With the New Year upon us and our tendency to make resolutions, I figured it would be helpful to revisit the topic of Jonathan Edwards’ resolutions. Many people are fond of cutting and pasting Edwards’ resolutions into their journals and making them the priorities of their life. A quick reading of the resolutions will doubtless provide conviction, motivation, and refreshment for the Christian. Here is an example:
22. Resolved, to endeavor to obtain for myself as much happiness, in the other world, as I possibly can, with all the power, might, vigor, and vehemence, yea violence, I am capable of, or can bring myself to exert, in any way that can be thought of.
Here is my question: Are these types of resolutions helpful for believers to cut and paste into their own lives? Is it spiritually healthy to try to emulate the resolutions of this giant?
Yes and no. I suppose it depends on your motive and grip on the gospel. Are the resolutions helpful reorientations toward holiness or are they the tablets on which you are transcribing a new law?
Caution 1: Don’t Make a New Law
Our hearts have a tendency to attach to rules and regulations for righteousness. Like a moth flying around a flame we are drawn to rules, even if it is to our peril. This is a sobering reality. We want to be active doing something so that we feel like we are something. The scary thing for me as someone who wants to pursue holiness is that I see the rules and don’t see the gospel. I can pin up an admirable and universally accepted standard of godliness then just aim for it. And if I achieve it then I may feel better. I may even begin to feel righteous.
Surely you can see the problem here. In the situation we may just cut and paste these resolutions into our lives instead of the Law. While we may in our confessions and blogs line up behind Paul to repudiate those who would aim to be justified by works of the Law, we may at the same time be leaders in establishing a new law that measures godliness and provides righteousness.
This is a caution that we who love the gospel and pursue holiness should always be aware of.
Caution #2: Don’t Worship Jonathan Edwards
We could end up using Edwards to eclipse the very thing that he gave his life to. Edwards was (and remains) a puritanical megaphone for the infinite merit of Christ. You can barely go two pages in his writings without him showcasing the glory of Christ in the gospel. What a tragedy it would be then for us today to gather fruit from a tree firmly planted on gospel banks and use it as nourishment on our journey to Sinai!
In other words we could be so in awe of a guy like Edwards and his radical commitment to Christ that we miss the joy producing, life-transforming power of Christ himself! What a devastating error. We end up trying to be like Edwards instead of Jesus and we are depressed and dejected when we don’t measure up.
The caution to not pervert good gifts from God, even godly Christians, remains a timely warning for us.
Using Edwards is Helpful
So what do we do? Do we pitch Edwards? Do we disparage those who love to read him? Of course not. Instead, we need to keep him in context. We certainly should learn a lot from Edwards in context. There we will stare long at Christ, his person and work, and then dip you pen in the inexhaustible fountain of grace and respond to it with a Christ-centered, cross-boasting, pride-smashing, personal resolution to live for the glory of God.
I firmly believe that Edwards understood and regularly marinated his mind in the refreshing truth of the gospel. When you read him you see that his joy is inextricably linked to what God has done in and through Christ. Therefore, to read and even adopt what Jonathan Edwards said and did can be very helpful. Remember the Christ he boasted in. Remember why he did what he did. Remember that any genuine resolutions for holiness come from a genuine understanding of grace. We pursue holiness because God has pursued us by grace.
Read Edwards as a fellow pilgrim on the path with helpful advice to keep you tethered to calvary as you pursue the Celestial City. He meant to help others in grace not become a new law. Enjoy him and his resolutions in their context. If you do, he will prove to be a refreshing companion along the way of grace.
I also enjoyed reading this related article from Burk Parsons @ Ligonier
