Everyday Christianity: Theology with Common Sense, Practicality, and a Touch of Humor

By Perry C. Cotham

Drawing insights from a long career in the two professions of full-time church pulpit ministry and various university professorships, Perry Cotham invites us to understand ancient biblical themes in a refreshingly new and relevant way. Some themes are deeply theological and biblical and others are highly practical. Dr. Cotham challenges our thinking even if readers may not agree with all his insights and conclusions.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Dec 20, 2022
• ISBN: 9781665578028

Perry C. Cotham

Virtually every book has a brief biographical statement about the author, citing the author’s academic and/or professional background and achievements, all with the intention of enhancing credibility of the book’s contents. Typically, there is a picture of the author. If the author is male, and he endures the “curse” of what is euphemistically labeled “male pattern baldness,” quite often the photograph of that author is cropped off right at mid-forehead. A respected friend of mine and an outstanding writer and speaker, Brian D. McLaren, possessed audacity to have a large picture of his head on the cover of one of his books (A Generous Orthodoxy) with the picture cropped off right above his eyebrows. I have done these authors “one better”: I am using a recent picture of myself wearing a cap and standing with my wife Glenda just outside of our back patio, and only regretting that this natural pose is not printed in color. As readers take a quick glance at these typical author biographical statements, the impression is left that the publisher or some third party wrote the statement. Truth is, the vast majority of these biographical statements are written by the actual author of the book as well as any promotional “teaser” on the back cover. Thereby, the author has the opportunity to make oneself sound as important or qualified as possible, also with opportunity to engage in self-importance and self-congratulation. I do not recall humility ever being expressed in one of these “About the Author” paragraphs, though, admittedly, some could be quite brief while others quite lengthy. I am blessed to have written 25 to 30 books that got published in one way or another. That count might vary and depend on whether one considers a Master’s thesis and a doctoral dissertation as “published books” (indeed, there are a few photocopies of each available and they required as much or more research and writing as any other book). I have enjoyed the privilege of having published books in a variety of fields: U. S. history, Tennessee state history, Rhetoric and Communication, Biblical ethics, Social Ethics, Philosophy and Worldviews, Business and Professional ethics, Biblical doctrine on worship, Politics and Christianity, and three individual congregational histories. With this book I intended to “try my hand,” maybe better described as “try my mind,” at writing theology. Despite having the good fortune and blessing of having a number of books published, I have had a number of manuscript rejections—in fact, I have had manuscripts rejected by some of the most prestigious publishers in the nation. In my church office at Franklin’s Fourth Avenue Church of Christ, I had a small “stand-alone” shelf where some of my published books were stacked one on top of the other. My ministry colleague Tom Riley would sometimes enter my office, point to that stack of my books and chuckle in referencing it as “Perry’s Tower of Babble!” Tom and I still joke about that little pun! I have accused him of being envious. Nonetheless, the books of which I am most proud to claim authorship would include: Politics, Americanism, and Christianity, (Baker Books, 1976), which was cited by the national periodical Christianity Today as one of the most outstanding religious books of 1976; Toil, Turmoil, and Triumph: A Portrait of the Tennessee Labor Movement (Hillsboro Press, 1995), which was awarded “Best Book of the Year” by the Tennessee Historical Society and the Tennessee Library Association; American Rhetorical Excellence: 101 Public Addresses That Shaped the Nation’s History and Culture (Archway, 2017), which received favorable reviews in professional journals; and One World/Many Neighbors: A Christian Perspective on Worldviews (ACU Press, 2008). I have also enjoyed the opportunity of being published in a number of religious periodicals, including Christian Chronicle, Firm Foundation (when edited by Reuel Lemmons), Wineskins, Image, Integrity, and I felt especially honored to have twice been bestowed an “Excellence in Christian journalism” award from Mission Journal. That journal was virtually a spiritual and emotional “life saver” for me back in the late 60s and early 70s. In recent years I have been fortunate to have several editorials published in the Tennessean in a column called “Tennessee Voices.” I always appreciated that vehicle of communication as it potentially reaches thousands of readers. I have had the privilege and blessing of serving several congregations as full-time pulpit minister as well as working in other ministry capacities. There have been a variety of ministry positions with churches located in large urban areas, small towns, and rural areas. Each of these positions gave opportunity for making life-time friends. I have been blessed with a wonderful family that, besides Glenda, includes children Teresa Lynn, Laura Michelle, and Prentice Anthony, and their mates and children (adding up to nine wonderful grandchildren and, at this point, seven wonderful great grandchildren, surely with more to come). Happy to include a picture with only some of these family members, all the while acknowledging it is challenging to find an occasion for bringing all of them together). While not under an illusion that my family members and best of friends will read many (if any) pages of this book, I am hoping those who read a little of it will find a challenge to think and to grow spiritually and intellectually. --Perry C. Cotham Brentwood, Tennessee December 2022

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© 2023 Perry C. Cotham. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 06/19/2023

ISBN: 978-1-6655-7803-5 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6655-7802-8 (e)

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

EVERYDAY

Christianity

Theology with Common Sense,

Practicality, and a Touch of Humor

PERRY C. COTHAM

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CONTENTS

Preface

Introduction

1.     Loving God With All the Mind—What Does That Mean?

2.     Great Value and Great Danger—the Power of Narrative

3.     Prayer and Providence—Does It Actually Do Any Good to Pray?

4.     Did Jesus Repudiate the Old Testament?

5.     Would Jesus Be a Christian Today?

6.     Is There a Problem God Can’t Solve?

7.     Just What Does Watching Mean or Has Jesus Already Returned and We Missed Him?

8.     When the Apostle Paul Meets the Philosopher Aristotle

9.     Was Jesus Women’s Best Friend?

10.   Dare We Laugh and Jest With God and One Another?

11.   Has Heavenly Record-Keeping Gone Digital?—Thoughts on the Great Judgment Day

12.   The Graying of the Christian

About the Author

PREFACE

HENRY BRIGMAN

This book will have an honored place in my library alongside three other ones by Perry Cotham: Please Don’t Revive Us Again, Harsh Realities/Agonizing Choices, and One World, Many Neighbors.

The reasons I cherish and appreciate each of these are simple. They give me insights that help me as I make my spiritual odyssey. I confess to being a recovering legalist. Perry’s writings have immeasurably helped as I struggled to overcome my wrong interpretations. My fears of falling from grace, have been overcome by understanding what it is like to fall into grace.

Please Don’t Revive Us Again is a treasury of unusual incidents that are mostly unique to Church of Christ preachers. I related to those because I also experienced so many of them. Perry was quite daring in relating the painful and embarrassing ones. Readers wince at his tongue-in-cheek descriptions of eccentricities and laugh out loud at the hilarious accounts of unusual things he encountered from church members. He let me know I was not alone in my feelings about those encounters.

One World/Many Neighbors gave me a greater basis of understanding about people around the world who worship differently than we do and have different names for the deities they revere. I grew in my understanding of cultures that are unlike ours after reading this book. They are all humans trying the best way they know in order to live with dignity and integrity.

Of all Perry Cotham’s books, Harsh Realities/Agonizing Choices had the greatest impact on my paradigms. An old country saying is, No matter how you pour out the batter, a pancake always has two sides. Perry is adept at showing us that other side in wise and compassionate ways. His logic, reasoning, and biblical understandings are clear, consistent, and convincing. I needed that and will be forever grateful because of what he has taught me.

Perry and I have travelled on parallel pathways. Both of us served churches as pulpit ministers, later transitioning to becoming educators. He taught at the University level, while my career was as an elementary grade teacher in public schools.

How did I come to know Perry Cotham? That is amazing. In the mid-1980s, I was fortunate to receive copies of New Wineskins and Image periodicals. Articles by one writer had such an impact upon me that I never forgot them, even though I did not remember his name. About thirty-three years later I started reading an article in The Christian Chronicle. I instantly recognized the author’s style and logical explanations as being identical to those I read long before. The email address was included with the article, and I at once sent a message. Perry replied, and the rest is history. We share our thoughts and writings regularly.

After attending David Lipscomb College in Nashville, Perry then received his M.A. and Ph.D. from Wayne State University. He completed his post-doctoral studies at Harding Graduate School of Religion, Middle Tennessee State University, and Vanderbilt University Divinity School and he has served as professor at Lipscomb University, Nashville State Community College, and Middle Tennessee State University, retiring from MTSU in 2018.

All those accomplishments and activities have not kept him from being a devoted husband to his wife, Glenda, and a loving parent and grandparent. He is an avid sports enthusiast. We both get excited about the Titans and Cowboys, the Tennessee Volunteers and Oklahoma Sooners, and our favorite baseball teams.

When you read this latest book by Perry Cotham, Everyday Christianity—Theology with Common Sense, Practicality, and a Touch of Humor, you will see his well-rounded outlook on life. He draws from his variety of experiences and sharp wit to keep you delighted and enriched. You will appreciate how he writes without politics or polemics. Each chapter is so informative and interesting you will be hard pressed to put it down once you start reading.

Most importantly, he will challenge you to think critically, without bias or emotionalism, as you search for answers to biblical topics that have been difficult to understand.

Perry Cotham has the heart of a kindly teacher. As he has taught me, he can and will teach all those who read this latest book. He cares deeply. I promise you that.

Henry Brigman, M. Ed.

National Board Certified Teacher (Retired) and the Oklahoma State level recipient of the Presidential Award for Excellence in Teaching Science

INTRODUCTION

One of my favorite quotes, the original source of which seems either lost or disputable, proclaims a central truth that undergirds any study in practical Christianity: "Christianity is not a way of seeing certain things, but instead is a certain way of seeing all things." Thinking this may be a quote from C. S. Lewis; if Lewis did not make that statement, then he certainly should have uttered it.

Yes, things is a vague word. I always urged students in communication classes to avoid using that word in speeches or papers, pointing out they should be more specific in referencing. However, is there any religious or moral issue that cannot be viewed from a Christian perspective?

About twenty-five years ago I received a copy of The Complete Book of Everyday Christianity: An A-to-Z Guide to Following Christ in Every Aspect of Life (InterVarsity Press, 1997). With scores of contributors, a big majority being male, and edited by Robert Banks and Paul Stevens, the encyclopedic volume of almost 1,200 pages covered every imaginable topic, even some topics I would never have imagined being viewed in Christian perspective.

Everyday life may occasionally become a complex affair. During most weeks and days, our lives are made up of typical responsibilities, duties, demands, expectations and familiar situations. Then, invariably, some difficult and perplexing situation may arise, or maybe even a crisis, that interrupts the comfortable rhythm of our lives. Big decisions have to be made, sometimes instantaneously and sometimes the decision process provides ample time for reflection and weighing options.

The Christian calling indeed provides principles, if not direct teaching, applicable to a wide range of topic areas. Most books in practical Christianity discuss marriage, friendship, leisure time activities, moral conflicts, parenting, spiritual disciplines, professions and work, leisure, entertainment, voting and political activism.

The Banks and Stevens encyclopedic approach to the Christian lifestyle includes quite a range of topics: addictions, advertising, anniversaries, beauty, chocolate, comics, camping, computer games, breast-feeding, adolescence, automobiles, music, emotions, farming, fences, pollution, walking, visiting, unemployment, profits, full and part-time employment, multiculturalism, dreaming, etiquette, craftsmanship, photography, quilting, tent-making, and numerous other topics. Seems to me a real challenge to find biblical and moral principles that could be applied to some of those topics. I smile just a little when I think what I might have written had I been assigned some of those topics. Why should not the editors have entered additional topics such as: labor unions, Japanese-style management, fertilizer, scrapbooks, catalytic converters, swimwear, dry eraser boards, cruise ships (would Jesus and the apostles have cruised on one as they carried the divine message?), internet, I-phones, and so on, ad infinitum. Of course, I am being a bit facetious.

My desire here is taking a select number of biblical and theological topics and then interpreting and applying them in a way that makes sense in both our thinking and in our everyday life. Admittedly, I needed to be selective, and there is no special reason why some topics were selected and so many others were not discussed.

Yes, indeed, these chapters are lengthy. Most of my author friends, such as Phillip Morrison or Max Lucado or Dan Dozier, whether writing books or articles, have the gift of brevity. I am blessed by these friends who are writers as they inspire me greatly at times.

Is brevity a spiritual gift or simply an ordinary gift? Who knows? Without exception, every book (and most journal articles) I have submitted for publication evoked a mandate from the editor-in-chief that my content be reduced anywhere from one-fourth to one-half of its original submission. Deleting content that one has struggled to write can be so emotionally painful. This would be like a surgeon saying, We need to cut off three of your ten fingers to make both hands function effectively, now which three would you like for us to amputate?

READING THE BIBLE SERIOUSLY IF NOT ALWAYS LITERALLY

The above sub-heading was once the title of a sermon for a Sunday evening lesson I preached years ago and I discussed certain biblical narratives for illustration material. To say the elders were not particularly pleased with my lesson is an understatement, as they made clear their concerns to me about my faith and convictions in a specially convened conference immediately after the service. My efforts to further explain and illustrate my sermon thesis were to no avail. I survived the experience and kept my employment, however tenuously.

Indeed, the Bible has stood the test of time and must be taken seriously, just as we must thoughtfully state our claims for Holy Scripture. In a recent sermon by Otter Creek’s preaching minister, Josh Graves declared that three claims could be made for the Bible: (1) The Bible is inspired; (2) the Bible is authoritative; (3) the Bible is trustworthy. The Bible does not make claims of: (1) infallibility or (2) inerrancy. I felt that Josh had affirmed what my own approach to Scripture had been for my entire adult life.

How often have you heard Christian teachers say simply, Just pick up the Bible and imagine that you are reading it for the very first time? Actually, that seems logical enough as a goal in Bible study, but realistically can such an approach be done? How logically possible is it that we could seal off Scripture in an air-tight container and begin reading it at Genesis 1 and not allow our own cultural beliefs and values, our own teachings, our own modern, scientific historical and cultural setting, and our own life experiences to seep in and blind us to the original meaning or at least color our perception?

I have heard preachers and Bible teachers, upon being asked a challenging question, begin their reply by holding up an open Bible and declaring, Well, let’s see what God has to say about that! and then turn to some verse in the Bible, lifting it out of context, and instantly reading it aloud. Then, of course, it is difficult for some hearers to argue with the preacher or teacher who makes such a simplistic answer drawn from Holy Scripture. What is often lacking is awareness that all of us who read and apply Scripture are reading that Scripture through a lens—a lens crafted by many operative cultural and personal factors.

Guessing my readers have entertained all kinds of doubt. Hopefully, we learned long ago that doubting is not necessarily a sign of weakness and that preachers who criticize one of the apostles as Doubting Thomas are being grossly unfair to Thomas for his demanding verifiable evidence that Jesus had actually risen.

Doubting may be the first step in restructuring our theology to cope with scientific discoveries. Accepted interpretation now might be questioned in the future. Centuries ago, some pre-Socratic philosophers began questioning as to whether the gods of Greek mythology brought storms, floods, and droughts because they were displeased with human conduct, and thus these gods needed to be appeased. In medieval times, scientists such as Copernicus and Galileo challenged views that had been accepted for over two thousand years. Copernicus rejected the ancient view that the earth was at the center of the universe and that the sun revolved around it; in place of this old view, Copernicus proposed a startling view that the earth and other planets revolve around the sun. Galileo gave us scientific insights on gravity and outer space that also challenged widely and long held views.

We may be deeply grateful to scientists in all fields of inquiry for enabling the human family to keep learning.

Doubting can be a sign of strength instead of weakness, a sign that we are willing to probe and ask questions rather than simply accept what’s been pre-packaged and handed to us as unquestionable. And there are degrees of skepticism, too, progressing from total doubt about everything to temporary or particular doubt on some tenet of faith and invoked just for the purpose of further study and analysis.

I WANT TO BELIEVE…

We live in an age much like that of Descartes, Copernicus, and Galileo. Ours is an era of rapid change and new discoveries and continuing research, such as into the causes and the cures for infectious diseases that lead to pandemics. Computers, WiFi, cell phones, the Internet, television, smart watches, instant texting, e-mail, videotaping, satellite communication and monitoring, distant and dispersed academic classes, conference and other business meetings by Zoom, Face Time, Skype, and countless other forms of electronic communication have unleashed a flood of instant connections, information, and news. Advances in medicine extend life in ways that stir troubling new questions about when life begins and when it ends.

These scientific and technological advances also provide a context for questioning whether an ancient canon (or collection) of writings can truly enable us to know God and find direction for our lives. Rather than bringing stability to our lives, such a fast-paced, continuous flow of new information and knowledge can leave us unstably wobbling between old assumptions and new discoveries.

Uncertainty and doubting are neither new nor avoidable. We encounter doubt along the road to deeper and more meaningful faith. Expressing our doubts to like-minded brothers and sisters within the faith community can be so meaningful and encouraging.

I have enjoyed being a frequent visitor within a Wednesday night class in my home congregation, the Otter Creek Church in Brentwood, Tennessee. The class, entitled Faith Matters, is a discussion class that is so open and accepting, and the sessions appeal to a variety of intellectually-minded adult students who probe deeply and question mightily. Any doubt can be expressed. There is one student in the class who sometimes would preface a statement by saying: I want to believe…. and then would state what he believes or how he interprets a certain scripture.

To say I want to believe…. and then state what you honestly want to believe is so refreshing. The phrase is based on a desire to reconcile new ideas from science or research in criticism with the traditional doctrines and interpretations that one has been taught for a lifetime. The phrase seems rooted in a humility that acknowledges one feels comfort and reassurance in what one wants to believe, but that one might still be wrong in that interpretation or that understanding. That said, there is little or nothing to be admired in any Christian’s questioning and doubting what are seemingly the most obvious and unquestionable teachings and interpretations of Holy Scripture.

So this book contains quite a mixture of topics and length of discussions on these topics. The first chapter is the one with the most discussion of theology and the least practicality, perhaps, and the last chapter is the one with the most practicality and the least theology. Yes, readers will find a bit of autobiography and some referencing of old gospel hymns that came to mind as I sat behind the keyboard, and then just a touch of humor in all the chapters. Yes, I’m aware of the possibility of some offense that could be taken on some illustration or quotation or some touch of humor, though offense is never intended.

Along the way, I certainly do not expect my readers to agree with my analysis and interpretation of text or my position on any political or cultural views that might be stated. My purpose is simply to get readers to think—to think critically and incisively. I have attempted some rigorous thinking and I know I could be so wrong in some analyses and some conclusions. I certainly do not know all the answers to the issues that challenge and sometimes divide us. I truly can understand the irony of some scholar or teacher who says somewhat facetiously: You might not agree with me, and, in fact, sometimes I don’t even agree with myself.

After my life-time study of both Hebrew Scriptures and early Christian writings, I am convinced that God is more interested in our interpersonal ethics and social justice than in our systematic theology.

Nonetheless, and most hopefully, I trust there is a spirit of spiritual kinship and love between author and reader. All along I am hoping to maintain a focus on Jesus the Christ as the very center of our Christian faith. And I hope that will come through in some way in all these essays!

The prayer that I would offer as I search for truth, draw conclusions, and share those conclusions with others is both ancient and anonymous:

From the cowardice that shrinks from new truth,

From the laziness that is content with half-truths,

From the arrogance that thinks it knows all truth,

God of truth, deliver us.

1

LOVING GOD WITH

ALL THE MIND—WHAT

DOES THAT MEAN?

The story is told of a devout church-going woman living around the turn of the nineteenth into the twentieth centuries. She had heard only a little of Darwin’s theory of evolution, but had been warned about how insidiously evil and dangerous the theory was. When once asked what she thought about Darwin’s theory, she answered: I just hope that it is not true, but that if it is true it will not be widely known.

The story has the ring of truth, doesn’t it? We may all have encountered Christian men and women who quake upon hearing new ideas that seem to threaten comfortable ideas and prejudices that have been garnered, cherished, and sheltered for a lifetime. There is a certain blind security and comfort in believing that everything we have ever been taught and continue to believe is unassailably true. We tenaciously maintain our beliefs, and we might hope that anyone who questions or scorns our belief system will simply harbor such objections in silence or seclusion from us.

And yet, ideas and realities do not cease to exist just because they are disbelieved or ignored. Can one be afraid of new ideas and still lay claim to being a mature Christian? Is living a life in fear that someone might validly disagree with our most cherished beliefs any way to live? And what is actually the source of any spirit of fear (see 2 Tim. 1: 7). How can we discern truth and valid ideas and expose falsehood and hurtful gossip for the dishonesty and disrespect they are?

THE UNITED STATES IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY

The mindset of our nation, and of the world in general, seems so different from a generation or two generations ago. The sense of any national community seems threatened and in tatters, if not lost almost entirely. Yes, we have all manner of rapid communication technology. In my parents’ and grandparents’ generations, newspapers brought updates on national and world events; in larger cities there could be more than one edition of a daily paper when an important news story was breaking. Rapid communication could happen through sending telegrams though some arrangement was necessary for receiving telegraph messages. Later, long-distance calls could be placed by seeking the assistance of an operator, usually a female at the local switchboard. Radio was fairly commonplace by the 1930s (ever heard of FDR’s Fireside Chats?) and then television came along some twenty years later. Now, of course, we can receive news instantaneously by television, internet, and/or smart phone technology.

With such growth in social platforms and electronic modes of communication, growth exploded both in information and disinformation, the latter being a nice euphemism for blatant lies and distortions of truth. We’ve reached an inflection point in our nation. The back and forth of political debate and controversy has evolved beyond plain words and created toxic polarization. When enough people felt words were inadequate or useless distractions, protests then moved beyond words and boiled over into violence. There are so many examples of such talk becoming violent, one of the most memorable being urban street violence in the aftermath of the choking death of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer. The most obvious example of mob violence is the insurrectionists’ invasion and assault on our nation’s Capitol on January 6, 2021, with the intention of overturning the certification of Joe Biden as the duly-elected president.

Sure, there have been calls for unity, beginning with an appeal from our nation’s president, but also such appeals have come from leading educators, congressional leaders, clergy, editorialists, and student leaders. Still, divisiveness persists, fueled by all kinds of false narratives and fake news. Partisan gridlock persists in Congress as parties tend to label dissenters as ignorant or unpatriotic, and compromise through bipartisanship seems only a memory of the past.

Any group is capable of such partisan divide that is inflamed by passion and fueled by a mix of both facts and falsehoods. Small fellowship groups in churches have become divided over casual political comments made by members in the group. Ministers exercise care in using presidents for sermon illustration, considering how long a former president has been dead as an index for safe, noncontroversial reference points. By such a standard, George Washington or John Adams or a few that followed such as Madison and Monroe (caution in use of Jefferson as his reputation is tainted by his liaison with his favorite slave, Sally Hemmings) become safe subjects for illustration. By the time a speaker gets to Andrew Jackson, then beware: Visions of the growth of Southern chattel slavery and the Trail of Tears may emerge with references to Old Hickory. Any references to recent presidents or the current president could engender negative reactions. We are indeed a nation divided.

Seemingly, there is no light at the end of this dark tunnel. Nothing to be encouraged about, at least short of war. Americans do seem united in opposition to Putin’s Russian invasion of a nonviolent neighboring nation, the Ukraine, and as a nation we were truly united in the months followed the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center in 2001. It took a Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941 to unite the nation on the issue of going to war in Europe and in the Far East. Short of such terrible military assault on our nation, what would it take for our citizens to come together in community, to listen and regard others with respect, to think critically and act responsibly?

MOVING INTO THEOLOGY

God created human beings as very special creatures. Holy Scripture informs us that we humans bear the image of God. And while the meaning of the phrase image of God is not transparently clear, we may point to some possible dimensions of human existence that reflect this imago Dei.

Men and women have the capacity for self-awareness or self-transcendence. We possess a highly developed brain and nervous system, with the intelligence to store memories and knowledge, to reflect on the past, to live in the present, and to contemplate the future. We have developed a linguistic system that enables us to communicate with one another, to express ourselves artistically, and to record the past. We are not only free moral agents, but are able to place a moral judgment on all our thoughts and deeds, however flawed or even absent at times that judgment may be. Our criminal and civil justice systems merely reflect the reality that human beings know right from wrong and can make judgments on the behavior of others. We can either develop or neglect the conscience, that inner voice which reflects the way this conscience has been educated. We can thoughtfully consider what we should be as moral beings and what we should think, believe, and do.

This special creation by God carries inherent moral responsibility. Deeply woven into the nature of human beings is a concern with certain crucial and fundamental questions about the nature of human life—its ultimate meaning and final destiny. To be human in its highest sense means to wrestle with great questions—Is there really a supreme, personal God who cares about my life and my world? Where did I come from? Where am I going? What is my life? How shall I live? To whom am I accountable? If there is a God, does this God expect anything from me? Can I be at peace with this God? Thoughtful men and women from all cultures, all generations, and all ages have raised these questions—some openly and explicitly and others more implicitly and indirectly in the arts and literature. And these are life’s ultimate questions. They are answered by one’s worldview.

MORE THOUGHTS ON THINKING

We all want to think well. We want to think what is true. We believe that finding and knowing truth is a grand experience. Truth is the point of all thinking. Whenever we think or say what we think, it is assumed that we want the thought we think to be true. Only when we encounter highly uncomfortable and unpleasant truths do we pull out the old saw: Ignorance is bliss!

Thoughts are all the ways we are conscious of the varied realities in our lives, including ideas, memories, attitudes, beliefs, perceptions, and observations. Critical thinking is metacognitive; that is, it is thinking about thinking. Such thinking is the mental activity of searching out what must be true and separating it from what is false or at least less likely to be true in light of given facts and valid assumptions.

Critical thinking begins when we ask questions that need to be asked, questions that get to the heart of the matter. As a basic source of life, thoughts provide a map of our world and motivate our actions. Dallas Willard drew an apt analogy between the role of our senses in presenting a landscape for our bodies and our thoughts which present a life-scape for our intellects, our wills, and our lives as a whole. (More about critical thinking later.)

We can express and discuss thoughts in sentences, but the thoughts are not the sentences any more than you are your name. After all, the same thought can be expressed in different words and different languages. Thought can also be powerfully expressed in painting, music, and other fine arts. That God would endow human beings with the capacity for both specific and abstract thinking is both a blessing and a sign of the divine image within us. As Willard puts it, Thought is that which enables our will (or spirit) to range far beyond the immediate boundaries of our environment and the perceptions of our senses (Renovation of the Heart: Putting on the Character of Christ, Navpress, 2002).

The ultimate freedom we have as human beings is the power to select our thoughts and develop attitudes toward God, one another, indeed toward all of life. Some philosophers would contend that we are not totally free herein, because we cannot think of people or ideas that we’ve never encountered. And yet, we do possess great freedom that seems almost unbounded. The one inexhaustible source of energy and ideas for today’s world is the human mind, and the human mind is capable of rich imagination. Responsible use of our minds is the starting point for meaningful regeneration, growth, and renewal of the Christian mind and heart.

Galileo has been reputed to declare: I do not believe that the same God who has endowed us with senses, reason, and intellect has intended us to forego their use. And of all the varied dimensions of our stewardship as followers of Jesus, the discipleship of the mind is perhaps the most important and, sadly, perhaps the most neglected, of all.

A STEWARDSHIP OF THE MIND—DOES THE CONCEPT EXIST?

Church-going and Bible class-attending Christians are quite accustomed to hearing sermons and lessons on the stewardship of their time, their talents and gifts, and, most of all, their money. We are admonished not to squander these precious resources. The advice is excellent, even if few people truly believe they are derelict with either tangible or intangible resources. Not all of us enjoy going to a worship service and listening to another sermon on the plan of salvation or the need for Christians to be more liberal and generous in their financial offerings to the church.

Is there, however, a God-ordained stewardship of one’s mind? Does God care about what we do with our brains? And if the answers are affirmative, then why do we hear so little about this dimension of discipleship?

Most of us know some facts about our bodies. We know our age, height, our weight, and our physical capacities. We know lifestyle habits good for our bodies and we know habits that are harmful. And yet it is not in our bodies that we are made in God’s image. Human beings are uniquely separate from all other life forms in the creation by being custom designed in the image of God through our capacity to think profoundly and order our thoughts and behavior wisely.

Think about the brain God gave you. That brain weighs about three pounds. It comprises one hundred billion neurons and that handles ten thousand thoughts daily, regulates over 103,000 heartbeats every 24 hours, coordinates over 23,000 breaths a day, and controls over 600 muscles—indeed, the brain is one giant control center regulating our human existence! The brain is also the command center for the nature and value of our lives and behavior. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, Paul told the Roman Christians, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit (8: 5).

The Scriptures speak pointedly about a person’s mind. Jesus commanded his disciples to love God "...with all your mind (Mt. 22: 37). So just how do we love God with our minds? Reflecting on this question, a song made popular by Willie Nelson came to mind. While Willie Nelson has not necessarily been my favorite vocalist, his song You Were Always on My Mind" hits a responsive chord. Willie apparently is singing to