The New Testament speaks of the use of our minds everywhere in the process of Christian conversion and growth and obedience. For example, at least ten times in the book of Acts, Luke says that Paul’s strategy was to “reason” with people in his effort to convert them and build them up.1 And Paul said to the Corinthians that he would rather speak five words with his mind to instruct others than ten thousand words in a tongue.2 …
In 2 Timothy 2:7, he says, “Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.” So many people swerve off the road to one side of this verse or the other. Some stress “think over what I say.” They emphasize the indispensable role of reason and thinking. And they often minimize the supernatural role of God in making the mind able to see and embrace the truth. Others stress the second half of the verse: “And the Lord will give you understanding in everything.” They emphasize the futility of reason without God’s illumining work. “The Lord will give you understanding.”
But Paul will not be divided this way. He says: not either-or, but both-and. “Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.” ... Paul commands us to think about what he says. Use your mind. Engage your reasoning powers when you hear the word of God.
Jesus warned of what happens if we don’t and what blessing may come if we do. In the parable of the soils, he said concerning the seed sown on the path: “When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart.”3 Understanding with the mind is not optional. Our lives hang on it. And concerning the seed sown on good soil, he says, “This is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.”4 …
So yes, we must use our minds. We must exercise our reason in the proclamation and explanation and confirmation of the gospel. We must contend for the faith once delivered to the saints.5… That is indispensable.
But as we use all our renewed mental powers for Christ, we must pray with Paul that the Holy Spirit would attend the preaching of the gospel and that the God who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” would shine in the hearts of our hearers to give “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” Only when that happens will true Christians be created who say, “I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.”—John Piper6
Loving God with our minds
Jesus said that we are to love God “with all our heart, with all our soul, and with all our mind.”7 Notice that He didn’t just refer to our heart and soul, but also to our mind. God gave human beings mental faculties. He created us to be intellectual beings, capable of rational thought, intellectual growth, critical thinking, and reasoning. He also gave us a conscience to guide us in making choices that are morally right.
The apostle Paul said, “One person considers some days to be more sacred than others, while another person considers all days to be the same. Each person must have their own convictions.”8 Paul also said in that same discourse, “If you do anything you believe is not right, you are sinning.”9 The point he was making is that it’s important we each explore our beliefs to determine where our faith lies on various issues. Analyzing, discussing, and debating points of doctrine can be healthy for your faith, as those all require you to research, dig deep, and find the scriptural foundation for your beliefs.
Using our mental faculties and critical, rational thinking is not meant to undermine our faith, of course, but it can. Some people do reason themselves out of their faith. But for others, critical, rational thinking serves to strengthen their faith. It depends on how the person goes about the questioning process. Paul, Saint Augustine, Martin Luther, C. S. Lewis, and many other great Christian thinkers used reasoning and logic to strengthen their and others’ faith and understanding of doctrine, as well as to help shape the faith and intellectual viewpoints of Christianity.
We can use our intellectual abilities to glorify God and to affirm our faith, just as we can use any of the other skills and talents He has given us. We can use our minds to better love God, as Jesus told us to do. We can also use our intellectual abilities to find the place He has for us in this world, to further our education and understanding of the world, and more. As is the case with all gifts from His hand, He expects us to use the mental abilities He has given us, to invest them wisely, and to allow them to benefit ourselves and others.—Maria Fontaine
Why loving God with all your mind matters
The world God created is real and good. We are created in God’s image with a capacity to reason, feel, and act. We are also created to respond to a real God, respond to real people, and exercise dominion over a real creation. We are created to respond to reality. Sin certainly does distort our perception of reality, and we have limits on the extent of our knowledge; but there is nevertheless that which is true, good, and real objectively, and we can know it, at least in part.
The God-given ability to know is for a purpose. In Matthew 22:37, Christ calls us to love God with all of your heart, with all of your soul, and with all of your mind. Unfortunately, not only is the mind devalued within the culture but also surprisingly within the church.
Perhaps some think that you can love God too much with your mind. Yet, can you love God too much with your heart or soul? I think not. The problem is not loving God too much with your mind but, perhaps, loving God with your heart and soul too little.
In 2 Corinthians 10:5, we are called to “destroy speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God” and “take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.” The first part of this verse emphasizes a more negative or critical task of refuting objections to faith or alternative systems of thought. The second part stresses a positive task of taking every thought captive to Christ…
It is important to note that biblical knowing involves more than mere cognition. It involves intimacy and responsibility.
The Hebrew word for knowing is Yatha. When Genesis speaks of Adam knowing his wife, it uses this word. This knowing is certainly more than sexual intimacy. In Psalm 1:6, it says that “the Lord knows the way of the righteous.” … Our knowing is to lead to personal intimacy with God.
It is also interesting that the Greek word for “hear” is Akuo, while the Greek word for “obey” is Hupakuo—which literally means “to hyper hear” or really hear. So, to really hear is to obey. There are those who hear yet fail to understand. There are those who see yet don’t perceive. No wonder the biblical writers often say, “Him who has an ear to hear, let him hear.” It is one thing to allow a truth to go into one ear and out the other. It is another to allow God’s word to go into your ear, down into your heart, and out into your hands and feet.
Let’s dedicate ourselves to the study of intimately knowing God in a way that results in enjoying and glorying him (feeling) and happily laboring in the work of his kingdom (doing).—Art Lindsley10
Published on Anchor January 2020. https://anchor.tfionline.com/post/think-it-over/
0 Comments:
Post a Comment