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 Loving God With Your Whole Mind - It IS a COMMAND! |
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Are you glorifying God with your mind ? Are you using your mind and the intelligence that God gave you to advance His kingdom, cast down arguments and things which exalt themselves against Him and dismantle the arguments of unbelievers, as scripture commands ?
Then you're in disobedience. Read on.
A few of
you out there who keep in regular contact with me know that I'm a member of
Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity
and one of the other sites I manage is the Zeta
Phi Beta Sigma Times website.
I got into
a discussion on the Zeta-Sigma discussion list that I moderate (yeah...ANOTHER
list....) over the topic of the death penalty. While myself and three other
folks came to differing conclusions (it actually sparked me to write a new file
for the file database on it), I found something quite bothersome in one of the
comments made to me privately by one of my sisters on the list. She commented
to me that in my argumentation, I sought to display my "earthly wisdom' and
win the argument. I wrote back to her and inquired, 'since when does a correct
exposition of the text of scripture based off the original languages constitute
'earthly wisdom'"?
Now although
she DID clarify later in another e-mail that there was a need for concordances,
seminaries and such, her first comment still stands as an initial reaction held
by many believers to anything remotely sounding 'academic' when it comes to
scripture.
Sadly,
it's been my experience that many believers have the mistaken attitude that
anything which equates with formal training in the original languages (or even
independent study), formal training in systematic theology, well crafted arguments
defending the faith, or well crafted arguments presenting a competing point
of view (i.e.- the relevance of baptism or something like the nature of communion)
constitutes 'worldly wisdom'.
There are
several things in this viewpoint which run counter to reality. Chief among them
is the fact that this very viewpoint cancels out, by nature, ANY logical attempts
legitimately trust your Bible as the word of God, trust that what you've been
taught has been interpreted correctly from scripture or that it has been correctly
translated to the English language. Read on.
My disagreement
regarding the death penalty on the list involved the other party basing his
argument off the KJV translation of Exodus 20:13 - 'thou shalt not kill'. I
patiently (for the most part- I did slap in a few sarcastic comments here and
there) demonstrated that the Hebrew text uses two completely different words
for 'murder' (the word used in the Exodus passage) and the general word for
'kill' - one implied the connotation of malicious intent, unjustly and without
provocation or out of anger, the other was the general word for the cessation
of life. Scripture says 'You will not commit murder' - not 'you will not kill'
(which would be contradictory to the following verses two chapters later which
do give provisions for putting to death those who take human life or violate
certain laws).
The other
party replied back that all he's concerned about is the english version and
nothing else matters. After two repeated attempts at clarifying the issue, including
demonstrating from other texts of scripture, the difference between the two
words, how the death penalty, as a law in itself, was instituted prior to the
Mosaic economy and even reaffirmed in the New Testament, I gave up. He wasn't
listening, and I pretty much couldn't explain it any clearer than 'this word-different
from that one! Unga bunga!'. Proverbs 26:4-5 is now my new guiding principle
for who I spend time debating with and whom I don't.
The study
of theology, the history and text of scripture isn't just for the pastor or
the ministers- it's for ALL believers. Believers are commanded, for example,
to train up a child in the way that he should go and when he is old he will
not depart from it (Prov. 22:6, KJV). If you are training your children up to
know the doctrine of justification- that is, Christ's death atoned for our sins
so that we should no longer live a life dedicated to sin, but a life dedicated
to serving God- you are teaching theology. If you dig a little deeper, you'll
find that this affects Christian living. Scripture gives an overall synopsis
of how believers should carry themselves in life in Eph. 4:17-5:6. If you are
to be an imitator of God (5:1), you need to study the nature and Person of God
- that's specifically called Theology Proper. If you are studying the
nature, Person and work of Christ, you are studying the area of theology called
Christology. You cannot train up your children in these things without
knowing them yourself.
Each believer
is responsible for knowing as MUCH of and about scripture (and by proxy, about
God) that they possibly can in this lifetime. Now, I'm not suggesting that every
believer need to be a walking seminary. We should be, however, proficient enough
in our handling of the word of God to be able to articulate the basics of the
Christian faith (the essentials: Nature of God/Trinity, Salvation by Faith Alone,
Work, Person and Deity of Christ). What I AM suggesting is that believers of
today, because we are blessed with so many resources with regard to scripture-
both in print and on the internet- that there really is no excuse for Biblical
ignorance.
Even without
external resources dealing with scripture, we have some of the best study Bibles
in print and wonderful translations which bring the text from 2000 years ago
to the present and increase understanding exponentially. There's pretty much,
no excuse (with the exception of those in persecuted countries or those without the resources to obtain Bibles and such) why believers today with the resources available to them, should not
have a clear understanding of the basics of the Christian faith.
(Of course, I realize that not every believer
has access to a Bible and that some must study in secret, but that's usually
in countries like China or Arabian nations where Christians are persecuted).
Throughout
history, God revealed bits and pieces of Himself more and more with each generation.
Each generation is then responsible for not only what was previously revealed
to them, but what is presently being revealed to them as well. This principle
is called progressive revelation. In the OT, for example, although hints
of the Trinity are seen and suggested, the oneness of God is stressed. Israel's
responsibility was to teach and believe that oneness over and against other
gods. In the New Testament, the teaching of the Trinity is clearer and more
fully understood so that believers in the NT are not only responsible for teaching
the oneness of God, but the doctrine of the Trinity as well.
The principle
of progressive revelation throughout the Bible is this: As stewards (someone
placed in charge of) God's revelation, we are responsible for how we handle
that revelation (1 Cor. 4:1-2). Negligence in handling that revelation will
bring judgement upon those to whom it was entrusted. For example, in Luke chapter
1, compare the unbelief of Zechariah and Mary. Zechariah (Father of John the
Baptist, husband of Elizabeth and cousin of Mary). During one of Zechariah's
times serving as a priest in the temple (Luke 1:8-9) an angel appeared to him
to announce the birth of his son, John the Baptist. We recount the story:
Then
an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar
of incense. When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear.
But the angel said to him: "Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been
heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the
name John. He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because
of his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to
take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit
even from birth. Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord
their God. And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah,
to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to
the wisdom of the righteous--to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."
Zechariah
asked the angel, "How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is
well on in years." The angel answered, "I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence
of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news.
And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens,
because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their proper
time." (Luke 1:11-20, NIV).
Zechariah
was punished for his unbelief- as a priest, his responsibility level for the
revelation of God was high. I'm sure he'd read repeatedly of the story of Sarah
and Abraham back in the OT and how God blessed Sarah's womb even in her old
age (c.f.- Gen. 18:10-15). Therefore, for him to doubt at this time, based off
of his wife's age, was wrong.
Contrast
this with Mary's doubting of having a child while still being a virgin:
The
angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favoured! The Lord
is with you." Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind
of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary,
you have found favour with God. You will be with child and give birth to a
son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be
called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of
his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob for ever; his
kingdom will never end."
"How
will this be," Mary asked the angel, "since I am a virgin?" The angel answered,
"The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow
you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth
your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said
to be barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God." "I
am the Lord's servant," Mary answered. "May it be to me as you have said."
Then the angel left her. (Luke 1:28-38,NIV).
Mary was not a teacher of scripture, nor a priest, prophetess or anything of
the sort. She was your average, 1st century A.D. peasant Jewish girl betrothed
to be married. Her responsibilities were to serve God with her family, obey
what was given to her of the law (primarily contained within, but not limited
to the 10 commandments) and remain a virgin until married. He responsibility
was not as great- therefore, all she got was basically an explanation of what
would happen.
In the
book of James, the half-brother of the Lord makes a point to all those who wish
to become teachers of the scriptures: " Not many of you should presume to
be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged
more strictly." (James 3:1, NIV). Why are teachers judged stricter? Simple-
they know more. In the NT, everyone who became a teacher or elder spent time
in training- as a result, they knew more regarding the scriptures and were responsible
for instructing the laity in the ways of righteousness. They themselves would
not only be held accountable for how they lived, but for what they knew and
how they applied it to their daily walk.
In like
fashion, believers today will be judged by a much stiffer penalty, than for
example, the average Israelite living 2000 years ago. Why? Simple- we have the
complete revelation of God. Every believer- whether they've been taught
so or not, is responsible for accurate handling of the entire written revelation
of God (provided they have it in their possession). They are responsible for
being diligent in properly handling the word of God (2 Tim. 2:15). Being diligent
goes beyond 'study' - it involves putting such thought into everyday practice
and continuing to build upon the foundation that was established when you came
to a personal relationship with Christ.
Remember
the parable of the worthless servant (Matt. 25:14-30)? Another wonderful example.
Every other servant, save one, went out and invested the talent or talents (A
talent is a weight/measurement of money. Five silver talents (375 lbs -would
roughly be equivalent today to $1,920,000) that they were given. At the end
of the story (go read it) the master has these words for the servant who did
not invest what he had been given:
"His
master replied, `You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where
I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? Well then, you
should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned
I would have received it back with interest. "`Take the talent from him and
give it to the one who has the ten talents. For everyone who has will be given
more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has
will be taken from him. (v. 25-29)
I say all
of this to conclude that an anti-intellectual stance toward scripture is an
affront to God and a direct violation of Lev. 19:18. It is impossible to love
God with your whole heart, body and mind if you are not exercising your mind
in learning the things of God. Further, a refusal or abject laziness in studying
scripture and not being knowledgeable regarding scripture is a sign of immaturity
in the believer. I close this out with words from the writer of the book of
Hebrews- I feel they are more than fitting here. God Bless.
Therefore
let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity,
not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death,
and of faith in God, instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the
resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. And God permitting, we will
do so. Even though we speak like this, dear friends, we are confident of better
things in your case--things that accompany salvation. (Hebrews 6:1 3,9,NIV).
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