Great Responsibility
Posted by Andy Giessman at 12/19/2007 8:38 AM and is filed under uncategorized 
Recently I have been thinking about the responsibility of being a communicator. You could insert different nouns in there to accomplish the same idea. Things like preacher or teacher would also fit into that category. James 3:1 says that not many of us ought to be teachers because those who teach will be judged more strictly. Wow! People who communicate/preach/teach had better watch what they say!
900 years ago a nasty multi-decade epoch began burning its way into memories and onto the pages of history. The Crusades, launched by Pope Urban II in the late 11th century, began with a clarion call for the "knights of the true cross" to assemble and march on Jerusalem to free it from its Muslim captors.
It is true (biblically) that that land belongs to Israel. There is TONS of biblical evidence for that statement. In history God has used nations and rulers to accomplish his will (Babylonia, Assyria, the various nations in Judges). There is no doubt that God will restore the land in its entirety to Israel. The problem lies with the twisted use of Scripture to accomplish the Pope's aims.
During the second Crusade a priest by the name of Bernard of Clairvaux rose to the top as a teacher. As one of the founders of the Knights Templar he wheeled great oratory power. Bernard began taking some of the military language of the NT and twisting it to create a verbal recruitment poster for the crusades. Passages like the Armor of God section in Ephesians 6 was one of his favorites.
His listeners by and large could not read and relied on the what their priest told them and took it as truth. How tragic! The people that relied on their spiritual leader(s) were led down a path that consumed large portions of Eastern Europe and the Middle East. The Crusades collectively left thousands dead and millions with hate filled souls.
The Bible makes it plain that those of us who communicate and teach have a grave responsibility. Even in an age where the literacy rate is much higher than it was during the middle ages we will still stand before God and give an accounting of what we say. Like it or not people create miniature papacies. How many times have you heard someone say something like, "well my pastor says..." and then go on to base decisions and world views on a single statement?
There are two real issues here. First we must help people to be biblically literate. This is not simply teaching people how to read but how to process the mystery of scripture so that there is a renewing of the mind and heart. Next we have to realize that words have power. The pages of history are marked by the words of men and women and the effect they have had on entire nations and sometimes the world.
Be wise, be careful, be biblical!
900 years ago a nasty multi-decade epoch began burning its way into memories and onto the pages of history. The Crusades, launched by Pope Urban II in the late 11th century, began with a clarion call for the "knights of the true cross" to assemble and march on Jerusalem to free it from its Muslim captors.
It is true (biblically) that that land belongs to Israel. There is TONS of biblical evidence for that statement. In history God has used nations and rulers to accomplish his will (Babylonia, Assyria, the various nations in Judges). There is no doubt that God will restore the land in its entirety to Israel. The problem lies with the twisted use of Scripture to accomplish the Pope's aims.
During the second Crusade a priest by the name of Bernard of Clairvaux rose to the top as a teacher. As one of the founders of the Knights Templar he wheeled great oratory power. Bernard began taking some of the military language of the NT and twisting it to create a verbal recruitment poster for the crusades. Passages like the Armor of God section in Ephesians 6 was one of his favorites.
His listeners by and large could not read and relied on the what their priest told them and took it as truth. How tragic! The people that relied on their spiritual leader(s) were led down a path that consumed large portions of Eastern Europe and the Middle East. The Crusades collectively left thousands dead and millions with hate filled souls.
The Bible makes it plain that those of us who communicate and teach have a grave responsibility. Even in an age where the literacy rate is much higher than it was during the middle ages we will still stand before God and give an accounting of what we say. Like it or not people create miniature papacies. How many times have you heard someone say something like, "well my pastor says..." and then go on to base decisions and world views on a single statement?
There are two real issues here. First we must help people to be biblically literate. This is not simply teaching people how to read but how to process the mystery of scripture so that there is a renewing of the mind and heart. Next we have to realize that words have power. The pages of history are marked by the words of men and women and the effect they have had on entire nations and sometimes the world.
Be wise, be careful, be biblical!
ANDY!!!!! i went to harvey cedars and saw u there, and u were talking about that camp patmos, and i was planning on going to it this year, but the week u r speaking is the weak of harvey cedars, but i just wanted to wish you a merry christmas, and thank you for teaching me how to make farting noises with a straw(it came in handy recently) and, wish you best of luck next year as you speak at various camps you can email me at wolfpaklax6@aim.com
Merry Christmas anda Happy New year to you and your wife!
p.s. ping pong owns
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