Inspired by Christian Posture: Walk Tall, Stand Straight in a Crooked World—Core Doctrines by David Parker Mitchell
We live in a world that really does tilt on its axis. As culture changes, morality is often redefined. How do we stand firm when everything around us is bending? The solution, as David Parker Mitchell says in Christian Posture, is to develop a spiritual posture that is upright and straight, based upon God’s truth, not swayed by the currents of the day.
Posture of the body is important, but posture of the spirit is even more so. Just as a strong core supports the body, a firm understanding of biblical truth supports the Christian life. Hebrews 6 talks about “the principles of the doctrine of Christ” as fundamentals to be learned before advancing to higher maturity. These fundamental doctrines, like knowing exactly Who Christ claimed to be, understanding repentance, baptism, eternal judgment, faith, resurrection, and the security of the believer, are what grant us stability and strength. Without these doctrines, we flex easily under the stress of the winds of philosophy from the culture. With them we stand upright because the Word of God is firm.
The world is bent because it is fallen. Since the day that Adam and Eve opted for their own path in the garden, the cosmos itself has been crooked. Paul reminds us in Romans 8:22 that “the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.” The world, left to itself, cannot stand straight. It breaks down beneath the weight of its own flaws, due to the original sin of mankind.
This is the reason why Christians cannot turn to culture for their compass. What is honored today will be condemned tomorrow. What will feel popular today will turn out to be destructive later, when the standard shifts, the ones who abide by it will always bend with it.
It takes both conviction and humbleness to stand upright in a crooked world. Conviction is the assurance of holding on to what God has shown us, even if it costs us. We are to “rightly divide the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15), as Paul instructed Timothy. That involves being familiar enough with Scripture to distinguish what is eternal and what is temporal, what is in line with the whole of Scripture and is therefore foundational, and what is out of context.
Humility is remembering that holding ourselves up straight is not standing proudly. We do not stand tall to impress the world, but to honor Christ. The posture is a posture of confidence, but also a posture of surrender, standing tall because we lean on Him, not on ourselves.
The good news is that we do not stand alone. The church of history has been a fellowship of believers challenging each other to stay upright. From the Apostolic Age to the modern era, loyal men and women have opposed accommodation, bearing witness to the truth of God that does not yield even when all else yields. Their testimony emboldens us to do the same.
The world can bend, but the Christian is to stand upright. Christian Posture teaches us that the key to standing straight is to strengthen our spiritual core through personal Bible study and faithfully walking hand in hand with Christ. In a bent world, that posture is not only possible, it is crucial.
