Living on the Cutting Edge

Paul's trade was tent making. So, who lived in tents in the Apostle Paul's day? Most likely, Roman soldiers lived in tent camps. And 1st century travelers might have needed a tent to use where inns were few and far between.

 Paul's trade gives special meaning to the word, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who is … accurately handling the word of truth” (2 Tim. 2:15), because the phrase “accurately handling” literally means  “cutting straight.” Paul knew the importance of cutting straight pieces of fabric to avoid making windy tents!
 
Paul’s meaning, then, is that we should study the Bible in its entirety, so we can rightly connect all the parts. Otherwise, our doctrine will be full of holes—like people living in windy tents, “tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching” (Eph. 4:14). Knowing the Word of God, and having sound doctrine, will become increasingly more important “in later times [when] some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons” (1 Tim. 4:1).  I think we are living on the cutting edge.

Snake-handling: Crazy Faith?

Last week in Kentucky, Jamie Coots, a snake-handling pastor, died after being bitten in a Sunday service. His son said his father had been bitten before, but this time it was “just crazy.” What does the Bible say about “snake handling?” Only in an isolated, disputed passage in Mark 16:18, “And these signs will accompany those who believe… they will pick up snakes with their hands… who will not hurt them.”

What is the basis for our faith? Is faith blind? Is it ever crazy? Must it be intellectually void? Consider Jesus; He engaged the cerebral giants of his age in discussion, asking hard questions to make them “consider” and “think” about things. Can we conclude that Jesus wanted His disciples to have thoughtful, intelligent faith? Likewise, the highly intellectual Paul, emphasized the importance of a renewed mind and renewed thinking—spiritual intelligence.

The basis for spiritual intelligence is Biblical knowledge: knowledge of the character of God and His will depends on our knowledge of the Bible, accurately handling the Word (2 Tim 2:15)—not handling snakes, “text proofing.” Pastor Coots’ son was right. The snake-handling service was crazy. But, faith is not crazy. It is spiritually discerned by those with spiritual wisdom and spiritual intelligence (1 Cor. 2:9-16).

A Famine in the Land

A recent Pew Forum study reveals that the average churchgoer is ignorant of people like Job, Abraham and Moses; he thinks Sodom and Gomorrah were a husband and wife; and that the statement “God helps those who help themselves” is in the Bible. Living in the “Information Age” doesn’t seem to have averted a dearth of Bible knowledge.

During a time of prosperity in Israel (just like today), the Prophet Amos predicted there would be a famine, not for bread or water, but for hearing the word of God: “Beautiful girls and strong young men will grow faint in that day, thirsting for the Lord's word” (11-13). Why the emphasis on young people? Could it be they were the ones searching for meaning in life—something worth living for, or even to die for? Even though his prophecy is specific to Israel, it’s not hard to see a modern parallel.

Today’s millennial generation has more access to Bible knowledge, 'spiritual nourishment,' than any generation in history. But they also have more distractions to quench their appetite. God says, “My people go into captivity for their lack of knowledge—famished and parched with thirst… [but] blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness; they shall be satisfied” (Is. 55:2; Matt. 5:6).

Knowledge and People Travel Fast

Google CEO Eric Schmidt describes his life in the future: his bed will wake him up when he cycles out of R.E.M. sleep; a driverless car will take him to work; returning phone calls and scheduling events will be done by robots; and he will swallow a microchip to monitor his health and alert his doctor if anything is wrong. Thirty years ago such talk would have seemed ridiculous—but not anymore.  Such things are now quite believable.

God told His prophet Daniel that certain mysteries regarding the last days would be “revealed” when “knowledge increases” and men travel “back and forth” (Daniel 12:4). No one can argue that there has not been an exponential increase of both knowledge and speed. The cross-Atlantic voyage that took Columbus months is now done in a few hours!

And the increase of knowledge has been advanced by chip technology. We are living in ‘The Information Age.’  Knowledge is exploding in every direction. While Daniel’s phrase ‘increased knowledge’ means that some portions of the book of Daniel would not to be understood until the time of the end, many Bible scholars believe it also applies to an increasing knowledge of science, medicine, travel, and technology. If we have not reached that time yet, we must be amazingly close.

Einstein Couldn't Figure God Out!

Last weekend, a book review in the Wall Street Journal caught my attention: “God: A Biography.” The author provides a psychological study of God—troubled but talented, spontaneous but moody, and very conflicted in His roles as creator, destroyer, judge, warrior, father, and mother. The book is a sad effort to figure God out.

God wants to be known—not figured out. The Bible says God reveals Himself to everyone through His creation. But there is special revelation to those born of His Spirit (1 Cor. 2:14). And that is the ‘key’ to knowing Him. The “natural” man cannot know God—only the “spiritual” man can. God will not be known by intellect and intelligence.  In fact, Jesus said God hides Himself from those who think they are wise and clever but  reveals Himself to those who are childlike (Lk 10:21).

Maybe it’s because natural men cannot know God that they try so hard to “figure Him out.” But to that God says: “You thought I was like you, but as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts” (Ps. 51:25; Is. 55:8-9). Albert Einstein, an avowed agnostic, once said: "In my opinion the idea of a personal God is a childlike one."  At least he got that right!

Do you think of yourself as a Theologian?

“Theology” is, succinctly, the study of God. By this definition, we are all ‘theologians.’ But believe it or not, some theologians do not use the Bible as their source, but try to figure God out through sense or science. Of course they will never know God this way (1 Co. 2:14). Pity the poor theologians who try!

As soon as we come to Jesus, we are automatically enrolled in His school of theology—“Come and learn from me” (Matt. 11:28). And as His students, we have a responsibility to make sure our beliefs are Biblical (1 Tim 2:15). And, as in any school, we should expect to be given tests to validate that we are really learning.

One of the more passionate theologians in Jesus’ day was Mary, sister of Martha and Lazarus. Sitting at His feet, she learned theology from the One who called Him Father. Her first theology test came when Jesus didn’t come in time to save her brother Lazarus from death. Her disappointment was crushing. Would her theology hold up?

As theology students, we can expect many tests. And evidently, these tests will increase at the end of the age. Daniel predicted that good theologians would face severe tests in order to be “refined, purified and made spotless until the end” (11:35). Will our theology hold up?

Brain Freeze, Dementia, or Just Not Paying Attention?

The pundits and late-night comics pounced on Rick Perry’s embarrassing 53-second memory loss, which occurred in a debate earlier this month. What the experts dubbed a brain freeze was Perry’s inability to remember one of the 3 federal agencies he wants to shut down when he becomes president.

Knowing a little bit about the human brain (I am, after all, a psychologist!), I’ve learned that forgetting is something the brain does when it is overloaded, like deleting data from your ‘documents’ folder. But just like the brain, deleting files doesn't actually remove the data from your computer; it just “forgets to remember” the data. And if needed, can be retrieved.

In I Corinthians 6, the phrase “Don’t you know” appears seven times. This repetition makes one wonder if the Corinthian church was an elderly population suffering from dementia. But Paul knew that they knew these things—he was simply reminding them of what they had seemingly forgotten. Likewise, we are in danger, if we do not “pay more careful attention to what we have heard” (Heb. 2:1).

The Dangers of "Higher" Education

With 21 post-graduate units in theology and a semester of teaching in college, I am acutely aware of the dangers of what-is-called “higher education.”

Several times in the Scriptures, the Lord mentions the fact that an abundance of or excessive reliance upon worldly education can actually be a hindrance to entering into the Kingdom. The beginning words of the Lord’s teaching on the Mount began with the blessing on “the poor in spirit.” According to Strong’s Concordance this phrase means “destitute of wealth of learning and intellectual culture which education affords.” God said He would destroy the wisdom of the wise and bring to naught the intelligence of the intelligent (1 Cor. 1:19).

Please do not misinterpret my comments as “anti-intellectualism.” The mind is an essential part in faith: Paul says we are to grow in knowledge (2 Peter 3:18). And Jesus told us to love God "with all our mind” (Matt. 22:37).  The challenge to each of us is to be a diligent student of the Word (2 Tim. 2:15) so we may attain a truly "higher" education.

Contagious Cantaloupes and Cognitive Contamination

Have you purchased any cantaloupes lately? The Center for Disease Control reports over 100 illnesses and 18 deaths, so far, from listeria-tainted cantaloupes—the worst such outbreak in a decade.

As I read the story, what seemed especially worrisome is that it can take up to two months before the food-borne illness, listeriosis, manifests. The thought that many people may still have the contaminated cantaloupe in their refrigerators is disturbing. Unlike other bacteria, listeria grows well at low temperatures. Why then is the FDA recommending that consumers rinse the cantaloupes under running water. I don’t know about you, but I think I’ll just toss the melons until this is under control.

About the same time, I was learning of this slow-growing bacteria, I read an article about “cognitive contamination”—the spoiling of our minds by cultural influences. Likewise, the contamination of our minds is a slow, methodical, gradual mental makeover. And, like listeriosis, it is covert.

Yes, indeed, clandestine cognitive contamination is a subtle Satanic scheme. Is this not the reason for Paul's war cry: “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ” (2 Cor. 10:3-5).

Don't be Afraid of the Mouse

I have a cousin who was a Safeway checker. She tells the story of a befuddled middle-aged woman who was using her debit card for the first time. After the woman had entered the PIN, the ATM machine waited for her to push the button for “cash back.” Not knowing what to do, my cousin told her “tell it [the ATM machine] you don’t want any cash back.” So the woman bent down toward the ATM machine, speaking loudly and clearly, said, “I don’t want any cash back.” It’s not really so funny as it is touching: have you forgotten when you first learned to use a mouse? (“Just point and click,” they said!)

Being intimidated by new gizmos and gadgets is nothing new. Since the invention of the printing press, horseless carriages, telephones and transistor radios, PCs and IPods, people have had to overcome their fear of change.

But more to the point, each of these ‘inventions’ resulted in far-reaching cultural changes. And now, in 2011, it is not only that we are looking down the barrel of huge cultural change, but it is the exponential acceleration of these changes. One has to wonder how much change the collective human psyche can endure.   With the exponential spread of technology, it seems we could reasonably conclude that the world is on the brink of an unprecedented cultural revolution. Could this be what Daniel meant when he said at “the time of the end… knowledge shall increase"? (12:4)

Will I Ever Learn to Speak Spanish?

I am investing a lot of time trying to learn Spanish. But it seems I am only getting information. My head is filled with enough words and verb conjugations to sink the Spanish armada. But there is a Grand Canyon sized gap between the alphabet soup in my head and coherent sentences. I feel like I have not ‘learned’ anything yet. All this information hasn't become knowledge. Spanish is not ‘real’ for me.

Paul spoke of this phenomenon on one occasion, describing people who were “always learning but never coming to the knowledge of the truth” (2 Tim. 3:7), distinguishing between ‘learning’ and ‘knowing.’ Since there are many Scriptures admonishing us to grow in knowledge (2 Peter 3:18), we must answer the question: how does learning become ‘real’ knowledge? I think it’s the same way we learn a language. By reading, studying, memorizing, and practicing, Spanish will become real to me. And as I think it and speak it, I will become fluent. You could say I will be a new me—something different from what I was before.

Applying this principle to the Bible, it is also apparent that our learning turns into knowledge when it becomes ‘real’ or ‘true’ for us. As we read, study, meditate, and practice what we are learning, it becomes ‘real knowledge.’ And we become something different from what we were before. And we become fluent in speaking "truth." Is there a disparity between your learning and your knowing?

Dont be a Soundbite Christian

Fifty years ago, A. W. Tozer said “people don’t really like to think for themselves; they want others to do it for them.” Since Tozer wrote those words, a media explosion has ushered us into the “information” age. But along with the flood of facts is the responsibility to evaluate what is really true. Few give this the time and discipline it requires. Too many settle for sound bites.

I am not speaking of encyclopedic knowledge (history, science, math, etc.), but of the philosophies, ideas, opinions, and points-of-view that form our worldview by telling us what to believe and who to trust. Tozer’s statement turns out to be very prophetic.

The spiritual parallel to this is the plethora of Christian books, magazines, commentaries, TV and radio programs, and websites that make it so easy for you to gather information about any Christian topic. Warning! Acquiring information is not the same as increasing in knowledge—don't confuse the two. It isn’t “information, or even knowledge that will make you free.” Jesus said “truth will make you free.”

What is truth and how do you get it? How do we move from acquiring information to growing in truth? The Holy Spirit is the only One who can turn information into knowledge, and knowledge into into "truth." (Eph. 1:17). When you read the word of God, don't take it in as though it were "information." Think of the Word of God as alive (Heb. 4:12) and able to transform you. And do not expect to understand it with your mind. But pray for revelation.