Balance

Do you remember learning to ride a bike?

I have been reminded this week that one of the most common sources of error is our tendency toward extremes. It’s the old swinging pendulum. A movement intent on restoring the critical role of parents in the spiritual formation of their own children ends up adopting a position that we should never divide children up in age groups. This, of course, is an extreme position, an overreaction that is both unwarranted and unhelpful. On another front, those who stand in sharp judgment of the what they call the ‘seeker sensitive’ movement go to the extreme in opposing anything ever being done that could be considered appealing to anyone; again, an extreme position that is not only an overreaction but one that can become quite ridiculous.

I was caused this week to recall something that the great A. W. Tozer wrote. I think of it often when I see people gravitating hard toward a position without regard for the other perspective which also has validity. Here is what he wrote:

“Truth is like a bird; it cannot fly on one wing. . . . Many of the doctrinal divisions among churches are the result of a blind and stubborn insistence that truth has but one wing. Each side holds tenaciously to one text, refusing grimly to acknowledge the validity of the other. . . Lack of balance in the Christian life is often the direct consequence of overemphasis on certain favorite texts, with a corresponding under-emphasis on other related ones. . . . Let's use both wings. We'll get farther that way.”

The search for truth is not unlike driving a car. There is a ditch to be avoided on either side. I’m not talking about dispassionate mediocrity. I’m not talking about waffling on sound biblical doctrine or the commitment to absolute truth. I am talking about the folly of adopting an ‘all or nothing’ mentality where one is not required. I am talking about the kind of biblical discernment that does not fail to recognize that a great many truths do need to be held in balance. One of the hardest things you will do in this life is to remain balanced.