Workmen or Captives? Avoiding the Snare of Subjectivity
Far from being a necessary evil, emotions, affections, and desires are vital to the Christian life, for they supply our passion for God and help us to love God with “all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength.” But we must never confuse vitality with authority. The strength of some sense or emotion must never become the sole determinant of our decisions or actions. Everything must bow to the Word of God.
Consider the Christian executive who divorces his wife because he “lost that lovin’ feelin’” yet rediscovers it in the arms of an attractive coworker. Or the sister from church who insists God confirmed her engagement to an unbeliever because she “sensed” God’s pleasure in this relationship (her friends note with concern that she has had this same “sense” with respect to three other guys!). Or the couple that suddenly and mysteriously disappears from their local church of four years simply because they “felt impressed” to move on. All these share one tragic similarity—they have been imprisoned within a subjective view of the church.
This “subjective captivity” of the church is the awful but predictable fruit of a Christian culture that is not diligent to correctly handle the Word of truth. Yet errors are rarely new, only recycled. This one goes back to a garden, a serpent, and a couple in the valley of decision.
The Origin of the Captivity
Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’” “You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked. (Gen 3:1-7a)
Satan’s objective was to alter the source of authority for all of creation by replacing God’s Word with a dangerous but appealing alternative: subjective impressions. His strategy had a profound simplicity: 1) Sow doubt (v.1); 2) Create confusion (v.4); 3) Launch a direct frontal assault (v.5), all designed to dislocate their confidence from God and relocate it to themselves. In three quick steps, God’s Word was replaced by what Eve “saw”, by what was “pleasing”, and by what was “desirable” (v.6).
An exchange of monumental proportions had now taken place. The authority for Adam’s and Eve’s lives had shifted from external to internal; from objective to subjective; from “God said” to “I feel.” History would soon attest that humans make poor replacements for God. We will do well to remember that the enemy’s first method is still his best, and one to which he often returns.
Subjectivity and Experience
A rich man and a beggar named Lazarus had both died. Arriving at their appointed destinations, Lazarus was comforted in heaven while the rich man was tormented in hell. The rich man then makes two appeals to Abraham, the first for a spot of water to relieve his agony. The second appeal is most instructive for a church mired in subjectivity.
He answered, “Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my father’s house, for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.” Abraham replied, “They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.” “No, father Abraham,” he said, “but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.” He said to him, “If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead” (Lk 16: 27-31).
For Christians ensnared in subjectivity, spiritual experiences can carry an implicit authority that has the effect of overriding Scripture.
It comes down to an issue of authority. For Christians ensnared in subjectivity, spiritual experiences can carry an implicit authority that has the effect of overriding Scripture. Such experiences are commonly used to validate an ungodly decision, justify disassociation from the local church, or claim the right to live a life unexamined by others. Sadly, in some circles this approach is seen as the height of spiritual maturity. Such is the fruit of a church in captivity.
Supernatural encounters with God should be desired, even pursued. But these experiences with God are given to deepen our humility and incite our passion for God and the church. They do not represent an alternative to Scripture, nor are they capable of preserving our faith. The Israelites remind us that you can experience miraculous deliverance—the Egyptian plagues, the Red Sea parting, manna from heaven, the pillars of cloud and of fire, water from the rock—and still worship a golden calf. Even the most spectacular spiritual encounters fade with time; only God’s Word endures forever.
Category: Living the Faith, Summer 2002
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