Do you know the difference between concrete and cement? If so, what?
Ironically I know this answer to this question. I also know I don’t know the answer to the natural follow-up. Concrete is cement, sand, a bit of water. The content is mixed, laid, and then it dries. The result is concrete. Ah, but what is cement? Hmmm…
In the presence of experts I realize how little I know about construction. I understand the fundamentals of structures – weight bearing loads, forces, and links. I also have a grasp of the high level pieces which go into the process. Yet as I watch experts at work, share an opportunity to dialogue with them, I realize how shallow my knowledge really is! Yet with the willingness to learn most are willing to share.
It is far too easy to be confident in our knowledge of God. After all we have heard of and about God for most of our lives. Positive or negative, real or hype, factual or fiction, God is engrained in the essence of the human experience. With time one assumes one knows. There are no tests to verify one’s knowledge. There is little accountability within or outside of the community for those professing to be experts. Knowledge just is.
But is it? When I hear “the Master, God, has something to say to this: ‘Watch closely. I'm laying a foundation in Zion, a solid granite foundation, squared and true. And this is the meaning of the stone: a trusting life won't topple. I'll make justice the measuring stick and righteousness the plumb line for the building. A hailstorm will knock down the shantytown of lies, and a flash flood will wash out the rubble.’” (Isaiah 28.16, 17) I realize my perspective is completely accurate.
The solution is here, assuming I am willing to see with the light of a new dawn. Consume – each slowly, mull and think of what is – the words of God. Get into the details with the intent of experiencing what it means to be in God’s community. It’s life’s gateway.
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