I think this short article from John Piper summarizes something that I’ve always felt a strong conviction about: Love for God cannot be reduced so that it is expressed exclusively in terms of either heart or mind.
I don’t believe that God is glorified for a second by the disciple who will only choose to indulge shallow feelings of love and affection that aren’t based on substantial Word-saturated truth. I can generate emotive warmth artificially at the thought of a companion’s love for me or by listening to good music. Or I can manufacture “passion” by surrounding myself with the company of supportive friends. Far too often the church has skipped out on the hard work of mind-straining study of Scripture and theology in the name of avoiding intellectual presumptuousness. Though a real problem (see below), frequently it’s just an excuse to veil intellectual laziness. Ultimately that will manifest in dismissive suspicion of doctrine and theology in favor of trivial conversations misunderstood as “fellowship”. It’s proven so when the church resorts to expediency and pragmatics; turning off lights and amplifying the music, all in an effort to making a more suitable environment to pour out superficial feelings to God. If you aren’t growing in your understanding of the Scriptures and the Gospel it testifies to, the warmth of your heart will inevitably grow cold.
On the flip side, hard study of theology and the Bible that yields nothing but a frigid orthodoxy, wary of practice and obedience is myopic at best and at worst, an utter abomination to God. The Lord detests pride in all forms but perhaps it is the arrogance of the mind that is barren in life that is the greatest affront to the God who exudes love, grace, compassion, and mercy. If you’re not stirred up in your study with growing zeal for the lost, enlarged affections for Christ, and greater commitment to the church, then there’s a good chance the Holy Spirit is not involved in all your efforts to pore over tomes, manuscripts, periodicals, and lexicons. That kind of heart produces “keyboard warriors” (a phrase coined by Ted Kluck in critiquing a certain kind of blogger) that are more committed to their doctrinal systems than they are to the kingdom of Christ.
Somewhere in the middle is the life of devotion that incorporates both heart and mind. It is not an either-or issue. These things are meant to be mutually compatible.
God has given us a mind to study Scripture and theology in order that our knowledge of Him might be deepened. Let us then exert the mental energy required for the study of theology and Scripture to grasp the scope of biblical and redemptive history.
God has given us a heart so that we might engage in love and joy in the Christian life. Let us then share the Good News of Christ’s perfect righteousness and sacrifice for the elect in word and in deed to our unbelieving neighbors and friends, be more deeply committed to prayer as an expression of true piety, and strengthen the church by the exercise of spiritual gifts.
Don’t put asunder what God has brought together. Prayerful dependence on the Spirit and attentiveness to biblical guidance will ensure we don’t divorce the heart and the mind in our devotion to the Lord.
