Proverbs for Christian Blogging: Am I Sowing Discord?

Mike Leake 1 Comment

    A worthless person, a wicked man,
        goes about with crooked speech,
    winks with his eyes, signals with his feet,
        points with his finger,
    with perverted heart devises evil,
        continually sowing discord;
    therefore calamity will come upon him suddenly;
        in a moment he will be broken beyond healing.
    There are six things that the LORD hates,
        seven that are an abomination to him:
    haughty eyes, a lying tongue,
        and hands that shed innocent blood,
    a heart that devises wicked plans,
        feet that make haste to run to evil,
    a false witness who breathes out lies,
        and one who sows discord among brothers.
(Proverbs 6:12-19 ESV)

A wise husband studies and knows his wife.  He knows the things that she may be sensitive to.  He knows what “pushes her buttons” and he comes to know the things that would make her shed tears.  A good husband knows these things and does not do them.  He doesn’t just carelessly say, “Ah, this might hurt her feelings but oh well, it’s funny, it’ll get a laugh from the guys”.  No, a good husband doesn’t even take the chance.

One of the things that the Lord says that he abhors is “sowing discord among brothers”.  Notice in the list the six things he hates, seven that are an abomination.  This is a poetic way of highlighting the Lord’s hatred of one sowing discord among brothers.  Of course that begs a question, “what constitutes sowing discord”? 

From the context we know that this discord comes from a wicked heart that manifests itself in crooked speech.  The idea of one “going about, winking, signaling, and pointing” shows that this person has his aim to cause conflict, to exploit situations, and to gain personal advantage*. 

Just as I know my wife and want to be cautious and I never desire to cause her harm, so also I know that the LORD abhors the one who sows discord among brothers.  I want to be cautious not to be that guy.  I can probably cut out a good deal of discord sowing just by checking my heart before I blog or comment.  But at the end of the day I also know that my heart can be fooled.  So I ask three questions before writing an article that could be in the ballpark of sowing discord among brothers.

Three Questions for Articles I Write:

  1. Is my goal to expose or shame a brother?  If we are talking exposing a wolf, then it’s not sowing discord.  Some people might be upset and accuse me of sowing discord because I say that the teaching of prosperity teachers is whack and that they are wolves in sheep clothing.  That’s not exposing a brother that’s telling your sheep to watch out for a wolf.  But there is a different type of “exposing” that goes on in some popular blogs.  They follow a typical formula.  Person X said “blah blah” but I’m not sure that he really believes that because he also said “blah blah”.  If I’m trying to expose some vast conspiracy or the heart and motivation of another person I’m probably off my rocker.
  2. Am I trying to make my audience pick sides between two polarizing people?  I think I have at least bordered on guilt in this one in the past.  If I say something like John Piper teaches X, Joel Osteen teaches Y, and then ask who is more biblical?  I think I’m sowing discord.  If my goal is to say that Piper is biblical then I should just say that and not use the article to take a shot at Osteen.  If I think Osteen is teaching something against Scripture then I should compare him to Scripture alone and not throw Piper in there as well.  Because at the end of the day all that does is creates Piper followers and Osteen haters (or vice versa) and that’s not the goal. 
  3. Am I misrepresenting somebody?  If I say that somebody believes something then I should be able to print off my article, hand it to them, and have them say, “yep, that’s what I believe”.  If I make logical jumps, inferences, etc. and say this is what you really believe no matter how many times he disagrees with what I think he said then I’m sowing discord because I’m causing a headache for a guy that doesn’t even hold a position that I am accusing him of. 

Three Questions for Commenting:

  1. Am I engaging in a “dude did you see this?”  If I find an article of somebody dogging my friend, or another figure, its pointless for me to go to his website and then link to the guy that disagrees with him.  It’s just sowing discord.  It’s really no different than in your everyday life if you overheard gossip and then told your friend, “dude, do you know what Tom said about you”. 
  2. Would I say the same thing with both parties present?  If my story would change and the way I represent one persons position then I’m sowing discord.  If I am bold in trashing a guy behind his back but not when he is there I should shut my yapper and stop sowing seeds of discord. 
  3. Am I encouraging the online community to pit people against people or people against Scripture?  This is very similar to #2 above just in the realm of commenting.  If an article disagrees with Piper then it might be best to summarize his point and tell why you think he is more biblically persuasive rather than just saying, “Piper disagrees”, then providing a link.

At the end of the day a deluded heart will probably read through this list and say, “I don’t do that”.  I have a discernment ministry and I’m always exposing wolves.  A more humble heart will read through these and add caution to his/her blogging and commenting.  For me, if God says He abhors one who sows discord among brothers I am going to be pretty cautious about doing anything that may look like sowing these seeds. 

—

*I got that from my ESV Study Bible

Review of Reformation: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow by Carl Trueman

Mike Leake 1 Comment

C.S. Lewis once advised against chronological snubbery by encouraging us to read older books along with the new:

“There is a strange idea abroad that in every subject the ancient books should be read only by the professionals, and that the amateur should content himself with the modern books…. Now this seems topsy-turvy. Naturally, since I myself am a writer, I do not wish the ordinary reader to read no modern books. But if he must read only the new or only the old, I would advise him to read the old…. A new book is still on its trial and the amateur is not in a position to judge it. It has to be tested against the great body of Christian thought down the ages, and all its hidden implications (often unsuspected by the author himself) have to be brought to light…. It is a good rule, after reading a new book, never to allow yourself another new one till you have read an old one in between…. The only palliative is to keep the clean sea breeze of the centuries blowing through our minds, and this can be done only by reading old books.”

There is as Lewis noted a type of “uncritical acceptance of the intellectual climate common to our own age and the assumption that whatever has gone out of date is on that account discredited” in our day.  It may be less than in Lewis’ time—thanks in part to his wise words here.  Yet still there are many students and even elderly folks within our churches that think Martin Luther is the guy who gave the “I have a dream” speech.  Or perhaps he is that guys lesser known daddy. 

Many still in our day wonder, “what can we learn from guys that wore weird hair cuts and scratchy robes?” 

In July of 2000, Carl Trueman gave a group of lectures on the contemporary relevance of some aspects of Reformation theology.  He was attempting to answer the question of what we can learn from these guys with weird hair cuts and scratchy robes.  That group of lectures was made into a short book which sadly fell out of print.  Thankfully in 2011 Christian Focus decided to put Trueman’s thoughts back into print in the form of Reformation: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow. 

Summary:

In this short book (127 pages) after defending the relevance of the reformation, Carl Trueman looks at the necessity of a theology of the cross, an emphasis upon Scripture, and a healthy doctrine of assurance.  Trueman believes that “the Reformation represents a move to place God as he has revealed himself in Christ at the center of the church’s life and thought” (17).  It is only natural then for Trueman to emphasize the cross and the Scriptures.  It may seem odd, however, that with everything one could draw from the Reformation that the author would focus on assurance.  Yet it is here, in our doctrine of assurance that we find the difference between the Reformation and Catholicism. 

In each chapter Trueman explains the “yesterday” the Reformation, he applies it to the churches “today”, and also sets a course for the church of “tomorrow”.  To see how Trueman weaves these thoughts together consider his explanation of how assurance and lamentation fit together. 

My Take:

I have always enjoyed the writings of Carl Trueman.  At times you have to pause and really think about the point that he is making, but he never fails to be profound and to make helpful points.  Even when I disagree with Trueman (which is rare) he communicates in such a way that the reader is left to clearly understand his position.  He is an engaging writer and one that clearly loves to display the excellencies of Christ and the sufficiency of God and His Word.  His helpful writing is on full display in this short book.

As in his other writings Trueman will make you think and to question certain deeply held beliefs.  Going through this study caused me to ask whether or not I am truly living according to these Reformation principles.  Of course, and Trueman would be the first to admit this, the goal is to live according to biblical principles.  So it may be better to ask whether or not we are living according to the biblical principles that found a renewed emphasis in the Reformation.  Not only am I living out these principles but are we living out these principles as we gather together? 

Reading through this book I was challenged and encouraged throughout.  It will cause church leaders to ask questions of their ministries and it will cause every believer to consider the man of sorrows.  I was also encouraged (as well as challenged) by Trueman’s treatment of assurance.  As he did throughout, the author did a tremendous job of showing the central issue and making it relevant for today. 

Should You Buy It?

If you like to study the Reformation and church history then spending 8 bucks on this little book will be a purchase that you want to make.  This book would also be very helpful for church leaders as well—the way Trueman applies these Reformation principles will cause us to at least ask whether we are being biblical in the way we live out the Christian life in these areas. 

Chances are if you clicked on the link for the book review and you have made it this far then you are the type of person that would greatly enjoy and benefit from this book.  So just do it, man.  Go buy the book.  It’s only 8 bucks. 

How Lamenting and Assurance Fit Together

Mike Leake

Carl Trueman is, in my opinion, one of the best writers of our time.  It is not surprising then, that I am thoroughly enjoying his book Reformation: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow.  I received this book (originally written in 2000) free while attending this years T4G.  It was one of the first books of the thirty free ones that I picked up to read.  I am not disappointed. 

Here Trueman is defining assurance and considering how we can lament and have assurance at the same time.  Enjoy:

Assurance is…backward looking with regard to its foundation but forward looking in its orientation.  In essence, assurance is being certain that God is who he says he is—and that is derived from our knowledge of his great saving acts throughout history as they culminate in Christ—and therefore being sure that he will bring us to glory, that he will complete that good work within us which he has started.  We live in the present, at a time when we know that one day we will see God in glory but only see him now by faith.  In the meantime, the world is a dark and hostile place; and our souls are in many ways still darkened and frequently tending to hostility towards God.  Therefore, there will be times when, either because of external or because of internal factors, we do not see or feel God smiling upon us.  At such times we can indeed lament our sorry condition.  It is right and proper, and pastoral good sense, that we do so, because to do otherwise is to fool nobody, not even ourselves, and thus to store up trouble for later on; but as we do so, we should also remind ourselves that it is not what we feel now that determines our status, but who God was, is and always shall be.  Thus, the lamentation should be set, as it almost invariably is in the psalms, within the context of God’s larger redemptive acts and purposes.  (From Reformation, 124-25)

I would encourage you to read through that again and really chew on what Trueman is saying.  If you like this paragraph chances are you will greatly benefit from the entire book.  You can purchase it here for under 10 bucks.  You can read more from Trueman here. 

Proverbs for Christian Blogging: Be Joyously Content With Your Own Portion

Mike Leake

    Let your fountain be blessed,
        and rejoice in the wife of your youth,
        a lovely deer, a graceful doe.
    Let her breasts fill you at all times with delight;
        be intoxicated always in her love.
    Why should you be intoxicated, my son, with a forbidden woman
        and embrace the bosom of an adulteress?
(Proverbs 5:18-20 ESV)

It may seem like a stretch to compare fulfillment within the sexual intimacy of marriage with blogging.  Yet, I do think there is a root issue that motivates both adultery and bad blogging.  That root is the failure to be satisfied with the portion that the Lord has given you. 

The man that refuses to “drink water from his own cistern” does so because he thinks the water somewhere else is going to taste better and be more fulfilling.  He has lost satisfaction in the well that the Lord has given him.  He has bought the lie that God is holding out on him and that tasting forbidden fruit will supply what he lacks. 

The same principle applies to the blogger that sells out for traffic.  Really bad and irresponsible blogging comes from a heart that is not satisfied with its audience.  The times when I have hit publish too soon (or when I should have not hit publish at all) came from an inordinate desire to be heard or noticed as opposed to a steady desire to be faithful. 

If you have seven followers, and four them are your mom signing in on different accounts, then be joyously content in the portion that the Lord has given you.  Be faithful with this little, keep plodding, keep proclaiming, and keep honing your writing skills.  If the Lord sees fit he might increase your number of readers.  But you could also tick off your mom and lose half your followers.  Regardless, your goal is to be faithful.  Be joyously content that God has given you the gospel and that you are used by him to articulate it—even if its to one dear soul. 

Don’t sell out.  Take joy in being faithful and keep on lifting up Christ.  Enjoy the ideas that the Lord is giving you.  Chew on them.  Let them penetrate your own life.  Be intoxicated in the gifts that He has given you and not enamored by the gifts that He has given to another dude.  Your well is your own to enjoy.  So enjoy it regardless of how deep it goes.