A comment about Karl Marx set me to thinking about how ideas shape life. "Marx has had more impact on actual events, as well as on the minds of men and women, than any other intellectual in modern times. The reason for this is not primarily the attraction of his concepts and methodology but the fact that his philosophy has been institutionalized in two of the world's largest countries, Russia and China." [1] In other words, one of the factors that preserves and lengthens the influence of ideas is whether they are institutionalized.
A religious example of this is the Princeton Theology (the Reformed, Calvinistic, God-centered, Bible-based vision taught by men like B. B. Warfield and Charles Hodge). Mark Noll points out that "the Princeton Theology sprang from the minds of its exponents, but it flowed outward from Princeton through institutions which vastly transcended those individuals." [2] The institutions he has in mind are Princeton Seminary itself (for more than a century), Princeton College (for much of the nineteenth century), several scholarly Princeton journals, and the Presbyterian church. For almost a hundred years (before the influence of the modern mistrust of the Scriptures), the institutions embodied the spread of the God-centered, Bible-saturated vision of the founders.
The question arises: Is it God's will, revealed in Scripture, to advance the influence of biblical truth through human institutions? Institutions like seminaries, colleges, parochial schools, mission agencies, publishing houses, journals, newsletters, hospitals, relief agencies, musical groups, drama troupes, conferences, camps, counseling centers, evangelistic associations, coffee houses, and radio and television networks, stations, and programs.
The reason the question is urgent is that institutions by nature develop self-sustaining power as opposed to God-sustained power. There are human expectations, human employees, procedures, traditions, money, brainpower, real estate, facilities, reputation, and a constituency. These all can keep an institution going even if the Holy spirit has withdrawn. In this way, Christian institutions can become contradictions and artifacts of divine power that once was.
Thus the Bible repeatedly warns against relying on powers resident within human culture (institutional power). For example, Psalm 33:17: "A horse is a false hope for victory; nor does it deliver anyone by its great strength." Military institutional power is not to be trusted for deliverance.
On the other hand, the Bible does not say that institutions are therefore evil or useless. On the contrary, Proverbs 21:31 says, "The horse is prepared for the day of battle, but victory belongs to the Lord." Recognizing that institutions are not the decisive force for the triumph of truth does not mean that they are no force.
God never commanded Israel to abolish its army, but again and again he warned the people against relying on it when they went to battle. "Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help, and rely on horses, and trust in chariots because they are many, and in horsemen because they are very strong, but they do not look to the Holy One of Israel, nor seek the Lord!" (Isaiah 31:1).
It seems to me that institutions are virtually inevitable not just where people settle comfortably into this fallen world with self-reliant structures, but even more, wherever passionate believers dream of new ways to declare the Glory of Christ among the nations. Therefore I expect that until Jesus comes back there will always be tension among believers over where the line is crossed between God-ordained, Spirit-sustained institutional life and human-designed, human-sustained institutionalism.
Therefore let us be alert to the possibilities and the pitfalls of institutions. If you are part of one, ponder these things. Let us labor to permeate all our human structures with prayer and with a heartfelt reliance on God, "[who] gives to all men life and breath and everything" (Acts 12:25, RSV).
[1] Paul Johnson, Intellectuals (New York: Harper and Row, 1988), 52.
[2] Mark Noll, The Princeton Theology (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1983), 18.
I agree with Piper's sentiments here. As I said in the Discipleship and the Institution FAQ in regards to the church as an institution or organization:
...I am mainly against the subtly subversive distortion of the church in which it is perceived mainly as an organization or institution rather than as a people. Of course, the church can still be organized and not be an organization. As I explained in the “towards and answer” section, I believe Scripture’s family analogy (among others) provides a rich context for such organization.
I think a great deal more could be researched and written about institutions in Western society. One thing is for sure, our "structures" (whether a more rigid institutional structure or a more flexible relational structure) do not guarantee any particular result. They are merely present to facilitate a result. We must therefore ask ourselves, "What is our goal?"
What do you guys think?
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