Due To Our Own Ignorance

head_in_the_sandOne of my quests is to help Christians learn how to critically think. The great majority of believers allow society to sway their thought process. Whether it is political correctness, ignorance, or fear, many Christians either do not have or cannot define and defend a Biblical worldview. This is the single-most reason the American church has become for the most part ineffective in society. We do not know what or why we believe and are unwilling to defend it if we do.

So how do I go about examining my critical thinking abilities? I turn to where Christians should always turn when looking for any answer. I turn to God and His holy word:

    “Examine me, O Lord, and prove me; try my mind and my heart.” (Psalm 26:2)

Psalm 26 is titled “A Prayer for Divine Scrutiny and Redemption,” and David does well to turn to God. At times people want to run things by me, let me know the thought process they’ve gone through, and seek my opinion. What is important is not my opinion or what I think, what is important is what God’s word says. We should prayerfully consider our Bibles before we do our friends. Godly counsel is wise and recommended, however much time could be saved if we would turn to God first.

The great lament sweeping our nation is the open and unparalleled wickedness running rampant throughout all of American society. However, those of us lamenting tend to trust earthly pragmatism instead of heavenly piousness. If we want the wickedness to stop, we must seek righteousness.

    “Oh, let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end, but establish the just; for the righteous God tests the hearts and minds.” (Psalm 7:9)

Wickedness has always been the scourge of mankind, after all we have a fallen, sinful nature. The question for the American church is how much wickedness will we tolerate before we corporately say, “Enough!” When will the pulpits across America stop hiding behind the skirt of Romans 13 and the fear of losing their tax exempt status and call that which is wicked, wicked? After all, we can trust in God, can we not? Nothing clears up stinking thinking faster than trusting God to help us critically think:

    “Thus my heart was grieved, and I was vexed in my mind. I was so foolish and ignorant; I was like a beast before You. Nevertheless I am continually with You; You hold me by my right hand. You will guide me with Your counsel, and afterward receive me to glory.” (Psalm 73:21-24)

If Christians are going to be discerning citizens, we must trust God’s word to show the way to righteousness. If we rely on our own mind, we will be deceived. We must learn to trust God’s righteousness:

    “The Lord tests the righteous, but the wicked and the one who loves violence His soul hates.” (Psalm 11:5)

Christians rightly lament the open evil we see in our nation, but our Heavenly Father hates it even more. When we allow God’s word to shape our thinking, then we do not become susceptible to deception. William Hughes, a 19th Century author, put it this way:

    “If we are not prepared to think for ourselves, and to make the effort to learn how to do this well, we will always be in danger of becoming slaves to the ideas and values of others due to our own ignorance.”

I’ll take that a step further. If Christians do not prepare their minds to critically think through the filter of a Biblical worldview, and strive to do this well, then we will always be in danger of becoming slaves to the ideas and values of the devil because of our own ignorance.

I am confident that no one wants to be guilty of that.

So then join me on the never-ending yet joyous journey of developing a Biblical worldview.

In Christ
Dave
Ps. 37:4

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    Copyright © 2014 David Jeffers

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