http://rss.desiringgod.org/link/10732/15602947/we-live-if-you-stand-in-faith
You Might also like
-
Do Outsiders Still Matter? An Overlooked Qualification for Pastors
I take it that this session — in a breakout track called “Ministry in the World” — is meant to press us back into the world. Steven was assigned to address chaos and confusion, and Erik the sexual revolution. Both of these begin with our being “in the world” and help us think about how to live and minister in ways “not of the world.”
But now, in this session, the force goes the other way. In Christ, and as pastors, we are “not of the world,” and yet, as Jesus says in John 17, we are sent back in, by his commission, to win many for him from the world:
The world has hated them [Jesus prays about his disciples] because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one [keep them from the snare of the devil!]. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. (John 17:14–18)
You hear the direction in Jesus’s prayer. Instead of saying, they are in the world, help them not be of the world, Jesus says they are not of the world, and now I send them in. Jesus doesn’t just play defense; he goes on the offensive. Which, in its own way, is the thrust the final qualification for pastor-elders has in 1 Timothy 3, “well thought of by outsiders.” As Bob Yarbrough comments on 1 Timothy 3:7,
[Paul] assumes that there will be a live connection between those inside and those outside the church. In settings where church communities or their members have grown isolated from “outsiders,” this verse is a reminder that social separation . . . can be overdone and detrimental. (203)
As we take up this focus on 1 Timothy 3:7, it might be good to acknowledge that, for some, this may be the most unexpected or surprising qualification.
Hopefully we’re not surprised to hear that pastor-elders must be able to teach. Not a drunkard? Of course. Not violent? Yes, please. Not quarrelsome? Hmm, okay, that sounds freshly relevant in recent years. But well thought of by outsiders? Hold on. Does this mean that outsiders have a say in who leads the local church?
How many of us would have seen this coming if we didn’t know already that it was here? Some of us might have even assumed the opposite, that the collective disdain of unbelievers would be a great badge of honor, and show what a great weapon a man must be for Christ’s kingdom.
Holy Disregard for Disgrace
Now, clearly, we have a place in the Christian life for a holy disregard for what unbelievers think. Romans 1:18 tells us that unrighteous men “suppress the truth” of God as Creator and sustainer — how much more, then, will they deny and oppose God’s speaking (in the Scriptures) and Christ’s redeeming (in the gospel)? We know this. We should not be shocked when the world acts and responds like the world.
In fact, it is the words of Christ himself that best prepare us not to be “well thought of” (at times) by outsiders:
“Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.” (Matthew 5:11)
“If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household?” (Matthew 10:25)
“Woe to you, when all people speak well of you.” (Luke 6:26)
Let’s make sure we have this clear: the world crucified the one we confess as Lord. Outsiders martyred the apostles, one after another. Surely, then, we might resign ourselves to put very little stock in what outsiders think, especially in what they think of pastor-elders who together teach the word of Christ as central to their calling and lead the local church.
Yet here, in 1 Timothy 3:7, as the culminating qualification for the church’s lead office, we hear that pastor-elders must be well thought of by outsiders.
Of the apostolic voices, Paul has the most to say about outsiders. Let’s try to capture how he would have us orient on outsiders, in four parts, and the fourth will bring us back to 1 Timothy 3:7.
1. Associate with Outsiders
Paul’s first mention of outsiders, in 1 Corinthians 5:9, clarifies that his previous instructions “not to associate with sexually immoral people” did not mean the immoral of the world but the immoral in the church (1 Corinthians 5:10). He was not instructing the Corinthians to separate from outsiders but from the one “who bears the name of brother” yet remains in unrepentant sin (1 Corinthians 5:11). He says in 1 Corinthians 5:12–13,
What have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge? God judges those outside. “Purge the evil person from among you.”
To be true to the church, and to the world, we judge within the church on clear sin issues (all the while, per Romans 14 [verses 3, 4, 10, 13], not judging each other on items of mere preference). But as Paul lays that burden on us, to judge “those inside the church,” he lifts another: “God judges those outside.” In Christ, we are liberated from the need to pronounce judgement on “the sexually immoral of this world, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters” (1 Corinthians 5:10). Rather, we happily (and carefully) associate with outsiders, seeking to be a means of their redemption by exposing them to the gospel of Christ and demonstrating its counterintuitive fruit in our lives.
And as pastors, and fathers, we kindly and clearly warn our families not to be like those outsiders. And we make sure that the decided influence, in our associations, flows from us to outsiders, not vice versa.
So, first, associate with outsiders.
2. Be Aware of Outsiders
Paul reckons with outsiders again in 1 Corinthians 14. This time the context is corporate worship, and far from ignoring outsiders or planning the gathering in such a way as to estrange them, Paul wants to welcome and engage them. He wants to win them, to repentance and faith in Jesus. To be sure, he does not instruct the church to orient its worship to outsiders but only to keep them in mind when considering the intelligibility of the corporate gathering.
Rather than the indecipherable terms of tongue-speaking, Paul would have the church speak prophetically in its public gatherings, that is, words understandable and clear to all. He asks, “How can anyone in the position of an outsider say ‘Amen’ to your thanksgiving when he does not know what you are saying?” (1 Corinthians 14:16). In other words, his hope is evangelistic:
If . . . the whole church comes together and all speak in tongues, and outsiders or unbelievers enter, will they not say that you are out of your minds [note: this is not something we’re aiming for!]? But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or outsider enters, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all, the secrets of his heart are disclosed, and so, falling on his face, he will worship God and declare that God is really among you. (1 Corinthians 14:23–25)
So, associate with outsiders, and be aware of, even welcome, outsiders.
3. Be Alert to Outsiders
Beyond 1 Corinthians, we find Paul’s pronounced concern for the gospel’s public reputation in the Pastoral Epistles. Whether it’s the conduct of widows (1 Timothy 5:14), or slaves (1 Timothy 6:1; Titus 2:10), or young women (Titus 2:5), Paul would have Christians seek “in everything [to] adorn the doctrine of God our Savior” (Titus 2:10) and not bring any justifiable reviling on the name, teaching, and word of God (1 Timothy 6:1; Titus 2:5). He would have Christians be concerned “to show perfect courtesy toward all people” (Titus 3:2) and care that our good works “are excellent and profitable for people” (Titus 3:8), within the church and outside. It is a striking theme in the letters to Timothy and Titus.
It matters to Paul, and to Jesus, that we “walk properly before outsiders” (1 Thessalonians 4:12). Christ expects his church, in the power of his Spirit, to “walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person” (Colossians 4:5–6). (Interesting he moves from outsiders to speech; we’ll come back to that.)
So, associate with outsiders; be aware of outsiders; and be alert to outsiders.
4. Ask About Outsiders
Now we come back to Paul’s own explanation of the qualification in 1 Timothy 3:7.
Let me offer three observations, then, about verse 7, the one stand-alone-sentence and final qualification.
1. The qualification presses us toward specifics.
The ESV has “he must be well thought of by outsiders.” A more literal rendering would be: “But it is also necessary to have a good witness from outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace and a trap of the devil.”
Note the difference: “to have a good witness from outsiders” pushes us toward specific outsider testimonies, rather than some general, amorphous sense in the air of what outsiders think. This sounds like we would do well to ask a few particular “outsiders” to bear witness about the man — say, those who work with him, or live near him, or have played or coached with him, or went to school with him. A wise council of elders might check some references and solicit testimonies from flesh-and-blood associates, outside the church, who have known the candidate well in real-life situations.
“Mark this: a ‘good witness’ from outsiders means not just the absence of a bad witness, but an actual ‘good witness.’”
And mark this: a “good witness” from outsiders means not just the absence of a bad witness, but more positively, an actual “good witness.” He is “to have a good witness” from those outside the church, which gets at that “live connection between those inside and those outside the church.” Is the candidate’s, or the sitting pastor’s, social separation overdone or detrimental? Does he know many, or any, outsiders?
Another question we might ask is whether the Titus 1 list includes any analogous requirement. We do find the related “above reproach” (twice) that also leads the 1 Timothy 3 list. And it would be worth pondering how many of these attributes, especially the negative ones, will be evident to outsiders, not just fellow insiders: “not . . . arrogant or quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent or greedy for gain” (Titus 1:7).
Beyond those, we might point to the specifics, in Titus 1:8, “hospitable” and “a lover of good” (both phila- roots, philozenon philagathon). Hospitable, of course, is literally “a lover of strangers,” or outsiders. Jesus commends the welcoming of strangers (Matthew 25:35); Paul reminds Gentile Christians that we were once strangers to the covenants of promise (Ephesians 2:12); now we are no longer strangers, but members of God’s household (Ephesians 2:19); and in Hebrews 11:13, even now, in this age, we are strangers and exiles. We have been strangers to Christ, and in being bought near to him, we have newly become strangers to the world. We know about being strangers, and what it’s like to be welcomed with divine hospitality.
So too “lover of good” has in it a kind of outward impulse that relates to moving toward and acting honorably among outsiders. “Lovers of good” are men who are wide- and warm-hearted, maturely magnanimous. They believe in good, and look for good (among insiders and outsiders alike). They do good, and genuinely love the good. They demonstrate the broad hearts and capacious, expansive souls that, in time, become bracing evidence of a sinner’s supernatural encounter with God himself in Christ.
So, again, the qualification is not simply “well thought of” but “have a good witness from outsiders” — which presses us to ask about specifics.
And to ask ourselves, do I “have a good witness from outsiders”? Do I know multiple outsiders well enough, whether neighbors or other associates, that they could give “a good witness” on my behalf? Am I making investments in the places I live, work, and play, serving in my town or city, as to be personally known by individual outsiders?
2. The reason is to avoid disgrace.
Paul gives us his explanation for including “well thought of by outsiders”: “so that [the pastor-elder] may not fall into disgrace.” So, we have two distinct realities here: first is the life leading up to and surrounding the pastoral office, that is, the pastor’s reputation with outsiders. Then, secondly, we have the possibility of one of the church’s pastors, while in office, falling into a state of public disgrace.
Now, Paul’s concern with “disgrace” (or “reproach,” Greek oneidismos) is surely not a condemning of all possible disgrace, whatever the terms. Elsewhere this term for “disgrace” or “reproach” refers to what Jesus bore for us (Romans 15:3), or the righteous reproach, gospel reproach, Christians bear when suffering for Jesus’s sake (Hebrews 10:32–33; 11:26; 13:13–14).
A question, then, we might ask about any public reproach or disgrace that a pastor-elder endures is this: Is it “the reproach [Jesus] endured”? Is it gospel reproach? Is it, then, a necessary disgrace, because Christ and his truth is the real issue, or is this unnecessary disgrace because the pastor himself has failed the truth, or failed to exercise wisdom or failed to conduct himself Christianly, disobeying Christ’s commands?
In other words, as 1 Timothy 3:7 highlights, is it unrighteous reproach? Is it disgrace from outsiders that is deserved because of foolish and sinful attitudes and actions in the church’s leaders?
So, practically, if there is some disgrace related to a pastoral candidate, let’s say, a key question to ask would be: Why is this reproach, this disgrace, falling on him? Is it because of his own folly, just as much on Christ’s terms as the world’s? Is he a “fool for Christ’s sake” (1 Corinthians 4:9–13) or a fool in Christ’s eyes as well? Is he speaking truth but in an un-Christian way?
What if a pastor is clean of disgrace when called, and then begins to acquire a worsening reputation while a pastor? Stephen might serve as a good example for us on this. Acts 6:3 gives us the first ever officer qualification specified in the church age. Do you know what it is? Good reputation. “Brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute [“well spoken of”], full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty” (Acts 6:3). Stephen had a good reputation when he became one of the Seven. How long did that last? It doesn’t sound like very long.
So, what is the church to do when some outsiders who rose up to dispute with Stephen “secretly instigated men who said, ‘We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God’” (Acts 6:11)? The church knew what Stephen actually said and what he meant. Clearly, this is gospel reproach, for Jesus’s sake, and so you stand by your officer. Acts 6:13 says the witnesses who came against him were false. (And there may be a difference to consider between standing by your already appointed officer and newly making an officer of a man with an already disgraced name.)
In Matthew 5:11, Jesus says, “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you” — and then he says, “falsely on my account.” If the reproach heaped on a pastor-elder is “false on Jesus’s account,” the outside witnesses do not carry the day. Stand by your man.
So, the qualification presses us to ask about specifics. The reason is to avoid public disgrace. And finally, what about that last phrase in verse 7?
3. The devil delights to disgrace the church.
The end of verse 7 says, “so that he may not fall into disgrace and a trap of the devil.” Here we have two nouns, connected by and: disgrace and a trap of the devil. How does the “and” work?
Does it mean that the devil’s trap is a second and additional reality beyond disgrace (like two stages, first public disgrace, then the disgraced pastor subsequently falls into a trap)? Or is the snare a second way of saying the first — that disgracing the pastor is the devil’s trap? I think the latter makes more sense, in the context and more broadly — that public disgrace is the devil’s special trap, his frequent scheme, how he draws it up and designs it. He works the angles all the time to publicly disgrace pastors. That’s exactly what he wants: publicly disgraced pastors, and their churches with them.
“The devil loves it when Christian leaders, of all people, give outsiders valid, reasonable cause for disgrace.”
A disgraced pastor — who is reproached by outsiders, not on false or gospel terms, but on the moral terms of Christianity itself — is a trap Satan loves to exploit. He squeals with delight as the jaws snap shut. And with it, he kills three birds with one stone. He renders the pastor himself less effective, if not totally ineffective; he injures or torpedoes the faith of some insiders; and he solidifies unbelief in outsiders — whom he wants to keep from the gospel. He wants outsiders to remain just that, outside the church, and in his clutches. So, the devil loves it, when Christian leaders, of all people, give outsiders valid, reasonable cause for disgrace. (And he loves to use modern media to magnify it.)
Again, it’s one thing to be a fool for Jesus, but quite another to be foolish just as much on heaven’s terms as the world’s.
Brothers, let’s know the devil’s devices and beware his schemes. He tempts leaders in the church, and aspiring leaders, into the kinds of sins that will bring reproach on them and the church. So, beware the perennial temptations related to money, sex, and power. And beware the new field of public temptations in our generation that many, sadly, are not yet taking as seriously as we will learn to in the future: online self-disgrace, with worldly outrage, hot-takes, and rash comments.
And we might take special warning as pastors, as men for whom words often come so easy. In previous generations, Satan would disgrace pastors as others spread the news about a pastor’s sins and folly. Today Satan adds to his schemes the delicious strategy that pastors can just directly disgrace themselves with public online folly.
Why Care About Outsiders
To be clear, the world does not choose the church’s leaders. The thoughts and opinions of outsiders are not ultimate. But they do matter. We ignore them to our own peril, and we should not presume public disgrace as a mark of faithfulness. To the question, “Should we care what outsiders think?” the biblical answer is just as much yes as it is no (if not more so yes; the no’s are exceptions, not the rule). But most significant is why: that outsiders may be saved. We want both to keep believing sheep in and to win more from the world, as Paul did:
Give no offense to Jews or to Greeks or to the church of God, just as I try to please everyone in everything I do, not seeking my own advantage, but that of many, that they may be saved. (1 Corinthians 10:32–33)
“The thoughts and opinions of outsiders are not ultimate. But they do matter.”
In the end, outsiders matter to us because they matter to Jesus. And he has other sheep, he says, to bring in (John 10:16). He delights to make outsiders into friends, and brothers, as he has done with us. And we hope and pray that he has many more in our towns and cities who are his (Acts 18:10).
Outsiders matter to us because such were all of us. But we have been brought in. And good pastors know, firsthand, that Christ loves to take frail, former outsiders and make us his instruments for bringing in more, and for leading his church with such hearts and dreams and prayers.
-
Worthless Conversation: How God Weighs Our Words
Some people have written bestsellers documenting their entrance into heaven. They claim to have died and returned to tell us what they saw. Suffice it to say, their accounts rarely match accounts of similar events recorded in Scripture. Those taken into the throne room — like Isaiah, for example — do not tell us about seeing their favorite loved ones or eating their favorite snacks.
“In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne” (Isaiah 6:1), Isaiah begins. He details how the end of this King’s robe filled the entire temple. He documents mighty beings lit on fire, flying around the King’s throne, shouting, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of armies.” The foundations tremble at the sound of their thunderous voices (Isaiah 6:1–4).
Isaiah does not sigh with relief, or whistle for his long-lost dog. Eyes from the throne pierce him like sword thrusts. The prophet, in response, calls down a curse upon himself: “Woe is me! For I am lost” (Isaiah 6:5).
Isaiah unravels before the Holy One who knows him completely: every sin, every twisted motive, every secret deed. He throws the gavel down upon himself and immediately pleads guilty. Did he even know what sin was before this moment?
And as Isaiah sees what I take to be the preincarnate Son upon the throne (John 12:41), he smites himself for, of all things, the use of his tongue.
Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of armies! (Isaiah 6:5)
His eyes see the Holy King of Israel, the God of armies, and he does not run to sit on his lap, but falls to his face, confessing the evil, not only of his tongue, but of the tongues he lived among on earth. Here he did not lament that he dwelled among a people of sexual immorality, murder, or idolatry. What he said, and what the people said — their conversation — horrified him before the Righteous One.
The Sin of Careless Speech
If we each saw the Lord today, we would dread how unclean our mouths have been. Take inventory of yourself: hasty words, cursing words, violent words, lustful words, blaspheming words, false words, lying words, gossiping words, flattering words, harsh and belittling words. Just how many rats have proceeded from that sewer?
Paul, in bringing all humanity under condemnation before God, quotes the Psalms to indict us:
“Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive.”“The venom of asps is under their lips.”“Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.” (Romans 3:13–14)
But this is the Old Testament, we may think. Isaiah and the psalmists didn’t know Christ as we do. Their God, all lightning and thunder, had not yet fully revealed his merciful side.
Yet hear what Christ himself says:
I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned. (Matthew 12:36–37)
“If we each saw the Lord today, we would dread how unclean our mouths have been.”
In confronting the Pharisees about blaspheming the Holy Spirit, Jesus, arguing from lesser to greater, adds a category to our dark speech: careless words. Even thoughtless words — not just blasphemies against the Holy Spirit — will be measured and weighed. People will give an account of every one. All of them. Millions and millions per mouth. Recorded. Remembered. Required at the judgment seat of Isaiah’s God.
Only Human After All
What exactly are careless words?
Careless words are idle, purposeless, lazy, and useless. The Greek word for “careless” (argos) is used to describe men who stand around in the marketplace when they should be working (Matthew 20:3–7), people who go from house to house wasting time and causing trouble (1 Timothy 5:13), Cretans who do not produce the good they ought (Titus 1:12). Idle words wander about unproductive, travel around causing trouble, refuse to bless as they ought. And we will give an account for every single one.
Perhaps you share my fallen response: That seems a little excessive. We’re only human, after all.
But as Isaiah found out firsthand, that excuse will not work. Whatever thoughts he had before he saw this God, they all changed the moment he stood before the throne. The prophet voiced the sentence of death against himself. When we are tempted to think this standard too harsh, John Calvin points us in the right direction:
Many look upon this [being judged for every careless word] as too severe; but if we consider the purpose for which our tongues were made, we will acknowledge, that those men are justly held guilty who unthinkingly devote them to trifling fooleries, and prostitute them to such a purpose.
Each will give an account for exactly the reason Calvin cites: our tongues were made for glorious purposes.
Fountain of Life
I am tempted to have low expectations of judgment because I have a low view of words — a view Jesus does not share. He will review our careless words with us because he expects our words to incline toward usefulness, to yield godly effect, to be seasoned with salt, to give grace to our hearers.
To avoid blasphemy, slander, and lying is too small an aim for a human mouth. Silly, careless words also stink as sinful words because all our words ought to be worth speaking. They should work for good, produce fruit, aim at others’ benefit, and stand in unflagging support of God’s glory. Each mouth, given power of life and death (Proverbs 18:21), should be overflowing with life — and with God’s words of eternal life, even if the hearers only hear death.
“To avoid blasphemy, slander, and lying is too small an aim for a human mouth.”
Redeemed hearts and new creatures alone will beget this kind of speech. All of humanity, like Satan himself, “speaks out of [their] own character” (John 8:44). After telling the Pharisees that they cannot speak good because they are evil, Jesus offers the contrast: “The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good” (Matthew 12:35). Good words originate from good hearts, which God gives in new birth.
Learning from Seraphs
Isaiah felt crushed by the weight of a world of wicked and worthless words pressing down upon him. Seeing God and hearing the flaming voices, singular in purpose of praise, exposed Isaiah’s own life of unclean speech. In that room, profane and purposeless talk held no place.
But this did not end his story. He judged himself worthy of death, but God had more grace to give, as he does with us. A flaming messenger brought to Isaiah’s lips coals from the sacrificial altar (upon which the King himself — the Lamb of God — would rest as Isaac’s ram, slain). And when the Lord asks whom heaven should send, Isaiah turns from cursing himself for his mouth to eagerly volunteering to go forth to speak as God’s ambassador. “Here I am! Send me” (Isaiah 6:8).
Forgiveness met him as it meets us, repurposing and commissioning the mouth of even the most foolish and idle talkers. What was once given over to darkness can now be used to praise God and bless mankind. Seeing the glory of Christ banishes small purposes for redeemed tongues. And amazing grace sends us forth as the seraphs to speak of Christ.
-
Is My Humorous Personality a Liability?
Audio Transcript
We have talked about the deadening power of the entertainment age in which we live. Just recently we saw this in APJ 1811. And we have talked a lot on this podcast over the years about the flippancy of the age, and of how humor and glibness sort of works its way into the language of the church if we’re not careful. On this point, I’m reminded of APJs 328 and 905, where we address that directly.
But here’s an interesting question about humor from a listener named Brian. “Hi, Pastor John! A question I have wondered about for a while is these commands to Christians in general, and requirements for elders specifically, that we be sober-minded. I see this in texts like 1 Timothy 3:2, 11; 2 Timothy 4:5; Titus 2:2; 1 Peter 1:13; 4:7; 5:8. I ask because my question is about humor. My default mode is outgoing and humorous. So I’ve wondered if maybe this is something I must repent of. I can understand not wanting to make light of things that are serious or holy. But do these commands to be sober-minded mean we should be serious all the time?”
There are several different Greek words behind the idea of sober or sober-mindedness. The basic idea is either “not drunk” (and all that implies as it applies to our mind) or the more general way we use it — namely, thoughtful, self-controlled, without any reference to drunkenness. In both cases, the import is the same: a mind that is alert and clear, and able to take reality into account for what it really is, and process things wisely, and draw informed and insightful judgments from what we observe and think about.
Three Aspects of Sober-Mindedness
In January of this year, Joe Rigney, the president of Bethlehem College & Seminary, where I serve as chancellor and teach preaching, gave a message in chapel on this very theme of sober-mindedness. And I found it very helpful. I think you can probably go to the BCS website and find it, but it was really illuminating for me. I remember even now, he drew out three implications from biblical texts for what sober-mindedness is, especially for younger Christians like our students:
clarity of mind
stability of soul
readiness for actionAnd we can see all three of these features of sober-mindedness if we just look at the three uses of the word in 1 Peter, without even going to Paul’s letters or anywhere else. And then when we look at these, I’ll turn around and say something about Brian’s particular question about how humor fits into sober-mindedness.
So first, 1 Peter 1:13: “Preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” So you can hear readiness for action and a clear head that focuses on the hope of Christ rather than being cluttered and confused by worldly distractions.
Second, 1 Peter 4:7: “The end of all things is at hand; therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers.” And you can hear the need for stability of soul because of how fraught with instability the end times will be. People easily fall prey to hysteria and conspiracy thinking and lose their footing and their stability. So don’t do that; be sober-minded, for the end of all things is at hand.
And third, 1 Peter 5:8: “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” And you can hear the call for alertness to lion-prowling and a readiness to act in defense of your soul against this lion and the need for stability of soul, because living with a constant awareness that we have a supernatural enemy could easily throw us off balance. And we need very much to think straight and clear and biblically about our adversary and not lose our bearings or our soul’s stability.
President Rigney went on then to make application to the particular challenges of our culture, which are remarkably pressing today. Sober-mindedness turns out to be really in short supply and really needed, he argued, and I think he’s right. And you can check that out for yourself.
Sober-Minded, Not Silly
But Brian’s question is different. He says, “My question is about humor. My default mode is pretty outgoing and humorous. So I have wondered if maybe this is something I must repent of. I can understand not wanting to make light of things that are serious or holy, but does the command to be sober-minded mean we should be serious all the time?” Interesting question.
I need to define some terms here. I wonder if, when Brian uses the word serious, he might mean in his assumptions something like somber or dour or glum or the weighty look of the furrowed brow that you bring into every situation. If he does mean that by serious, then the answer is no, sober-mindedness does not imply that. But the way I use the word serious is this: its opposite is silliness, not joy. Silliness is the opposite of serious. Immaturity, trifling, frivolous, flippant, petty — those are the opposite of serious in my vocabulary. And I think sober-mindedness does prevent that kind of trifling humor.
“Sober-mindedness is the demeanor that corresponds to the weight of the things of life, the great things of life.”
Sober-mindedness is the demeanor that corresponds to the weight of the things of life, the great things of life. It is possible to be sober-minded and have elements of humor in our life. But it’s hard to be sober-minded and at the same time be the kind of person that we’ve all met, who is obsessed with being funny, so obsessed that he’s incapable of serious moments. He is actually allergic to them. I’ve known people like this. They are allergic to serious moments. If a serious moment starts to happen, they’re the first to break the mood with some pun or something. They can’t take it. They have to say something quick to break what they consider a seriousness that they don’t know what to do with. They’re just emotionally incapable of relaxing and enjoying seriousness. And that’s what I would warn Brian against. You don’t want to be that way.
Sober-Minded, Not Somber
On the other hand, unbroken seriousness of a melodramatic or somber kind inevitably communicates a sickness of soul to the great mass of people. And they’re right. This is partly because life as God created it is not like that. There are, for example, little babies in the world who are not the least impressed with our passion or zeal or sober looks. They are cooing and smiling and calling for their daddies to get down on the floor and play with them.
And the daddy who cannot do this because he’s so serious will not understand the true seriousness of sin, because he’s not capable of enjoying what God has preserved from its ravages. He’s really a sick man and unfit to lead others into health. He is, in the end, sober-minded about being sober-minded, not sober-minded about being joyful.
“The real battle in life is to be as happy in God as we can be.”
The real battle in life is to be as happy in God as we can be. And that takes a very special kind of sober-mindedness. It is significant, isn’t it, that the first use of sober-mindedness, in 1 Peter 1:13, puts it in the service of hope: “Being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” What could be happier, right? What could be happier than hope? Put your sober-mindedness to work for making sure that you remain hopeful and joyful as a Christian. That’s the great task of sober-mindedness.
So, Brian, there’s no conflict between sober-mindedness and joy at all. This is real joy, strong joy, stable joy, spiritually alert joy, ready-to-act joy. If your humor serves that, then praise God and go for it.