The Philosophical and Practical

Two of my favorite magazines are National Review and The Economist. NR, a high-brow political magazine, engages creatively and extensively in the realm of ideas. The Economist, on the other hand, largely deals with numbers and practicalities in politics. In other words, they tend to write and live by the dictum, "Whatever works, do it."

Now philosophy and practicalities cannot be divorced from one another, as Machen noted:

"What is to-day matter of academic speculation begins to-morrow to move armies and pull down empires.  In that second stage, it has gone too far to be combated; the time to stop it was when it was still a matter of impassionate debate.  So as Christians we should try to mould the thought of the world in such a way as to make the acceptance of Christianity something more than a logical absurdity."

There is always a connection between ideas and practice, because practice is always rooted in ideas. I take my wife on vacation, for example, because I believe that it is important for a family to enjoy quality time with each other.

But the connection between philosophy and practicalities is not always so immediate as "today" and "tomorrow." The resurgence of conservatism as a political force in the U.S., for one, is the result of several generations of development. First came the philosophers of the movement--Russell Kirk, F.A. Hayek, Milton Friedman, Richard Weaver, Whittaker Chambers, etc., then came the popularizers, who bring thoughts into the mainstream--William F. Buckley, Irving Kristol, R. Emmett Terrell, etc, and finally the politicians, who bring the popularized thoughts into practice in public policy--Barry Goldwater, Ronald Reagan, The Heritage Foundation, etc.

With this in mind, the most savvy cultural movers and shakers will think in terms of the long game. They will spend as much time seeking to influence institutions and publications as they do the political process. It is much easier to enact ideas if you have the media and popular opinion behind you. By the same token, if you try to push legislation through without winning over popular and media support, you're likely creating a political disaster that will overturn your gains.

These lessons in the history of ideas are important for the Church in America (of which you're a part), which largely embraced an experience-is-everything anti-intellectualism over the past century: "Doctrine divides!" "I don't want to hear people talking to me about the Bible, I want to hear their stories." "That pastor is never practical enough for me!"

The reality is, we all need to be philosophical and practical. We all need to take our thoughts captive for Christ in order for our hearts and those of others to change. This is especially important for the pastor, who must humbly and prayerfully seek to discern the mind of God as it is revealed in Scripture and apply such knowledge with conviction and comfort in Christ to the hearts of God's people.

But the call, as Machen noted above, is not just for pastors, but for all believers. Some will primarily be lovers of ideas and others lovers of people, but in some measure, we all must be lovers of both. The Church is at its strongest, in the sovereign grace of God, when she treasures the Truth of God and the people of God, as well as those "who might believe and have eternal life" (1 Tim. 1:16).