No, I’m not going to have this great post on Eschatology, or the final revelation when Jesus returns at His second coming. This is about the last days of summer and some thoughts of Gordon Clark on knowledge. I love the month of September and wish that I could take the whole month off to putz around my yard and watch the days getting shorter. The kids are returning to school and are excited in these first few weeks, football practice has started for the high school boys and so the lights are on over at the field right across the street. The nights are cooler and there is some moisture in the air this year with foggy mornings. There is a real unusual treasure in my yard this September, my lilac bush is blooming right out of the top of the bush, I love it! I do get to take part of my vacation towards the end of the month, I’m looking forward to it. Hope you are enjoying this September too!
I’m reading a book by Gordon H. Clark titled ‘The Atonement’ and the very first few pages had his thoughts on knowledge and I wanted to share those here, it was of great encouragement to me. So often, it seems, people think that we study the scriptures and study the various aspects of the scripture, such as the atonement, just to have knowledge for its own sake. Knowledge can puff up for sure, we are told that in scripture itself, but here are some thoughts of Mr. Clark that I hope you find edifying.
“Many ordinary Christians are woefully ignorant. In a class of enthusiastic Christian students at a summer conference, all of college level, all ‘on fire for Jesus’, singing wild ‘gospel songs’ with abandon, thirty four out of thirty five had not the dimmest notion of justification by faith. The present treatise will at least quote some very elementary Biblical passages, if not for the edification of those whirling dervishes, at least for the sober-minded, even if poorly instructed , church members who genuinely want to understand this central doctrine of Christianity”
“Christians and any others who are ignorant but intelligent admit their deficiency and make an honest effort to learn”.
“The value of detailed study of the Bible is asserted by the Bible itself. Those who still believe that the Scriptures are the inerrant word of the infallible God, who is truth itself, should carefully study what treatment the Bible demands for itself”
Deuteronomy 6:5, 7 These words….shall be in your heart; you shall teach them diligently to your children and shall talk of them….
Deuteronomy 17:19 He shall read it all the days of his life….
Psalm 1:2 His delight is in the law of the Lord and in his law he meditates day and night.
Psalm 119:148 My eyes are awake through the night watches, that I may meditate on your word.
John 5:39 Search the Scriptures
John 17:17 Sanctify them by your truth. Your word is truth.
Acts 17:11 These…….searched the Scriptures daily.
Colossians 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom
He goes on to explain that the Greek word in 2 Timothy 2:15 is not ‘study’, but the verb actually means be eager, make every effort, be zealous to arrive at a correct understanding of the word of truth.
“We are to realize that God speaks the truth; and that he spoke the truth so that we might gain an understanding of his mind, so that also we ourselves might have the mind of Christ. Nowhere are we told to have the emotions of Christ. But scripture repeats and repeats the exhortation to understand divine truth”
Thank you Gordon H. Clark for the encouragement!