellowship more than mission, and in the end lost both.”
Fellowship is much different in Mordor. The elves and the dwarfs must ban together. They see now that their companionship is vital to their survival. Fellowship isn’t optional. They cannot simply go about being elves and dwarfs on Monday-Saturday and only come together a little on Sundays to hear a common sermon. No, their lives are now fused together by this great quest—this mission of pushing back darkness.
My prayer is that the church—myself included—will wake up to the fact we are in Mordor. And we are not here because the liberals have placed us here. We are in Mordor because the sovereign God of the universe has decreed this season for us. We are here because only one kingdom will ultimately stand and all others must fall. And we must be about proclaiming the Good News of Jesus—the means God uses to convict hearts and create passionate worshippers from every tribe.
We are in the midst of a Great War. Let us not bury our head in the sand and pretend there are other means to peace and victory except for the Great King taking His place in the hearts of men. Let us not be satisfied with pretend companionship or shallow missions. The King is doing something. Let us follow His marching orders and not our own. We are in Mordor. The mission is not complete. Let us live together as if this were true—because it is true.
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Photo source: here (You don’t see an elf and a dwarf riding together in Rivendell)
There is a place for theological discussion. God has used it over the centuries of church history to refine our theological thinking. Much of what takes place online is not well-handled, not that the theological discourse the church has had has always been well-handled. Nevertheless, God has used it.
My conviction in the matter has moved from simply demonstrating how a theological position is correct, as though that were the end of it. It’s good to be right and to teach good theology. However, the end goal of it should be an increase in faith. That is, people should be convicted of sin and led to a greater trust in Christ for forgiveness. If that’s not the ultimate goal, then we are failing to know God better despite having good theology.