We’ve all benefited
from the so-called “Information Age.” Thanks to the digital revolution, our
knowledge-based society provides facts about practically everything literally
at our fingertips, via desktop computer, laptop, tablet, smartphone, even a
smart-watch. Nearly everything we want to know, now accessible with a few taps
of our fingers thanks to the wonders of cyberspace.
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| We have unlimited information from nearly unlimited sources. |
In many
respects it’s been a good thing. Whether a recipe, home remodeling advice, the
latest on our favorite sports team, financial trends, or information about a
nagging medical problem, it’s all there. And why wait for tomorrow’s newspaper
when we can read online reports of breaking news almost as it happens?
Years ago I cherished
rare bits of information I could find about Ohio State sports. Now many
websites can tell me the latest. Friends in Columbus say I know more about
what’s going on with the Buckeyes than they do. Whatever we need to know is
within arms reach. I even did research for this post in the comforts of my home
office, gleaning information from my computer monitor. I haven’t visited a real
library in years.
But this
information, it’s not all good. We’ve
stumbled simultaneously upon the “misinformation age.” Postings disguised as
fact on biased websites, or disseminated via social media or email, might be
anything but true. When I grew up Spam was canned meat – now spam is a means for
hoodwinking people from their money or leaving them vulnerable to devious schemes.
Have you heard from that rich African prince who wants to share his wealth with
you, if only you send him a hefty deposit?
One other danger
lurks within this cornucopia of information. Knowledge available to us seems limitless,
but knowledge doesn’t equate to wisdom. Because wisdom involves understanding
how to properly use the information at our disposal.
International
evangelist Luis Palau was asked to compare Third World Christians he had met
with Christians in America. He offered the view that many believers in America
are “afflicted with the lust of the mind.” Unlike Third World disciples of Jesus,
having no other choice but to live out their faith every day, Americans seem more
zealous for gathering information about God and the Bible than putting into
action what they’ve learned.
I heard about a
man who for years was known for his devotion to reading Christian books,
attending workshops, seminars and conferences, listening to spiritual messages,
attending prayer meetings, and taking various classes on the Bible. Yet he’d
never shared his faith with anyone. When asked why, he replied, “Oh, I just
don’t know enough yet.”
Sadly, these
days we’re more interested in information than in transformation. Some people are
like those described by the Bible as “always learning but never
able to come to a knowledge of the truth” (2
Timothy 3:7). Reading the Scriptures, memorizing and meditating on various verses,
attending worship services and hearing stirring sermons are good. But God’s
desire for us is that we “not conform any
longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your
mind” (Romans 12:2).
In His well-known parable of the sower found in Matthew
13, Jesus spoke about various kinds of “seed” (the Word of God). Some fell on
paths where birds consumed them, on shallow soil where plants soon withered, or
among thorns where growth was quickly choked off. Only the seeds that fell on
good soil bore lasting fruit. Jesus was cautioning us to make sure that when we
receive the truth it falls into fertile soil. That consists of receptive hearts
eager to put that information into practice. In other words, willingness to
become transformed, not just serve as seed holders.
After the apostle Paul declared, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking,
correcting and training in righteousness,” he explained what it’s useful
for: “so the man of God may be thoroughly
equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
When Paul told his readers about the Good News of Jesus
Christ, he wasn’t offering just facts and information. He was teaching about its
transforming capacity. “I am not ashamed
of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation of everyone who
believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile” (Romans 1:16). The
result, he wrote, is “just as Christ was
raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new
life” (Romans 6:4). In the process, we become “a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2
Corinthians 5:17).
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