| From
the Church on the Hill
by D. Eric Williams Pastor, Cottonwood Community Church pastor@CottonwoodCommunityChurch.org We live in the age of the information superhighway. Almost everything we could want to know about almost any subject is at our fingertips. Events take place in some obscure corner of the world and though they have nothing to do with us directly, we read about them within hours of their occurrence. Major universities have made their entire curriculum available online for free. Indeed, some even offer a certificate of completion to those who take the online courses and pass a few tests. Those with the interest and energy are able to educate themselves on any subject to any level at almost no cost. This combination of immediacy and ease of access have come together as a tremendous opportunity for education. At the same time, Western culture is afflicted with a level of disinterest unheard of in modern times. Even with vast resources of information and education at their fingertips, most Americans are unmotivated and ill-informed. Civic leaders pander to the narcissism of the populace and lead their intellectually challenged constituents ever further into bondage. “Bread and circuses” has worked before as a societal narcotic and it seems to work today. Unfortunately many Christians are no better informed than the average citizen. Yet, followers of Jesus Christ should be at the forefront of learning. We should be the best informed and the best educated people in the community. I'm not talking about academic degrees as much as I am referring to “street smarts,” well-informed common sense or - more accurately - godly wisdom. But what does the information highway have to do with godly wisdom? Well, wisdom is thinking as God thinks. And wisdom is not limited to areas of personal piety but to everything in this life and realm. Thus, it is important for Christians to have a wide range of knowledge so they might think in a godly fashion about any number of things that are relevant to the modern life. Some may not believe it is important to have an opinion concerning the events that are taking place in the Ukraine for instance. They may not have done much reading about the subject and so when a friend or coworker asks them for their thoughts on the situation in Eastern Europe they simply shrug perhaps attempting to turn the conversation to something more spiritual. What they fail to understand is that everything in this life is spiritual in the sense that everything is supposed to be brought under the authority of Jesus Christ. Therefore, it is important for Christians to have an informed opinion about almost everything. For instance, godly insight concerning events in Eastern Europe will be the basis for communication with our elected leadership when we discover they are about to legislate a specific national position concerning the Ukrainian instability. On the other hand if we know nothing about the subject or if we have failed to consider the circumstance from a biblical point of view, we have no business letting our voice be heard on the topic. I would suggest it would be a good and godly exercise for believers to make a point of staying abreast of current events and continuing to expand their grasp of “academic” subjects. I further suggest that this exertion in education is required of followers of Jesus so they might do all to the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31). You don't need to be an expert in every subject but as a follower of Christ you should remain current and conversant so you are equipped to provide a comprehensive reason for the hope that is in you. |
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