Why are so many deaf? A response to Anthony’s question
Anthony Orzo submitted a question under “About the Music and the Dance”. As I started to respond I realized I wanted to turn this into a post. So here’s Anthony’s question and my response. Maybe you can add to the discussion.
Anthony wrote:
Larry, Scripture clearly emphasizes the need to be empowered by the Gospel (the music) to live a Christ centered life. Since the balance is so clear, why do you think Christian teaching has sometimes lent itself to overemphasizing the dance? I get the impression at times we have many “deaf” men and women in our churches.
I can think of several reasons. There are probably others also.
1. The first reason is perhaps the feeling that in our self-indulgent culture what we really need is not more grace but more discipline.
When Connie and I went to The Supremacy of Christ in a Post-Modern World conference John Piper made an interesting comment. He was introducing Tim Keller and said in a culture that celebrates personal freedom and self-indulgence Tim Keller had helped him see why he needs to preach the gospel to both believers and unbelievers. That’s a very rough paraphrase but you got the sense that Piper had recognized this as a valid need although somewhat counter-intuitive in light of the culture we live in.
This reminds me of something Richard Lovelace wrote in his classic book, The Dynamics of Spiritual Life. He says: “Much that we have interpreted as a defect of sanctification in church people is really an outgrowth of their loss of bearing with respect to justification.” (p. 211)
After he outlines some of the glaring defects of sanctification he says,
The natural tendency of ministers is to lash out at all this baptized depravity with the stinging rebuke of the law. Sometimes this is the right course. But it is often necessary to convince sinners (and even sinful Christians) of the grace and love of God toward them, before we can get them to look at their problems. Then the vision of grace and the sense of God’s forgiving acceptance may actually cure most of the problems. This may account for Paul’s frequent fusing of justification and sanctification. (p. 212)
He then makes a powerful statement beginning with a quote from P.T. Forsyth:
“It is an item of faith that we are the children of God; there is plenty of experience in us against it.” The faith that surmounts this evidence and is able to warm itself at the fire of God’s love, instead of having to steal love from other sources is actually the root of holiness. (p. 213)
I think this gospel-logic is so counterintuitive that the human heart resists it. But the whole gospel is counter-intuitive so it should not surprise us.
Maybe at this point I should add that some people misunderstand that an emphasis on the music, the grace of God in the gospel, should not and does not mean discipline and obedience are not essential. It’s not the music instead of the dance but the music and the dance. Some people who like to emphasize grace really have leaned toward antinomianism and have neglected the dance of obedience and love. The result is that believers who have seen that kind of imbalanced emphasis on grace alone have reacted with suspicion to any emphasis on grace as foundational and essential. At Christ Community I often say, “We aim at one hundred percent obedience.” The emphasis on the music of the gospel doesn’t diminish our commitment to obedience, it simply identifies where we must find both motive and empowerment for the life of faith and obedience.
2. There is another reason also. We can sometimes get quicker outward results by restraining or managing sin than by going for the deeper transformation of the heart through the gospel.
Jonathon Edwards wrote about the difference between common virtue and gospel virtue. The sinful motivational structure of the human heart can be “jury-rigged” to produce what Edwards called “common-virtue”. The origin of the term “jury-rigged” is debated but one idea is that it comes from the French “de-jur” which basically means “of the day”. Sailors used the term when they had to affect a temporary fix on a sail or mast in order to limp back into port where more permanent repairs could be made. Edwards says we often use pride or fear to “jury-rig” the human heart and get outward conformity to rules or commands.
Keller has written about this somewhere. The idea is we might say, “Don’t lie because people won’t trust you and God will punish you if you lie”. That would appeal to fear. Or, we might say, “Don’t lie because only bad people lie and we’re better than those dirty liars who lie like that!” That would appeal to pride. Too often we actually tap into sinful motivational structures like fear or pride, that are highly developed in our flesh, in order to manage behavior without deeply transforming the heart. The result is we get outward results while actually strengthening the sinful motivational structure of the flesh. We have cleaned the outside of the cup and whitewashed the tomb that is full of dead men’s bones (Matthew 23:26-27). Eventually this failure to heal the heart with the gospel will manifest itself under pressures. Only when drenched in the gospel can sinful fear be transformed into reverential respect and sinful pride into a new identity received with humility and rooted in grace. The world works on the principle of common virtue so we default to it unless we intentionally live out of gospel motives.
3. A third reason is simply our own pride.
Sometimes we don’t admit how deeply our hearts need the healing, redeeming power of the gospel. We actually think we can easily change our lives by just trying harder to be better. We resist facing the fact that our hearts are unhealthy, deceptive, idol factories and that therefore it is only by continually repenting of the sin beneath our sins and applying the gospel deeply to our wounded and wretched core can we be truly transformed by the love of God and set free to live in the joyful obedience of the children of God.
I’d love to hear your thoughts on this.
Larry is the senior pastor at 
Great points Larry. Without this “gospel-logic” we will always compromise the sufficiency of Christ’s sacrifice; moralism as you have pointed out being a key danger for Christians. I’ve got a question. Given as some have labeled it our “inward turn” as a culture, I’m curious about what part you see community playing in this recovery of our, quoting Lovelace, “…loss of bearing with respect to justification”? What do you think is the significance of our developing a sense of biblical (personal) justification within the context of community?
I don’t think our battle to remain rooted in the gospel should just be a lonely heroic struggle fought by each individual alone in the inward chambers of the heart. We need to not only preach the gospel to ourselves and in doing so “turn up the music”, but we need to help each other in this. There is incredible power in belonging to a confessing community that stands on the truths of the Apostles’ Creed and justification by faith and shares together in worship, baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Often when overwhelmed with the sense of our failings and sins we might wonder if we truly have a part in the gospel promises. At times like that our brothers and sisters can help us see the signs of grace in our lives and remind us of the gospel.
On August 21, 1544 Martin Luther wrote a letter to one of his faithful and trusted co-workers in the cause of the Reformation, a man named George Spalatin…. Spalatin was immersed in grief and guilt over a sin he felt he had committed. He was convinced that he should have know better and that he of all people, should not have made the mistake he had made.
When Luther learned of his condition he wrote him with these words;
Luther went on and said,
I think that’s at least one picture of how we help each other in the context of community. I’d like to hear your thoughts on this.
Ahhh yes, Clay with the questions/insights about community. Classic. You are generating content like a champ dad! Putting us to shame!
Hey, Mr. Kirk. This is Jarrod, a friend of Alex in Gainesville (we met once). Hope you don’t mind me joining in.
Interestingly, the emphasis I saw growing up in the Evangelical Church was on the music–an overemphasis, I’d say. And while the Christians I talk to try to avoid a “works righteous”, the non-Christians I talk to tend to be looking for in Christians those very works–and not finding them. I think you’re 3 suggestions on why we go for a “jury-rigged” faith can apply to someone who’s listening, but not dancing.
1. In our self-indulgent culture, there’s the feeling that what we need is not obvious, inter-personal actions but personal, self-fulfilling improvement.
2. We can sometimes get quicker results by going for a change of heart rather than the deeper transformation of the life through the gospel.
3. Simply our pride: sometimes we just don’t know what our lives should look like.
Alex will recognize the tune of all this. But that’s why I like your metaphor of the music and dance (and your emphasis on community): a true combination (or, rather, one thing with two aspects) is what we’re made for.
My whole life has instructed me how to listen to music without dancing (both literally and metaphorically…). I look around me, and I see many people who can hear music without dancing. So, I’m not sure that the problem is that some people are listening while some people are dancing. I think the problem is that some aren’t listening-dancing. There’s no such thing as listeners and dancers. There’s only listener-dancers and not listener-dancers. The remedy for people who are only dancing–doing works–is not to get them to listen; the remedy is to get them to listen-dance. I wonder if our usual “diagnosis” of the problem actually contributes to the problem.
Hey Jarrod, I wonder if you would be able to help me understand your comment a little better.
You said, “I think your 3 suggestions on why we go for a ‘jury-rigged’ faith can apply to someone who’s listening, but not dancing.” I thought that was interesting but in your last paragraph you said that “there are no such things as listeners and dancers” which seems to rule out the possibility of someone who is “listening but not dancing”.
To the degree that I think I understand your comment I would basically agree that as you said, “The remedy for people who are only dancing–doing works–is not to get them to listen; the remedy is to get them to listen-dance. ”
I think my assumption is that if they were dancing but not listening they wouldn’t stop dancing when they started listening but would be listening and dancing, and because they were doing both they would not just be doing two different and unrelated things but one unified thing! Maybe we are pushing the metaphor too far! Like the parables of Jesus I only intend for it to make one crucial point: a simple and, I believe, helpful and beautiful point. Here’s how I actually apply it in my life. When I speak, counsel or preach to myself and others I ask myself if I am not only prescribing the steps in the dance but also playing or listening to the music that empowers and inspires it. Both are needed. The God who composed the music choreographed the dance and visa versa.
Here are a few aberrations that have occurred to me. Antinomianism is listening to the music but not caring about actually dancing the dance. Passivism is listening to the music and hoping it somehow makes you dance but taking no responsibility to get up and move. Moralism is prescribing the steps and trying to keep everyone in step, but not caring about the music that inspires and empowers the dance. Doctrinalism is analyzing and discussing the music and the dance but not really enjoying the music and dancing the dance. All of these aberations are unbiblical and unbalanced. We need both: the music and the dance.
I was just thinking for instance that when Paul in Ephesians 4 says, be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another even as God in Christ has forgiven you. He is saying dance the dance of kindness and forgiveness (the steps) by reflecting on the forgiveness and kindness of God toward you (the music). I think there are a lot of evangelicals who are “trying to be kind” and not doing it very well or gracefully because they are not deeply hearing and being moved by the music of God’s kindness toward them. The result is that the unbelievers out there that you mention don’t see the heart-deep kindness of Christ that they would like to see in followers of Christ.
Do you see things differently?
Jarrod, hi, this is Connie — a book(s) you might like is “Kristin Lavransdatter ” by Sigrid Undset. It is three volumes and she won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1928! Kristin, the main character marries a daring, dashing man unlike her kind, stable father and as she lives her erratic life with her husband she ponders how and why he is different from her father. She realizes it is because her father sees his own sin so clearly and feels God’s love so deeply. I believe this can only happen when one is committed to full out dancing and listening. I am not sure, but sometimes it seems people aren’t really dancing or really listening because if they were doing either (and were honest) it would push them to the other. Anyway, I bet you would like these books–there is a lot more to them than this one idea. Take care.
Hey! I’m so glad you set up a blog! How wonderful to have a place on the web to share in discussion on these fundamental issues of our faith. Question: It seems like, hearing the music isn’t the point, but that when you truly listen and let the music move you deeply, your only response is to dance to its rhythm. But, what of sin? If the dance is loving God and others, sin must inherently disrupt our dancing, does it not? I’m especially refering to habitual, overt sin. But, really I’ve heard teaching that any sin is a barrier between us and God, like an immediate wall that goes up that block His face from the sinner, and causes a barrier in our relationship with Him. When you begin to listen and desire to dance, what do you do with your sin? It seems not enough to simply ask forgiveness from God for the hundreth time, knowing the tremendous odds of doing it again despite every intention not to, and just trying to keep dancing hoping at some point that you’ll stop constantly tripping over your own feet. I know the metaphor’s being stretched, but bear with me. It would be incredibly easy to get discouraged and disillusioned with the dance and your own clumsiness. Instead of turning the music off, though, is it really about continuing to ask forgiveness and rest in Christ and the grace of God? And, in doing so, do you think that eventually the steps will become more natural and graceful? It would be encouraging if you said yes :) But, I’d really like to know what you think.
Hey Angel, To confess and repent of our sins is the only thing we can do. We can’t compensate for our sins. We can’t do penance, as if that would somehow settle the issue. The truth is 1 John 1 is the only way to deal with our sin issues. We have to rely on the blood of Christ.
To fail to confess, repent and receive grace because we think we will most likely sin again is just to add sin to sin! On the other hand, to fail to sincerely want, with God’s help, to walk in obedience and to not sin isn’t real repentance. It is one thing to be afraid or maybe even to expect that I will sin again, but its another to actually intend to sin again.
How does the music and the dance metaphor fit this? If I’ve just sinned the next step in the dance is confession, repentance, and renewal of grace ( 1 John 1:7-9). I don’t have to do anythng else until I take that step. That is the next step in the dance (John actually using the metaphor of “walking in the light” but the idea is the same. ) and there is nothing else to do first.
But what invites and inspires me, when I have sinned, to turn back to God in repentance and faith? It’s the assurance that in doing so I will find the grace and cleansing he promises (1 John 1:7-9). What is that if not the music? Notice John says God is faithful and just to forgive us when we, as Christians, confess our sins. Why doesn’t he says God is gracious and merciful? How does forgiveness come from the justice of God? The answer is the cross of Christ and the gospel. For believers, the penalty for our sins has been paid by our Savior. We can’t add anything to it ever. The whole context of 1 John is about our fellowship with our Father when we have sinned. And his forgiveness is not only gracious but just because Jesus paid it all. That’s the music. When we sin, the sooner we listen to that music of the gospel’s promise and start dancing, with repentance being our first step, the better. There isn’t anything else that is safe or sound to do.
And yes, I do believe that we “grow in grace” and as we do, our deep appreciation for the gospel deepens and our Christian life becomes more graceful!
Mr. Kirk, thanks for hanging with me.
I did seem to contradict myself, but what I was going for was: First, many (but not all) problems in faith can be viewed from the sides of both dancing and listening, and second, this possibility indicates that dancing and listening aren’t so separate. Really, I was aiming for ‘listening-dancing’ just via the illustration of someone who is listening but not dancing. Once at ‘listening-dancing’, I think I am prepared to drop the illustration.
The pastoral element complicates things, I see. (Thanks for those labeled distinctions.) Usually I mix two things up in my head: What a person should do, and What a person needs to be told they should do. So, although every Christian out there should listen-dance, many Christians out there need to be told that they should listen more, or that they should dance more. For example: an active homosexual should give up his lifestyle, but maybe that homosexual (perhaps a very fragile person) needs to be told (first) that he needs to have more faith in Jesus. What I’m hearing is that some people just need to told to listen more–even as it’s the case that they should listen-dance more.
You said, “[Paul] is saying dance the dance of kindness and forgiveness (the steps) by reflecting on the forgiveness and kindness of God toward you (the music).”
I think this is where we differ. I’m not sure how effective “reflecting on the forgiveness and kindness of God” always is. (Alex and me definitely have talked about this.) Just as sin pollutes our acting faculty, so it pollutes our believing faculty. And, just as belief can be a corrective to our actions, so can actions be a corrective to our beliefs. (Though, obviously, I don’t think they’re actually so separate.)
So, say I’m doing good things but lacking an equally healthy internal life (I’m dancing but not listening). What should I do? I hear you saying this: I need to listen better. And of course, I do need to listen better. But, I feel like I also need to dance better: by dancing as correctly as possible, I’m more open to hearing the music.
Two issues, there: (1) Is it possible to dance correctly without hearing the music?, and (2) Isn’t trying to dance correctly just legalism?
My response to (1) involves the community. As for (2), I think No, it does not have to be just legalism–and I feel that strongly. Yet, I feel like that possibility–that concentrating on works does not mean accepting (even implicitly) a works righteousness–is easily ignored or denounced as heretical, to the detriment of personally active Christians.
I must stop there–I’ve already seriously violated the length rules for commenting. Really, my thanks. (Just tell Alex to let me know that I’m being too bothersome!)
Mrs. Kirk, thanks for the book recommendation. I think it’s the first time a 1000+ page book has been mentioned with me as an illustration for something (nobody I know actually talks about Brothers K or Les Mis)! I think I agree wholeheartedly with you, that “sometimes it seems people aren’t really dancing or really listening because if they were doing either (and were honest) it would push them to the other.” I think, though, that the reason one pushes a person towards the other is not the person’s correct listening or dancing, but rather their correct listening-dancing (which manifests itself at times as correct listening or correct dancing).
Hey Jarrod, I didn’t know there were rules for commenting. But I enjoy all your interaction here. Here’s a brief response. I think “trying to dance correctly” has to include listening to the music. I remember watching a documentary on a dance teacher in New York teaching inner-city kids how to do ball room dancing. As I remember it at one point she spoke to a boy who was clumsily shuffling along, staring down at this feet. She said, “Don’t just watch your feet, listen to the music!” The reason I like it when you hyphenate “listening-dancing” is because that’s the crux. The two must go together.
However, when I talk about listening, I mean more than “hearing”. I’m influenced by John Frame’s “tri-perspectivalism” so that truly listening means not just understanding the data (what Frame calls the “normative”) and its application to life (the”situational”) but also experiencing an impact on my heart (the “existential”) that affects my heart. Look at what Peter says:
When he says, “has forgotten” I don’t think he means it slipped their minds. He means it is no longer making an impact. So, to use my analogy, they stopped listening to the music! I think if you read my original post and look at Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians it’s hard to avoid the idea that in order to live the life (which he will develop in Ephesians 4-6) we have to be “rooted” like a plant, and “grounded” like a building on the foundation of the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge. That’s the key dynamic I’m stressing. Having said that I believe that correct dancing is essential and we must work, yes work at it, but part of the work is listening because the God who choreographed the dance steps also composed the music that he intends to be the inspiration and even empowerment for the dance.
Cool, Mr. Kirk. I’m starting to get it. At the least, it sounds more fun to listen and dance rather than to do just one or the other. (Listening-dancing–voilà, faith?.)
While I’m not a pastor with seminary training, I have paid attention and honor some who are. What they have brought to my attention is it’s vital to remember and ponder what has been done for us through Christ Jesus. He took the first step to reconcile us with the Father so that we might have an ongoing and intimate relationship with the Living God.
Jarrod wrote: “I’m not sure how effective reflecting on the forgiveness and kindness of God” always is.”
The following is a song written by Graham Kendrick entitled Amazing Love. I offer it for your reflection.
My Lord, what love is this
That pays so dearly
That I, the guilty one
May go free!
Amazing love, O what sacrifice
The Son of God given for me
My debt he pays, and my death he dies
That I might live, that I might live
And so they watched him die
Despised, rejected
But oh, the blood he shed
Flowed for me!
Amazing love, O what sacrifice
The Son of God given for me
My debt he pays, and my death he dies
That I might live, that I might live
And now, this love of Christ
Shall flow like rivers
Come wash your guilt away
Live again!
Amazing love, O what sacrifice
The Son of God given for me
My debt he pays, and my death he dies
That I might live, that I might live
(Last time only) That I might live!
Thanks for your comment Jonathan, and for the song. I some of the most powerful Christian hymns and songs are the ones that takes us right back to the heart of the gospel. Like this morning when we sang, “Jesus paid it all”.
Larry,
I am not sure that I have all this right in my head but I am going to take a stab in the dark at something. A college student and I spent over 3 hours talking about the statement that Jim Coffield used in his message. Even though it was used in the context of speaking on sexuality I believe that it applies to our life in every area. He said that we COMPARTMENTALIZE our lives, putting God in one box and our emotional, physcial, and mental in other boxes never meshing them together. As I look at what it would mean to hear the music and dance I wonder if there is not some deep truth (as believers) in this. We want to have our lives in nice compartments so that our redeeming holy God is not a part of the others. I know that as I have looked at this I realize that I fall guilty but praise God by His mercy I have an opportunity to not only hear the music but dance with Him in every area of my life.
Why wasn’t I told about this? What an unfortunate joy this is to have found! (I say “unfortunate” because the last thing I need is another place to exercise my penchant for spending immoderate amounts of time on the internet.)
I like what I see in this discussion, but I won’t get into it because I have work to do. Some other time, undoubtedly.
Evan - I’m glad to know you found this little project! Please don’t let it distract you from either your studies or your work. Peace. LK
well done, bro
Angel asked about sin and tried to describe it in relation to the analogy. I wondered if, in keeping with the analogy, it might be more appropriate to describe it as not thinking much of the music and preferring to dance a different dance to different music? Hmmm, on seoond thoughts I’m not sure that works either. Perhaps it would be better to say that sin is the result of forgetting to put the music on before you start dancing? Oh, never mind, I was never any good at analogies! But I do think that sin is the product of unbelief and a heart not enthralled with Jesus. Hence we remind oursevelves and each other and encourage each other in the gospel each day (the music) and then, as has been said or implied, the more clearly we hear the music the more we can’t help but dance.
Thanks for the comment Martin yes analogies can be fun. They usually work best when kept to one main idea. In this case: the music of God’s love in Christ is the source of inspiration and empowerment for the dance of the Christian life.