Guidance System

Our business is to present the Christian faith clothed in modern terms, not to propagate modern thought clothed in Christian terms…Confusion here is fatal.
J. I. Packer

When I pondered Packer’s statement, I was struck by the force of the final words, “Confusion is fatal”. It’s a reminder to me that our faithfulness to mission matters. When we drift from mission we drift from God. The two cannot be separated. To love God and honor God is to remain true to God. Presenting Christ in modern terms requires a dynamic faith. It is a living connection to a living God. I am learning more and more just how dependent I am upon the Holy Spirit. We need real-time help in order to see and respond to the growing complexity in the world around us. Without the guidance and discernment that God provides, confusion is inevitable. It’s much more than an ability to provide “answers” when our faith in Christ is assaulted with questions. It is the ability to reveal Christ in every situation. We face a choice every day. We will see the world through the lens of God’s truth or we will develop our own lens, our own interpretation. As a result, “we propagate modern thought” in Christian terms”. Modern thought, apart from God, can be temporarily soothing to a hurting soul, but it cannot give life.