Doctrine Vs. Intimacy

"Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life." – II Corinthians 3:6

There has been a longstanding war in Christian circles which again leaves Christ’s people with a black eye. This war is not a declared war but one that subtly rages between pastors, theologians, and individual believers. On the one side you have those who profess to know God based on sound doctrine. While on the other side there are those who claim to know Him through revelation, which leads to intimacy. You ask what the difference is? Doctrine is that collection of truth that when systematized defines the fundamental beliefs of the Christian faith. The deity of Christ, justification, sanctification, the trinity, and a host of other teachings complete the foundation upon which the church is built. Without doctrine you can drift into heresy which is the fertile soil in which cults take root. Revelation is the belief that doctrine in and of itself is incomplete in giving us daily guidance. Revelation is the Holy Spirit opening my mind and illuminating my heart to personally hear from God in such a way that I do not violate doctrine but go beyond the facts and into a more intimate and personal encounter with God.

The war exists based on the fear of what the other side is teaching and what negative affect it may have on Christianity. If you are of the more doctrinal persuasion, you fear that those who claim to hear from God will be driven by emotion, feelings, hallucination, visions, dreams and the like. If you lean to the side that claims intimacy, you fear the doctrinal Christians will spread a gospel that is sterile, intellectual, and bookish. The truth is that both sides have plenty of Scriptural and experiential ammo with which to blast the other side. The Bible is quite clear that doctrine is important, otherwise the church morphs into a mass of confusion and everyman does that which is right in his own eyes. We see this from Scripture as well as church history. Equally true is dead theology which leads the church into head knowledge but no real life in Christ.

So how do we solve this problem? Much like other issues in life, the truth often lies somewhere in between. Before someone yells, “Compromise,” hear me out. Many times one side points to flawed extremist views of the other side. Those who claim to hear from God have a longstanding history of false prophets, doctrinal error, and experiences which counter biblical truth. Not to be out done, the doctrinal purists have a history of fighting over every nuance of Greek verb structure (including execution if you don’t see things my way) and boring people to tears over intellectual studies reserved only for those with 170 IQ or higher. They often answer questions nobody is asking.

The truth is that both sides are most clearly represented in Scripture with boundaries. The Scripture warns against cold intellectual teaching referred to as the “letter of the law,” but add a counter balance to those who will not “endure sound doctrine.” Just because each side has its exhibits of nut cases on the other side does not nullify the Scriptural truth upon which that side adheres.

When someone says, “I heard from God,” or “God told me,” the doctrinal purists react by saying, “Did He speak to you in a bass or baritone voice?” If someone said that to me, I would respond by saying, “Apparently you have never heard from God, for He doesn’t speak with a bass or baritone voice but a spiritual voice, which can only be spiritually discerned (I Corinthians 2:14).” Their cute rejoinder is based on what they perceive is the extreme view. The person who rejects hearing from God uses terms like, “I got a great insight from Scripture today.” To which I want to ask, “Was the insight in blue or green?” Insight is just a euphemism for hearing from God. Remember extremists are marginalized and don’t speak for the majority view of either side.

Another concern from the doctrinal side is that if you claim to have heard from God you are adding to the closed cannon of Scripture. Not so! To add to the cannon would be to add universal doctrine for all believers, whereas to hear from God is a personal revelation regarding your own life. “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path” (Psalm 119:105). Justification, sanctification, and propitiation are not a lamp for my feet but for all feet.

Well I’ve hit the purist so now let me give equal time to those who claim intimacy. There is a tendency coming from their camp to throw doctrinal caution to the wind. The reformers, Puritans, and church fathers gave their lives to protect the church from heresy. Scholars and theologians are to be commended for standing as sentinels at the doorway of the church to keep the heretics at bay. They have acted as shepherds to drive the wolves back into the hills where they belong. Thank God for doctrinal purists who have kept the truth, the truth. Those who draw from intimate revelation need to walk close with the purist who will help keep you in bounds. Purists need to walk with the mystic who finds Christ to be personal and will help the purist to experience life.

The purist is afraid to leave his doctrinal moorings for fear of spooky mysticism, while the intimate crowd fears being tethered to narrow teaching that might restrict their free spirit in sailing spiritual seas unrestrained. Will the former miss the voice of God while the latter is tossed to and fro with every wind of doctrine? Certainly much more could be said. Doctrine is a protective fence around the church to keep her pure and untainted from worldliness and heresy. Once inside her walls the personal Christ leads his sheep through intimate revelation based on sound doctrine and obedience to His Word. There will always be those few who misrepresent both sides. Dead intellectual orthodoxy pitted against wild claims of “God told me” will always be with us. In the meantime “Study to shew thyself approved unto God” (II Timothy 2:15a). Learn to “contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints” (Jude 1:3). Be careful to listen to His voice which will never contradict His written word. Doctrine and intimacy should never be at odds. Doctrine is the glove. Intimacy is the hand that fits snugly therein. That’s the way I see things.