Five Longings of the Heart
Did you know we’re sitting on a goldmine? Actually, it’s more than that. It’s the kind of treasure worth selling everything you own, joyfully, just so that you could have it (Matthew 13:44–45). And then, once you have it, you can give it to others freely.
The gospel of Jesus is this kind of treasure, a treasure unlike any other ever known. It is the treasure that every human needs, and the treasure that every human truly want, although we don’t all realize it.
In his book, Making Faith Magnetic, British theologian Daniel Strange makes the case that the basic longings of the human heart are represented in at least five themes found throughout culture — and that these five longings are both subverted and fulfilled in Jesus.
The book is a tool for, first, helping us understand the gospel more deeply (because we have the longings too!), and second, equipping us love others by connecting the gospel to their great needs. Dr. Strange writes,
If my whole life is connected to the gospel, and if I'm growing as a disciple in every part of my life, then the task of connecting the gospel to other people's lives becomes more natural, because we all face common struggles. … lf I’m connecting the dots in my everyday story, then I'll be much better equipped to connect the dots in your everyday story.(15)
The Five Longings
The five primary longings of the human heart are totality, norm, deliverance, destiny, and higher power. Strange explains them as follows:
Totality: A Way to Connect?
The idea of totality is centered around connection. It asks questions like: Who are we as human beings? What's our place in the universe? Unlike “higher power” (the fifth longing) totality is more immanent. It looks out horizontally, within this world, and searches for meaning in the here and now.
Norm: A Way to Live?
The idea of norm asks whether there is a way to live, and how we know what that is. As human beings, we all know there are rules to be obeyed — moral standards and codes to which we must adhere. But how and why is a different story.
Deliverance: A Way Out?
The idea of deliverance starts with the recognition that something here is broken and needs fixing. We have desires for which nothing in this world can satisfy, and this discontent makes us look to get out of here, wherever that “here” might be.
Destiny: A Way to Control?
The idea of destiny asks whether there is a way we can control our lives. I thought this longing was especially insightful, and perhaps the most poignant in recent years with our technological advances. Strange writes,
Although in the 2020s I have access to more information than ever about my personality type, my ancestry, my ethnicity, or the oppressive regime over me, I don't feel more liberated but instead more trapped by my character, my heritage, my genes and my economic status. (131)
Wow. Think about that. We know more about ourselves and our world than ever before, but has that led to more control, or really, more freedom? Not at all.
Higher Power: A Way Beyond?
The idea of a higher power is similar to totality, but instead of looking for meaning here, it looks up, to transcendence. This would be the longing that many would call spirituality. It’s the recognition that that is something bigger than us in the universe, and we don’t to be connected to it.
How Is Jesus the Answer?
I commend the book for the fuller, richer explanations, but some of the connections we may already have in mind.
For Totality, longing to be connected to what’s here, Strange writes,
Through Christ we enjoy connection and communion with God, but also connection and community with each other. After all, if I am connected to Jesus, and you are connected to Jesus, then in a very real way we are connected to one another.
For Norm, Jesus doesn't just reveal that there is a standard, he says, I am the standard (110). "Jesus is the standard we all want, and Jesus is the Savior we all need. But here's the thing: you can't have one without the other" (115).
For Deliverance, the cross and resurrection of Jesus has accomplished the way of freedom from sin and death. In Christ, we are truly new creations, citizens of another world.
For Control, we recognize that as humans, finite and needy, we are not in control, and that is okay. It’s okay because God is in control, and God loves us. In fact, in God’s sovereign care, every detail of reality is purposed to fulfill our everlasting good.
For Higher Power, in Jesus, by faith in him, we are reconciled to God, the Creator of heaven and earth and us. Our Creator is our Father who loves us, and we can never be separated from his love.
Do we see the treasure that is the gospel?!
