What Matters for Glory

The alleged glory of civilization is nothing compared to the glories of faith.

Biblical faith does not build civilizations. The most we might do is build a small, enduring community of faith. Civilization is the context in which we live, but we don’t promote any civilization. The word “civilization” is closely associated with cities and the customs necessary for urban living. It promotes material progress. In the Bible, such a context appears only as mankind drifts farther and farther from the Garden of Eden. The more you ignore God’s revelation, the more you need civilization to survive — and the more lost you will be. The whole point of faith is to get back close to Eden so that you don’t depend civilization to live in this world.

So, we have no need for all this blather about privacy, for example. It’s not that we don’t need privacy, but the fierce guardianship of privacy against government is an artifact of non-faith living. In a genuine faith community, privacy is just a factor to be considered against the necessities of living together in faith. Some things should be private, but the faith life requires people being in each other’s armpits, so to speak. It requires we be wide open to those within the covenant.

Once again: The boundaries of the covenant of faith is a prime consideration in all things. There’s an ambiguity in the term “government” in that the covenant tribe has a government that is part of your spiritual family, while outside governments are kept at arm’s length.

But the question of dealing with the society outside the covenant boundaries is loaded with ambiguities, if intellect is the only level of discussion. That’s what we confront with most discussions about rights and such; the people are reasoning, but nobody wants to address the matter from revelation. Instead, they try to bend revelation to fit their reasoning.

It’s a general principle of the Word that we should expect intrusions from outside the covenant and not get too worked up about it. Most of the blather on liberty-minded sites rests on the a priori assumption that this world is all there is. Even when they specifically say otherwise, their reasoning assumes there is no Spirit Realm, or that it doesn’t matter. Their concerns are very worldly.

We don’t assert our rights; we assert our convictions. The only reason we need for anything at all is that our convictions demand it, or deny it. Whether we can, or would bother with explaining it is not at issue. It is a matter of what our God requires of us. We would generally hope we can explain it; that’s part of our witness. However, the truth of walking by conviction in itself is not subject to debate with any authority below God’s.

Does God want you to assert privacy? Then hit it hard. Close the walls tightly and never surrender. For the most part, biblical teaching is that we don’t take it too seriously. We aren’t absolutists about the thing itself; it’s just a tool, a matter of tactics.

The same goes for a lot of things about which people are up in arms these days. I see no need to fight the move to a cashless economy on principle; it’s just a tactical issue. We don’t consider private property ownership as sacred. God will supply our needs, and that’s not a mere blandishment. It actually works that way. Focus on what He calls you to deal with, and let the other things slide. We should expect persecution; the saints of God will suffer tribulation. It’s not a question of God’s protection, but the primary emphasis is how we face difficulty, with or without shielding. Divine protection never conforms to our convenience. What really matters for His glory will never be lost, regardless. That defines what is in our best interest.

Our concerns look past civilizations. Humans outside of His covenants are just cattle being herded; they have no clue what really matters. They are continually obsessed with trivialities and ephemeral matters. We look for cues that mark eternal concerns, because we are just passing through this world. Not only does God not hold us accountable for making the world a better place, but He specifically warns us it’s a waste of resources. Rather, we sometimes do things that make the world seem better for some folks because it’s part of our mission. However, that amelioration of suffering is not the objective; it’s just a means to an end.

That end is the Father’s glory.

Here’s a laundry list of things that exemplify an eternal perspective:

1. In computers, the biggest issue is not protecting data, but keeping the message clear. Protect your identity/persona so that you can prevent people putting words in your mouth. Make your message and actions clear and consistent. Order your computer security measures to that end.

2. Avoid the vaccines if you can. There is no benign intent at all behind them. However, if you can’t avoid them, trust the Lord to glorify Himself in the results. Pray and focus on His sovereign power.

3. Don’t expect law enforcement or law suits to accomplish anything that matters. The messy secular human politics will get messier, more egregiously stupid and bizarre. Don’t worry about pleasing any authority, or anyone who poses as an authority. Try to avoid being noticed in the first place. This is a very good time to stay under the radar as much as possible. By the same token, don’t be afraid to cause trouble when that’s part of your mission and calling.

4. It’s far, far more important to render an honest report than to achieve any specific outcome by structuring what you say and how you say it. Meanwhile, sometimes the best thing you can say is nothing, because anything you say could be a provocation. Pearls before swine…

5. On a related note, one of the biggest threats to shalom is a secular cultural orientation that rewards the flesh. A major problem is that we are encouraged to demonstrate our intelligence or virtuosity (“attaboy”), when it’s perfectly okay for people to be wrong about us. Learn to not care if people like you; live agape regardless. Act like a predator against the instinct for “just trying to help.” If you suspect that motive is lurking in the background anywhere, squelch the thing you feel the urge to say or do. Don’t try to help; try to glorify the Lord. It never makes sense to the mind; truly righteous conduct baffles most people.

Biblical culture is not civilized as the world views it. For us, civility is defined within the covenant of faith. While our manner of engaging each other by faith would make a good basis for a civilization, the problem is that civilization requires laws that aren’t as flexible as faith. Civilization requires boundaries on the wrong level — rules instead of morals. It focuses on the outcomes of shalom, but not the thing itself.

However, “civility” is a term with broader implications. It’s an orientation that seeks to lubricate human interactions by emphasizing what is necessary for coexistence, without compromising convictions. Civility allows that some people are hopelessly stupid and seeks to reduce exposure to them, avoid interaction with them. It never presumes to correct, but to keep stupidity from affecting the outcome of the business at hand.