Watching a child drop his jaw as he experiences the wonder of a “wow” event brings joy to our hearts. As we age, mundaneness overtakes our encounters with new jaw-dropping experiences. An ongoing part of life includes learning facts about many of the “wow” things. In preschool, formal tests usually do not take place. However, as we enter school, we face required tests of our knowledge in many fields of study. One area of study we may be tested in is our knowledge of the Bible. A Sunday School teacher may expect us to know many things about the Bible -- how many books are in it, who wrote the different books, where baseball was mentioned (Genesis 1.1 In the ‘big inning’), who is the shortest person (Bildad the “shoe height”), etc.As we grow in our study of the Bible, we learn about justification, sanctification, glorification, adoption, and reconciliation. We may even be given a written test to display our knowledge. If we do well on a test, we might feel like we know much about God - how He works, His names, or His attributes. This mental knowledge covers the indicatives of the Bible (what is true about God). This knowledge is a foundation upon which we build other aspects of our lives. Not only does Scripture emphasize these indicatives, but it also focuses on many commands (imperatives). These imperatives and our desire to obey those commands address the heart attitudes.Now, you may ask “How does one pass the test of heart attitudes?” Grading a knowledge test reveals the understanding of a particular concept by measuring the number of right or wrong answers. But how do you grade “heart knowledge”? Within our minds we may believe that we have good heart attitudes such as kindness, joy, happiness, etc. However, do our friends and others who see our actions come to the same conclusions about our heart? It is difficult to grade or calculate a score for a “heart test.” Others look at us differently than we look at ourselves.As we consider our position in Christ, we know that He calls us to demonstrate our knowledge of Him through our desire to follow His imperatives. Scripture has many imperatives, but two stand out: The Great Commandment and The Great Commission. We know in our minds that we are called to love our neighbor and make disciples. However, if our heart attitude bends to our selfishness, our hearts will not want to joyfully follow God’s imperatives. Let us pray that God will raise up people from CPC who respond to God’s Great Commandment and Great Commission.During this Missions Awareness Week, we have the opportunity to test our knowledge and our hearts as we learn more of what God is doing through His messengers -missionaries in Chattanooga, the United States, and around the world. Throughout the week, mature and tested missionaries will speak during corporate worship and classes. Wednesday evening will test our knowledge and our hearts. Friday morning, we will learn how God is working among UTC students in Chattanooga. On Saturday after breakfast and learning about ministries, we will be given opportunities to take action ourselves. During Sunday School on March 3, we will hear of ways to pray for and become more deeply involved in the Great Commission.
May the “head” knowledge we have of Scripture encourage our hearts to express by our actions the power of the Holy Spirit working within us. May the Wonders of our lives be full!Dale Knutson, Mission Committee Chairperson
