Wanted: Thinking Christians

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” Romans 12:2

A number of years ago an article was published in Modern Reformation entitled Wanted: Thinking Christians. The writer argued that there is hardly a Christian mind at all today in the sense of a common way of thinking as Christian people. He says that we act and we react but do not consider nor contemplate. He argues that the key problem in our culture is that as a society we have become obsessed with entertainment so much so that we have forgotten how to think. But he reminds that God’s people are made in his image and that includes the capacity for thinking and reasoning.

It also includes the capacity for learning! Yet today people look at Christian faith as a somewhat uneducated way of thinking. It is simple, a bit naive and ultimately weak. But Christians should be critical thinkers, carefully considering God’s words in their context and application for today. Rather than being conformed to the world, we ought to be transformed in our thinking and very being as Saint Paul reminds the church. And as I often remind the congregation when we gather, Christians are to Fact Check and diligently compare what they hear to God’s words. Let us become thinking Christians that we might grow in the grace and knowledge of God’s will in his word for us all.

Sadly, today it seems many Christians have a suspicion about Biblical doctrine or at least a bit of disinterest. We seem to sometimes prefer to sample a bit of “Cafeteria Christianity.” Today many Christians have their own private belief systems tailored to their own preferences. Sure, the mainstay is faith in God through Christ, but many add on the side only some of the things the Savior speaks of! The result is an impoverished understanding of God’s will in his words. The Lord still has lots to say to us today. Jesus commissioned his people saying, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, (and) teaching them to observe (or to hold firmly to) all that I have commanded you.” Now, disciple means follower or student. Shouldn’t a follower or student of the Savior learn and grow in his word A number of years ago an article was published in Modern Reformation entitled Wanted: Thinking Christians. The writer argued that there is hardly a Christian mind at all today in the sense of a common way of thinking as Christian people. He says that we act and we react but do not consider nor contemplate. He argues that the key problem in our culture is that as a society we have become obsessed with entertainment so much so that we have forgotten how to think. But he reminds that God’s people are made in his image and that includes the capacity for thinking and reasoning.

Christians take in God’s word in a variety of ways. We are to hear, read, worship, and receive of what our God gives. And this is not mere information but about formation in matters of faith. God still has something to say to us this day as his people at Saint John. As I shared on Reformation Day, we all need a return to God’s word, indeed, a return to the very Word himself, Jesus Christ our Lord as we gather for his word in his worship!

Pastor