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The System Behind All Systems

The System Behind All Systems

We rely on systems to manage our lives. But do we ever step back and look for the system behind all systems?

That begins to sound like a conspiracy theory or some kind of “deep state.” But if we’re honest, we all have moments when we wonder if the whole thing isn’t rigged against us.

A Downward Spiral

There is a system behind all these systems. And yes, this system has been corrupted. But this is not a system we developed. Rather it’s the system we discovered. In fact, every system we have is a reflection of this system to some degree.

Because this system was not our design, it’s not our problem to fix. Rather, someone else is already fixing it, and we have the opportunity to be part of that work.

I’m speaking of the simple story that God created the world with a specific purpose, it was corrupted when it fell into sin, but God has begun a process of redemption to restore the world to its intended purpose. That redemption was accomplished in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, but the effects of that redemption are still being worked out in our world and lives today.

I believe, by faith, this is narrative is true. But how does that apply to the problems we are facing today? There are many excellent resources that will describe and seek to persuade you of the truth of what I’ve described above. But I’m trying to take a different approach.

I want an approach that is practical and hopeful. One that helps us see and feel immediate results, and make plans for the future. To do that, I look for where God is working in these systemic failures that burden us now.

That gives me glimpses into his solution for the brokenness of the world. Then I try to bring that hope into the brokenness of the systems in which I live and work.

The System Behind All Systems

Yes, that means I’m using a system to manage my systems. And based on what we’ve seen, that would only create more problems.

Unless there is a system that God created. That system would be perfect, and all our broken systems are just a poor reflection of it. But even a poor reflection points to the existence of the real thing.

But first, we must look at how God created his system, in the beginning.

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Rising Threat Levels

rising threat levels

If anyone who isn’t like us becomes our enemy, we are asking our problems bigger. That’s what happens when we talk about problems in general terms. But what can we do here and now to solve the problems out there? Or are rising threat levels just a part of life?

Until we see these problems as ours to solve, we will expect someone else to do it. So problems get worse, and we blame others for not doing anything about them.

General Threat Response

This generalization of threats is another manifestation of the problem created by systems, and it affects the way we interact with people.

These systems magnify our sense that people want to do us harm, but they also generalize where that harm comes from. The result is that we go into many casual interactions already on guard, and suspicious of the ill intent that lies beneath that initial greeting.

Culture helps us manage our interactions with others. It creates a relational short-hand that allows us to communicate without having to establish all of the points of reference we would need to give our interaction meaning.

Culture helps us “get it” with other people, and more quickly creates a mutual experience of trust and shared perspective. But when we connect with fewer and fewer people, those outside that group are viewed with increasing mistrust and suspicion.

Problems Created by Systems

What’s the connection between these divisions and the systems underlying them? In short, these large-scale problems become large-scale because they are built on systems that expand their reach.

These are the same systems we hope will expand the reach of the message of the gospel, that God loves the world and sent his Son, Jesus, to make a way of salvation. But when something goes wrong, the harm done by these system-based programs is also multiplied.

This creates a tension. We are predisposed to trust systems, but intuitively know that no system will perform perfectly. So we compensate for this instability by relying on multiple systems in various places, and so hedge our bets against failure in one. This can lead to a contradictory and often chaotic view of the world.

Threat Levels Rising

We can keep these conflicting approaches working together for a time.  But when one fails, it can create a cascading failure in the others. Or in times of stress, we can’t keep it all straight. We end up performing for one system when we should be functioning in another.

Yet this all falls apart because of us. People don’t work as systems do, and the problems with people can’t be solved by systems.