Solid Food

The entrance of Your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.
Ps. 119:130

One of the key claims of those who call themselves “progressive” is that they are “open-minded.” The idea of progress should assume a clear direction, yet no one can satisfactorily define the direction of such “progress.” The conventional thought is that the journey, not the destination, is what is important. Truth is, no one is really satisfied by that.

The verse from the Psalm above helps define the issue. Simple, in the Hebrew, is a word that means “open,” “roomy,” or “wide,” implying open to enticement due to a lack of discernment. In other words, it speaks of a vacancy ready to be filled with the next thing that comes along. The “simple” are the ones who need understanding. What is championed today is that all ideas or beliefs have equal value, so we must leave our minds open to all truth claims and find their inherent value. This sort of “enlightenment” only masks the darkness, where one is “never able to come to the knowledge of the truth” (2 Tim. 3:7).

In contrast, the Psalmist affirms: “The entrance of Your words gives light.” The light of God’s revelation gives correction and direction in the sense of ultimate progress – toward the true Light (Jn.1:9; Rev. 22:5), a God-ward life. This is why the Psalmist exclaimed: “Your testimonies are wonderful (miraculous), therefore my soul keeps them” (v.129). The sense of “keep them” is to focus upon them. Delitzcsh explains it as “attentive contemplation that is prolonged until a clear, penetrating understanding is attained.”

Open-mindedness is not a goal or an end. Discernment is key to following the information available toward a solid, justifiable conclusion. The writer of Hebrews calls it “having your senses exercised to discern both good and evil” (Heb. 5:14). In line with the Hebrews metaphor of “solid food,” may our resolve be equal to that of the Psalmist: “I opened my mouth and panted, for I longed for Your commandments (Ps. 119:131).


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