Hi all,
Many of us have seen well known Christian musicians, pastors, and others ‘fall away from the Lord’. The modern term is ‘deconstruction’ of their faith.
Notable Christians who have ‘deconstructed their faith’ include: Marty Sampson, former Hillsong worship leader, Kevin Max from DC Talk, Derek Webb from Caedmon’s Call, Michael Gungor (worship leader).
Kevin Max (DC Talk) said he has been “deconstructing for decades” and he now follows “the Universal Christ”, believing in the “presence of the divine in literally every thing and every one.”
Deconstruction: “The process of dismantling one’s accepted beliefs” (A.J. Swoboda in After Doubt)
Sometimes the lines are blurred
Sometimes a person who has deconstructed their faith thinks they are in a reformation. But deconstruction of anything is a tearing down of an existing structure, whether it be a building or a person’s walk with the Lord. It isn’t an active re-forming.
Reformation is the act of re-forming one’s beliefs. That is a normal and good process.
Rapper Lecrae Tweeted:
“One type of deconstruction actually involves using scriptures to deconstruct unhealthy ideas and practices.” This is good and a life-long process of renewing our minds to God’s ways and truth.
But on the other hand, he observed: “Many millennials are using culture to challenge scripture. This often leads to culture taking the precedence over scripture, and sadly people begin to deconstruct themselves out of the faith. We begin to question the Bible because it doesn’t line up with culture.”
This is modern deconstruction: Believing more in popular culture than in scripture, or their walk of what they know to be the Lord. It is a state of confusion of emotions and thoughts that leads to deconstructing one’s faith.
Dutch reformer Jodocus Lodenstein wrote in 1674: “The church is Reformed, and always being reformed, by the Word of God.”
That is the key: Is the deconstruction happening for the purpose of re-forming one’s faith by the Word of God, or simply deconstructing it? Are you un-learning false doctrine and error and replacing it with right and balanced understanding, or just deconstructing your faith in the Lord and scripture?
Popular culture and deconstruction.
When a person deconstructs their faith through modern culture, they see the Bible as a tool of oppression, old fashioned, and out of touch – not the standard of truth to be studied and lived by.
Going down that path then leads to the inevitable point of view that their truth is what matters, not the Bible’s idea of truth. Each person therefore has their own truth, and my truth might not be your truth. “Everyone has to find their own truth” has been heard repeatedly in popular culture.
In other words, when you pull down scripture as one’s final authority, all that is left is personal opinion. Truth is what each person makes it.
Objective truth vs subjective truth
A lamp is in the room.
That is a true statement. It doesn’t matter if you don’t believe in lamps, or don’t believe the lamp is in the room. It is in fact, in the room. A person may not like it that the lamp is in the room. They may not like the style of the lamp. They may be of the opinion that lamp shouldn’t be there.
But it doesn’t matter what they think or believe, feel or opine; the lamp is in the room. That is called objective truth.
But someone had to put the lamp there. Truth must have a truth-maker. Someone put the lamp there, then the lamp is observed to be in the room. These two elements are required for there to be objective truth. Truth answers to the truth-maker.
A lamp is in the room. 1 + 1 = 2. If you jump out a window you will fall. Someone put the lamp there. Mathematics is the foundation that includes 1 + 1 = 2. Gravity is the reason if you jump out a window you will fall. There is always a deeper foundation to truth, a truth-maker.
Popular culture, even among Christians, defines truth in a different way.
When a person deconstructs their faith, they reject truth and the truth-maker. The individual is the truth-maker, therefore whatever they say is truth, is true. They will say of a (Bible) teaching: “What is true for you is not true for me.” That’s called subjective truth.
This allows a person to make emotional decisions based solely on their opinions and feelings. They will deny objective truth because their emotions don’t agree with someone else’s beliefs.
About the lamp
In subjective truth, the person is both the truth-maker and the observer stating something is true.
“I don’t agree with the lamp being in the room.”
They are the truth maker and determiner of what is truth: “I don’t want a lamp in the room” and “I don’t like the style of the lamp.” Those 2 opinions form truth to them, so they feel they are right. Therefore the lamp is wrong. (subjective truth)
When applied to their faith in Christ, they deconstruct their faith because the Bible and teachings don’t agree with their feelings and opinions. They believe teachings that are illogical and clearly proven wrong by scripture, common sense, even science. It is idolatry, placing their opinions above scripture, laying aside logic and objective truth, elevating self above all.
Next week, Deconstruction requires a crisis, and deconstruction seen in the New Testament.
Until then, blessings,
John Fenn
