“Your leechcraft ere long would have had me walking on all fours like a beast.” Théoden King of Rohan to Gríma Wormtongue in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien.
In Psalm 73, the psalmist considers the prosperity of the wicked. However, as God’s people we, like the psalmist, need not envy them, for they will enjoy the prosperity of this life only for a short time. They have no hope in eternal life for they have treasured the things of the world and not considered Christ.
And yet, even as believers, we often fail to consider Christ. Verses 22-24 of Psalm 73 speak to me particularly well in this regard: “22Then I was senseless and ignorant; I was like a beast before You. 23Nevertheless I am continually with You; You have taken hold of my right hand. 24With Your counsel You will guide me, And afterward receive me to glory.” Verse 22 echoes my feelings when I have sinned: I feel like “a beast,” without the ability to reason. I have acted as if Jesus had not taught me the things He has, like my own good sense to follow what has proven to be true and good has just fallen away somewhere. I feel like I deserve to be led like a beast- on a leash.
But the psalmist helps us understand that Jesus does not treat us the way we might think we should be treated. He takes us by the hand, as verse 23 reveals, and counsels us. He does not restrain us or control us; He treats us with love and mercy. He is not distant from us; we are close enough to touch Him. He takes our hand to guide us and receives us in the same gentle, loving manner, as verse 24 states. Though we might feel like beasts, unworthy of anything but restraining, in truth, Jesus deals with us in a way that frees us like our wickedness can never do.
When I am broken hearted because I have been “senseless and ignorant,” when I feel like a beast, it is Jesus that reminds me that I am still valuable to Him by treating me with care and good counsel. It is then that I consider Christ; I consider Him my treasure, worth more than the entire world and everything in it; I consider Him my salvation, freeing me from bondage from which it is impossible for me to free myself. There is nothing to envy in the way of the wicked and the prosperity they enjoy in this life; they are slaves to sin. Our treasure, our freedom and our hope is Jesus, who will be our reward in eternity.
Friday, July 31, 2009
Friday, July 24, 2009
Carefully and Prayerfully
It’s been a while since I’ve posted anything new. The main reason for this is that I have been taking an online class called Teaching Critical Thinking Skills in the Classroom. Most of my reading and writing has been dedicated to that class these past three weeks.
As the class concludes, I find myself reflecting on something I read in an article that I used for one of the paper’s I was assigned to write. The article defined critical thinking as “the ability to analyze and evaluate information.” The article claimed that, among other things, the skills related to critical thinking could aid in dealing with spiritual questions. That statement bothered me at first because I thought faith was much more appropriate for dealing with spiritual questions than critical thinking.
But Christian faith is not blind faith. God has blessed us with the Bible so that we may be informed about who Jesus is. And He continued by questioning them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter answered and said to Him, "You are the Christ." (Mark 8:29) We do not accept Christ simply for who others say He is. We accept Him because, like the disciples, we have experienced who He is. We have read the accounts of His life, death and resurrection. We persist in communication with Him through prayer. We meditate upon His word. We are extremely well-informed about who our Savior is. I think that is part of the reason why many Christians read through the Bible on a 365-day reading schedule, year after year. There’s just too much information to “analyze and evaluate” in just a few sittings or a few sermons or a few Bible studies.
I suspect many people think that critical thinking and faith are mutually exclusive. That’s why the article’s statement bothered me so much at first. I thought the author might be trying to say that digging into spiritual questions deeply enough would reveal that they are merely the failure to consider things logically and realistically. But perhaps it was me who was being short-sighted. Digging deeper and deeper into God’s Word, exposing it to analysis and evaluation, only reveals more and more truth. God has blessed us with much information about our Savior and the ability to carefully and prayerfully consider all of it. The more carefully we consider it the closer we feel to Him and I think that is His purpose.
As the class concludes, I find myself reflecting on something I read in an article that I used for one of the paper’s I was assigned to write. The article defined critical thinking as “the ability to analyze and evaluate information.” The article claimed that, among other things, the skills related to critical thinking could aid in dealing with spiritual questions. That statement bothered me at first because I thought faith was much more appropriate for dealing with spiritual questions than critical thinking.
But Christian faith is not blind faith. God has blessed us with the Bible so that we may be informed about who Jesus is. And He continued by questioning them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter answered and said to Him, "You are the Christ." (Mark 8:29) We do not accept Christ simply for who others say He is. We accept Him because, like the disciples, we have experienced who He is. We have read the accounts of His life, death and resurrection. We persist in communication with Him through prayer. We meditate upon His word. We are extremely well-informed about who our Savior is. I think that is part of the reason why many Christians read through the Bible on a 365-day reading schedule, year after year. There’s just too much information to “analyze and evaluate” in just a few sittings or a few sermons or a few Bible studies.
I suspect many people think that critical thinking and faith are mutually exclusive. That’s why the article’s statement bothered me so much at first. I thought the author might be trying to say that digging into spiritual questions deeply enough would reveal that they are merely the failure to consider things logically and realistically. But perhaps it was me who was being short-sighted. Digging deeper and deeper into God’s Word, exposing it to analysis and evaluation, only reveals more and more truth. God has blessed us with much information about our Savior and the ability to carefully and prayerfully consider all of it. The more carefully we consider it the closer we feel to Him and I think that is His purpose.
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