December 22, 2021Myth and Reality

I doubt that Jordan Peterson is everybody's cup of tea.

I discovered him several years ago while scrolling through YouTube ... yet another college professor giving lectures on Bible passages. I presumed his views would be critical of the Bible and I wanted to hear what he had to say.

It's one thing to sit in a Bible class where we all sit around and agree to agree with one another, but it's much more interesting to me to hear an outsider's views, especially when those views are critical. It challenges and confirms my own beliefs by forcing me to examine more closely what and why I believe. And, frankly, sometimes outsiders' criticisms of believers are justified. Listen to your opponents! When they get way off-base, you can always turn them off, but occasionally God will use their voices to teach you hard truths you need to hear. And so I listened to a few of Dr. Peterson's lectures ... and was pleasantly surprised.

Old Testament stories that I accept as historically true, he naturally seemed to view as mythology. I found out later that he is a clinical psychologist, and that explained much about how he broke apart the text and examined the metaphors and archetypes he found there ... including the types and pictures of Christ that are found in the Old Testament.

I expected to find yet another academic who would scoff and ridicule God's Word and religion in general, but what I found instead was a thoughtful, reverant respect for an unknown and unknowable Entity. Instead of slamming religion, Dr. Peterson clearly saw the value to be had for humankind in the morality and guidelines for living found in religion. Beyond his Biblical lectures, much of what he teaches through his writing and speaking falls right in line with scripture teachings, and he has become a mentor and role model for countless young adults.

I have been convicted by Dr. Peterson's reverence and deep awe when he contemplates God. "Who am I," he has said, "to dare say 'I believe in God'?" So many believers – myself included – are sometimes guilty of treating God like He's serving us, instead of the other way around.

Still, God is a personal God, and salvation is way more than mere religion. Religion is understood in your head and, while it might improve your life a bit, you are still spiritually dead and separated from God. Salvation found in Jesus Christ can only be understood and embraced through your spirit made alive in Him. I pray that Jordan Peterson – and all others reading this 3 days before Christmas – will meet and find Christ and life on that personal level.

He's the best and only Christmas gift you will ever need.

Merry Christmas!