Why the Church Needs Poets and Practitioners
Every congregation is filled with poets and practitioners. Some are more interested in the art of the Bible, while others are more interested in the "so what of the Bible."
The pursuit of theology must be accessible to the people of God without using the complicated language of textbooks and lengthy systematic theologies—except when essential. Most of you will never read through John Calvin's Institutes or John Frame's 1219 pages of Systematic Theology unless you are predisposed to reading that type of literature.
Now, is it helpful to read Frame and Calvin after eight long work hours in your spare time? Do I want you to read these stellar thinkers instead of spending the Saturday at the beach or watching your favorite TV show? Yes and No. There is a time for everything.
Some years ago, I spent some time thinking about the best way to categorize people in the pew and came up with two categories. The two categories are practitioners and poets.
What kind of questions do practitioners ask? They ask questions like: "Pastor, tell me how I am supposed to live?" "Tell me how I am supposed to apply the sermon you just preached?" "Tell me how I should train my son or daughter." "Tell me how to handle my boss, who drives me insane every day?" These are the questions practitioners ask.
What kind of questions do poets ask? They ask or say things like: "Pastor, how do I better interpret the text?" "That connection you made with II Kings 9 was fantastic." "I love the poetry of the Bible." "How does Christology play a role in my sanctification?"
Now you may say, "Wow, being a poet is more desirable than being a practitioner." If you think this way, you are minimizing the function of the application in the Bible. Though all of us tend towards one or the other, we should learn from one another. Poets need practitioners because they usually have a hard time functioning without practitioners and practitioners need poets. After all, they have difficulty understanding what they are reading or listening to in Church. Theology teaches the poets how to apply theology and the practitioner how to think about theology.
Every congregation is filled with poets and practitioners. Some are more interested in the art of the Bible, while others are more interested in the so what of the Bible. Though these are two different categories, we should not attempt to dichotomize them. We actually need both; we need to learn from each other. Those who are more prone to asking, “How Shall We Then Live?” need to learn from those who are prone to ask, “How Shall This Then Fit?”
Every work has laborers and architects. No one will go into the labor of building a house without the plan and design of the house. Exodus 21-24 are all the specific laws for the people of Israel. This is what you are to do. But chapter 25 has all sorts of details about the tabernacle furniture and furnishings. The Bible brings together practice and beauty.
So, if you are more of a poet concerned with the beauty and the art of the Bible, don’t forget about the commands and the outworking of the faith. And if you are more concerned about the application of the Bible, you need to sit down with a poet and let him tell you about Chaucer, Yeats, Poe, Frost, and how biblical revelation is a great poetic feast.
Notations
Gnosticism reflects this internalization of the Christian life; a downgrading of the material world as evil from which we need escape, and it diminishes the importance of Creation. The Gospel says the abuse of the material world is evil, not its proper use. The Gospel says that our Father gave us a world full of joy so that we might become a people of joy.
I will be traveling again for a few days on Wednesday. Pray for strength and the ability to accomplish my tasks.
I am preaching through the Samson narrative in Judges 13. My first sermon focused on the nature of the Nazaritic vow.
I will be on the Prodcast and the Bud Zone podcasts tomorrow, then the Eschatology Matters podcast in a couple of weeks. I will post links once these episodes are made available.
Current Reading
I am working through the delightful Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne written in 1864. The French writer was considered the founder of modern science fiction. This is his follow-up to the classic Around the World in 80 Days, written a year prior. The work details the exploration of a geology professor and his nephew as they journey through Iceland to find the core of the earth. The book is an intriguing display of friendship and the limits of the human body.
I am currently reading several other works for endorsement purposes. I endorsed Leithart’s reprint of The Kingdom and the Power and Sandlin’s treatise on postmillennialism. And now, I am working through Scott Aniol’s work on political theology.
Find Me
Lots of my ecclesial meanderings are found at uribrito.com
The Kuyperian Commentary, which I founded over 18 years ago, continues to produce a whole lot of stuff. You can find several of Rev. Bill Smith’s articles on wisdom and the debut of Rev. Kendall Lankford on politics is also available. Our podcast, hosted by Rev. Rick Davis, displays some great material with great thinkers and writers. Rick interviewed Rev. Michael Shover, who found himself in a national brouhaha when he protested the LGBT agenda in Iowa a couple of weeks ago.
I had to start a FB fan page since my personal page reached the 5,000 mark a few years ago. I hope you will check it out.
Sincerely,
Uriesou Brito