[This Reflection was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 25/Aug/2019]
A young man of my acquaintance has the ambition to write a series of books looking at prominent people in the book of Genesis, in particular to consider how their faith in God developed through their experiences of life. I have had the privilege of proof-reading his initial drafts and offering certain observations that might, or might not, contribute to the quality of the final publication. So far we have considered the lives of Abraham and Jacob. This exercise represents a significant investment of time on my behalf but it is the responsibility of those of us who are older to share our experiences of walking with God with those who are younger – even if the value of that advice will not be appreciated until later!
The apostle Paul had his protégé, Timothy, whom he encouraged in the faith. Timothy had a Christian family background, a blessing that many of us share. However, that blessing has a potential downside – the risk that we might rely too much on what our parents or grandparents have told us and we neglect the need to study the Scriptures for ourselves.
My friend is a young man in the faith; he comes from an un-churched family and was converted in his late teens, some ten years ago. He has studied the principles of the Christian faith, to a degree that few of us have the opportunity to emulate, and has travelled widely but he has little experience of what most of us would consider to be a ‘normal’ life, with its cycles of work and domestic obligations. Not surprisingly perhaps, I do not always agree with his interpretation of the Biblical account. But is he right? Has he gained some insight from his studies that we have neglected by ‘inheriting’ elements of our faith? This exercise has forced me to re-read passages of Scripture that I thought I knew, to listen to teaching from a variety of sources and, of course, to seek wisdom from the Great Author himself.
Paul strongly urged Timothy to “Study and do your best to present yourself to God approved, a workman who has no reason to be ashamed, accurately handling and skillfully teaching the word of truth”. Surely an ambition that we all would do well to emulate!
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Contributed by Steve Humphreys; © Steve Humphreys