Revival and Developing a Christian Worldview

"'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'  

This is the first and greatest commandment.  

And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'  

All the Law and the Prophets hand on these two commandments."  

Matt. 22:37-39

Earlier this week, we began a discussion on developing a Christian mind.  We discussed our contemporary understanding of religion as private and making little impact on how we live because of a worldly and false dichotomy borrowed from the Enlightenment.  

Instead, I proposed that authentic spirituality will always seek to grow in its understanding of God and the implications of belief on life.  I know that for many professing faith there is little evidence in this regard!  This means nothing except that we have many in our churches who need either regeneration or revival.

Today's passage is a direct quote from Jesus as the Pharisees tried to test and trick him.  Their question is an attempt to get Jesus to divide the Law into parts so they can accuse him of neglecting some element of the Law.  It is similar to today when people ask you if you are someone who engages in active evangelism or seeking justice and truth in the world.  The answer should be yes- I do both.  Jesus' answer to the trick question dove-tales perfectly with our discussion concerning developing authentic spirituality and the Christian mind.  

Jesus answers by cutting to the heart of the Pharisee's misunderstanding of scripture.  There should not be an active debate on the most important commandment in scripture.  The answer should be yes!  All of the Law is equally important.  You just need to understand the principles that in-power the Law.  

These principles include there is only one God who is to be worshipped by all creation with abandon, and humans are created in the image of God and as image bearers so they should be loved and respected.  Notice these are the principles that manifest in the idea that creation is good!  Jesus answers the trick question by saying that the essence of the Law breaks down into two principles: Love God and love neighbor.  This is the theme of the positive side of the Law.

Of course for the sensitive of heart, this positive declaration of the Law also should promote repentance and humility.  How can we keep these commands?  I fall so short of continual love of God and neighbor.  Even as I affirm the rightness of Jesus' command, I cannot keep it perfectly.  I need God's help.  I need a savior.  

The proper preaching and teaching of the Law should promote a humble reliance on the Holy Spirit leading to dependence upon Christ.

Unfortunately, many of us, like the Pharisees of old, hear this and do not understand our struggle to obey.  We do not depend upon the Holy Spirit.  We muster up our own will power and try our hardest.  Then we count this as good enough, and we judge those who do not do as good as we do!

Now we know where most of us live, most of the time.  We also know the cause.  If we do not develop a solid understanding of God, we will make Him in our image instead of allowing His image and glory to shape us.  If we do not develop a solid understanding of humanity, we will sit in judgment upon everyone who does not fit our "mold" as the ideal.  We will establish our culture, our habits, our thoughts, as the standard for all other cultures, habits and thoughts.  We might even use the Law to justify our opinions, but we will neglect other elements of the Law to do so.  Jesus tells us that we all this to our own peril!

Our biggest problem is that we can find a church somewhere that will affirm us in our opinions.  Thus the church becomes worldly, Christians become unsavory to those not "just like them," and the teaching of truth about God and humanity sounds foreign and strange to us.

How do we escape this trap?  We develop an informed and growing Christian mind.  We learn.  We repent of our false understandings and allow scripture to shape our mind.  This is the path not taken by many because it is hard!  Nevertheless, an informed Christian mind is the path to recovering our created good and overcoming our fallen tendency toward self.

May the Lord lead each of us to grow in our understanding of God and our neighbor!  May we develop a Christian mind that informs our understanding so we may Love God and others with authenticity and grace!