Christian Philosophy: Everyone Has a Philosophy. It's The Lens Through Which They View The World and Make Decisions. (9 page)

Another prophecy arose when Jeroboam, king of Israel, was offering sacrifices to a demon god and a prophet stood before the altar and cried, “O altar, altar, thus saith the LORD; Behold, a child shall be born unto the house of David, Josiah by name; and upon thee shall he offer the priests of the high places that burn incense upon thee, and men’s bones shall be burnt upon thee” (1 Kings 13:2). About three hundred years later, the prophecy was fulfilled by the righteous king Josiah (2 Kings 23:15-20).

By the time Josiah was born, the nation of Israel had fallen far from God. The ten northern tribes in Israel had already been led into captivity by Gentiles, but the southern tribes of Judah and Benjamin where still in existence. Josiah was king over both tribes, but he only learned how far they had strayed from God after a copy of the book of the Law was found in the Temple—most likely a copy of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Bible), written by Moses (2 Kings 22:8). After reading the Old Testament scriptures, Josiah became convicted about the condition of the kingdom and set out to restore righteousness. He put a stop to pagan worship and then he dug up the graves of the false prophets and burned their bones on the very altar on which Jeroboam had sacrificed to idols. You can’t get any more specific than that.

No book written by a human has prophesied events hundreds of years in advance down to every last detail. The supposed prophecies of people like Nostradamus are so vague that they can be fulfilled in a multitude of ways. In contrast, the Word of God describes in precise detail events that are then fulfilled hundreds of years later. The difference is that the Bible is inspired by God. It wasn’t created by the minds of mere humans.

Christians who aren’t basing their philosophy on the Word of God need to “rediscover” Scripture much like Josiah did. The Bible was written by men but inspired by God, and it contains God’s thoughts for us. It shows us how God looks at the world, and everything we need to know about current social issues is in the Bible. It tells us God’s perspective on murder, lying, stealing, homosexuality, divorce, integrity, abortion, and every other issue. The Bible is God’s philosophy written out for us to understand.

Many Christians today are basically ignoring God’s way of thinking and coming up with their own way of looking at things. They are trying a little of this and a little of that, and doing whatever works for them. I’m telling you, that is a recipe for disaster. Satan comes against us through the way we think. You give the enemy free access to your life when you base your philosophy on the world’s viewpoint. The Word of God needs to become the standard you use to judge everything. Joshua said,

This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.

Joshua 1:8

You aren’t going to prosper and succeed until you take the Word of God and put it in your heart and meditate on it. Some people in the world appear to be prospering, they have power and possessions, but those things don’t last. You can prosper momentarily outside of pursuing God, but that kind of prosperity isn’t going to fulfill you. Tabloids are filled with stories of the rich and famous trying to commit suicide. Many wealthy and powerful people who don’t know God are more miserable and bitter than the poorest of the poor. Jesus said, “For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:26).

There is a right and a wrong way to prosper. If you want to prosper God’s way, in a way that doesn’t take away your life, then you’re going to have to base your prosperity on the Word of God. You have to take God’s values and do things God’s way.

When you do things God’s way, life isn’t all about acquiring possessions—it’s about relationship with God and experiencing His love. Scripture tells us that if we seek God’s kingdom first, then He will give us everything we need (Matthew 6:33). God will take care of you when you are seeking Him first. The Word contains God’s instructions to us on how to prosper. It gives His revelation on how to make your marriage work, how to walk in health, and how to have joy and peace.

The evidence we have examined leaves no doubt that the Bible is the inspired Word of God. The Bible contains God’s instructions for our success, and it is accurate in every detail. We have to put our faith in the Word of God, above all other information or ideas. If you compromise on this point or begin to doubt that the Bible is the inspired Word of God, then you start down a slippery slope that will undermine your faith in God. The Bible is not a book about God, it is a book
from
God, and it has to be the foundation of all Christian philosophy.

How Do I Follow God?

I
remember a young man who came to me for counsel one time about going to Charis Bible College. He said that he knew God was telling him to go, but everyone in his life was telling him not to. He went into a long story detailing all of the reasons the pastor of his church, his parents, and his girlfriend thought he shouldn’t go.

After about ten minutes he finally asked me, “So what do you think?”

I said, “You lost me the moment you said that you know God is telling you to go.”

If God tells you to do something, then you just do what God tells you to do. Why would you even debate it? God is the Creator of the universe, He knows all things, and He knows what is best for you. Why would you care what anybody else thinks, or what people might say about you? In comparison with God, no one else’s opinion should matter.

Your relationship with God should soak all the way down to the very core of your being. When that happens, your actions will be determined by your philosophy instead of by your environment or emotions. It really simplifies life to realize Jesus is Lord, and you aren’t. Then, when God tells you to do something, you just do it. This attitude is one part of a Christian philosophy that will really simplify your life.

I couldn’t tell you how many people have told me over the years that they felt God was calling them to come to Charis Bible College, but they didn’t think it was wise to go. They’ve said, for instance, that it’s only ten years until they retire. They were focused on securing their financial future, and they were leaning unto their own understanding. My opinion is that when God wants you to do something ten years from now, He’ll tell you ten years from now. If God is telling you now, He either wants you to do it now, or He wants you to start taking the necessary steps to get the ball in motion. Some things take a while to come to pass, so God will give you instruction in advance, but when God tells you to do something, you just do it. That’s all there is to it.

The first time I drove through the tiny town of Pritchett on the eastern edge of Colorado, I was not impressed. The landscape was a flat, treeless plain as barren as any desert. The only shrubbery I could see was planted in people’s yards, which didn’t exactly provide lush green scenery considering only 140 people lived in the entire town. It looked like the end of the earth to me. I started joking with a friend who was in the car with me about how God was going to send him to this small village on the edge of nowhere.

“Thus saith the Lord,” I told him. “You’re being called to Pritchett, Colorado.” We had a good time laughing about that. If it wasn’t the edge of the world, you could see it from there—it was that close.

I stopped in Pritchett to preach at a church of ten people. We saw a man raised from the dead, and church attendance jumped up to around 100 people. They wanted me to stay and continue teaching them the full Gospel.

“You can’t just come in here, challenge everything we thought we knew about God, and then leave town,” they said.

I just laughed and said, “No way, I am
not
moving to Pritchett!”

No part of me wanted to live in Pritchett, but as we were driving out of town, I began to sense in my heart that God was telling me to stay there and teach the people the Word. By the time we got back to our house in Childress, Texas, I knew I was supposed to move. From a purely logical standpoint, there was no reason for me to go. The church only had ten members, they had no money, the church building was too small, and the town had nothing going for it. I could have given you a thousand reasons why it didn’t seem like a good idea.

How could I fulfill my big vision in such a small place? Pritchett wasn’t on the way to anywhere. It wasn’t a stepping-stone to something better. It was a dead end. The only way to leave Pritchett was feet first, in a coffin. That’s exactly the way I felt.

On the other hand, I was prospering in Childress, Texas. For the first time since I started in ministry, it looked like I might succeed. We had food and money on a regular basis, and things were going well for us. Our church had 50 or 60 people in regular attendance, I had a broadcast on the local radio station, and our church was making a difference. Everything was going great.

But once I knew that God wanted me to move to Pritchett, Colorado, the debate was over. Jesus is Lord of my life, and my attitude was that if God wanted me to do something, then I was going to do it—and enjoy doing it. Once I was convinced of God’s will for me to move to Pritchett, I began to praise Him for leading and guiding me. Within days my entire attitude had changed, and I was excited about going. There were some hardships associated with living in such a remote area, but I loved living in Pritchett as much as any place I’ve ever lived. It was wonderful.

I made Jesus Lord of my life on March 23, 1968, and I haven’t tried to direct my own life since. God is Lord, I’m not, and He knows what’s best for me. I have feelings and opinions like everybody else, but the discussion ends once I’m sure God is telling me to do something. I trust God’s judgment more than I trust my own, and I just do what He leads me to do. I couldn’t even tell you how many decisions I’ve made in my life based purely on the fact that I was sure God was leading me.

It would really simplify your life to run up a white flag and surrender to Jesus as Lord. One of my favorite passages of Scripture is from Jeremiah. Jeremiah was wondering out loud how a people whom God rescued from Egypt and preserved through many miracles could forget the Lord who delivered them and turn to vain idols. In the middle of his grieving, Jeremiah answered his own question by saying,

O LORD, I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps.

Jeremiah 10:23

The Jews had fallen from a position of favor because they started doing things their own way. Jeremiah recognized that God didn’t create us to rule our own lives. He gave us the free will to make our own choices, but God never intended for us to direct our own steps. We have the freedom to decide for ourselves, because God doesn’t force His will upon us, but the correct choice is to recognize our complete dependency on God. We aren’t smart enough to run our own lives. God said,

I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live.

Deuteronomy 30:19

God gives us a choice, but He also tells us which option is best: He says, “Choose life!” Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and don’t try to figure things out on your own. Seek His will in everything you do, and He’ll show you the path to take—that’s the smart choice (Proverbs 3:5-6). That’s how we’re supposed to live; we’re meant to make Jesus our Lord and follow His guidance.

The world would be a different place if Adam and Eve had followed this philosophy. It was very clear that the serpent was enticing them to do something contrary to what God had told them, but they didn’t follow God’s guidance. They knew God as their Creator and recognized His provision for them, but they didn’t submit to God as Lord of their lives. They knew He was kind to them, that He met with them and talked with them, but they didn’t bow to Him and determine that they wouldn’t lean unto their own understanding. They failed to surrender to God’s sovereignty, and Satan went right through that open door to lead them into sin.

A solid Christian philosophy requires believing in the Word of God as your supreme authority and making Jesus Lord of your life. Not merely in the sense of recognizing His authority and attributes, but by submission to His leadership.

A rich man once kneeled down before Jesus and said, “Good Master, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

“Why do you call Me good?” Jesus replied, “None is good except God alone.” In other words, Jesus was saying, “Either call Me God and make Me Lord, or quit calling Me good!”

The rich man responded by calling Jesus “Master” again. He wasn’t willing to go all the way and make Jesus his Lord and Savior. He wanted the salvation Jesus provides, but he didn’t want to completely commit himself to following Jesus as Lord. Jesus knew the man wasn’t totally sincere, but He still loved him. Jesus said, “Go, sell everything you have, and give the proceeds to the poor; it will give you treasure in heaven. Then come, take up your cross, and follow Me.” The rich man couldn’t do it, and he walked away grieved (Mark 10:17-22).

Jesus presented salvation as making Him Lord and Master over our lives—not just acknowledging His greatness. Scripture says that in order to be saved, you have to confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead (Romans 10:9-10). I believe that salvation should be presented as turning your life over to Jesus—lock, stock, and barrel—but that’s not how salvation is usually presented. The message many people are hearing is that they should be saved just so they can go to heaven when they die. Obviously, that is an important part of salvation, but it isn’t the whole message. As a result, a lot of born-again believers will go to heaven when they die, but they haven’t submitted to Jesus as Director and Leader of their everyday lives.