Theodore Roosevelt often said, “A thorough knowledge of the Bible is worth more than a college education.’ When Roosevelt was President of the United States in the early 1900’s, he would search the Scriptures when facing problems, looking for spiritual guidance. How our world has changed. Then, even though a college education could be a ticket to lifelong prosperity, the superiority of godly wisdom that only can be gained from Scriptural knowledge was recognized. Not anymore.
Think how many hundreds of thousands expend huge amounts of effort, time and money each year to attend school to get that college education but never take the time to even open the pages of a Bible, the book God has given us to help make us wise unto salvation.
The Bible points out that the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. Over the years, how many topics of study, such as Latin, physics, chemistry, and medicine, to name a few, have changed completely from what was once considered essential knowledge. It certainly is not wrong to have a college education, and it can be helpful to obtaining a good job, but the pursuit of human wisdom must not come ahead of the pursuit of Bible knowledge in the lives of the saints. Jesus has told us to seek first the Kingdom of God. First means first, not second or third in our priorities. It is sad that in the lives of most college students, as well as for most people in our world, the goal of seeking God’s kingdom does not rank at all.
No wonder that there are so few that will be saved. God is not in their thoughts ever. Most people fit Paul’s description of “aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.’ What a tragic position to be in, and yet most of our neighbors, fellow students, and those who work alongside of us all fit that description.
Do we care? How much effort do we put into sharing our hope with those around us? We see some folks almost every day, and if they were ill we would be concerned, ask them about their condition, and maybe send them a card. How much more should we care about their spiritual health? Have we shared with them our hope in the promises that God has made to those that love Him, the gift of eternal life for those judged faithful, the soon return of Christ and the establishment of the Kingdom of God?
Most of us sadly must answer this question with a “no’. Why? Certainly we are not ashamed of our hope are we? Jesus warned us, “For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and my words, of him shall the Son of Man be ashamed when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Fathers.’
When we have good news we should be willing to share it. The gospel is good news, and it is our privilege as well as our duty to share it with all we know. If some won’t listen, that is their problem, but if we fail to tell them, it could be our problem. The prophet Ezekiel was warned by God that it was his duty to tell the children of Israel of coming judgment if they did not repent from their sins. If he did not warn them then they would die, but Ezekiel would be held responsible. God said that their blood would be on Ezekiel. If Ezekiel warned them and they did not listen, they still would die, but Ezekiel would not be responsible, and their blood would be on their own heads.
Many years ago an elderly man who learned the truth was so excited about his new found hope that he told everyone he met. He even preached to the man in the bed next to him when he was in the hospital. His favorite saying was, “I don’t talk good but I am excited about the hope I want to share with you. If you are interested I can get you help to learn more about it.’ He played tapes of Bible talks to all who would listen. A number learned the truth as a result of this simple man’s introduction. He could not answer their hard questions, but he knew brethren he could call on to help him when he found someone who was interested.
We all can learn a lesson from this simple man and his faith. We have a wonderful hope and we should be happy to share it with all we can. The very last words that Jesus said to his disciples just before he ascended into heaven were, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.’ All our worldly acquaintances are perishing for lack of this knowledge. Are we listening to the Lord’s command to share our hope with them?
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One