Finding the Right Hills to Die on Quotes

“Pursuing the unity of the church does not mean that we should stop caring about theology. But it does mean that our love of theology should never exceed our love of real people, and therefore we must learn to love people amid our theological disagreements.”
― Gavin Ortlund, Finding the Right Hills to Die On: The Case for Theological Triage

“When we are standing before the throne on judgement day, what battles will we look back on and be proud we fought? I suspect most of our Twitter debates will not be among them.”
― Gavin Ortlund, Finding the Right Hills to Die on: The Case for Theological Triage

“If our identity is riding on our differences with other believers, we will tend to major in the study of differences. We may even find ourselves looking for faults in others in order to define ourselves.”
― Gavin Ortlund, Finding the Right Hills to Die On: The Case for Theological Triage

“The most severe strain occurs where the practice of spiritual gifts and demonic deliverance is so heavily emphasized that it becomes the functional “center of gravity” for a particular ministry. This often leads to a displacement of the gospel as the focus of a ministry and an antagonistic relationship with noncharismatic Christians and groups. It is vital for noncharismatics to recognize that when they respond to ministries like this, what they are objecting to is not continuationism per se. Much of what troubles noncharismatics about charismatic practice is not the presence of the gifts but their centralization and abuse. If you are currently wrestling with this issue, I have one piece of advice. Go above and beyond to show love to Christians who have a different view and to express your own view with humility and grace. Don’t underestimate how polarizing this issue can be. This is especially important when you hold to a different view than do the leaders of your church. Be sure to reassure them of your respect for their leadership, and make every effort to “maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Eph. 4:3). It is tragic when the very gifts the Holy Spirit gives to edify and build up the body of Christ end up tearing us down.”
― D.A. Carson, Finding the Right Hills to Die On: The Case for Theological Triage

“Unnecessary division is often a heart issue. It is easy for a spirit of self-justification to ride shotgun with our secondary distinctives. Much doctrinal separatism stems from finding our identity in our theological distinctives when we should be finding it in the gospel. As John Newton wisely warned, “Self-righteousness can feed upon doctrines, as well as works!” John Calvin went so far as to claim that “pride or haughtiness is the cause and commencement of all contentions.” We know there is a spirit of self-justification about our theology when we feel superior to Christians from other tribes and groups, or when a particular believer, church, or group unduly annoys us. It is one thing to disagree with another Christian. That is inevitable to anyone who thinks. It is another thing when our disagreement takes an attitude of contempt, condescension, or undue suspicion toward those with whom we disagree.”
― Gavin Ortlund, Finding the Right Hills to Die on: The Case for Theological Triage

“Now, it’s easy to admit in principle that you have blind spots. But humility will cause this recognition to make a noticeable difference in your actual interactions with people. It will lead to more clarifying questions, more pursuit of common ground, more appreciation of rival concerns, more delay in arriving at judgments. In life and theology, it is usually not sheer ignorance that causes the most intractable problems but ignorance about ignorance: not the unchartered territory but the stuff that is completely off your map. This is one reason why humility is so important. Humility teaches us to navigate life with sensitivity to the distinction between what we don’t know and what we don’t know that we don’t know. This encourages us to engage in theological disagreement with careful listening, a willingness to learn, and openness to receiving new information or adjusting our perspective. Pride makes us stagnant; humility makes us nimble.”
― Gavin Ortlund, Finding the Right Hills to Die on: The Case for Theological Triage

“Unnecessary division is often a heart issue. It is easy for a spirit of self-justification to ride shotgun with our secondary distinctives. Much doctrinal separatism stems from finding our identity in our theological distinctives when we should be finding it in the gospel. As John Newton wisely warned, “Self-righteousness can feed upon doctrines, as well as works!”25 John Calvin went so far as to claim that “pride or haughtiness is the cause and commencement of all contentions.”26 We know there is a spirit of self-justification about our theology when we feel superior to Christians from other tribes and groups, or when a particular believer, church, or group unduly annoys us. It is one thing to disagree with another Christian. That is inevitable to anyone who thinks. It is another thing when our disagreement takes an attitude of contempt, condescension, or undue suspicion toward those with whom we disagree.”
― Gavin Ortlund, Finding the Right Hills to Die on: The Case for Theological Triage

“Third, be gracious. Kindness and civility are becoming scarce these days. More and more, outrage is the norm. Therefore, we can testify to the truth of the gospel by speaking with kindness and moderation as we navigate our theological disagreements. Go out of your way to show love and respect to the other person, even when that person infuriates you. Doing theological triage is an opportunity to live out Jesus’s words in John 13:35: “By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
― Gavin Ortlund, Finding the Right Hills to Die on: The Case for Theological Triage

“In life and theology, it is usually not sheer ignorance that causes the most intractable problems but ignorance about ignorance: not the unchartered territory but the stuff that is completely off your map.”
― Gavin Ortlund, Finding the Right Hills to Die On: The Case for Theological Triage