— self-examination losing out to self-infatuation?
“Patriotism is the go-to religion of those who would worship a super-sized version of themselves and seldom quibble to persecute non-believers, foreigners and conscientious objectors. It is a grandiose fancy, a self-flattering cult of true believers who require a solemn faith gutted of self-examination, confession of sin, repentance, humility, prudence, peace-making, love of others, a global Savior, God-centered sobriety and a host of other inconvenient tenets festering in the bosom of orthodox Christianity and other meddlesome voices that have long plagued the world with their tiresome, effeminate scruples.”
Every age and every writer brings forward a different style. In the popular religious book market today the trend is largely toward slender, lite weight remarks, peppered with suspect stories. Apparently this is what the canon and critical mass of postmodernity allows. Other eras contrast greatly. As it is said, “The past is a foreign country, they do things differently there.”
Faith, Unbelief, and the relative nature of painstaking brevity
Personally, one of my favorite things when reading writers from previous generations, particularly the 17th century English Puritans, is how, after carefully, thoughtfully, and often artfully exploring their theme, giving out a series of rich, biblical, weighty, involved doctrinal observations and assertions, instead of neatly wrapping up their discourse or treatise they are just as likely to continue with “but to be brief,” and then add a mere 25 more thoughts—just to be understood and thorough, and of course concise. Patient friends wonder where I get the string of words that never end. The brevity of Bunyan is a template I believe I can copy.
“By faith we have our life in Christ’s fullness; but by unbelief we starve and pine away.”
Here’s the insightful John Bunyan, of Pilgrim’s Progress fame, just as you think he is finishing his little piece on Faith.
“[Qualities of Unbelief as opposed to Faith] — but to be brief. Let me here give thee, Christian reader, a more particular description of the qualities of unbelief, by opposing faith unto it, in these twenty — five particulars :
1. Faith believeth the Word of God ; but unbelief questioneth the certainty of the same. Ps cvi 24.
2. Faith believeth the Word, because it is true ; but unbelief doubteth thereof, though it is true. 1 Ti. iv. 3. Jn. viii 45.
3. Faith sees more in a promise of God to help, than in all things to hinder ; but unbelief, notwithstanding God’s promise, saith, How can these things be? Rom. iv. 19-21. 2 Kings vii.2. Jn iii. 11,12.
4. Faith will make thee see love in the heart of Christ, when with his mouth he giveth reproofs ; but unbelief will imagine wrath in his heart, when with his mouth and Word he saith he loves us. Mat xv. 22 – 28. Num. xiii. 2 Ch xiv. 3.
5. Faith will help the soul to wait, though God defers to give; but unbelief will take huff and throw up all (that is, unbelief will throw a fit) if God makes any tarrying. Ps xxv. 5. Is viii.17. 2 Kings. vi. 33. Ps cvi. 13,14.
6. Faith will give comfort in the midst of fears ; but unbelief causeth fears in the midst of comfort. 2 Ch xx 20,21. Mat. viii 26. Lu xxiv.26,27.
7. Faith will suck sweetness out of God’s [disciplining] rod ; but unbelief can find no comfort in his greatest mercies. Ps xxiii. 4. Nu xxi.
8. Faith maketh great burdens light ; but unbelief maketh light ones intolerably heavy. 2 Co. iv. 1, 14-18. Mal. i. 12,13.
9. Faith helpeth us when we are down ; but unbelief throws us down when we are up. Mi. vii. 8-10. Heb. iv.11.
10. Faith bringeth us near to God when we are far from him ; but unbelief puts us far from God when we are near to him. Heb. x.22 ; 12,13.
11. Where faith reigns, it declareth men to be the friends of God ; but where unbelief reigns, it declareth them to be his enemies. Ja.iii.23. Heb iii.18. Rev.xxi.8.
12. Faith putteth a man under grace ; but unbelief holdeth him under wrath. Rom. iii.24-26 ; xiv.6. Ep.ii.8. Jn.iii.36. 1 Jn. v 10. He. iii. 17. Mar. xvi. 16.
13. Faith purifieth the heart ; but unbelief keepeth it polluted and impure. Ac. xv. 9. Tit. i. 15,16.
14. By faith, the righteousness of Christ is imputed to us ; but by unbelief, we are shut up under the law to perish. Rom. iv. 23,24 ; xi.32. Ga.iii.23.
15. Faith maketh our work acceptable to God through Christ ; but whatsoever is of unbelief is sin. For without faith it is impossible to please him. Heb. xi. 4. Rom. xiv.23. Heb. xi.6.
16. Faith giveth us peace and comfort in our souls ; but unbelief worketh trouble and tossings, like the restless waves of the sea. Rom. v.1. Ja. i. 6.
17. Faith maketh us to see preciousness in Christ ; but unbelief sees no form, beauty, or comeliness in him. 1 Pe. ii.7. Is. liii. 2,3.
18. By faith we have our life in Christ’s fulness ; but by unbelief we starve and pine away. Gal.ii.20.
19. Faith gives us the victory over the law, sin, death, the devil, and all evils ; but unbelief layeth us obnoxious to them all. 1 Jn. v. 4,5. Lu. xii. 46.
20. Faith will show us more excellency in things not seen, than in them that are ; but unbelief sees more in things that are seen, than in things that will be hereafter. 2 Cor. iv.18. Heb. xi. 24-27. 1 Co. xv. 32.
21. Faith makes the ways of God pleasant and admirable ; but unbelief makes them heavy and hard. Gal. v.6.1, Cor. xii.10,11. Jn. vi. 60. Ps. ii. 3.
22. By faith Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob possessed the land of promise ; but because of unbelief, neither Aaron, nor Moses, nor Miriam could go there. Heb. xi. 9; iii. 19.
23. By faith the children of Israel passed through the Red Sea ; but by unbelief the generality of them perished in the wilderness. Heb. xi. 29. Jude 5.
24. By faith Gideon did more with three hundred men, and a few empty pitchers, than all the twelve tribes could do, because they believed not God. Ju. vii. 16-22; Nu. xiv. 11,14.
25. By faith Peter walked on the water ; but by unbelief he began to sink. Mat. xiv. 28-30.
Thus might many more be added, which, for brevity’s sake, I omit ; beseeching every one that thinketh he hath a soul to save, or be damned, to take heed of unbelief ; lest, seeing there is a promise left us of entering into his rest, any of us by unbelief should indeed come short of it.”
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