Joyful Noise

Growing up, I thought all Christians were best friends. 

I knew my church was Presbyterian and that it was much more fun than the Episcopal one I went to with a friend once after a Saturday sleepover. I knew my brother's preschool was Church of Christ and that their playground had the best slide. I knew my babysitter went to a Freewill Baptist college that deemed Amy Grant too much like progressive rock and therefore not suitable for auditory consumption. I knew my grandparents attended a Methodist church near the mall with the best bookstore. 

I had heard of all these denominations and others but never thought too much about them. They were all Christian, and that's what mattered. 

As I entered high school I began to get the sense that denominational divides might denote doctrinal differences. I discovered words like Calvinism and predestination, but I was okay with the tension in these topics. My Christian high school was nondenominational, and so was I. 

When my husband and I were looking for our first church after spending two years at a Catholic university, we were concerned to learn that the ambiguously-named church we had been visiting was in fact Baptist--we liked to consume the occasional adult beverage, and our understanding was that Baptists wagged fingers at such things. 

After dragging our feet a little, we decided to go to the new-member class anyway, just to check things out.

The pastor explained that there were things this particular church deemed essential (belief in Jesus' virgin birth, deity, and place in the Trinity as the Son of God; salvation through the grace of Jesus' death and resurrection; etc.) and things that they deemed non-essential, like congregational alignment on the five points of Calvinism and utter abstention from alcohol.  

I signed the membership covenant right away. 

It was at this church, in my early thirties, that my naïve notions of universal interdenominational harmony were first fractured. It had nothing to do with the church itself, but rather a women's-group Beth Moore video study on the book of James.

The study was incredible. I could feel myself digging into the Word more than I ever had--and loving it. Beth reminded me of my mom and all her best friends. She was relatable, funny, knowledgeable, wise, and discerning. The study made me want to know God more. 

Then, in one video, she said something that threw me for a loop. She referenced having had haters--other Christians--who said nasty things about her and thought everything she stood for was wrong. 

Why would some Christians hate this woman? It was unfathomable to me. 

Somewhat shaken by this information, I did my best to sweep it aside and enjoy the rest of the study. But there it was, nonetheless: my first glimpse into Christians hating Christians. It wasn't until a few years later, in a new house, new city, new church, that the fracture, initiated back then, became full-on shattered glass. 

This time it started on Facebook. 

A friend I still respect deeply posted something to the extent of, "Christian friends, what would you rather let your kids listen to: secular music with all the sexual references and explicit language, or Christian music with false doctrine?"

I was intrigued. Right away I messaged him to find out which songs stood accused. 

He replied with the better part of my current playlist.  

Now, the way I see it, my reaction could have gone about four ways:

In the first scenario, I shrug my shoulders and move on with my life. 

In the second, I immediately see the error of my ways, repent, and turn a deaf ear to the music in question. 

In the third, I get incredibly defensive and light up my friend's Messenger app with 95 colorful theses on why he is wrong.

In the fourth, I deep-dive down a Wikipedia rabbit hole of all things non-ecumenical in search of clarification on the destructive nature of all my favorite ditties. 

I chose the latter.

I read scathing music reviews, mulled over contradictory viewpoints on entire movements I had never heard of, and became monumentally sure I had never been more confused about my faith. I had no idea there were so many types of Christianity, nor how polarizing they could be. There it was, all over the Internet: Christians hating Christians. 

Now, to be fair, many posts I read were relatively calm and rational in tone, objectively attempting to disprove the doctrine of a dissenting view. But some . . . some were vicious. 

The next few months were a challenge. My mind and spirit were consumed with this cacophony of internet voices. One movement receiving a lot of criticism sounded a little like my church. Did my beloved church-home fall into the category in question? Did I even want to know? Would it change my mind? There were so many terms, so many opinions, so many factions, so much dissent. 

I read and read and read. I read viewpoints from progressives and from fundamentalists. I read books and blog posts and opinion pieces of all kinds. Spiraling down the rabbit trail looking for truth was exhausting. 

But the text I needed to find had been with me all along, sitting on my bookshelf, waiting to be cracked open, and getting a little dusty while I searched for answers elsewhere. 

Have you ever noticed that God's voice is the only thing that can quiet all the others? 

No other voices, no other words are a substitute for being in the Word. 

In practice and in prayer, that is where peace is restored. And when I say practice, I mean the practice of opening the Bible and opening your heart to what is inside, feasting with God there in His words. 

Now, I am not going to say that everything the Bible says is easily digestible. 

Sometimes it seems irreconcilably incohesive--which is why these factions exist. One verse, chapter, book, or testament seems to say one thing, and the next seems to say another. When we look at pieces in isolation, it can be hard to make sense of it all. 

But context is everything. 

And recognizing our limited human understanding is even more. 

The Bible itself tells us that, despite our best efforts, there are things we cannot fully grasp with our finite minds:

Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has become His advisor?  Romans 11:34, ISV

He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.  Ecclesiastes 3:11, NIV

Now we see only an indistinct image in a mirror, then we will be face to face. Now what I know is incomplete, but then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known. 1 Corinthians 13:12, ISV

Consider the following translations of Job 11:7:

Can you search through God's complex things? Can you uncover the limits of the Almighty? ISV

Can you fathom the mysteries of God? Can you probe the limits of the Almighty? NIV

Canst thou by searching find out God? Canst thou find out the Almighty unto perfection? KJV

Do you think you can explain the mysteries of God? Do you think you can diagram God Almighty? MSG

These are all translations of the same verse. I expect that each of the people or teams behind the various translations are well-versed in Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek, Latin, Biblical history, and any other skill necessary to accurately translate ancient scripture. And yet, they do not arrive at perfect consensus; there are variations. They are all really saying the same thing, but you might not know it if you focus too closely on the differences or simply skim over the similarities.

Thus, it is not surprising that we, of limited understanding and varying viewpoints, do not arrive at perfect consensus. We--Christians--are not in unanimity on all matters of doctrine, practice, or politics.

It hurts us--it hurts the Church, and it hurts our hearts--but it should not be surprising when we have trouble reconciling one viewpoint with another.

The Oxford Dictionary states two definitions of reconcile. 

One definition is to make (one account) consistent with another, especially by allowing for transactions begun but not yet completed. 

We often have trouble making one account, or perspective, consistent with another. But that is not the problem. The problem is that we get hung up on our differences. We have to allow for the fact that God's work in us--all of us--is begun but not yet completed. 

When Jesus was crucified, He declared, "It is finished," and indeed, He accomplished His purpose and paid the price for our sins--Hallelujah! Praise Him!

But He is not finished with us yet.

Paul prayed for the Christians in Philippi, ". . .that He who began a good work in you would carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." (Philippians 1:6, NIV)

God is not finished with me. He is not finished with you. Or that politician on TV. Or that guy in jail. Or your kid's teacher. Or your kid. All those people with differences of opinions--He's still working on them, on us. 

How can we expect everything to add up now when there are pieces of the story that are yet to be revealed?

Many of us are very quick to judge others' perspectives, doctrines, or lyrics without really grasping the true scope of their message. Sometimes the things we disagree on truly are mutually exclusive, but sometimes, perhaps, we just believe that they are because we cannot yet see how they fit together. 

Sometimes we are actually believing and saying the same thing; we're just not speaking the same language. 

I believe this is the case for most of the songs that led me down the rabbit hole of nonecumenical nonsense.

But here's where things get really exciting:

Remember how I said Oxford stated two definitions of reconcile?

The other is this: to cause to coexist together in harmony; make or show to be compatible. 

This is the end game. 

This is The day of Christ Jesus. 

This is Isaiah 11:6-9:

The wolf will live with the lamb; the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. The infant will play near the cobra's den, and the young child will put its hand into the viper's nest. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. (NIV)

This is knowing fully, even as I have been fully known. 

One day the missing pieces that separate all Christian perspectives will fall into place. The wrong bits will fall away, the right bits will stay, and we who have been earnestly seeking the Truth of the Holy Spirit will receive it fully. 

But until that day . . . 

To all those questioning the doctrinal truths in the Christian Top 40, I say keep it up. We shouldn't just accept everything we hear as truth. Questioning is good. 

But we should start with questioning ourselves. What are our motives? Are we seeking to shine His light or just searching for someone to expose? 

When I consider a Christian lyric, I question its motive as well. Does it aim to glorify God? More importantly, does it lead me to glorify God? For all those songs on my favorite playlist, I believe the answer is yes. 

Psalm 98:4 says, "Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the earth: make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise." 

When it comes to Christian music, or really any aspect of the Christian walk, let's get our heads out of the forest for a minute and focus on the heart posture of this beautiful branch of the Tree of Life:

Making a joyful noise, and doing so unto the Lord.