Bounded or Center Set Thinking

This election was a struggle for me.? I believe there are no clear choices. I understand that may startle some of you, but please keep reading.

In life, sometimes choices are clear, while at other times, certain things are weighted more heavily than others.? Like a wise friend told me (thanks, Ben) that picking the President this year involves selecting the best person, the personnel (the people each candidate would bring with them), and the policies they would seek to enact during their tenure. I would suggest the importance one places on each of these factors will influence which candidate you ultimately support.? As followers of Christ, I can see how we can differ on what corresponding weight we place on each.?

So much in life is like this and yet we often think of choices as either all one way or another.? I am reminded of how our approach to math struggled for centuries because of this same mindset.? Boolean logic assumes that a variable is inside or outside of a set.? For instance, the set of odd numbers would include (1, 3, 5, 7, etc.), and the set of even numbers would include (2, 4, 6, 8, etc.). An item was either in one set or another. This is called Bounded Set logic. Much of our lives have been influenced by bounded set thinking. Even in the church, we are influenced by it. For example, you were either in the church or out of the church.

Often in life, however, things are not just one way (evil) or another way (good).? In this case, bounded set thinking doesn’t help us have something simultaneously in two or more sets. In other words, how do we accommodate for things having both positive and negative aspects at the same time? This is difficult in bounded set logic.

With the advent of computers, it became possible to develop mathematical models that developed fuzzy logic and chaos theory.? Both rely on variables not fitting into nice, neat categories.? In this context, Center Set thinking began to emerge.

A good way to explain the difference between bounded set thinking and centered set thinking is to look at an apple.? Bounded set thinking states either you have an apple or not; it is either in the set called apples or it is not.? However, if I take a bite out of an apple, is it still an apple?? Some would say yes, others no.? How about two bites?? A third bite? The challenge in bounded set thinking is when does the apple cease to be an apple and become something different.

Centered set thinking doesn’t look at whether something is inside or outside of the set but rather what direction it is headed.? Is it moving away from the center or toward the center. So, in the case of the apple, is it becoming more of an apple or less of apple?? This is easy as you bite the apple, it becomes less of an apple.? So we evaluate the direction in which something is headed rather than whether it is inside or outside the set.?

As I reflect on the life of Christ and his disciples, it seems to me that Jesus clearly thought in terms of center set thinking, while the disciples initially were bounded set thinkers. Jesus says the center for Christians is to love God with our heart, mind, soul, and strength and to love your neighbor as you yourself in Mark 12.29-31,

A clear example of Jesus’ thinking this way is in Mark 9.38-39.? “Teacher,” said John, “we saw someone driving out demons in your name and we told him to stop, because he was not one of us.” “Do not stop him,” Jesus said. “For no one who does a miracle in my name can in the next moment say anything bad about me, for whoever is not against us is for us.”

The disciples were looking at this person who was outside their group and saying clearly, he is not one of us.? Jesus quickly corrects them by saying if he is doing things in my name, he is headed in the right direction.? As you read the gospels you see Jesus evaluating the direction others are headed rather than their current status.?

He sees Zacchaeus trying to get a glimpse of him from a tree, which implies he is headed in the right direction.? Jesus doesn’t judge him as a tax collector but rather by what direction he is headed (Luke 19.1ff).? He met with other tax collectors at a party at Matthew’s house (Matthew 9.9ff), which really upset the religious bounded set thinkers of his day (Pharisees).? He did so because these tax collectors were headed in the right direction.? He did the same with prostitutes, wealthy people, and many needy people. He praises a person for giving a little over a rich person giving a lot because the heart of the poor person was headed in the right direction. ?Because Samaritans were hated by Jews, his choice in making the Samaritan the “good” person in the Good Samaritan parable illustrates he was concerned with the direction of a person’s heart, not with their current role, status, or state (Luke 10.25ff).?

As his disciples matured and more fully understood grace through the power of the Spirit, they became much more centered set thinkers.? They became more interested in the direction of people’s hearts than in what group they belonged. This wasn’t easy at first, but they changed. ?This is one of the reasons that Gentiles were accepted in the young churches. Let me suggest that as people mature in Christ, they become less concerned about categories and more concerned about the direction of the heart.

So, what does this mean today?? First, I would suggest that Jesus isn’t impressed by what role you fill in a church: pastor, staff, elder, leader, attender, or pew sitter. He is more concerned with the direction of your heart.? Are you seeking to love him more and more every day?? The same can be said of those who never attend a church: atheist, agnostic, don’t care, or a ‘none’. Jesus is more concerned about the direction of your heart.? Forget where you have been. Are you now seeking to know him more??

Second, if our walk with Christ is centered set, the weight you assign the person, the personnel, or the policies is only important as you love God and others more than yourself.? Seek to vote in a way that honors Christ by which of these three you value most. If you don’t seek to please anyone or anything else, you will be fine, and Christ will still be Lord after the elections.?

You will be surprised how centered set thinking will change your whole view of life.