Educating for Godly Policy (6)

Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that all our fathers were under the cloud, all passed through the sea, all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ. 1 Corinthians 10.1-4

This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. But you have not so learned Christ… Ephesians 4.17-20

Called to be learners
Christians are called to be learners. “Learner” is the basic meaning of “disciple.” One is a disciple of Jesus Christ who learns Him, and in learning Him, is obedient to His call. God expects the disciples of Jesus to be so fervent and effective in learning that they will always be ready to teach others as opportunities arise (Heb. 5.12-14).

We cannot expect to create, advocate, or realize public policies in line with God’s Word unless we devote ourselves to learning what the Scriptures, beginning with God’s Law, teach about the great issues of our day.

Jesus Christ is the Beginning and End of all knowledge (Col. 2.1-3), the Alpha and Omega of all things. He is the ultimate Subject of all the Law of God and all Scripture (Jn. 5.39). We can never exhaust the beauty, goodness, and truth to be gained by increasing in the knowledge of Jesus. For His part, He daily beckons us to grow in the gift of eternal life—knowing Him and the Father through Him—and He speaks to us from His Word and His world, that we might increase in knowledge of Him every day.

We cannot fulfill our calling to know the Lord apart from a dedication to learning and obedience. If we are averse to learning, to increasing in the knowledge of God and Jesus Christ, then we should examine ourselves to see whether we are disciples of Jesus at all (2 Cor. 13.5). For all true disciples are learners, and the main project and aim of all their learning is to learn Jesus Christ.

Where shall we begin?

Begin here
The anonymous author of the medieval Liber de Ordine Creaturarum (The Book of the Order of Creatures, 7^th century, Irish), who was about to compose a far-ranging summary of everything that exists, insisted that the path of knowledge is not one we invent or discover on our own: “In this we are not following an invention of our own purpose which is nothing of itself…”[1] Rather, he went on to explain, the Scriptures and our forebears in the faith have shown us the way of true knowing. We must hold fast to the traditions revealed in Scripture and the world, as our forefathers have followed and lived them over the years.

But this means taking up the call to learn and know many things which today are perhaps of little or no interest to us. We need to learn more about Jesus, the Kingdom of God, and the faith that makes all things new. We need to learn about how our Christian forebears have applied the Gospel to such areas as art and literature, music, science, business, law, politics, government, care for the environment, and much, much more. We should learn as much as we can by as many means as we can.

And we need to learn more about the Law of God (cf. Ps. 119). Jesus fulfilled the Law of God in whole and part. The more we learn the Law, the better we’ll know Jesus.

Always more to learn
J. I. Packer wrote that, no matter how young or old we are as believers, we can always learn something new and useful for serving the Lord (Finishing Our Course with Joy). We would expect nothing less of those who are true disciples of the Lord of all knowledge.

We are the light of the world, and we are called to shine our light, be it ever so small, in such a way that people will glorify God with us. As we learn what this involves, we can expect our love for the Lord to grow, our light to increase and grow brighter, and our witness to His Light to become more consistent and effective.

And as citizens of the Kingdom of God, we seek an ever-greater experience of the righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit that privileged calling affords (Rom. 14.17, 18; 1 Thess. 2.12). And we cannot expect to realize that hope apart from learning, living, and teaching the Law of God (Matt. 5.17-19).

We will not be able to affect the public policies that shape and guide our nation apart from a life of active learning, beginning with the Word of God and including His Law. And as we do take a stronger hand in shaping such policies—whether our own, those of our church, or those of our community and nation—we will want to make sure that whatever policies we pursue reflect the goodness and truth of our Lord Jesus and the wisdom of His Law.

For reflection
1. How would you describe your attitude toward learning, and especially toward learning Jesus and His Law?

2. The goal of all Christian learning, Paul explained, is love (1 Tim. 1.5). How can growing in the knowledge of God’s Law help you to grow in love?

3. What is one thing you could do today to become an even better learner than you already are?

Next steps—Preparation: Pray daily about becoming a better learner. Let God lead you into a more active and transforming experience of learning Jesus.

T. M. Moore

Our bookstore offers three resources to help you grow in knowledge of, love for, and obedience to the Law of God. Please check out The Law of God (click here), The Ground for Christian Ethics (click here), and A Kingdom Catechism (click here). The Law of God arranges all the statutes and commandments of God under one or another of the Ten Commandments. It can be a useful guide for reflection as part of your daily time with the Lord. For The Ground for Christian Ethics and A Kingdom Catechism, read the table of contents and listen to the audio excerpts to learn more about each book.

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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

[1] Liber de Ordine Creaturarum, Rev. J. A. Davies, tr. ed. from the text-file of Jonathan M. Wooding (Lampeter: University of Wales, 1998), p. 1.