"Christian Hedonism" - Sounds Dirty, Right?

Can we have fun and not sin?

Christian Hedonism - this just sounds wrong. I mean, just look at this definition:
he·don·ism

1. (Philosophy) Ethics

     a.  the doctrine that moral value can be defined in terms of pleasure 

     b.  the doctrine that the pursuit of pleasure is the highest good

2. the pursuit of pleasure as a matter of principle

3. indulgence in sensual pleasures

But, if asked, John Piper would call himself a Christian Hedonist. And, after reading half of Desiring God, I think I would too.

This sounds selfish, base, and utterly un-Christian. How could Piper base his book on this principle? Can a true Christian be a hedonist? Does he make it better by adding the word "Christian" in front of it?

So, let's try to understand how seeking our pleasure relates to following God. Do you think it can?

----- | Be Happy - The Bible Commands It? | -----

Today, Christians tend to see pursuing pleasure as a bad thing. "If it makes me happy, then it must be sin." So, we draw lines, and play things safe. But what if this hedonistic desire is good?

Piper argues that God wants us to be happy - the Bible is laced with hedonistic commands (p 25):

• to "love mercy," not just do it (Micah 6:8)
• to do "acts of mercy, with cheerfulness" (Romans 12:8)
• to "joyfully" suffer loss in the service of prisoners (Hebrews 10:34)
• to be a cheerful giver (2 Cor. 9:7)
• to make our joy the joy of others (2 Cor. 2:3)
• to tend the flock of God willingly and "eagerly" (1 Peter 5:2)
• to keep watch over souls "with joy" (Hebrews 13:17)

And, Piper's favorite: "Delight yourself in the Lord" (Ps. 37:4). He even says:

Not to enjoy God is to dishonor Him. To say to Him that something else satisfies you more is the opposite of worship. It is sacrilege. (p. 22)

So, if I am not joyful when worshiping, am I wrong? Piper would say yes.

If this all sounds too harsh, Piper reaches a clear, concise definition pretty soon.

----- | Piper's Thesis | -----

Piper's main argument, and point is this: we are pleasure-seeking creatures, but will find our purest, most satisfying, never-ending happiness IN God. He quotes a great passage from CS Lewis:

If there lurks in most modern minds the notion that to desire our own good and earnestly to hope for the enjoyment of it is a bad thing, I submit that this notion has crept in from Kant and the Stoics and is no part of the Christian faith. Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinte joy is offered us, like an ingorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased. (p. 20)

So, Piper finally rests on a clear definition of Christian Hedonism:

1. The longing to be happy is a universal human experience, and it is good, not sinful.
2. We should never try to deny or resist our longing to be happy, as though it were a bad impulse. Instead, we should seek to intensify this longing and nourish it with whatever will provide the deepest and most enduring satisfaction.
3. The deepest and most enduring happiness is found only in God. Not from God, but in God.
4. The happiness we find in God reaches its consummation when it is shared with others in the manifold ways of love.
5. To the extent that we try to abandon the pursuit of our own pleasure, we fail to honor God and love people. Or, to put it positively: The pursuit of pleasure is a necessary part of all worship and virtue. That is:

The chief end of man is to glorify God by enjoying Him forver. (p28)

Would you agree with him? In glorifying God, are we not the happiest?

If there is disagreement, Piper starts with this and unpacks it over 300 pages. Give him a chance.

Next week - we'll look at the question "Is God Happy?"