When Jake, my oldest son, was 17, he was diagnosed with a form of OCD called Scrupulosity or Religious OCD. Although our sons were baptized and grew up in the Lutheran church, for several years we had been attending a conservative Presbyterian church. This church taught Calvinism especially election, predestination, and the sovereignty of God.
Many people find satisfaction in Calvinism’s ability to use logic and reason to explain the Bible. Calvinism seems to have an answer for every verse about election and predestination, and that’s comforting.
Surprisingly, OCD and Calvinism don’t mix, and Jake took his OCD brain and punched holes in every Calvinistic teaching. His ability to do this was mind-boggling. Jake recognized his inner struggles with sin, and his chief fear and doubt was that he didn’t love God, that he wasn’t really a Christian, that he wasn’t elect, and that he'd somehow committed the unpardonable sin.
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Fast forward six or seven years...
We had returned to the Lutheran Church a few years prior; Jake was in grad school and had started reading the Book of Concord, the Lutheran Confessions.
Jake called one day, “I'm mad at you and Daddy for not telling me. The Lutheran Confessions explain things correctly. Why didn’t you tell me about them?”
Since then, I’ve read articles about other Calvinists who are also worried about and lack assurance of their salvation.
Calvinism teaches election, but doesn't credibly explain how a person knows he is elect. Calvinism can satisfy the mind, but does nothing for the Christian who has had his heart ripped by the Word of God. The Christian, looking to Calvinism, can't reconcile election with his own experiences and is ultimately unsure of his standing before God.
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I have three thoughts on the differences between Calvinist and Lutheran teachings:
1. The Calvinist focuses on the sovereignty of God. The Lutheran focuses on sin and the cross.
2. The Calvinist explains faith, salvation, and election using human logic and reason. The Lutheran is comfortable with paradox, understanding that God’s Word doesn’t always make sense, but that it’s true nonetheless.
3. The Calvinist's assurance of salvation often points to the person’s love of God, or depth of faith, or a personal trait that somehow testifies to election. The Lutheran clings to Christ and the cross, knowing that salvation is a gift from God, and that God continues to give His grace through His Word and Sacraments.
My pastor once said, "God's Word is never without effect." In Jake's case, his worry and doubt was magnified by his OCD. Medically OCD can be treated, but can't be cured. But God's Word, as taught and explained in the Book of Concord, has effect and continues to give Jake peace regarding his faith.
...so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it. Isaiah 55:11
I'll also add this: medication helps. It's not something that should be stigmatized. And for me, as far as I can tell, there were no side effects: all that happened was that I was less depressed.
ReplyDeleteThanks for adding that. Some people, who have never experienced this type of illness, think that you can "just get over it." They don't realize that there's a chemical "brain thing" going on.
DeleteI think I should also say, as you said, that there are things one can and ought do physically - medication, counseling, restructuring one's thoughts - that can help a great deal. But those aren't always guaranteed to fix things. And though it doesn't always work the way it did in my case either, for me what fixed things was literally the word of God doing that for which it was sent.
Deleteblessed by this, I am a Pastor in Long Island, also have OCD,(scrupulosity). Have battle for many years, I have found much healing in Lutheran doctrine, and actually have found many Reformed guys who line up as well( Michael Horton, Jerry Bridges, etc) However the vast majority of Reformed guys are way to influenced by the Puritans and they are introspective to the max. Both Luther and John Bunyan had Scrupulosity, if you ever get a chance read John Bunyans 'Grace Abounding", Its an autobiographical account of his struggle with OCD, its incredible..
ReplyDeleteThank you both, God bless
I didn't know about John Bunyan, but often told Jake that Luther seemed to struggle with his faith in the same way as Jake. Prayers for you and glad the article blessed you. Mental Illness is often kept quiet, I think because people don't know how to talk about it. I hope to write a follow-up.
DeleteThis is amazing. Thank you for sharing this experience. I was Reformed for 7 years - since being converted at 16. I struggled with assurance of salvation the whole time, until I read Francis Pieper (a Lutheran Theologian) critique their doctrine of the means of grace. I was floored. God sent grace and gave me assurance!
ReplyDelete