Education, Duty and Worldview

It sure seems like folks who ought to know better don't. I mean, people who have grown up in the church and are maybe second or third or fourth or more generation Christians ought to at least get the basics. You'd think they would make the connection between belief and behavior, that despite someone's words their belief system is faithfully reproduced in their behavior. You remember the old expression "if it looks like a duck and walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it must be a duck".

Research and personal observation show clearly that the majority of those who claim to be Christians don't use Biblical principles as the basis for their decision-making. When you think about it, is it any wonder? How have they been taught to think? What worldview has formed the basis for their educational experience? Judging by the evidence, they were not taught to think as Jesus would think nor were they educated on the basis of a "God is sovereign over all things" view of the world.

Deuteronomy 6:1-9 doesn't leave much wiggle room; God through His prophet Moses commanded fathers to teach their children to view the world through the lens of God and His laws. That teaching experience was to encompass every area of life, every hour of the day. Deuteronomy 4:9 extends the command to include not only children but grandchildren as well. Certainly fathers have the freedom to hire tutors or work with mothers to cover aspects of learning beyond their capabilities; but God's Word doesn't give any father the liberty to give away the responsibility for their childrens' education and its results. Regardless of who performs the task, fathers are still responsible before God to train their children according to God's standard.

The goal is clear - fathers, train your children in such a way that they can go out into the world and make followers of Christ. The purpose of all our training is to equip our children so they can by their godly and holy lives attract fellow disciples of our blessed Savior and triumphant King. As near as I can tell, God figured it would be pretty much a full-time occupation to accomplish that training since He told fathers to engage their children in learning God's commands at night, in the morning, at home, away from home. That means that every aspect of a child's training should have a Biblical foundation and the goal of producing a Biblical worldview in the learner.

Fathers, if our children are going to change the world for Christ and build His kingdom, we cannot expect the world to train them properly; it neither equipped nor desirous of doing so. We can't delegate part of the responsibility of training our children to the world and expect to fill in the blanks with Sunday School and Youth Group. Rather, we must follow God's plain command and train our children using His ordained methods to meet His plan. Yes, I know it's in the Old Testament; but the last time I checked, Deuteronomy was God's Word and He hasn't told me (or anyone else) that He changed His mind. So, get over it and get with it!

By His grace,
Sundoulos

Weirdos

As I reflect on it, even the spelling of the word weird is weird. Remember the little ditty "I before e except after c or when it sounds like a in neighbor and weigh"? The ditty doesn't work for weird, does it!

It seems like they have been coming out of the woodwork lately, Phelpians threatening to disrupt memorial services, authors writing books on discernment that require discernment to read safely. I was given one of the latter to read and see what I thought; you can check out the book here, the author here. It's scary stuff 'cause people read and believe this sort of thing.

The author has tried to build a barely plausible defense for transforming sin into a demon to be challenged using all the tools of spiritual warfare. Preoccupation with pornography, homosexuality, immoral behavior, lack of spiritual leadership are all symptoms of a demon having built up a stronghold that must be torn down to release the individual from its control.

I have to believe Satan is lol as they say (laughing out loud) over this one. It puts me in mind of Don Quixote and his crusade to defeat the windmills; while he was using up all his strength and energy on a useless target, the real enemy if there were one had nothing to fear. I believe it is the same with Satan - if we are focusing all our energy and attention on some supposed demon instead of the real issue, sin, he will have succeeded in his deception.

The more I think about it, the more it resembles a sophisticated "the devil made me do it" argument. Oh yay, that means I don't have to take responsibility for my bad behavior, I don't even have to call it sin. I'm just the victim here, oppressed and enslaved by a demon, and if I can just boot that demon out I'll be free. But when I read what Scripture has to say on the subject, it calls each one of those behaviors and desires sin, exhorting me to repentance if I am guilty of practicing them.

Don't be taken in by Satan's deception - sin is sin and we need to call it just that since God calls it sin. That is what confess (homologeo in the Greek) means - say the same as; call our behavior what God calls it. To minimize it or call it something else or give someone else the credit for it is clearly contrary to Biblical teaching. In order for us to experience God's forgiveness we need to view ourselves and our sinful behavior from God's perspective and treat it the way He commands us to.

By His grace,
Sundoulos

Regional Theology?

According to an Evangelical News Agency idea report, Africans need to develop their own African theology. This concept was presented by Joe Kapolyo, a theologian from Zambia, in his keynote address at the annual meeting of the German Association of Evangelical Missions (AEM) in Rehe near Frankfurt, February 28 – March 2. "Many of his African colleagues simply copy Western theology, which is influenced by rationalism. It fails to address specific African needs, said Kapolyo in his keynote address [and] ...cannot provide answers to many African questions. A truly African theology must deal with subjects like poverty, tribalism, corruption, sexuality, and spiritism." The report is located here.

I would agree with Mr. Kapolyo that theology in Africa needs to deal with relevant subjects like the ones he identified and that the theology of the West has been influenced by rationalism. But before we get too overawed by his insight, let's look at the larger picture for a moment. Aren't some of those "African" issues also "Western" issues? The last I knew poverty, corruption, immorality and idolatry were not problems confined to a particular region of geography or philosophical thought.

The larger picture, then, shows us a theology identified as Western that fails to provide answers to either Western questions or African questions. Which rapidly leads to the conclusion that a broader solution is needed, one that will serve both the West and Africa, even all of humanity. We really don't have to look far to find such a solution.

Jesus at the beginning of His ministry stood up in the synagogue and read from Isaiah 61 the following words: “ The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; to proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD.”

It seems self-evident that if a theology doesn't address and provide answers for problems like poverty and bondage in various sorts of sin, then it is not a Biblical theology. A truly Biblical theology will address those areas regardless of geography, ethnicity, philosophical bent, or any other consideration.

Along the same lines, the prevailing view is that it is arrogant for Christians to think it proper to Westernize an indigenous culture by bringing them the Gospel. Perhaps, but it is definitely right and even commanded that Westerners by bringing the Gospel to other cultures Christianize those cultures.

So what is the solution? Preach and live a theology consistent with the Bible as the inspired, inerrant, infallible Word of the living God and "the only sufficient, certain and infallible rule of all saving knowledge, faith and obedience". That holds true whether one is in Africa or the West or any other inhabited place on Planet Earth.

By His grace,
Sundoulos