A dear friend of ours sent this article to us today by David Ryser. It carries a question that challenged the writer deeply. It may very well challenge you alsoβ¦β¦. A number of years ago, I had the privilege of teaching at a school of ministry. My students were hungry for God, and I was constantly searching for ways to challenge them to fall more in love with Jesus and to become voices for revival in the Church.
I came across a quote attributed most often to Rev. Sam Pascoe. It is a short version of the history of Christianity, and it goes like this:. Some of the students were only 18 or 19 years oldβbarely out of diapersβand I wanted them to understand and appreciate the import of the last line, so I clarified it by adding, an enterprise.
After a few moments Martha, the youngest student in the class, raised her hand. I could not imagine what her question might be. I thought the little vignette was self-explanatory, and that I had performed it brilliantly. She asked such a simple question, a business? I could not envision where this line of questioning was going, and the only response I could think of was, Yes.
The room went dead silent. For several seconds no one moved or spoke. We were stunned, afraid to make a sound because the presence of God had flooded into the room, and we knew we were on holy ground.
God had taken over the class. For six months, I thought about her question at least once every day. There is only one answer to her question. The answer is Yes. The American Church, tragically, is heavily populated by people who do not love God. How can we love Him? What do I mean when I say really know Him? Our understanding of knowing and knowledge stems from our western culture which is based in ancient Greek philosophical thought.
