The Christian is meant to be a disciple of Jesus,
a learner from Him, with the object of using the knowledge
he gains to deepen his own experiences of God and to share
them with other people. There is the process of intaking to
be outgoing. The receptive mind of the Christian means that
he is often to hear what God is saying to him. He has an open
mind! A most hurtful indictment of Christians is that they
have closed minds, that they are often intolerant of those
who do not think as they do. And the church is seen to act
as if it was the repository of all knowledge, and truth as
a denominational monopoly. This charge made against the Roman
Catholic Church is applicable in kind to the other churches.
Many Christians have closed minds! They are so set in their
thinking that a new idea or new thinking on old attitudes,
is refused by them. And yet the characteristic most approved
by Jesus was the questioning mind.
His teaching method by parable, required those who listened
to them to stretch their minds to understand and appreciate
his thinking on God, life in all its complexities and privileges
and responsibilities.
Those religious men who opposed him thought that all wisdom
had been gathered up in their literature and law. He told
them they were wrong and he astounded them with his words
of condemnation, and actions which showed a magnanimity to
others the like of which was alien to their thinking about
God and people. While there were the few Pharisees who had
their minds opened so that they recognised Jesus for who He
is and the truth of what He said there were many who refused
to open their minds and they remained Pharisees, "separated
ones", estranged from greater knowledge and final truth.
We can be farcical in our beliefs and practices, unwilling
to grow in faith. But Christianity is like running water rather
than a placid pool. We must be tapping constantly into the
divine resources which are always available to us. A main
source of growth in faith is the Bible. Scripture reading
is of the essence of Christian living and thinking. It is
the ordinary means that God uses to speak to men. It is essential
that we let the Bible have its effect on us. That we read
and study it for ourselves and listen to what it is saying
directly to us. And we can be benefited by the help of those
who provide us with aids to Bible study. We must not forget
though, that the best commentary on the Bible is the Bible
itself. There should be no undervaluing of the place and purpose
of the Church's ministry of the Word of the sacrament, sermon,
scripture reading. The reality is that by "the foolishness
of preaching" God often speaks to people to convince
them of their need of a personal relationship with Him. The
pressure on them is by a person to persons.
A church historian claims that the great days of the church
have been those when there were great preachers and great
preaching, who people responded to their invitation to follow
Christ. People are won by the preaching of the gospel! They
are brought to faith more often by the influence of Christians
who so live their faith that when they speak of it people
are impressed and influenced by them. The Christian, and the
church, has the responsibility of winning people for Christ.
The commission constant and continuous, is the task of every
Christian. The objective is outreach to the growing number
of those who are without the faith. Christians can cocoon
themselves to have little contact with other people. They
can live unto themselves with little or no regard for others.
This is wrong, for the Christian and church, is for others.
"Ourselves alone" is the negation of what Christianity
is about. Selflessness should be the motivating characteristic
of the true believer.
In taking in knowledge and experience to equip oneself for
Christian service is an imperative. Outgoing for the good
of people who might not hear the appeal of Christ to them
if there is no messenger to deliver it, is an essential of
equal importance.
"The church's best gift to mankind is redeemed personality,
but redeemed personality's best gift to mankind is a better
world, more fit to be a home for the family of God."
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