Rules for Reformers

by Douglas Wilson

Those who are merely competent in the use of a particular weapon are followers. They may be very competent indeed, but that is not the issue.

Reformers are concerned to win what have come to be called the “culture wars,” and unless we recover an understanding of these principles, and learn to apply them to the conflicts we are in, then such a win will be impossible.

One of the first things a reformer has got to get used to is the experience of being despised and unpopular.

“You shall not fall in with the many to do evil, nor shall you bear witness in a lawsuit, siding with the many, so as to pervert justice, nor shall you be partial to a poor man in his lawsuit” (Ex. 23:2–3, ESV).

man of integrity decides according to the law, and not according to whether the plaintiff has had a hard life.

A true reformer gives the PR department fits.

There are two kinds of non-conformity, and only one of them wears hipster glasses. The kind that does wear them is a very popular form of pretending to be out of the mainstream, in order to be the envy of it, and the other is a radical form of unpopularity, calculated to get you slandered and viciously attacked, on the way to changing the direction of the mainstream. One kind of non-conformity requires courage, while the other kind requires nothing more than vanity and a five dollar cup of fair trade coffee.

The men who killed the prophets have descendants, and those descendants identify themselves by building memorials to the prophets (Matt. 23:29–31).

Let them have it. Devils make better accusers, always, and we are not in this to create right-wing devils. No, we have a better game to play than that.

To identify and go after a decisive point is the way to have a disproportionate impact.

When we lose the appropriate measurement of victory, one of the first things that happens is that false measurements appear almost immediately.

We have to do this with secular conservatives fighting the improvements we want to make to the house, and at the same time we have to keep the radicals from burning it down. Whenever we have thwarted an arsonist, he will accuse us of being one of “those conservatives,” who do not want anything changed whatever, not even that appalling wallpaper in the foyer. And when we have successfully changed something, making a real improvement, the secular conservatives will accuse us of being radical revolutionaries, and they will go through our tool chest looking for the gas can.

Objective Takeaway Point: The objective needs to be clear, and rightly nested within other, larger objectives. When the bugle blows indistinctly, no one gets ready for battle.

This is how we are to fight giants in the valley of giants. We pray for the Lord to make a breach, like a dam bursting. We pray for the Lord to rush before us, like the wind in the top of the trees.

Evil authorities are first to have the word preached to them, and every lawful means of appeal and resistance should be applied. Secondly, it is permissible to flee persecution, what Calvin once called getting the heck out of Dodge. And third, it is permissible to take up arms against a tyrant defensively.

We should look for a way to stop responding to initiatives of the adversary and start behaving in such a way that they have to figure out how to respond to us. Take the initiative.

Concentration Takeaway Point: Concentration is not to be pursued for the sake of a respite; it is a concentration of force, applied in ways the adversary wants you to stop. So don’t stop.

This is precisely what Jesus does when He came upon the strong man. He attacks, like David did. He is victorious, like David was. He strips the armor (panoply), as David did. He partakes of the spoil after battle (Luke 11:22). Jesus is the greatest of all giant-killers. He gives victory to His people . . . and He awakens the envy of any who would be great in Israel on their own terms.

Mobility Takeaway Point: Mobility remembers that an army is supposed to fight, and it is supposed to fight as quickly as effectively possible.

Security Takeaway Point: Keep your game plan to yourself, but not in a furtive, guilty way. An intelligent adversary should know that there are things you are up to that he knows nothing about.

Surprise Takeaway Point: Effective surprise is frequently the result of an effective use of some of the other principles combined (e.g., security and mobility and offensive). And you should want to make all their surprises unpleasant surprises.

If we are Reformed and Presbyterian, would we be willing to have lunch with a Reformed Baptist? Of course. How about a charismatic dispensationalist? Again, of course. That is because the restaurant has a menu, which is a prearranged liturgy for us to use.

The problems arise when we try to do something together. The fact that we all oppose something together—say, an abortion clinic—does not mean that we are of one mind about what to do on the sidewalk outside of it. Suppose one person wants to offer free ultra-sounds from a van, somebody else wants to cast out the demons from the building, and someone else wants us all to say the rosary. Now what?

So when we ask whether or not to cooperate with this group or that one, the answer to the question should be settled by whether or not Christ is cooperating with them.

The qualifications for fellowship are one thing, and the qualifications for leadership are quite another. So let us make up an example that might come up in the rough and tumble of our culture wars.

Cooperation Takeaway Point: Strategic differences are not moral differences, but they are still important to the issue of leadership and cooperation. You can believe that someone ought not be a general without breaking fellowship with him, or making it personal.

Communication Takeaway Point: Security and communication must be balanced. Communication must be restricted enough that the adversary has no access to it, and open enough that everyone who needs to know does know.

The goal is to get the right number of workers to the right place at the right time.

Economy of Force Takeaway Point: Economy of force means that we steer away from a “shock and awe” approach. The point is to be effective, and not to show off. The American military is not the first massively strong military to think that such strength can be substituted for principled thinking.

Pursuit Takeaway Point: The complete victory is not as close as it appears.

1. Think cosmically, act locally.

2. Cultivate personal loyalty.

3. Relate everything to the lordship of Jesus Christ.

4. Exhibit courage on the individual and family level.

5. Don’t be a jerk.

6. Worship God every Lord’s Day.

7. Provide your children with the best Christian education you can find.

8. Defend free markets at every opportunity.

9. Understand the important role of civil disobedience.

10. Do not accept any sexual bribes.

11. Love and encourage your wife and children constantly.

12. Do whatever you can with whatever you have.

13. Utilize social media,

14. Cultivate a robust sense of humor.

15. Make your adversary live up to his own rules.

16. Don’t fall for abstract calls to repentance, and don’t use abstractions to make you look like you are a courageous denouncer of sin.

17. Keep the pressure on, wherever you are on the line.

18. Enjoy yourself.

19. Keep your weapons sharp.

20. Conflict is always personal, so don’t be shy about ke...