(Excerpt from Adventure in Biblical Thinking Study Series, Volume 2, 2021)
When I was deciding on a title, I had several alternative titles come to mind: Making Sense of Our World and Organizing Our World. As you follow along think about which title you may have chosen. All three titles give clues to the nature of the topic.
Interestingly, it all started when I was thinking about a general science principle. As I thought about this principle additional applications came to mind. Then bit by bit patterns began to develop and a structure emerged which led to this topic and hopefully a coherent set of connections that will be meaningful.
The principle had to do with cold and heat. Actually, cold is the absence of heat. Heat can be measured. If we want something to be warmer, we add heat. If we want something to be cooler, we take heat away. In the kitchen, we use our stove to add heat and our refrigerator or freezer to remove heat. It has been explained to me that the refrigeration process involves the removal of heat.
I began to think of other examples. Darkness is the absence of light. Light can be measured. If you want less darkness, you add light. Flip the light switch. If you want more darkness you take light away. Close the curtains. Then I thought about dryness or humidity. Humidity can be measured. If something is too dry, just add water. If something is too wet just take the water away. In the kitchen, we start with dry powdered flour and then add liquid and biscuits appear. Of course, you need to add some heat before they are ready to eat. After we wash our clothes, we put them in the drier.
Then I thought about death. Death is the absence of life. Death can be measured. Remember the dramatic flat line on the monitor in the operating room scene. Remove life and death appears but we can’t add life to death. Once any part of God’s creation that has life dies, there is no way to add life.
Notice my pattern with cold and hot, dark and light, and dry and wet would no longer fit. I realized that I need more categories to help organize these patterns. Here are my categories.
Number One: There is the category with degrees. There can be increases or decreases as with cold and hot, dark and light and dry and wet.
Number Two: There is the category of either/or. For example, a creature who has life either has life or the creature is dead. Anyone who has been around at the time of the passing of a person or even a pet knows this is so. One minute they are still alive and the next they are gone.
Number Three: I came up with a third category which I would simply label “other” because I am not sure the pattern would fit in either of the first two categories.
What followed as I considered where this thinking was leading me was how important categories are for figuring things out. Categories are great for sorting. Categories indicate likeness. Some items or concepts fit in a labeled category and some do not. Either they belong or they do not. If not, they belong in another category. Categories can also be grouped into larger categories to form a category of categories. This is a way to organize our world.
Perhaps an illustration will be helpful. Occasionally, actually rarely, I help my wife empty the dishwasher. The dishwasher has a little basket where the silverware goes. Silverware is a category. We have a silverware drawer. In the drawer are little trays divided into compartments. Each compartment is a category. There is a compartment for teaspoons, soup spoons, forks, salad forks, and knives. There is even a compartment for teaspoons with longer handles. When I take the silverware from the dishwasher basket, I place each item in the proper category.
There is more. The dishwasher also has many other items that belong in categories. There the categories of plates, bowls, glasses, and coffee cups. These all fit into a larger category labeled glassware.
You may be thinking, “so what”. “This is so elementary”. Stick with me. God has given His creation senses with which to become aware of their environment. For humans we recognize five senses, seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling, and touching. Other parts of creation also have senses, some more developed than humans and some less developed. Even plants have senses. Watch a flower move to face the sun as the sun crosses the sky.
Our senses are a key source for input into the world around us. God also equipped mankind with a mind for processing and organizing this input. Categories become a tool for organizing. Questions are a tool in determining which category each item or concept belongs to. When putting away the silverware, I ask my self is this a spoon or a fork? Is this a dinner fork or a dessert fork? Once I have the answer, I can place the spoon in the correct compartment, the category to which it belongs.
How is this relevant to figuring it all out? Starting with our senses we begin to generate questions that are relevant to understanding our environment, our world. Here is a long string of questions that came to my mind. Maybe you can think of others. Concerning stuff: What is it? How does it work? Why is it here or there? Does it matter to me? Is it important? What do I do with it? Concerning others: What’s my role? Who am I?
The seeking of answers to questions begins at birth. The newborn baby begins with seeking the answer to who is my mother? It is fascinating to watch newborn lambs or calves immediately upon getting on their feet after birth begin seeking their mother. A connection is formed and when you see them moving through the pasture the baby is closely following the mother. As the human baby’s life journey moves along there are more questions and more searches for answers. Answers that are placed in categories. Categories that organize.
Back to categories. Remember the three categories. We will explore many concepts and assign them into categories. Our goal is to contribute to figuring it all out.
Number One: There is the category with degrees. There can be increases or decreases as with cold and hot, dark and light and dry and wet.
Number Two: There is the category of either/or. For example, a creature who has life either has life or the creature is dead. Anyone who has been around at the time of the passing of a person or even a pet knows this is so. One minute they are still alive and the next they are gone.
Number Three: I came up with a third category which I would simply label “other” because I am not sure the pattern would fit in either of the first two categories.
Hate is the absence of love. Love can be measured in terms of little love or great love. Love can be increased or decreased. Love can be added or removed. This fits in category one.
Some thoughts from Scripture.
Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister (1 John 4:20-21).
Notice for the Jesus follower loving God requires loving their brothers and sisters.
Anyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life residing in him (1 John 3:15).
Yikes! Hating is equated to murder.
Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends (John 15:13).
I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you (John 15:15).
When it comes to measuring love, Jesus proclaimed what was the greatest love, and then He demonstrated it.
Cruelty is an absence of kindness. Kindness can be measured. We can be kinder or less kind. We can increase our kindness or we can decrease our kindness. This fits in category one.
Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you (Ephesians 4:32).
Neglect is the absence of caring. Caring can be measured. We can be more caring or less caring. We can increase caring or decrease caring. This fits in category one.
Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you (1 Peter 5:7 NLT).
Unbelieving is the absence of believing. Believing can be measured. There is strong belief and weak belief. We can increase or decrease our belief. This fits in category one.
I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life (1 John 5:13).
Betrayal is the absence of trust. Trust can be measured. There is great trust and little trust. There can be no trust. We can increase or decrease trust. This fits in category one.
Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding (Proverbs 3:5).
Lost is the absence of salvation. Salvation can be measured. You are either saved or you are lost. This fits in category two.
The message about the cross doesn’t make any sense to lost people. But for those of us who are being saved, it is God’s power at work (1 Corinthians 1:18 CVE).
Perishing is the absence of eternal life. You either have eternal life or you are perishing. This fits category two.
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16).
Evil is the absence of goodness. Goodness can be measured. Goodness can be increased or reduced. But evil is contrary to goodness. I am not sure about being less evil because evil is always wrong. I think this fits in category three. What do you think?
Ignorance or not knowing is the absence of knowing or knowledge. Knowledge can be measured. Ignorance can be decreased and knowledge can be increased. There is a cure for ignorance and it is knowledge. The wise guy saying is, “There is a cure for ignorance but no cure for stupid.” Perhaps that is correct. This is category one.
I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers, and sisters, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in (Romans 11.25).
For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives (Colossians 1:9).
Yours is an absence of mine. Mine is an absence of yours. Ours includes both yours and mine. Something may be yours and not mine and something may be mine and not yours but something could also be both yours and mine and then it would be ours. This has to be category three.
And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed (Romans 13:11).
Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken (Psalms 62:2).
When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.” (Luke 21:28).
Let’s be reminded of the categories. Here are my categories.
Number One: There is the category with degrees. There can be increases or decreases as with cold and hot, dark and light and dry and wet.
Number Two: There is the category of either/or. For example, a creature who has life either has life or the creature is dead.
Number Three: I came up with a third category which I would simply label “other” because I am not sure the pattern would fit in either of the first two categories.
Kingdom of the world is absence from the Kingdom of God. Both the Kingdom of the world and the Kingdom of God can be measured. This is definitely category two because the two kingdoms are in compatible. A person is either in one or the other. However, it is possible to be more worldly in the Kingdom of the world and to be more godly in the Kingdom of God. This increase-decrease characteristic makes it seem to be able to fit into category one. We will have to look at this more closely.
Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place.” (John 18:36).
But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well (Matthew 6:33).
Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them (1 John 2:15).
You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God (James 4:4).
In the Sermon on the Mount found in Matthew chapters five through seven and also found in Luke chapter six Jesus explains some of the differences between the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of the world. We notice that Jesus repeats this phrase, “but I say unto you” as he contrasts what is the current belief with what the Kingdom of God is like. Here is an example.
“You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell (Matthew 5:21-22).
I suggest you read through the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew and notice the compare and contrast style of teaching that Jesus uses. He clearly is describing some major differences between the two kingdoms.
The significant understanding to take away is that born-again believers are members of the Kingdom of God and seeking the Kingdom of God is the top priority. Here is that verse again.
But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well (Matthew 6:33).
What does that look like? We look at our pattern.
Not a disciple is the absence of being a disciple. You are either a disciple or you are not a disciple. This is category two. This is made clear by these verses.
Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings (John 8:31 NLT).
Jesus called the crowd together with His disciples, and said to them, “If anyone wishes to follow Me [as My disciple], he must deny himself [set aside selfish interests], and take up his cross [expressing a willingness to endure whatever may come] and follow Me [believing in Me, conforming to My example in living and, if need be, suffering or perhaps dying because of faith in Me] (Mark 8:34 Amplified).
“If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple (Luke 14:26-27).
Oswald Chambers in Still Higher for His Highest states:
Jesus Christ always talked about discipleship with an ‘If.’ We are at perfect liberty to toss our spiritual head and say, “No thank you, that is a bit too stern for me,” and the Lord will never say a word, we can do exactly what we like; He will never plead, but the opportunity is there, ‘If…’
After all, it is the great stern call of Jesus that fascinates men, and women quicker that anything. It is not the gospel of being saved from hell and enjoying heaven that attracts men, saving a very shallow mood; it is Christ crucified that attracts men; Jesus said so—“I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Me.” Jesus Christ never attracts us by unspeakable bliss of Paradise; He attracts us by an ugly beam (page 71).
When we reflect back to when Jesus first began His ministry, we recall that His invitation to the disciples was to follow Him. Therefore, we conclude that a disciple is a Jesus follower. The expectation of Jesus is for born-again believers to become Jesus followers.
Now reflect back to the famous Great Commission from the end of the book of Matthew. The charge that Jesus gave to the disciples was to go to all nations making disciples and teaching them to obey all His commandments.
Therefore, disciples, Jesus followers, will be obedient to the teachings from Scripture. A Jesus follower will have a biblical worldview as opposed to a worldly worldview. However, it is also clear that a born-again believer who is a member of the body of Christ, a citizen of the Kingdom of God, and assured of going to heaven when they leave their earthly body may not be a disciple, a Jesus follower.
It has to do with that little word ‘if’. Deciding to be a disciple, a Jesus follower, is a choice for each individual to make. So why choose to be a Jesus follower?
First of all, choosing to be a Jesus follower would be pleasing to Jesus.
Second, it is a reasonable decision.
And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him (Romans 12:1 NLT).
Third, it demonstrates love for Jesus by being obedient.
“If you love me, keep my commands (John 14:15).
Fourth, many Scriptures give guidance about the behaviors of children of the Kingdom of God requires of a disciple or Jesus follower.
Fifth, the decision to be a Jesus follower is the right thing to do if a person is seeking the Kingdom of God.
In light of all we have been considering, let’s go back to those questions proposed earlier and create answers from the perspective of being a Jesus follower. This is what a biblical worldview looks like.
Q: What is it?
A: It is something that God created or something that man created out of what God had already created.
Q: How does it work?
A: It works according to the design and principles that God built into His creation.
Q: Why is it here or there?
A: Everything is placed exactly where God wanted it to be placed according to His design and purposes.
Q: Does it matter to me?
A: Everything God made and does matters. God is purposeful. Some things seem to matter more to each individual than some other things.
Q: Is it important?
A: Everything that God does is important whether we can understand it or not. Our understanding is limited. If it is important to us, the Lord will reveal that to us.
Q: What do I do with it?
A: When the Lord created each one of us, He equipped us with a body and brain so that we could figure out what to do with it. This includes asking others for help in understanding.
Q: What’s my role?
A: My role is glorifying God.
Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind (Ecclesiastics 12:13).
Q: Who am I?
A: To answer this question we need to ask some other questions. Are you a born-again believer in Jesus Christ? Yes or no. Have you committed to being a disciple, a Jesus follower? Yes or no. If you are a born-again Jesus follower, you have received eternal life, you are a citizen of the Kingdom of God, you are a member of the body of Christ, you have received the Holy Spirit and He dwells in you, and have received many other benefits of being a child of God in His family.
If you have committed to being a Jesus follower, you are actively seeking His will and faithfully seeking to obey His commandments. This means you are fervently seeking to know Him and know His will by diligently seeking guidance from the Scriptures. This means you will be actively praying for direction in your life and how to relate to fellow Jesus followers. This means you will be operating your life out of a Christian biblical worldview. This means you will be experiencing spiritual formation and growth by which you become more and more Christ-like. This means you will follow Jesus based on faith in Him.
Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will (Romans 12:1-2).
And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him (Hebrews 11:6).
(For we walk by faith, not by sight:) (2 Corinthians 5:7 KJV).
Do you see how categories are useful in organizing the world we live in? I am sure there are many more categories that can be considered. Do you see how categories fit within other categories? Did you see how some categories are major categories and of great importance while other categories are trivial and mundane? Do you see the major importance of being in the category of the Kingdom of God? Do you see that many other categories belong in the major category of the Kingdom of God?
More adventures in Biblical thinking about figuring it all out.
These exercises can be used for reflection on the content of this adventure in Biblical thinking or they could be used as discussion starters for a small group Bible study.
- Had you thought about the way categories are used to organize our thinking? Name some categories that you use in your thinking processes.
- Have you ever considered that everyone is trying to figure out life? How do you go about figuring out life?
- I introduced the pattern: something is the absence of something. Can you create an example of this pattern? You can’t use one of my examples.
- Many of the examples I used involved matters relating to the Kingdom of God. Explain the contrast between the Kingdom of God and the kingdom of the world. Why is this important to born-again believers?
- Explain the distinction between born-again believers and disciples, Jesus followers. Don’t forget the ‘if’ factor.
- Can you create a three-sentence response to the question: Who am I?
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. http://www.zondervan.com The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™
Adventures in Biblical Thinking 