HOW TO THINK MORE CLEARLY AND DEEPLY

The Lord declared through the prophet Isaiah that His thoughts were not like our thoughts and that God’s thoughts were infinitely higher than ours (Isa. 55:8-9). This tells us two profoundly important things. Firstly, the omniscient (all-knowing) God thinks. He has thoughts. Secondly, even though we are created in the image of God, our ability to think is somewhat impaired. We are unable to think in the way we were all designed to. This is why even really really smart people can end up believing and expounding really really silly things. Our thinking — even from our best thinkers — is impaired by three factors. However, there are two once-well-known, but now-little-known, facts that should give everyone who would like to think more deeply and clearly great insight how to do so.

For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,
declares the LORD.
For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are My ways higher than your ways
and My thoughts than your thoughts.
Isaiah 55:8-9

THE IMPAIRMENTS TO THINKING

When the devilish serpent enticed the man and the woman with the lie that no harm would come to them from rebelling against their Creator, the Lord of Love, by eating the fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil (Gen. 2:17) which the Lord of Love had forbidden for them to do, they soon discovered that they had been lied to. Rather than increasing in god-like knowledge as the devilish-serpent had promised, the man and the woman immediately felt duped and ashamed. When the Lord of Love turned up in the Garden of Eden at the usual time to walk with His image bearers (in the cool of the day, Gen. 3:8) the man and the woman hid themselves. This sad episode reveals that mankind’s ability to think was impaired in these three ways: (i) the acquisition of knowledge; (ii) the management of distractions; and, (iii) spiritual blindness.

The simple believes everything,
but the prudent gives thought to his steps.
Proverbs 14:15

    

1. The Acquisition of Knowledge –   Pride was at the root of mankind’s Fall from innocence. The stain of sin on the human soul oozes pride into every response we fallen humans make – especially when it comes to being taught (Prov. 15:5). God has ordained that we acquire knowledge by being taught – especially by a teacher – and especially by our parent/s (Prov. 5:13; 7:24). There is a lot of knowledge that can only be delivered by a teacher. But all too often we are impaired from receiving this knowledge because of our pride. Knowledge can also be acquired from experiences – especially learning from our mistakes. Yet too often instead of learning from our mistakes we often look for someone else to blame for them instead. This was immediately obvious when God confronted the two occupants of the Eden and both of them blamed someone else for their mistake (Gen. 3:11-13). 

“…Paul points out, Christ never meant that we were to remain children in intelligence: on the contrary. He told us to be not only ‘as harmless as doves.’ but also ‘as wise as serpents’. He wants a child’s heart, but a grown-up’s head.”
“Mere Christianity”, C.S. Lewis, 2017:77.

If you want to think more deeply and clearly, you’ll need knowledge. Keep reading to learn how.

 

2. Distraction Management –   The Fall has robbed mankind of the ability to pay attention and focus on what (and who) truly matters. Perhaps today, more than any other time in human history, we are blighted by constant distractions (Jer. 29:19).  We rarely welcome quiet and stillness to allow our minds to reflect, ponder, and consider things that matter (Psalm 46:10). Instead, we fill our spaces with activity, noise, visual over-stimulation and amusements. (By the way, to think, means to muse. When an “a” is placed in front of words like muse it negates (makes it opposite) that word. Thus, to be a-mused is to “stop thinking”.) 

¶ And now, O sons, listen to me,
and be attentive to the words of my mouth.
Proverbs 7:24

If you want to think more deeply and clearly, you’ll need to be able to manage your distractions and train yourself to stay focused. Keep reading to discover how.

¶ Brothers, do not be children in your thinking. Be infants in evil, but in your thinking be mature.
First Corinthians 14:20

3. Spiritual Blindness –   After the Fall of mankind’s parents from innocence there was an ironic description of what happened to them when the text states, “Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked” (Gen. 3:7a). Yet, in reality, they became spiritually blind! 

In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
Second Corinthians 4:4

Mankind’s ability to think clearly and deeply about spiritual matters is now impaired due to our spiritual blindness. The apostle Paul in writing to the Romans in the opening chapter of his epistle states even though “what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them” (Rom. 1:19) they refuse to acknowledge or see it even though this “[has] been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world” (Rom. 1:20). This helps us to understand why so many people deny reality and fail to accept the truth about the God of the Bible being the Creator, the Redeemer, and the Judge.

[Jesus said] This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.
Matthew 13:13

Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains.
John 9:41

If anyone wants to think more deeply and clearly, they’ll need to be healed of their spiritual blindness. Keep reading to discover how.

 

HOW GOD HAS ENABLED US TO ONCE AGAIN BE ABLE TO THINK DEEP AND CLEARLY

I do not want anyone to think that I am suggesting that in order to be a Christian, or even a good person, you have to be a genius thinker. Not at all. But neither do I want people to think that being or becoming a Christian means embracing irrational (silly) thinking. We are meant to love God with all of our hearts and minds (Matt. 22:37). C.S. Lewis went on to say in Mere Christianity that thinking was a ‘cardinal virtue’. “The word ‘cardinal’ has nothing to do with ‘Cardinals’ in the Roman Church. It comes from a Latin word meaning ‘the hinge of a door’. These were called ‘cardinal’ virtues because they are, as we should say, ‘pivotal’” (pg. 76). Lewis calls thinking “prudence”. He echoes the Apostle Paul’s comments in First Corinthians 14:20 when he writes, “He [God] wants us to be simple, single-minded, affectionate, and teachable, as good children are; but He also wants every bit of intelligence we have to be alert at its job, and in first-class fighting trim” (pg. 77). 

¶ Brothers, do not be children in your thinking. Be infants in evil, but in your thinking be mature.
First Corinthians 14:20

The good news is that even if you did not do very well at school, or have always struggled to read a book, or find life too hectic to be able to take time to think clearly and deeply, God has done two great things that can help enable you to improve how you think.

In his outstanding book, Person of Interest, former atheist and cold-case homicide detective, J. Warner Wallace, graphically documents a major turning point in world history when the trickle of philosophy, art, music, literature, and education suddenly became a torrent. His book documents how even world religious thought all point to the same of ‘person of interest’, which the fuse all points to.  

From J. Warner Wallace’s book, “Person of Interest” – https://coldcasechristianity.com/person-of-interest-by-j-warner-wallace/

 

1. JESUS

The first thing that God has done to begin to reverse the thinking impairment of mankind’s Fall from Innocence was sending and incarnating His Son into our world. Jesus was the most intelligent, wise, insightful person who has ever walked the planet. He was unimpaired by a lack of knowledge. He knew (and knows) everything (John 1:48; 2:24-25; 6:61, 64). He was unimpaired by pride (Matt. 11:29). He was prepared to listen to the teaching of other and engage with them (Luke 2:46). He was unimpaired by any distraction and gave His full attention to what really mattered (eg. John 4:7-26). And He was unimpaired by spiritual blindness because He was “without sin” (John 8:46).

J. Warner Wallace does an outstanding job detailing how that it was only after Jesus came that knowledge exploded wherever the gospel went. The knowledge of Jesus revolutionised the study of science, mathematics, philosophy, literature — and even other world religions (which each modified their beliefs in some ways to accommodate what Jesus taught!). The arrival of Jesus on the scene did one cataclysmic thing: He exposed the lie and revealed the truth. To put that a different way, He shed light where there had only ever been darkness.

In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it...He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through Him.
John 1:4-5, 7

The “light” that Jesus shed was not just restricted to religious or philosophical ideas. Wallace documents the rate of scientific discoveries and concludes that the light that Christ shed into the enlightened hearts of His followers dramatically led an exponential rise in scientific research and discoveries.

From J. Warner Wallace’s book, “Person of Interest”. How Christ influenced scientific discoveries (pg. 181)

And in case you think that this might just be a coincidence, Wallace asks the same question and states, “But instead, Jesus appeared just before the growth curve began. Was this a coincidence or was Jesus somehow a catalyst? The incremental steps in the curve may provide us with a few clues” (Wallace, J. Warner. Person of Interest (p. 181. Zondervan, Kindle Edition) and goes on to show why this was no mere coincidence. Here’s what we should learn from this: Spend time with Jesus in His Word and in prayer and the light of His truth will shine increasingly brighter in your heart enabling you to ‘see’ things you may not ever seen or understood before. This is how you can begin to think deeper and more clearly.

¶ So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed Him,
“If you abide in My Word, you are truly My disciples,
and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
John 8:31-32

 

2. THE HOLY SPIRIT

The second thing that God has done to begin to reverse the thinking impairment of mankind’s Fall from Innocence was the sending of the Holy Spirit into the world from the first day of Pentecost after Jesus physically rose from the dead.

And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper,
to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive,
because it neither sees Him nor knows Him.
You know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.
John 14:16-17

Jesus said that after He would return to His Father He would send the Holy Spirit who would teach followers “all things” (John 14:26) because the Holy Spirit is “the Spirit of truth” (John 15:26) who leads Christ’s followers into “all truth” (John 16:13). The very things that impair our ability to think are the very things that the Holy Spirit works into the mind and soul of Christ followers. These include: humility (a readiness to admit and own mistakes and confess them); teachability (the Spirit-filled believer is open to being taught and strives to learn from others – even from the writings of Christ followers who lived long ago); and, prayerfulness (the Spirit will lead the child of God into times of quiet reflection, stillness, and grant him or her an ability to meditate or concentrate well). Here’s what we should learn from this: Spend time with Jesus in His Word and in prayer and the Holy Spirit of truth will increasingly shape and enable you to step away from life distractions and all its noise into a quiet place where things you may not ever seen or understood before now become clearer. This is how you can begin to think deeper and more clearly. I close with the Apostle Paul’s injunction to Timothy-

Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.
Second Timothy 2:7

 

Your pastor,

Andrew

Let me know what you think below in the comment section and feel free to share this someone who might benefit from this Pastor’s Desk.

WHY GOOD CHRISTOLOGY MAKES CLIMATE-CHANGE LESS ALARMING

I am a student of theology. Even though I’m often introduced at my speaking engagements as ‘a theologian’ and written theological books, articles, papers and lectured for four theological colleges, I still consider myself a theological student rather than a theologian. I have a similar outlook toward pastoring. I have been trying to do it for three decades and served pastorally in three churches, I still regard myself as a student of my craft. Yet, in a very natural way, theology and pastoring are nearly identical twins. My posthumous mentor, Dr. F.W. Boreham, regarded the work of pastoring as a theological exercise. The main responsibility of the pastor, Dr. Boreham contended, was to show people who God was and what He was like. This is the essence of theology. I recall that Pastor John Piper once said something like this at a pastors’ conference when he spoke of every pastoral problem — marriage difficulties, relationship difficulties, financial difficulties, employment difficulties — each being caused by a theological problem. It might take me longer than you need me to be to explain this more fully, but needless to say, when we have a clearer vision and understanding God and how relates to us, it has a profound salutary effect in how we live, relate to others, handle money, and resolve life’s challenges.

With this in mind, it has become increasingly obvious to me that the greatest challenges that we (all 7 billion of us) face – including African poverty, Middle Eastern wars, Mexican drug cartels, shooting deaths in Philadelphia, domestic abuse in Tasmania, and global-warming, are all theological problems that can be solved by correcting poor theology. To illustrate this I will consider how climate-change is an example of how a good Christology (the foundation for all sound theology) provides hope and solutions.

¶ The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims His handiwork.
Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge.
There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard.
Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world.
In them He has set a tent for the sun, which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber,
and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy. Its rising is from the end of the heavens,
and its circuit to the end of them, and there is nothing hidden from its heat.
Psalm 19:1-6

 

Dr Hugh Ross and my family having lunch at our old Tasmanian home.

WHY CLIMATE-CHANGE ALARMISTS ARE ALARMED

 While theology is my passion and discipline, I’m also extremely interested in various fields of science and serve as a visiting scholar at the Science-Faith think-tank, Reasons To Believe. I do not regard science as an enemy of theology, and therefore take what scientists claim with appropriate acceptance. The scientific case for recent global-warming is barely contestable. If the modelling is correct about the rate of global-warming continuing to increase there can be no wonder that so many people are alarmed at what the future may hold. The Australian government’s ‘Future Climate-Change’ website states a range of temperature increases over the next 30 or so years ranging from rising sea-levels engulfing many Pacific Ocean island nations, and temperature increases in the range of 1°C to 4.8°C.

Swedish environmental activist, Greta Thunberg in 2019

 According to the World Wildlife Fund website this level of unabated human-induced climate change will wipe out most of the world’s wildlife and devastate many of the rainforests in which this wildlife depends. The Swedish teenager, Greta Thunberg, went further suggesting that human-induced climate-change would cause mass extinction of wildlife and echoed the growing fear that governmental inactivity that could even lead to the extinction of the human race. She was given the opportunity to raise her concerns in an address to the United Nations in which she stated (September, 2019) –

“How dare you? You have stolen my dreams and my childhood with your empty words!”

In his book, Weathering Climate Change — a fresh approach, Dr. Hugh Ross affirms that the data does indeed reveal that the planet has been warming over the last century. He points to the growing concern about it among Americans.

“The percentage of those surveyed [by Gallop] indicating that they ‘personally worry about this problem a great deal’ stood at 35 percent in 1989 and seesawed between a low of 24 percent in 1998 and a high of 45 percent in 2017… Since the turn of the twenty-first century, the percentage of Americans who concur that scientific data affirm global warming has risen to more than 70 percent. The percentages of those who see human activity as the cause of global warming and who believe the effects of global warming have already become apparent have risen to nearly that same level” (pg. 18).

Dr. Ross goes on to report that “the younger the adult respondents, the more they ‘worry a great deal/fair amount about global warming.’” Many of these young people are convinced that climate-change will inevitably lead to human extinction and the death of our planet. No wonder they are so alarmed!

 

EARTH’S KNIFE-EDGE FINE-TUNING ENABLES LIFE ON EARTH

For those who understand just how finely tuned our planet is to enable life, they quickly recognise that the slightest increase in the rate of CO2 in the atmosphere, or the slightest increase in global temperature, could have a devastating impact for the possibility of life on earth. This is why they are so concerned (“alarmed”) about human-induced global warming due to increased CO2 emissions. Many of them understand that our Earth needed around 660 at-the-same-time fine-tuned parameters to an eye-watering precision of ‘millimetre-perfect’ exactitude, that physicist Dr. Freeman Dyson stated, “The more I examine the universe and the details of its architecture, the more evidence I find that the universe in some sense must have known we were coming” (Freeman J. Dyson, Disturbing the Universe, New York: Basic, 1979:250). What Dr. Dyson was probably referring to is our exquisitely fine-tuned atmosphere which is perfectly composed for life on earth to be possible – consisting of 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, 0.9% argon, and several other gases comprising 0.1% (which includes carbon-dioxide). One of our planet’s unique parameters is its precise distance from the Sun which places us perfectly in a zone where we are not too close to be over-radiated, and yet not too far away to be a frozen wasteland. This is why astronomers refer to earth’s location in our solar system as being in the “Goldilocks Zone”. Added to this fine-tuning for life is our precise rate of gravity; our distance from our moon enabling our earth’s stable and consistent rotation and tidal rhythms; and, the composition of our earth’s crust on tectonic plates which facilitates our life-giving waterways and enables access to minerals and nutrients necessary for it.

¶ And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
Genesis 1:28

Strangely, it is this miraculous fine-tuning that makes life on earth possible that has caused so many people who ignore its implications to regard it all as a luck-of-the-evolutionary-draw that mankind may well destroy within thirty years or so. They therefore speak of human-induced global-warming as humanity’s greatest crisis in language that almost sounds biblical in its use of apocalyptic forecasts and warnings. Several science commentators have noted this religious fervour and its accompanying Old Testament sounding woes.

The difference between that earlier and half-forgotten surge of alarmism and today’s is in the more emphatically religious character of our present [Environmental] movement. There is an ethical dimension…[requiring] political action too. 
-Tom Stacey, science journalist (p. 16)

Science journalist, Tom Stacey, speaking about this religious fervour of the Green Movement mimicking ‘genuine religion’ which lays the blame for earth’s woes squarely at the feet of humankind, wrote, “A factor of what I venture to call genuine religion had come into play, in that it is present in the Abramic traditions. We recall Adam who in eating of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil attained to consciousness and chose to disobey; and hence his inherent sense of original sinfulness” (Climate: The Counter Consensus, 2010:17). But, Stacey cautions, the idea that mankind’s greatest problem is global-warming, ignores the point of the Genesis creation of Man account – “For although Man may feel himself to be made in the image of God as the Book of Genesis avers, he at once discovers he cannot be God.” Which is why Stacey found it incredulous that despite the extremely complex nature of climatology (which involves over “100 scientific disciplines” according to Palaeoclimatologist Professor Robert Carter) that any politician “could presume to promise that he would see to it that the rise in global temperatures would be restricted to 1.5 degrees Celsius” as UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown did at the Earth Summit at Copenhagen in December 2009 (p.18).

 There is a deeply religious worldview that undergirds this widespread concern about climate-change which is grounded in the idea that mankind is not just the cause of Mother Earth’s problems—but that mankind actually is the problem! That’s probably why the spirit behind this religious-environmental movement often describes earth as being over-populated and so heavily promotes such things as widespread abortion of babies; euthanising the elderly/infirmed/disabled/‘defective’/depressed; intentionally sterile sexualised relationships; and, suicide for those who have lost hope. 

because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.
Romans 1:25

In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
Second Corinthians 4:4

 

THE SCOPE OF SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE & THEOLOGY

Keble College Chapel, Oxford University, founded in 1096.

 Theology used to be commonly referred to as the Queen of the Sciences. It was the unifying field of study that tied all of the various fields of academic diversity together. This is why all of the world’s oldest universities were established originally as schools of theology which then branched out into other academic arenas. It is also why these schools became known as uni(fying)+(di)versities. Over time though, ‘the pursuit of knowledge’ (which is what the word science means) came to mean that which can be known objectively, physically, materially, by testable, repeatable, measurable methods. This is now known as methodological naturalism. It limits the scope of knowledge to the natural realm and ignores the realities of the subjective realm (psychology, human emotions and relationships), and, the supernatural realm (the immaterial, the spiritual, philosophy, religious claims). This is why Theology is regent over the physical sciences (chemistry, physics, biochemistry) because views knowledge as not being limited to just the material realm. 

At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne. And He who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian, and around the throne was a rainbow that had the appearance of an emerald. Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and seated on the thrones were twenty-four elders, clothed in white garments, with golden crowns on their heads.
Revelation 4:2-4

And herein lies the problem with how most of those in the so-called Environmentalist Movement see the world: they view the universe comprised entirely of material particles as the result of a series of unguided, undirected, naturalistic uncaused events that has somehow evolved its own impersonal god-like soul (“Gaia”) which is now present in everything. But this is a lie. The universe, let alone our planet, does not have such a soul, and is most definitely not Mother Earth or Mother Nature. The universe, and especially earth, is the deliberate, intentional creation of the One True GOD, Yahweh, the God of the Bible (Gen. 1:1; Jn. 1:1). In the worldview of the leaders of the environmental movement it’s not just that no-one is seated on the throne of the universe and ruling the world, it’s that there is no throne upon which to rule from! Therefore, in this view, there is no God, and therefore there is no one ruling and regulating the universe. But this too is a lie. The truth is, there is One who rules over His creation, and He is seated upon the throne from which He does so!

¶ “Worthy are You, our Lord and God,
to receive glory and honor and power,
for You created all things,
and by Your will they existed and were created.”
Revelation 4:11

 

WHY GOOD CHRISTOLOGY MAKES CLIMATE-CHANGE LESS ALARMING

 Dr. Hugh Ross is not a climate-change denier and makes a compelling case for why mankind should steward (manage) the earth and its resources responsibly. There are many parts of the world that are largely deprived of clean air or clean drinking water. We should be doing all we can to collectively resolve these dangers to human life, including the appropriate reduction of CO2 emissions. When God originally created mankind, He placed them in a garden He had planted (Gen. 2:8). After showing Adam and Eve around Eden, He told them to –

¶ And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food.
Genesis 1:28-29

God never surrendered the earth to mankind. He entrusted it to mankind. He demonstrated what all the earth could be by showing the original two members of mankind what Eden consisted of. When the environmentalist weeps because forests have been cleared and the edges of the Gobi and Sahara have now spread their barrenness even further, he may be living out his pantheistic worldview. But perhaps we should weep too because the divine vision of an Edenic Earth has been set back even further (again). 

¶ The earth is the LORD’S and the fullness thereof,
the world and those who dwell therein,
Psalm 24:1

 What the naturalist (the environmental materialist) misses, it that the earth is remarkably resilient because its Maker has made it so. All of the fine-tuning involved in the necessary conditions for the biological life on earth, were not the chance result of mere random, unguided, undirected, laws of physics (where do laws come from anyway??). No, all of the incredibly, eye-watering precision involved in the fine-tuning of our universe and especially our planet, was the result of an All-powerful, All-good, All-wise, All-present, All-knowing eternal and unique Being we call, God. He is guiding our universe toward its climatic conclusion because it was always His plan to display to glory through the ultimate triumph over evil so that the original vision of creation could finally be fulfilled — a dwelling place for God and man.  This is why Jesus, the eternal Son of God, referred to His Father as the Lord of heaven and earth.

¶ At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children;
Matthew 11:25

 Ultimately it is God’s desire for dimension of the seen (the material world) and the dimension of the unseen – the dimension where He is seen clearly, becomes the dwelling place of God and mankind together (Rev. 21:3). 

¶ We don’t yet see things clearly. We’re squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won’t be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright! We’ll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing Him directly just as He knows us!
First Corinthians 13:12, The Message

In the meantime, we rest in the knowledge that this universe is the creation of Jesus the Christ, the Lord of Heaven and Earth. (Acts 17:24). He is the One who holds and sustains this earth and will never allow any opponent to destroy it until His plan of redemption and triumph over evil is finally culminated — and even then He will redeem it, rather than destroy it. This is good Christology, and understanding it should cause anyone who is fretting over man-made climate-change to cease being alarmed and begin to turn their attention to the One who is the King of Kings, Lord of Lords, and the Lord of Heaven and Earth and everything in it!

He [Jesus] is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of His nature, and He upholds the universe by the word of His power. After making purification for sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name He has inherited is more excellent than theirs.
Hebrews 1:3-4

 

Your pastor,

Andrew

Let me know what you think below in the comment section and feel free to share this someone who might benefit from this Pastor’s Desk.