Life, liberty, and pursuit of orthodoxy

I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. (John 10:10b)
And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. (John 8:32)

These are the precious words of Jesus Christ. He has come to give us the true objects of the “American dream”, or at least the first two from “life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness.” The reason I did not include “pursuit of happiness” is that it is a rather elusive phrase. Indeed, happiness connotes an idea of transience and chance, subject to uncertainty and vicissitude. I prefer joy and peace, but true joy and peace are not obtained by human pursuit. Rather, God graciously gives them in Jesus Christ.

Last evening I went to San Francisco to hear my Hebrew tutor preach. He substituted for his church's pastor, who was on leave. I had known my Hebrew tutor by way of studying Hebrew under him, but had not heard him preach. His message was simple yet effective, exhorting the congregation to genuine faith and sincere love. During the sermon he spoke negatively of (his words) “pursuit of orthodoxy”, which led me to reflect again on John Frame’s article “Machen’s Warrior Children”. As important as orthodoxy is to the life of the Church, the overzealous pursuit of it often leads to unnecessary contentions, infighting, and waste of time and energy that could be expended on something else more constructive. Pursuit of orthodoxy often becomes pursuit of dead orthodoxy, resulting in a bunch of hot heads and cold hearts. I think it’s about time the Reformed community reflect on this and in humility ask God for guidance on how best to defend the faith yet practice sincere love for one another. Just as faith without works is dead, so also is orthodoxy without orthopraxis.