Food for Thought by Carolyn

I recently heard of a new book by New York Times op-ed columnist Ross Douthat entitled "Bad Religion." First, I am not endorsing any book, any political persuasion, or any newspaper, magazine or other influencers of public opinion. BUT, I do believe it is necessary and prudent for all of us to be aware what's out there, come to our own conclusions and tell others.

I have not read the book yet either, so I am not presenting a critique. But I am intrigued by the idea the author proposes that in our lifetimes traditional Christianity has been co-opted by any number of false premises. This, of course, has been true throughout the ages and the Bible warns over and over again against false teachers. There are those who want to add something to the Gospel of Christ. There are those who want to take away and there are those who want to distort it and twist it to fit their own views of the world.

Every generation of Bible believing Christians can point to people who cling to Biblical truth; people who preach it fluently, who write about it, sing about it, who live it out every day of their lives. We know genuine truth when we hear it. Or at least we make of point of comparing it to Biblical truth if there is any doubt.

Like those who are charged with identifying counterfeit dollar bills by carefully, exhaustively studying the real thing, Christians are exhorted to study the Bible in the same way so that we will know truth when we see it. This is not something to be done on the fly. It is not something you pick up only in the pew on Sunday morning. While both of these are beneficial, it takes time and effort to study the Bible so that we really become rooted and knowledgeable, absorbing its truths so that we are able to tell the difference between Biblical truth and lies.

I am going to purchase a copy of this new book. I want to see if it adhers to Biblical truth. If it doesn't, fine. It's just another attempt to mislead or misinform for financial gain, power or what have you. But if it does, what am I going to do about it?

Our pastor often tell us, "You are intelligent people. Examine the Scriptures and see for yourselves." If this new book is a warning, then I will sit up and pay attention. By doing that I can alert others. As Christians, I believe, we have an obligation to speak up for the truth and against the lies of others no matter how good those lies may make us feel.