In his book, The Christian Mind, Harry Blamires wrote, “As a thinking being, the modern Christian has succumbed to secularization. He accepts religion…but he rejects the religious view of life, the view which sets all earthly issues within the context of the eternal, the view which relates all human problems…to the doctrinal foundations of the Christian faith…the view which sees all things here below in terms of God’s supremacy.”
Paul wrote in Romans 12:2 “do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” We all long to “make a difference” in this world. Everyone wants to have some kind of impact, for to go through life with no effect on anyone is to live a completely empty life. But it is obvious that if we are to make a difference, we must be different. Thus, as Paul put it, we must not “conform any longer to the pattern of this world.” If we follow the world’s pattern all we have to offer is more of the same, which won’t change anything. In order to make a difference we must be “transformed” into something that shows the world a new and different way to live.
Paul wrote in Romans 12:2 “do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” We all long to “make a difference” in this world. Everyone wants to have some kind of impact, for to go through life with no effect on anyone is to live a completely empty life. But it is obvious that if we are to make a difference, we must be different. Thus, as Paul put it, we must not “conform any longer to the pattern of this world.” If we follow the world’s pattern all we have to offer is more of the same, which won’t change anything. In order to make a difference we must be “transformed” into something that shows the world a new and different way to live.
Paul makes it clear that this transformation begins with “the renewing of your mind.” Every action we take begins as a thought. I won’t even get out of bed in the morning without first thinking, “I should get out of bed.” Everything we are and do starts with a thought. The implication of this is if we are going to be different from the world, we are going to have to think different.
In what ways does a Christian think different than the world? There are a number of them, but first on the list will be this: a Christian believes there is truth. In John 8:32 Jesus said “you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” That statement has enormous implications in a culture that claims there is no such thing as absolute truth. Jesus’ claim was that truth does exist. He went on to claim that it can be known and that knowing that truth is necessary to becoming truly free.
The idea of firm, incontrovertible truth is widely rejected in our culture. The majority of people in our society claim that no such truth exists, that all is relative and subjective. Though this is our culture’s treasured doctrine, no one really believes it! No one lives his or her life as though there is no truth. Just to name a few our justice system, our educational systems, our banking and financial systems are all dependent on the fact that there is truth. If there is no truth there can be no justice. We could never know whether anyone is guilty of a crime because it would be a matter only of opinion. In fact, if there is no truth, there is no such thing as crime! We would have nothing to teach youth in the schools if there is no truth. My bank account would be whatever I believe it to be if there is no truth.
The simple reality is everyone lives daily founded in the reality that some things are true and some things are not. While our culture has illogically chosen to deny this when it comes to the moral and spiritual realms, it is reasonable to conclude that what exists in every other area of life exists there also. That changes everything. We Christians have something every human longs for, even if they don’t know it’s what they want. We have the truth. Blamires wrote in his book that truth “is objective and not subjective; that it is a revelation and not a construction; that it is discovered by inquiry and not elected by a majority vote; that it is authoritative and not a matter of personal choice.”
In what ways does a Christian think different than the world? There are a number of them, but first on the list will be this: a Christian believes there is truth. In John 8:32 Jesus said “you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” That statement has enormous implications in a culture that claims there is no such thing as absolute truth. Jesus’ claim was that truth does exist. He went on to claim that it can be known and that knowing that truth is necessary to becoming truly free.
The idea of firm, incontrovertible truth is widely rejected in our culture. The majority of people in our society claim that no such truth exists, that all is relative and subjective. Though this is our culture’s treasured doctrine, no one really believes it! No one lives his or her life as though there is no truth. Just to name a few our justice system, our educational systems, our banking and financial systems are all dependent on the fact that there is truth. If there is no truth there can be no justice. We could never know whether anyone is guilty of a crime because it would be a matter only of opinion. In fact, if there is no truth, there is no such thing as crime! We would have nothing to teach youth in the schools if there is no truth. My bank account would be whatever I believe it to be if there is no truth.
The simple reality is everyone lives daily founded in the reality that some things are true and some things are not. While our culture has illogically chosen to deny this when it comes to the moral and spiritual realms, it is reasonable to conclude that what exists in every other area of life exists there also. That changes everything. We Christians have something every human longs for, even if they don’t know it’s what they want. We have the truth. Blamires wrote in his book that truth “is objective and not subjective; that it is a revelation and not a construction; that it is discovered by inquiry and not elected by a majority vote; that it is authoritative and not a matter of personal choice.”
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