Introduction
J.P.
Moreland offers a treatise on how to begin being a well-thought Christian.
Throughout his work he sets out how to develop as a Christian thinker, in order
to strengthen one’s faith and to prove useful for the proclamation of the
gospel. Forwarded by Dallas Willard, Moreland’s offers an, ironically,
complementary view of discipleship quite different from Willard’s own “The
Spirit of the Disciplines.”
Content Summary
Out
of the gates in chapter one Moreland begins to summarize the problem with the
Christian mind stating, “Judged by the Scriptures, church history, and common
sense, it is clear that something has gone desperately wrong with out modern
understanding of the value of reason and intellectual development for
individuals and corporate church life” (21). He goes on to innumerate that
point of the movement from a Judeo-Christian mindset to a post-Christian one.
Chapter
two and three are where Moreland begins to sketch the necessity of developing
the mind for the sake of the Christian faith both corporately and individually.
“According to the Bible developing a Christian mind is part of the very essence
of discipleship unto the Lord Jesus” (43). Offering a biblical sketch of the
value of reason and the minds role in spiritual transformation. Moreland
states, “The mind is the soul’s primary vehicle for making contact with God…”
(67) this is similar to Dallas Willard’s claim that the body is the main
vehicle of the disciplines (The Spirit of the Disciplines) but in direct
contrast to it.
Chapter
four is where Moreland begins to not simply diagnose the issues of Western
Christendom’s failure to think reasonably, but begins to offer a remedy on how
to think critically and think logically about faith. This initial chapter is
dealing with the, “Hobgoblins of the Christian mind,” these are basic things
like bad habits and the fear of loosing control. It is wise, Moreland says to
let change these habits and lose control so as to be brought up wisely in
Christianity.
Chapter
five is the beginning of routine changes necessary to form proper habits of the
mind. This chapter is a good stand alone chapter which can be read in order to
reconsider how one is currently approaching the task of thinking, and what, if
anything, needs to change. In addition, it is where Moreland introduces the
basics of logic and argumentative fallacies.
Chapters
six and seven deal with the outward focus of the reasoned Christian mind, that
of evangelism and apologetics. Once the topics of logic and argumentative
fallacies are covered Moreland correctly moves into the use of these
disciplines in the real world. Both are required in the realm of evangelism and
apologetics. In chapter seven he offers two molds of the types of individuals
one might encounter when in an apologetic conversation, that of the skeptic or
the scientist and offers a background to each and an approach to each.
Chapters
eight and nine are on the topics of the personal and communal life of the
Christian. In the world of corporate worship, how does reason play into such a
place? In the arena of work and vocation, how does logic play out? “Worship is
a response to a God who initiates toward His people, gives them life, and shows
Himself active on their behalf” (161). “If we are to be integrated holistic
Christians who make an impact on the world, we need to learn how to be
Christian doctors, schoolteachers, lawyers, businesspersons and so forth”
(175). These areas are deeply important and demand the consideration given only
by a reasoned mind.
Chapter
ten aims at the Christian’s recapturing of the intellectual life. What this
means is not merely the Christian section of the bookstore, but each section of
the bookstore. What is more is that the Church, not the school systems or
universities are to be the pillars of truth. Thus, “The church must see herself
as an education institution, and the development of the Christian mind will be
at the forefront of the church’s ministry strategy for equipping the saints.
Critique and Evaluation
Overall
I thoroughly enjoyed Moreland’s book. This is an area that seems to be needing
much attention, especially in a day where television helps to create passive
people receiving passive messages. It is imperative that Christians be
thinkers, as well as doers. If we are doers but not thinkers our system of
belief lacks conviction, but if we are only thinkers and not doers there is no
real passion for the thoughts. His use of evangelism and apologetics as
examples of the logic and reason he was teaching was helpful in showing the
reader applicable moments where logic and reason were utilized for the advance
of the Kingdom.
Application for Ministry
Moreland
offers quite a few thoughts in chapter ten about how the church should be
governed and even how sermons should be written and structured. These
suggestions are good, and worth consideration, however it is also necessary to
first consider the people one is ministering to. While I am an advocate for the
thinking reasoning Christian, I am more of an advocate for making sure the
gospel message is communicated clearly to the audience at hand. If the use of
too much reason and logic leaves an overly unthinking population behind, we
must rethink the communication of the message (not rethink the message, simply
its communication). This does not mean we must rethink how we think, but merely
the communication aspect so as to be more effective in clearly stating the
gospel in a manner which can be easily understood by the given audience.
In
ministry usage I would recommend this book to be read by an intern who had
little to no formal training in order to begin their thinking process. This
could also be a good book to read at various stages in ones learning process so
as to sharpen the mental tool we have been given.
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