PART 3 of Eliminating the Sacred/Secular Divide: Pedagogy of the Unoppressed by Christian Overman

Pedagogy of the Unoppressed PART 3

Eliminating the

Sacred/Secular Divide PART THREE Chapters 7-14

Dr. Christian Overman PART ONE (“The Lost Purpose for Living”) click here PART TWO (chapters 1-6) click here PART FOUR (chapters 15-24) click here PART FIVE (“Honey, We Shrunk The Kingdom”) click here

The Solution, continued 7. God’s Co-Worker 8. Personalizing the DADI Question 9. “But Doesn’t the Bible Say...?” 10. The ATII Question 11. Four Wheels of Work 12. Business As Mission 13. The Big Picture 14. Made in the Image of God

SUPPLEMENTAL LECTURES for ADDED REINFORCEMENT with SPANISH SUB-TITLES After Chapters 7-8, view “Eliminating the Gap Part I” https://youtu.be/f5SZV_NtXEA After Chapters 9-10, view “Eliminating the Gap Part II” https://youtu.be/Ns6gzZ7sgYU After Chapters 11-12, view “Integration Conversation Starter” https://youtu.be/5bH8kTi_52Y After Chapters 13-14, view “Have You Ever Seen A Secular Color?” https://youtu.be/CRghhPASnu4

Chapter Seven

God’s Co-Worker We have considered God’s awesome grace in continuously sustaining the realm of matter, upholding it “by the word of His power,” and we have considered t h a t He extends His “common grace” to men, women, and children, whether they accept and embrace Him as Lord or not. This “common grace” manifests itself in countless ways, from providing plants to produce oxygen for us to breathe…to positioning the earth a perfect distance from the sun…to giving us the daily food we eat. Did I say “giving” us daily food? Yes. But not directly. You see, God could have chosen to deliver the food to our front door Himself, fully cooked, but instead we see a long human chain that links the farmer to the soil, the truck driver to the marketplace, and the grocery clerk to the cash register. All along the way, from one end of the chain to the other, human beings are engaged in the First Commission, whether they realize it or not. If we continue to follow the chain out the grocery store door, we find men and women who spend 40-60 hours a week at jobs that generate the dollars paid at the cash register. And if we go back once again to the other end of the chain, to where the farmer meets the soil, we discover that in the plants, sunshine and rain, things are happening that only God can do. Thus, in the final analysis, it is God who is ultimately to be thanked for giving us our daily bread. And this explains why most followers of Christ take a moment to thank Him before they put fork to mouth. As humans, we have been designed and commissioned to work. It is a good thing to work. But this process is not only a human one. We are really co-workers with God. The milkman delivers the milk that comes from cows and grass that God sustains. Furthermore, it is God who is sustaining the very body and breath of the milkman! The process that God uses to give you your next breakfast is a delightful dance between Himself and human beings. He sustains the milkman who provides the drink, the farmer who provides the eggs, and the baker who provides the bagel. These are all means by which God fulfills His design for food, His love for people, and His intention for humans to work with Him to accomplish His purposes in the earth. In this chapter, we’ll look at a great scientist who was able to engage in God’s pleasure in his work because he fully understood his role as a co-worker with God. He ignored the “sacred-secular divide,” and, with the help of God, came up with 300 products from the peanut, and 118 products from the sweet potato! I’m referring to Dr. George Washington Carver, who worked with God in the laboratory, which he affectionately called, “God’s Little Workshop,” where he unlocked the secrets of

legumes, managing God’s stuff and employing his God-given gifts and abilities for the benefit of humanity. Take a look at this video clip to learn more about this remarkable man: Watch An Introduction to Dr. George Washington Carver Approx. 4.5 minutes Think and Discuss: What was most impressive to you about the video clip you just viewed? With a little research, one can find several books that reveal the essential element of biblical faith in Carver’s life. Two such books are, George Washington Carver: His Life & Faith in His Own Words, by William J. Federer, published by Amerisearch, Inc., St Louis, MO., and Fruits of Creation by John S. Ferrell, published by Macalester Park, Shakopee, MN. From these two books, I discovered the following: In a letter to some friends in Montana, written at the age of 26, Carver wrote: “Oh how I wish the people would wake up from their lethargy and come out soul and body for Christ.” He continued: “Let us pray that the Lord will completely guide us in all things, and that we may gladly be led by Him.” (Federer p. 23) In a speech given at the age of 59, Carver said: “God is going to reveal to us things He never revealed before if we put our hands in His.” (Federer p. 53) Carver locked the door to his lab when he was creating things. He claimed, “Only alone can I draw close enough to God to discover His secrets.” (Federer, p. 53) He wrote a letter to Rev. Lyman Ward, in which he included these telling words: “Pray for me please that everything said and done will be to His glory. I am not interested in science or anything else that leaves God out of it.” (Federer p. 56) At age 60, Carver wrote the following to Robert Johnson: “Living for others is really the Christ life after all. Oh, the satisfaction, happiness and joy one gets out of it…I know that my redeemer lives. Thank God I love humanity; complexion doesn’t interest me one single bit.” (Federer p. 57) At age 63, he wrote: “Man, who needed a purpose, a mission to keep him alive, had one. He could be…God’s co-worker…My purpose alone must be God’s purpose…As I worked on projects which fulfilled a real human need, forces were working through me which amazed me. I would often go to sleep with an apparently insoluble problem. When I woke the answer was there.” In the same letter he declared: “After I leave this world, I do not believe I am through.” (Federer, p. 67-68) At the ripe age of 75, he wrote to Rev. Haygood: “…if we do not take Christ seriously in our everyday life, all is a failure because it is an everyday affair.” (Federer p. 84)

Carver once remarked: “The secret of my success? It is simple. It is found in the Bible, ‘In all thy ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct thy paths.’” (Federer p. 86) And he said of his daily walk with the Lord: “…all my life I have risen regularly at four o’clock and have gone into the woods and talked with God. There He gives me my orders for the day.” (Ferrell, p. 58) He further proclaimed: “How I thank God every day that I can walk and talk with Him.” (Federer p. 61) We can all thank God that Carver walked and talked with the Lord, because we have all benefitted from that relationship. Carver’s ability to make seamless connections between his daily work and his faith is a model for us all. When it came to Carver’s work, he was able to find God’s pleasure in it because he knew God, and he knew what God’s Word has to say about the meaning of work, the purpose of work, and what success in the work-world really looks like. Because he knew God and His Word, Carver, like John Beckett, was able to make significant connections between the truths of the Bible and his daily work as a botanist-chemist. This is an opportunity we all have: to make relevant and significant connections between the truths of God’s Word and our daily work. It’s one thing to know what the Bible has to say in general terms, but it’s another thing to apply it specifically to our daily work. But if every follower of Christ were to do this, as Carver and Beckett have done, the world would be a much better place. “SECONDARY CREATIONS” GLORIFY GOD WHEN WELL DONE This is God’s world, even in its fallen, broken condition. It is God’s creation that we’re surrounded by, and it is God's stuff we're taking into our hands when we form and shape anything. He not only created it out of His thought in the beginning, but He owns it and sustains it all now. And He commissioned us to manage all of it, even in its fallen and broken condition. We are called to “tend and keep,” as only His image-bearers can. Carver modeled this in a remarkable way. As mentioned earlier in The Lost Purpose for Living, we humans, as God’s designated Earth-Tenders, were designed to make “secondary creations” out of His “primary creation.” This is true even if what we create doesn’t last past Wednesday. A good chef creates works of culinary art that may not last more than a few hours. This glorifies God innately, because a good meal is the outworking of the chef’s image bearingness, whether the chef realizes it or not. The chef is a “secondary creator,” ruling well over salmon, rice pilaf and bleu cheese. And through this act of imitation, God is glorified. Even if the chef doesn’t realize it. In using the term “secondary creation,” I do not mean to imply that creations made by human beings are “second rate.” I simply mean to say they are made out of God’s primary materials. While God created things out of a vacuum, humans made in His likeness and image “create” things out of something first materialized by God. We make something of God’s stuff. And I believe God delights in seeing us do this!

Few of us will make plastic out of soybeans. But as God’s designated Earth Tenders, we can fulfill God’s intention for us to govern over all things when we mow the lawn, cut hair, fix automobiles, and negotiate the sale of a house. We can fulfill God’s intention and purpose for making us when we create good legislation, play a violin, or write a book, ruling well over words, sounds and ideas. It is our honor to govern well over all His stuff. And through these acts of imitation, when people’s “secondary creations” align well with God’s nature, character and purpose, He is glorified. This applies to all legitimate forms of work.

THE DADI PLAN TOOL “DADI” is an acronym for DISCOVER, APPLY, DEVELOP and IMPLEMENT. The DADI Plan starts out by asking this question: With respect to my work as ______________________ what can I “DADI” (Discover, Apply, Develop, Implement) in connection with the biblical view of God, Creation, Humanity, Moral Order or Purpose? There is a blank to fill in. That’s where you put whatever kind of work you do, or whatever particular aspect of your work you want to focus upon. For example, if you are a student, you can fill in the blank in a general sense with “my work as a student,” or more specifically with, “my work as the goalie of the soccer team,” or, “my work as a member of the school band.” If you were a plumber, you c o u l d fill in the blank in a general sense with “my work as a plumber,” or if you were a plumber who submits bids on large construction jobs, you might want to focus on that particular aspect of your work and fill in the blank with something like, “my work as a bidder on large plumbing jobs.” If George Washington Carver were to fill out a DADI Plan, I think he may have filled in the blank with, “my work as an innovator of new products from plants.” So: “With respect to my work as an innovator of new products from plants, what can I ‘DADI’ (Discover, Apply, Develop, Implement) in connection with the biblical view of God, Creation, Humanity, Moral Order or Purpose?” The best way to learn how to use the DADI Plan is to look at an example. With this in mind, I have filled out a DADI Plan as though I were George Washington Carver, based u p on what I know about the man from books written about his faith. Understand, however, that this DADI Pl an I have creat ed “for C arver” is only an educated guess. To start his DADI Plan, I imagine Carver first identifying a specific challenge, vision or opportunity he wants to align with the bigger picture of a biblical uniview. He narrows this

statement to about 25 words or so. In this case, I have imagined Carver’s “challenge/vision/opportunity” to be stated like this: I want to bring about positive economic opportunities for southern farmers. Step 1 is for Carver to figure out which aspects of the biblical uniview directly relate to his challenge/vision/opportunity of bringing about positive economic opportunities for southern farmers. He identifies key biblical truths that will provide a solid biblical foundation for this work, a biblical reason for this work, and/or biblical guidance for this work. To assist in this process, he looks through the 99 Truths about Work, Economics and Human Flourishing document, and the Questions for Contextualizing Work document. For the 99 Truths about Work, Economics and Human Flourishing short form, click here. For the 99 Truths about Work, Economics and Human Flourishing long form, click here. For the Questions for Contextualizing Work, click here. In Step 1 of the DADI Plan, Carver writes down what he has been able to DISCOVER from Scripture that relates to his desire to bring about positive economic opportunities for southern farmers. He writes these truths as “I BELIEVE” statements in the DADI Plan: I believe God created plants, and He intends for humans to govern over them. I believe humans have a responsibility to govern over plants in ways that are resourceful and beneficial, without waste or abuse. I believe God shares His secrets with those who wait on Him for direction. Step 2 in the DADI Plan is for Carver to figure out how these biblical truths could be applied to his work as an innovator of new products from plants. For the sake of illustration, I imagine Carver might have wanted to apply his beliefs to his work by writing the following visionary ideas in the APPLY section of the DADI Plan, written as “I COULD SEE” statements: I could see co-working with God to create new products from peanuts, sweet potatoes and soybeans that are beneficial to humans. I could see helping to generate new economic markets for these products. I could see demonstrating my love for farmers by teaching them how to rotate cotton crops with plants that will revive the soil, such as peanuts and soybeans.

Step 3 in the DADI Plan is to figure out what training, discipline, or preparation must take place in order to successfully fulfill the I COULD SEE statements in the APPLY section of the DADI Plan. In Carter’s case, I imagine he would have written something like the following, in the DEVELOP section, as “I MUST” statements: I must turn my attention to chemistry and add it to my knowledge of botany. I must continue to make prayer a regular part of my day, to hear God’s secrets about plants, and discover ways to make new products from them. I must educate farmers about the importance of crop rotation. I must find new markets for products created from plants. Step 4 in the DADI Plan is to determine specific action steps. In Carver’s case, I imagine he would have written something like the following, as “I WILL” statements in the IMPLEMENT section of the Plan: I will combine my knowledge of botany with my knowledge of chemistry in the laboratory. I will rise early and seek God for His directives daily, and set aside time to be alone with God in “His Little Workshop,” listening to what He has to share with me about creating products from peanuts, sweet potatoes and soybeans. I will develop a “School on Wheels” to go to the farmers and teach them first-hand how to rotate crops successfully. I will establish a center at Tuskegee Institute for the development of renewable resources from plants, and contact Henry Ford to urge him to use plastics from soybeans in his production of automobiles. To see the full Carver example of a completed DADI Plan, click here. For a blank DADI Plan template, click here.

Chapter Eight

Personalizing the DADI Question

Gary Starkweather, inventor of the laser printer, in the lab. This photo was taken the day I did a video interview of him at Microsoft. Gary Starkweather worked for Hewlett Packard when he invented the laser printer. When I met him, he was working as a developer of new technologies for Microsoft, at its Redmond, Washington headquarters, not far from my home. My wife, Kathy, and I got to know Gary and his wife, Joyce, when we attended the same church for several years, during which time Gary taught a Sunday adult Bible class we attended. Like G eorge Washington Carver, Gary expressed a deep love for the Scriptures and a true regard for their authority in all of his life . Realizing Gary Starkweather had such a well-developed biblical uniview, I asked him if I could do a video interview with him at his Microsoft workplace, and he kindly obliged. I’ll never forget this experience, as we met on a Saturday morning at his Microsoft lab, when all the other workers were gone. Entering the lab was like coming onto the set of “The Bride of Frankenstein” film. The only thing missing was Igor and the arching

electricity. A large whiteboard full of mathematical scribbling provided the perfect backdrop, so I asked Gary to sit in front of it while I did the interview. As you watch this interview, listen for how Gary discovered, applied, developed and implemented the biblical view of God, Creation, Humanity, Moral Order and Purpose in his work as a developer of new technologies. Listen for specific biblical uniview premises that shaped his workplace values and behavior. Before you watch, let me explain that during part of this interview you will see a computer screen Gary invented (called the “D-Sharp” screen) that appears to be undulating. It was not actually undulating. This illusion was caused by the slow frame speed of my video camera. Watch Gary Starkweather: Inventor of the Laser Printer Approx. 6.5 minutes Hopefully you caught many connections between Gary’s biblical uniview and his work in the field of technology. In case some biblical uniview beliefs mentioned by Gary went by quickly, here are a few to consider: “Since He made us in His image, the creativity we possess is there because the Creator put it there.” “God put things in us as tool developers and creative individuals, and it pleases Him when He sees us use those faculties to make something completely new.” “When we use the skills God gave us, it can’t help but give Him pleasure, and hence we feel that pleasure in us: ‘You’re using what I built in you!’” Somewhere along the way, Gary Starkweather learned to experience God’s pleasure in his work. Based on the content of this interview, I put together a hypothetical DADI Plan that I think reflects Gary’s thought process, based on the interview you just watched. In this case, Gary might be asking himself: “With respect to my work as an innovator of new technologies what can I ‘DADI’ (Discover, Apply, Develop, Implement) in connection with the biblical view of God, Creation, Humanity, Moral Order or Purpose?” To start his DADI Plan, Gary might identify a specific challenge, vision or opportunity that he wants to align with the biblical uniview, like this: I want to create new technologies that will glorify God and serve the needs of humanity by making their work more pleasant and effective.

In Step 1, the DISCOVER section, Gary might write something like this, with respect to the biblical beliefs that undergird his work: I believe God created all humans in His image, and therefore there is something special about each one of us that we ought to try and cultivate, asking God, “What is this unique quality that I ought to really make work for You?” In Step 2, the visionary APPLY section, Gary might write something like this: I could see putting the gifts God has given me to work by taking ideas and turning them into tangible realities in the field of computer technology, particularly with respect to better printing techniques and more pleasant computer screens. In Step 3, the DEVELOP section, Gary might write: I must be very knowledgeable about optics. I must learn to compete in the open market, because if my faith is really what I say it is, then I ought to excel in fields where those who do not have my faith are playing. In Step 4, the IMPLEMENT section, Gary might write: I will devote myself daily to co-working with God to create a new computer screen concept that will allow the user to use peripheral vision with a much larger screen, enabling the users to accomplish more work in a more pleasant environment. I will create other technologies using my understanding of optics and lasers. WRITING YOUR OWN DADI PLAN The DADI Plan is the 2nd practical tool that is explained in this course. Again, let me say, this part of the course cannot be just read. It has to be done! This is the part that takes the most time and effort. Please do not rush through this, or mearly read about how to use these tools. Take this opportunity to actually use the tools in your own setting, whether you are a pastor, a CEO, an employee, a teacher, a parent or a student. Adapt these tools to your context, and personalize them. Again, use them. The beauty of the DADI Plan is that it can be written for something as short-term or as long-term as you wish. For example, if you want to write a DADI Plan for a specific project you have in mind, like building a hot rod from scratch in your garage, this could be a short-term focus for your DADI Plan. If you are a student, a long-term focus might be writing a DADI Plan for your life-goal of becoming a TV news anchor. For a blank DADI Plan template, click here. Start filling out your DADI Plan by first identifying the specific challenge, vision or opportunity you want to align with the biblical uniview. Narrow that statement to about 25 words

or so. [For example, “I want to build a hot rod from scratch in my garage,” or, “I want to become a TV news anchor.”] Next, move on to Step 1, identifying key biblical truths that provide a biblical foundation for your challenge, project or vision, by writing down what you have been able to DISCOVER from Scripture that directly relates to your challenge, project or vision. Write these as “I BELIEVE” statements in the Plan. To “get the juices going,” look through the 99 Truths about Work, Economics and Human Flourishing document, and the Questions for Contextualizing Work document. For the 99 Truths about Work, Economics and Human Flourishing short form, click here. For the 99 Truths about Work, Economics and Human Flourishing long form, click here. For the Questions for Contextualizing Work, click here. Which biblical truth statements about work, economics and human flourishing, and questions for contextualizing work relate directly to building a hot rod in your garage? Which truths and questions relate to being a TV news anchor? In Step 2, figure out the significant ways in which these biblical truths may be applied to your challenge, vision or opportunity. Write these ideas in the APPLY section of the DADI Plan, as visionary “I COULD SEE” statements. For example, in the case of George Washington Carver: I could see co-working with God to create new products from peanuts, sweet potatoes and soybeans that are beneficial to humans. I could see helping to generate new economic markets for these products. I could see demonstrating my love for farmers by teaching them how to rotate cotton crops with plants that will revive the soil, such as peanuts and soybeans.

In Step 3, figure out what training, discipline, or preparation must take place in order for you to successfully fulfill the I COULD SEE statements you wrote in the APPLY section of the DADI Plan. Write these as “I MUST” statements. In the case of George Washington Carver: I must turn my attention to chemistry and add it to my knowledge of botany.

I must continue to make prayer a regular part of my day, to hear God’s secrets about plants, and discover ways to make new products from them. I must educate farmers about the importance of crop rotation. I must find new markets for products created from plants. Finally, in Step 4, determine your specific action steps. Write these as “I WILL” statements in the IMPLEMENT section of the Plan. Make your action steps S.M.A.R.T.: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Timely. In Carver’s case: I will combine my knowledge of botany with my knowledge of chemistry in the laboratory. I will rise early and seek God for His directives daily, and set aside time to be alone with God in “His Little Workshop,” listening to what He has to share with me about creating products from peanuts, sweet potatoes and soybeans. I will develop a “School on Wheels” to go to the farmers and teach them first-hand how to rotate crops successfully. I will establish a center at Tuskegee Institute for the development of renewable resources from plants, and contact Henry Ford to urge him to use plastics from soybeans in his production of automobiles. Carver had his priorities straight. He saw the hand of God at work in the world, and he came alongside the Lord in that work. Carver co-labored with the Great Creator, and in the process he succeeded at seamlessly integrating his faith with his work in such a way that God was glorified, and humans were blessed. Think and Discuss: What other examples (past or present) can you give of people who have been able to “live seamlessly” as followers of Christ in the world, without compartmentalizing their lives into so-called “sacred” and “secular” boxes? Do you think “living seamlessly” as a follower of Christ in the work-world was easier in Carver’s day than it is today? Why or why not?

PARTICIPANT GUIDE REVIEW of CHAPTERS 6-8 Play this animated video with your Participant Guide in front of you (see here). As the various blanks are filled in on the video, print the text in your Guide. This is an important “grand review” of the concepts presented so far: click here.

Chapter Nine

“But Doesn’t the Bible Say...?”

Perhaps during this course you’ve thought to yourself, “This all sounds interesting, but doesn’t the Bible say, ‘Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth?’ And doesn’t the Bible say, ‘Do not love the world or the things in the world?’” If these verses have come to your mind, I applaud your knowledge of Scripture and your inquiring mind. As followers of Christ, we are responsible for filtering everything we read and hear through the grid of the Word of God. So, with that in mind, let’s take a closer look at these verses. Col. 3:2 clearly states: Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. But if you look at the context of this verse, taking it from verse 1 to verse 15, you will discover that what Paul has in mind when he speaks of the “things on the earth” is not your house, your dog, or your bank account. Please read verses 1-15: If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory. Therefore, put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. Because of these things the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience, in which you yourselves once walked when you lived in them. But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy

language out of your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him, where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all and in all. Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. So, when Paul writes, “set your mind on things above,” the context given above leads to this conclusion: “Set your mind on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering, bearing with one another, forgiving one another, love, peace, and thankfulness.” And when Paul says, “Don’t set your mind on things on the earth,” he is actually saying, “Don’t set your mind on fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, covetousness, anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language, and lies.” What’s very interesting about Colossians 3 is that in this same chapter, Paul pens some of the most significant words in the New Testament relating directly to the matter of work: “…do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men…” (verse 23). Clearly, Paul is not suggesting that followers of Christ quit thinking about their work. Just the opposite! Think and Discuss: Is the understanding of Col. 3:2 as explained above a different understanding than you previously had? If so, will this understanding make any difference in your thinking about your work? “DO NOT LOVE THE WORLD” Then there’s that verse in I John 2, which states: “Do not love the world or the things that are in the world” (verse 15, NKJV). To understand what John is saying, we need to realize that the English word world, translated from the Greek word kosmos in the New Testament, has four meanings in Scripture. First, the word world can refer to “populated regions,” as in Romans 1:8: I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world [kosmos]. Second, the word world can refer to “the human race” in general, as in John 1:29: “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world [kosmos].” Obviously, if we take the word world in I John 2:15 [“Do not love the world…”] to mean “the human race,” then we have a very big problem, because God loves the world [that is, the human race], and we are also commanded to love the human race. These are two different meanings of the word “world.” Clearly, if one verse tells us to “love not the world,” yet another verse tells us “God so loved the world,” we must conclude there is a difference of meaning in the word “world.”

Third, the word world can refer to “the created realm,” as in Romans 1:20: For since the creation of the world [kosmos] His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse... Fourth, the word world can refer to “a system of thought and behavior that is contrary to the will and ways of God,” as in Colossians 2:8: Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world [kosmos], and not according to Christ. So, let’s go back to I John 2:15 and take a closer look, along with the two verses immediately following it (v. 16-17): Do not love the world [kosmos], or the things in the world [kosmos]. If anyone loves the world [kosmos], the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world [kosmos]— the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world [kosmos]. Verse 17 actually clarifies what John is talking about when he uses the word world in verse 15. John is telling us not to love the world system that is contrary to the will and ways of God, governed by the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. Below are other verses in which the word world seems to have the meaning of “the world-system” as described above: John 8:23: And He [Jesus] said to them [the religious leaders], “You are from beneath; I am from above. You are of this world (system); I am not of this world (system).” John 17:14-18 is very interesting because in this short passage we find several different meanings of the word world: “I do not pray that You should take [My disciples] out of the world [the created realm, or populated regions], but that You should keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world [system], just as I am not of the world [system]…As You sent Me into the world [populated regions, or the created realm], I also have sent them into the world [populated regions or the created realm].” Clearly, followers of Christ are to be in the world (populated regions), but not of the world (system). Eph. 2:1-3 says: And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world (system), according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirt who now works in the sons of disobedience… The “prince of the power of the air” is a reference to Satan, who was cast down from heaven to planet Earth, where he continues to roam around “like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.”

In John 12:31, 14:30 and 16:11, Jesus refers to Satan as “the ruler of this world [kosmos].” And in I John 5:19, we read “the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.” The question now becomes, which meaning of the word world is the Scripture talking about in these verses? If we take these verses to mean that Satan is the ruler of the realm of creation, or the ruler of the populated regions of the globe, or the ruler of the human race in general, then we have a problem with other verses that clearly declare Jesus is Lord of all (Acts 19:36), His kingdom is over all (I Chron. 29:11, Daniel 4:32), and the earth is the Lord’s and all it contains (Psalm 24:1). Satan is not the King of Planet Earth. Yes, he is the ruler of this world system that runs contrary to the will and ways of God. Satan is indeed the “prince of the power of the air,” but this prince is no King. Lucifer acts like he owns Planet Earth, but there is only one King, and His name is Jesus. There is no room on the throne for two. Christ’s authority rests over the whole of heaven and earth, right now. He is the only King of everything. Some of you might be wondering about the temptation of Christ in Luke 4, where Satan took Jesus to the top of a high mountain and offered Him all the ‘kingdoms of the world.” But which meaning of the word world fits best here? If Satan was offering Jesus all the kingdoms of the realm of creation, or the populated regions of humankind, it was a bold and bogus offer, because this is not Satan’s to give away. (Of course, Satan is the master of bogus offers!) Luke 4:5 says: Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. [The word “world” here is not kosmos. It is oikoumene, which is translated “earth,” or “world.”] What exactly was Satan showing Jesus? Was he showing Him the skyline of ancient Rome? Or did he go forward in time and show Jesus the skyscrapers of Manhattan or Tokyo? Or was Satan showing Jesus a host of fallen angles under the command of Satan? We don’t know. This much we know for sure: Jesus’ response was, “Get behind me Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’” And with this rebuke, the temptation was over. Some have assumed that when Adam and Eve fell, they lost their job as viceregents of God, and God withdrew t h a t First Commission He gave to human beings, as governors over the Blue Planet. But if we make this assumption, there may be a tendency to think more about Heaven than about Earth. This can have a profoundly negative effect upon our view of work, and may hold us back from fully engaging in the material world with the kind of vigor and enthusiasm befitting a vice-regent made in the image of God. Think and Discuss: What are the implications of this chapter for followers of Christ in general, and for you in particular? What are the implications for what happens in church? Watch Christian Overman Interviewing Os Guinness Author of The Call Approx. 6.5 minutes

Check out this 5-minute clip from a pastor regarding Christian disengagement in culture: https://youtu.be/oi30TyzOpfo

Chapter Ten

The ATII Question If you are a student, could God be leading you to work in the field of education? Education has a profound effect upon culture at large, and upon the state of the workplace in general. All participants in today’s adult workforce were first participants in yesterday’s schools or homeschools. The effects of education upon the adult workplace can be profoundly positive or profoundly negative. I believe the separation of the God of the Bible from government-run education in the U.S. has brought about a separation of the God of the Bible from the adult workplace. I believe there are some important lessons here for us all. For fourteen years I was principal of a Christian school where we endeavored to “integrate faith with learning” in practical and meaningful ways. Much of my work over the years has been with Christian school teachers, helping them to make connections between the academic subject matter taught, and the bigger picture of a biblical uniview. But most of the teachers who came to my school were unprepared for teaching this way It was not their fault. Few universities provide practical training on how to design lesson plans that effectively make connections between academic subject matter and the bigger picture of a biblical uniview. This is a “lost art,” for the most part. But it is a learned skill, and I have had the privilege of teaching teachers how to do this across the USA, as well as in Central America, South America, Europe, Africa and Asia. Occasionally I have been asked, “Do you teach public school teachers?” My answer is always the same: “I would teach them, but I don’t receive many invitations from public schools.” However, I did receive one invitation from a state-run school superintendent with oversight of a district having about 16,000 students, in a city of 125,000 people. I was surprised to receive this invitation, and asked if I could meet with this superintendent, because I wanted to share specifically what I teach. Frankly, I was concerned the superintendent might lose his job if I were to come teach a very straightforward presentation of the Bible as the foundation for education. I do not hesitate in this regard when I train teachers. So, we met together for three hours at the superintendent’s downtown office. As I shared with him what the content of the course was about, he made this remarkable statement: “Teaching Christianity to the students is more important to me than academics.” When he said this, I realized this man knew full well what he wanted. So, I agreed to come and teach the course to his team of school leaders.

What I haven’t mentioned, is this school district is not in the United States. It is in Ukraine, a former satellite of the Soviet Union. The city is Uzhgorod, in the far western region, near the Slovakian and Hungarian borders. [A few years later, the superintendent I worked with did lose his job. Not because he was teaching Christianity in his school district, but because a new national President was elected in Ukraine, and when a new President comes into power in Ukraine, city mayors and school superintendents change also. A few years later, this superintendent passed away. I do not know to what degree his work in restoring Christianity to the school district in Uzhgorod has remained.] I spent three days with about twenty vice-principals of the Uzhgorod public school system who were charged with implementing a Christian-based moral education curriculum which the superintendent had already introduced into the school district. While in Uzhgorod, I was invited to visit one of the schools with my interpreter, Anya. A friend of mine came along with a video camera, and recorded my visit. I’d like you to view what I saw: Watch Public School Visit Approx. 4 minutes Think and Discuss: What do you think about what I saw in this Ukrainian public school? What was going through your mind when you heard the students respond to my questions?

This photo was taken on the day I met with the Superintendent in Ukraine. I am in the center, and the Superintendent is the man with glasses standing next to me on the right. The question in the minds of many U.S. Christians who watch this video is: “What happened to our educational system here in the United States?” What did happen? Like the Soviet Union, the United States also had a revolution in the 20th century. While the Russian revolution was quick, violent and bloody, the United States revolution was quiet and slow. Allow me to explain.

There are two basic routes to societal change: loud and fast, or quiet and slow. Russia, in the Revolution of 1917, took the loud and fast route. Shots were fired, people were killed, change was sudden, and vocal Christians were taken to prison by force. The U.S. took the slow route, in the quiet revolution of 1859-1962. No shots were fired. No people were killed. Change spanned several generations. People didn’t realize they were being taken captive until after the fact, because they were allowed to live in their homes and send their children to the neighborhood schools as though nothing was happening at all. We were taken captive through ideas, and because of this, a reversal is not likely to be sudden. Because it took several generations of “ramping up” to lay a foundation for the pivotal decade of the 60s, it may take that amount of time to ramp up to a reversal. I hope not, but I don’t think it’s going to be a “quick fix.” We who live in the “instant age” must b e w i l l i n g t o take a generational approach (the “long view”) for the reversal process. 1859-1962 The exact dates of the “Quiet U.S. Revolution” are hard to pin down. But I have selected 1859 as a starting point because this was the year Charles Darwin came out with his history-changing book, O n t he Origin of Species, or, The Preservation of Favored Races in the Struggle for Life. (That’s quite a racist title. Think about it.) It is not much of a stretch to say Charles Darwin had more influence on the course of modern history than any other human being. Darwin had as much influence on the loud and fast Russian revolution of 1917 as he did on the quiet and slow U.S. revolution of 1859-1962. Darwin’s book has probably had more effect upon the course of U.S. history than any other book beside the Bible. This is because Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species gave many people a seemingly scientific and respectable basis for belief in Naturalism (the idea that Nature is all there is, or was, or ever will be), and a basis for eventually removing any serious consideration of a Creator from public schools. On the heels of Darwin, the most influential person in the course of U.S. State-run education in the 20th century was an outspoken atheist by the name of John Dewey. Dewey was one of the signers of the first Humanist Manifesto of 1933. Ironically, John Dewey was born in 1859, the year Darwin’s Origin book came into print. Dewey lived a long life, having passed on to meet his Maker in 1952. Dewey was a world-class philosopher who earned the title, “Father of Progressive Education.” He taught education courses at Columbia University Teachers College, in New York City. He saw education as the primary venue for affecting social change. He realized that his atheistic worldview was a faith that could find free expression in U.S.

elementary and secondary schools. Yes, Dewey referred to his non-theistic worldview as a “faith,” and he was correct to do so. It is important to recognize that all human beings have a “faith” of some kind. This is true even for people who say they are “not religious,” or who never to go church or any kind of religious gathering. You don’t have to be “religious” to have faith—of some kind. Dewey’s faith held that the universe is self-existing and not created. It is therefore not surprising that he proclaimed: “…the time has passed for belief in theism...”, and: “we consider the religious forms and ideas of our fathers no longer adequate…” “No longer adequate,” he said. State education is never neutral when it comes to matters of faith. As mentioned in The Lost Purpose for Living, which you hopefully read at the start of this course, the question of not mixing faith with education must be carefully examined. The question is not whether faith will be allowed to mix with education, but which faith will be mixed? The fact is, faith is being mixed with state schools today on a daily basis. It’s just a different kind of faith than the one that was mixed with schools in the New World for some 300 years. As mentioned earlier, in The Lost Purpose for Living, if it is a religious position to teach—or to imply—that the Bible provides a standard for social and moral order, is it not also a religious position to teach—or to imply— that it does not? Think and Discuss: Have you thought of atheism as a kind of faith before? Do you agree that Secular (“Religious”) Humanism is a faith? Why or why not? What practical difference does belief in Humanism make in the workplace? All schools that have a mission and purpose are faith-based. It can be no other way, for behind all missions and purposes are ideologies, and all ideologies are based on assumptions which can only be accepted by faith. It takes faith to believe that God created life, and it takes faith to believe that life came from non-life. (A great deal of faith, indeed!) It takes faith to believe that the Bible is a book of moral absolutes, and it takes faith to believe that man is “the measure of all things,” as one Greek philosopher put it. It is impossible to divorce education, government, or any other sphere of life from faith assumptions of one sort or another. And furthermore, somebody’s faith will end up being the ultimate guiding factor in any of these spheres of life, be it in the classroom, the pulpit, or the workplace.

But we can't pin the whole quiet U.S. revolution on Darwin and Dewey. They were just two individuals. But individuals do make a difference, and these two men were key individuals in turning education in a direction Noah Webster could not have imagined when the U.S. was founded. Once this was accomplished, however, it was only a matter of time before students of one generation became teachers of the next. And so, the quiet revolution has rolled on. Indeed, it’s not over. I selected 1962 as the date of the other bracket of the quiet U.S. revolution because this was the year the U.S. Supreme Court determined it was unconstitutional for public school personnel to lead students in prayer. The rest of the changes came quickly after that. But the long, slow process leading up to this state of affairs took more than 100 years. It has long been recognized, as Dewey did, that the primary venue for affecting social change in any nation is the education of its youth. If we think the textbooks schools use are not that important, think again. The worldview of the writers will come through, whether by design or by default, either by what is stated in the text or by what is not stated in the text. When you read any text, perhaps the most important question you can ask is, “What is not being said here?”

LOOKING IT SQUARE IN THE FACE It’s not just students who are facing alien philosophies “according to the traditions of men and not according to Christ” [Col. 2:8]. What is true in the realm of education is also true in the business world, the arts and sciences, and in every other field of human endeavor. No matter where we live and work, alien philosophies are all around us, and we must constantly be prepared to recognize them, so we are not taken captive by them. Not to quarantine ourselves (that’s impossible), but to engage decisively with them. Neither adults nor children can afford to continue to be taken captive by the vain philosophies pressing in on us from all sides. I believe the United States has now transitioned from a post-Christian society to an anti-Christian society, and Christians in the U.S. today must learn how to live as Children of Light in Babylon, as Daniel lived and worked in a pagan city. We must take active steps as parents and parents-to-be, to keep ourselves and our children from being taken captive by ideas that are alien to Christ. We can choose to turn our heads, or we can look the alien ideas square in the face, and engage them. I want to give you a powerful mental tool that will help you (and your children) to not be taken captive, but rather to take thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ. (Compare Col. 2:8 with II Cor. 10:4.) The tool is called, the ATII Question.

“ATII” is an acronym for “Assumed, Taught, Ignored or Implied.” The ATII Question goes like this: “With respect to _______________________, what is being ATII’d (Assumed, Taught, Ignored or Implied) about God, Creation, Humanity, Moral Order or Purpose?” The ATII Question has a blank to be filled in. I’m going to fill it in with a sample, so you will get the idea of how the ATII Question works. In this case, I’m going to use an example from a children’s television program, called Reading Rainbow. Specifically, I’m going to fill the blank in with Reading Rainbow Episode #129: Giving Thanks. The basic idea behind the ATII Question is to compare and contrast worldview beliefs contained in media, film, books, or any other form of communication that comes your way. When I say “compare and contrast,” I’m referring to comparing and contrasting various worldview beliefs with the biblical uniview. The process is rather straightforward, but I can’t say it is easy. The grid below gives you the overall picture:

Perhaps the best way to learn how to use the ATII Question is to use it to analyze the Reading Rainbow episode seen in the next video clip. I have edited this episode, with permission from the copyright holder, but there is sufficient material here to get started with the ATII Question. As you watch the video, consider what is being Assumed, Taught, Ignored or Implied about God, Creation, Humanity, Moral Order or Purpose. It would be very difficult to analyze this video with all five worldview components at once. It is easier to focus on just one or two worldview components at a time. If you are watching this video with a group, some may look for what is being Assumed, Taught, Ignored or Implied about God, and while others can watch for what is being Assumed, Taught, Ignored or Implied about Creation, or Humanity, or Moral Order or Purpose.

As you watch, think about what is being ATTI’d that is in harmony with the biblical uniview as well as what is not. You will see both. Watch Reading Rainbow Episodtruth ae 129 Approx. 3 minutes Think and Discuss: What did you see in Episode #129 that was being ATII’d (Assumed, Taught, Ignored or Implied) about God, Creation, Humanity, Moral Order or Purpose? What was in harmony with the biblical uniview? What was in conflict with the biblical uniview? Yes, it is good to give thanks, and this is an important aspect of the biblical view of God and of Moral Order. Yes, farming is honorable and physical labor is good. Yes, humans are responsible to care for the environment. But things went amiss in this episode of Reading Rainbow in many respects. Being able to articulate exactly where and how things “went amiss” is the object behind the ATII Question. This exercise builds an ability to use discernment, which is a critical skill in the workplace. The usefulness of this skill cannot be over emphasized, especially in today’s workplace environment. But becoming adept at this skill takes time—and plenty of practice. WHAT’S THE POINT? Why talk about Darwin and Dewey in a book about the workplace? Because their ideas have consequences for us all, most certainly in the workplace. Alexander Solzhenitsyn, the famous Russian writer who exposed Stalin’s horrific treatment of political prisoners in the Soviet Union, said he had no better explanation for what happened in his native country than the explanation of many who lived through the Bolshevik takeover: “Men have forgotten God, that’s why all these things happened.” In the workplace, when people forget God, “things happen.” Business leaders get greedy. Employees pilfer and embezzle. Chief Financial Officers cook the books in order to make it look to stockholders that things are much better than they really are. Sellers of securities bundle up bad loans with good, and sell them all to unsuspecting customers. As a result, people suffer. Savings are lost. Credit freezes. Trust erodes. The economy goes into a free-fall, and regular people who were just trying to do a full day’s work for a full day’s pay lose their jobs. Fear spreads like a pandemic. Thankfully, the flip side is also true: when people remember God, some very wonderful things can happen! Yes, we can sit back and pity the nation whose God once was the Lord. But we can also rejoice when a nation turns back to Him.

As John Beckett put it, “it happens one person at a time, one idea at a time.” It happens one company at a time. One community at a time. This chapter was written to give hope for that kind of future.

Chapter Eleven

Four Wheels of Work What if you walked out your front door one morning to go to work and discovered a wheel was missing from your car? What would you do? Would you replace it yourself? Would you have your car towed to a shop? Or would you just ignore the fact that a wheel is missing and try to drive to work anyway? If you ignored the missing wheel and began driving, you would do considerable damage to your car, not to mention the possibility of bodily damage to yourself or others. The main idea behind this chapter is that there are four “wheels of work” to consider, and, just as with a car, all four are necessary to balance our overall work experience and provide the full benefits God intends for us through this privilege called work. While our primary occupation, the first “wheel” of work, is in the workplace (for students it’s the school), three other spheres of work are our homes, our churches, and our communities. We have been focusing mainly on the occupational wheel of work, and it is my hope that everyone will come through this course with a greater passion for integrating their faith with their occupation. But there is a danger here. If we place too much emphasis on our occupation, we’ll soon find we’re omitting the other three wheels of work because we are just too busy focusing on the one. Some people need to focus on their occupations less. It is possible to spend too much time at the office, or to make one’s occupation more of a focus than the Lord intends. When this happens, we may be putting our occupations above God, and this is a form of idolatry. Yes, we are to worship God in and through our work, including our school work, but we are not to worship the work itself. We’ll never experience God’s pleasure this way. It would be tragic if people who took this course came away with an unbalanced focus on their occupation to the neglect of their homes, churches or communities. Some readers may need to focus more on experiencing God’s pleasure in work at home. Getting household jobs done is also a way of working “as unto the Lord.” If you haven’t done so already, try mowing your lawn or washing the dishes as an act of worship, presenting your body a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God through these activities. And then there is the matter of rearing children and bringing them up “in the training and admonition of the Lord” (Eph. 6:4). The home is the second “wheel” of work. Talk about work! For husbands, it’s no small matter to love wives “just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her” (Eph. 5:25). This can make our occupational work look like a cake walk!

And wives respecting husbands requires effort, too (Eph. 5:33). Having a healthy marriage requires hard work. All of the concepts we’ve been talking about apply as much to work at home, at church and in the community, as to the office, the shop or the school. Think and Discuss: Exactly how do the concepts we’ve been talking about in this course apply to work around your house? Your church? Your community? Be specific. CONNECTING WITH THE MISSION OF YOUR LOCAL CHURCH The third “wheel” of work I mentioned is with our local church or parish. It would be absurd to say, “I don’t need to lift a helping hand at church because I’m already worshipping the Lord through mowing my lawn, and working at the shop (or school) five days a week!” But one of the complaints some people have is that the work they do for the local church is not the most effective use of the gifts or strengths they could offer. While some CEOs may find passing the offering plate a welcome change from their week-day activity, others would be more fulfilled if their strengths and abilities were engaged in more challenging ways. Here’s a suggestion: instead of waiting to be asked to serve in some way, consider how you could blend your skills, strengths or interests with your local church’s mission and vision, and then come to a church leader with a proposal. Surprise this person! This would be particularly shocking if you are a high school student. But think about it. How could you serve your local church? It doesn’t need to require a lot of time. Many churches these days have a mission or vision statement. If your local church or parish doesn’t have one, make an appointment with your pastor or priest to find out what the mission or vision is for your congregation. In fact, even if your church or parish does have a mission/vision statement, it would be a good idea to meet together to find out more about what your leadership sees as God’s direction for your particular congregation. Explain why you are asking, and see if your pastor or priest has some thoughts about how your strengths might best be used to further the Lord’s plan for your church. Once you have clarity about your church’s mission and vision, spend some time with the Lord, thinking and praying about how your skills and strengths might be most helpful. Maybe there would be a way to incorporate your entire family into service, thereby building not only your local church, but your own household at the same time. Then come back to your pastor, priest, or the appropriate staff member, with a proposal that best fits your strengths and available time. Why wait for your church leaders to come to you? But remember, it’s a proposal, not “baked bread.” Be humbly open to further input and direction. I’m not suggesting you necessarily find a way to blend your occupation with your church’s mission and vision, although this might be appropriate in many cases. My father was a mortician

by occupation. The direct application of his vocational work in the church we attended was not a good fit. But Dad’s love for fixing things and putting in new tile floors, led to work at the church that was helpful in keeping the building in good condition. And his gift for record keeping led to other types of helpful service. In some cases, however, a direct blending of a person’s occupation with the mission and vision of the local church might prove to be a perfect fit. If a professional chef gets energized by cooking for groups, then preparing breakfast for the Saturday morning men’s meeting might be a blessing to all concerned. If there is a doctor who runs a medical clinic, and part of the mission and vision of the church is to provide practical care for low-income families, perhaps some coordinated efforts between the doctor and the local church could be arranged. Or, for a lawyer, a similar arrangement with the church could be made in providing legal assistance for needy individuals. Or for an auto mechanic, it might be donating some time to keep widows’ cars running. Think and Discuss: Does your occupation lend itself to an application in volunteer service for your local church? If so, how? As mentioned previously, the occupation of a student is learning. If your local church would like to start a community tutoring service, this could be a great fit for a student, as a volunteer tutor. Finding such ways to blend your work with your church’s mission can be a great way to economize your personal time and energy. It can also be a way to engage with the fourth wheel of work: volunteering in the broader community. VOLUNTEERING IN THE BROADER COMMUNITY In a very real sense, most people who work in an occupational capacity are also engaged with the fourth “wheel” of work at the same time, assuming their work takes place within the community. The occupations mentioned above are good examples. Communities need cooks, doctors, car mechanics and teachers. But communities also have needs that go unmet, for various reasons, and all communities have under-served areas needing volunteer work to be done. Community volunteerism is a great way for followers of Christ to “let our light so shine before men that they may see our good works and glorify our Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). It’s also a great way for churches to channel the abilities of willing workers in the congregation toward blessing those outside the four walls of the church’s meeting place. Think and Discuss: Why should followers of Christ be concerned about serving the needs of the broader community?

Matthew 5:16, quoted above, is sufficient justification for serving the community, wither in the course of paid employment or volunteer work. In addition, consider what God said to Israel after they were taken captive to Babylon, as recorded in Jeremiah 27:4-7: Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all who were carried away captive, whom I have caused to be carried away from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and dwell in them; plant gardens and eat their fruit. Take wives and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, so that they may bear sons and daughters— that you may be increased there, and not diminished. And seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray to the Lord for it; for in its peace you will have peace. Notice the injunction to bear children and increase, even while in captivity, just as they did while they were slaves in Egypt. “Seek the peace of the city...for in its peace you will have peace.” This is the Lord’s wisdom, and I don’t think it applied just to ancient Israel in Babylon. One way to “seek the peace of the city” is to find ways to meet the needs of the communities in which we live. Robert Lewis is the pastor of a large church in Little Rock, Arkansas. In his book, The Church of Irresistible Influence, he relates his journey from being primarily focused with how to grow the size of his congregation to focusing on how his congregation might serve his city. He went to city leaders and asked what they needed to have done. As a result, Lewis became instrumental in bringing together other churches in the city to jointly serve the needs of Little Rock. An effective way of serving the community is when for-profit businesses join forces with non-profit organizations to provide volunteer community labor. Many business leaders would like to help meet the needs of their communities but don’t know where to begin. It’s relatively easy to write a check to a community assistance fund, and that’s a wonderful thing to do. But another way is to rally workers from within companies themselves to provide hands-on time and labor for community service. Businesses, families and churches working with an “outward focus” can not only function locally, but globally as well. One organization assisting in the global effort is Agros International. This organization works to help businesses and churches labor alongside developing communities in Central America. The next video clip will give you a taste of what this organization does in assisting people in developing countries to discover God’s pleasure in work: Watch Agros International Approx. 3 minutes The idea of business being a vehicle for missional purposes is generally called “Business As Mission.” We’ll take a closer look at Business As Mission next.

Chapter Twelve

Business As Mission Imagine you’ve been given the task of bringing a forest to maturity. You’ve not been given any time-limit, and you have unlimited resources. You have at least two options. You could plant some seedlings, and then wait, and wait some more. And if all went well, after years and years of growth, and plants pushing roots down deep in the soil and stretching branches toward the sky, you’d have a forest. The second option? Well, you could dig a bunch of holes and use helicopters to fly hundreds of grown trees into place. Of course this option would save years, but would the result be the same? Imagine what would happen if a major windstorm blew in the day your forest was complete. The second option, while it might look like a forest, wouldn’t have the roots it needed, and would likely end up a mass of jumbled logs. The wisdom of the first option would be quite clear. In this chapter, we’ll look at a way of approaching business that will create the kind of environment that will withstand storms and truly fulfill and advance the purposes of God in the earth. It’s a movement that is following the wisdom of building over time, and driving roots down deep. The movement is called, “Business As Mission.” HISTORY-SHAPERS From the deserts of 7th century Arabia to the cities of the USA, Islam now claims 1/5th of the world’s population. Currently, this equates to about 1.2 billion people, or 20% of the world’s population. In comparison, there are about 1.9 billion people who claim to be Christians. The country that has the largest population of Muslims is Indonesia, a country thousands of miles from the birthplace of Islam in Saudi Arabia. Over 200 million Indonesians now claim to be adherents of Islam. That’s about 86% of the Indonesian population. What’s noteworthy about all this is that Islam did not become prominent in Indonesia through efforts of Islamic clergy or Muslim missionaries. Nor through militant Jihad. It happened through business and trade, over a long period of time. Michael Baer, author of Business As Mission, tells of an Indonesian Christian whom he once asked why the country had become so predominately Muslim: “She said that when the Western Christians came, primarily from Holland, they built missionary compounds and missionary churches and expected the Indonesian people to come to them. The Muslims, on the other hand, came as traders, farmers, merchants, and businesspeople and simply lived among the natives.”

This is a very telling statement. It ought to give every Christian cause to pause and think about how followers of Christ can approach their daily work in a way that will shape the history of nations. Today, the Islamization of sub-Sahara Africa is taking place in a way similar to how it happened in Indonesia: through business and trade. A friend of mine, Aila Tasse, is very familiar with this process. Aila was born in Ethiopia, and today he plants Christian churches among Muslim communities in northern Kenya and Southern Ethiopia. Aila was a Muslim himself until the age of 13. He was brought up in a strong Muslim home, and his father was a leader in the local mosque. Aila converted to Christianity through the influence of a Christian in his town. After this happened, Aila’s parents disowned him, and sent him out of the house. Years later, happily, his parents came to embrace the message of the Gospel, and they became Christians, too. I met Aila in Indonesia a few years ago, while we were both taking a course through Bakke Graduate University, studying the culture and history of that country. One of the things we looked at was the interface between Islam and Christianity in that part of the world. In conversations with Aila while in Indonesia, he shared his personal experience among Muslims in Africa. What he shared caused me to be all the more diligent about helping Christians to comprehend how the way they approach their daily work can affect the very course of history, not only in North America, but around the world. When I returned to Seattle, following my trip to Indonesia, I called Aila on the telephone so I could record him for the benefit of others. I wanted others to hear what Aila had to say first hand, in his own words. My recording of Aila is contained in the next video clip: Watch Islam in Africa Approx. 3 minutes In the next video clip, Nancy Pearcey, author of Total Truth, also addresses the problem of the sacred-secular split in Africa [posted on YouTube by Access Truth]: Watch Understanding the Sacred-Secular Split Nancy Pearcey Approx. 4.5 minutes When Aila Tasse says at the end of the recording above, “...so that’s also a challenge,” he’s making a grand understatement. The root problem Aila describes is a problem of Christians having a Sacred/Secular split in their worldview, embracing a dualistic view of life, while the Muslims in Aila’s area have a wholistic view. Muslims typically do not embrace dualism. But most Christians typically do. What’s wrong with this picture?

The businesses that Muslims start in Aila’s part of the world are not fronts for Is l a m i c evangelism. They are very real businesses that meet very real community needs. In the process of meeting the real needs of the community, they invite customers and those they get to know through their businesses into their homes for Koran study. These are people they have built relationships with by providing good daily commerce. Aila informed me that the African Muslims become contributing members of the community, and take seats on the town council. So, when the time comes to build a mosque, it is built in the center of town. When the Christian missionaries first came to Africa, years ago, most of them did not make it a priority to help Africans start businesses, or get involved in civil responsibilities. But we can’t point fingers at the missionaries. They came to Africa and taught what they had learned at home. The fact of the matter is, a dualistic mindset among Western Christians is pandemic, not just on the mission field, but at home as well. How often do we hear believers in our own churches speak of having “secular jobs” and others talk of being in “full-time Christian service?” Dualism, as we discussed at length earlier, has very deep and stubborn roots, going back nearly 2,500 years to the ancient Greeks. It’s part of our Western culture. But that doesn’t mean we have to hang on to it. The consequences of hanging on to it are particularly serious today. Our future depends on replacing it with a wholistic view. Think and Discuss: Why may our future depend on rising above the pull of Western dualism, and replacing it with a wholistic view of our faith? Why may it also depend on embracing the biblical mandate to “be fruitful and multiply?” Dr. Darrell Furgason, a Christian expert in Islamic studies, summarizes the problem this way: “In places like Africa and Indonesia, the church has been intellectually crippled, with one hand tied behind its back. Western missionaries generally brought the Gospel in the way they learned it, as a purely soul-saving faith, with no real bearing on anything else—religion was a mostly personal matter, nothing to do with things like politics, science, law, economics…African people were given the Gospel, but not taught how to build a righteous nation, how to apply Christianity to everything…Muslims see their faith as all-encompassing…” Notice Dr. Furgason says this is the way the missionaries generally brought the Gospel. One notable exception was David Livingstone, the famous Scottish missionary. In a speech at Cambridge, given in 1857, Livingstone declared: “A prospect is now before us of opening Africa for commerce and the Gospel. Providence has been preparing the way…Those two pioneers of civilization—Christianity and commerce— should ever be inseparable; and Englishmen should be warned by the fruits of neglecting that principle…” Think and Discuss: Why do you suppose David Livingstone felt that Christianity and commerce “should ever be inseparable?” Regrettably, it wasn’t just the Englishmen who neglected this principle. But it is not too late for followers of Christ to make a course adjustment, both at home and abroad.

The Business As Mission movement is a positive step in that much-needed course adjustment. Michael Baer, in Business As Mission, writes: “We are living in the Business Age...Companies, and not countries, will have the greatest impact in our world in the future. Shouldn’t the Christian business community see this as a great opportunity? Shouldn’t we seek to capitalize on the doors that are open before us? Shouldn’t we view this as the ultimate chance for business to play a role in societal transformation and in the spread of the gospel?” Think and Discuss: Should we take the position that Baer suggests? If so, what exactly does this mean? FOUR REASONS FOR WORK IN THE TEMPORAL WORLD The first reason for work in the here-and-now is to distribute goods and services throughout God’s world for the benefit of all people and communities. [This reason is mentioned in Why Business Matters to God, by Jeff Van Duzer.] Is it important to God that milk gets to kitchen tables? Is it important to God that furnaces are manufactured so people can stay warm in the winter? Is it important to God that good books are printed so people can learn important things? Is it important that parents provide for their children? I think so. Legitimate businesses and services truly benefit people. Illegitimate business and services do not benefit people. If we are involved in a business or service that does not truly benefit people, it is going to be hard, if not impossible, to experience God’s pleasure in our work. I believe one of the best books on the topic of work from a biblical perspective is Your Work Matters To God, by Doug Sherman and William Hendricks. It is a classic in the field. The authors define “legitimate” work as “work that somehow contributes to what God wants done in the world, not to what He does not want done.” They also say, “If we want to love God through our work (and, I would add, if we want to experience God’s pleasure in our work), then we need to determine that what we are doing in our jobs is something God wants done, and that we are doing it because God wants it done.” Yes, the distribution of goods and services for the benefit of people is something God wants done. When we do this, and do it well, we’re actually doing the work of the Lord. Yet businesses do more than distribute goods and services. Have you ever stopped to consider that without healthy businesses, our families, churches and government wouldn’t be able to function? Business is the engine that pulls the train on which every other institution rides. I’ll say it again: Business is the engine that pulls the train on which every other institution rides. If you recall from Chapter 1, you heard a small portion of a phone interview I had with Bonnie Wurzbacher, then Vice President of Global Accounts for the Coca-Cola Company, in which she said, “we don’t get meaning from our work, we bring meaning to our work.” I’d like to come back to this phone conversation and have you hear more insights from Bonnie, particularly as she describes the critical role business plays with respect to the functioning of every other institution:

Watch Bonnie Wurzbacher on The Role of Business Approx. 2 minutes This leads to the second reason for work in the here-and-now: to provide the means by which individuals, families, churches, governments and non-profit organizations can function. Along these lines, let me say there are many reasons why churches should encourage business people within the congregation. Without business, church doors won’t stay open, and communities don’t function. Without businesses in the world, there would be no income, and it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to understand there would be no offerings to collect. In spite of this fact, instruction on the biblical view of work and the application of faith in the business world are not often focused priorities for churches. This may be starting to change, however, and some Christian schools are starting to pick up the ball. During the development of this course, I taught this material to Christian businessmen in my city. In surveying them during the course, I discovered that 83% of them had never taken a course on the subject of the integration of biblical uniview with the workplace. Yet virtually all of these men attended church. I once interviewed twenty pastors in the Seattle area and asked what their level of satisfaction was with how well their churches were equipping their congregants to influence the Monday-through-Friday workplace. The average level of satisfaction (on a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the highest) was 4.58. At the same time, twenty out of twenty (100%) believed the local church should play a role in shaping or influencing the Monday-through-Friday workplace. Yet only one pastor indicated that classes on how to apply Christianity to specific aspects of the workplace had ever been taught in his church. Clearly there is a disconnect here. This is a situation that can change, however, with some focused attention. Think and Discuss: Why do you think many pastors believe the church should play a role in shaping or influencing the Monday-through-Friday workplace but so few churches offer specific instructions on how to apply Christianity to particular aspects of work? The third reason for work in the temporal world is: to co-create with God in developing new and meaningful inventions, such as the laser printer, linoleum and symphonies, etc. Yes, God has invited us to join Him in an on-going process of creation in the material world. As Gary Starkweather reminded us, God is pleased to have us participate with Him in that ongoing process. This is where researchers, artists and innovators can thrive. The fourth reason for work is: to bring hope, healing, learning and justice to a broken world through endeavors such as feeding the hungry, providing education, civil service and

the work of local churches. This is where pastors, missionaries, workers with non-profit organizations, civil servants and educators can pull their weight. Of course, there is much overlap between these four basic reasons for work, and they are not tight compartments unto themselves. Think and Discuss: Which of the four basic reasons for work is the primary focus of your work? The “CONVERSATION STARTER” TOOL and the “ACTIVITY CONTEXTUALIZER” Remember, it is the “bigger picture” that helps us to properly interpret the “smaller” parts of life, such as what we do in our work. Keeping the “bigger picture” of a biblical uniview in mind is essential if we want to approach our work as “the work of God.” Thinking about all things in the context of the “bigger picture” is the starting point for doing all things in that context. With this in mind, two tools have been developed: the “Conversation Starter” and the “Activity Contextualizer.” These are two variations of the same tool, based on the idea of a “graphic organizer.” Here is what the Conversation Starter graphic organizer looks like:

To print out a blank Conversation Starter, click here.

Put whatever subject or theme you have in mind in the center of the graphic organizer. Then you consider how GOD relates to this subject or theme, writing in your thoughts about this in the “GOD” area in the upper left-hand corner. You repeat this process with the other 4 worldview factors: CREATION, HUMANITY, MORAL ORDER and PURPOSE. A very helpful resource for considering how any topic relates to the 5 worldview factors is the document, “Questions for Contextualizing Subject Matter.” You may print out this document here. Use the “Questions for Contextualizing Subject Matter” to generate ideas about how your subject, idea or topic can be “contextualized” by the biblical uniview. To further help you think through how your topic relates to GOD, CREATION, HUMANITY, MORAL ORDER and PURPOSE, use the 99 Truths about Work, Economics and Human Flourishing resource [click here.] Also look at 101 Biblical Worldview Truths, developed by the Biblical Worldview Institute, a division of Cascade Christian Schools, in Puyallup, WA [click here.] The long from of the 101 Biblical Worldview Truths, complete with Scripture references, is here. Below is an example of a Conversation Starter graphic organizer that was filled out around the topic of plants:

The above example is available http://www.biblicalworldview.com/Godspleasure.html, item #8.

Below is an example of a Conversation Starter graphic organizer that was filled out around the topic of plants, as perhaps Dr. George Washington Carver may To print out the above example, click here. Try this tool for yourself. Think of any subject, theme or topic you are dealing with, whether at school, home, church, or place of employment. The Activity Contextualizer follows the same idea as the Conversation Starter, but focuses on an activity or project. Below is what the Activity Contextualizer looks like:

To print out a copy of this template, click here. Put an activity or project you are working on in the center of the graphic organizer. Then consider how GOD relates to this activity or project, and you write your thoughts about this in the “GOD” area, in the upper left-hand corner. Repeat this process with the other 4 worldview factors: CREATION, HUMANITY, MORAL ORDER and PURPOSE. A helpful resource for considering how your activity or project relates to the 5 worldview factors is the document, “Questions for Contextualizing Work.” To print out a copy of this document, click here.

Below is an example of an Activity Contextualizer focusing on the work of an artist, specifically the work of oil painting. To print out a copy of the example below, click here.

Watch the interviews below, as classroom teachers share how they used the Conversation Starter tool with their students. Many thanks to Lighthouse Christian School, in Gig Harbor, Washington; Isaac Newton Christian Academy, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa; and Grace Christian School, in Staunton, Virginia: https://youtu.be/3qj8pM0EOIE https://youtu.be/pmQExuHR7fc https://youtu.be/CDtSVlm7Jwk Here is an example of a pre-school teacher at Cascade Christian Schools, Puyallup, Washington, putting the topic of plants into the context of the larger biblical frame-ofreference: https://youtu.be/VUeVwyuAdVQ PARTICIPANT GUIDE REVIEW of CHAPTERS 9-12 Play this animated video with your Participant Guide in front of you (here). As various blanks are filled in on the video, print the text in the Guide. click here.

Chapter Thirteen

The Big Picture Watch Introduction by Christian and Kathy Overman Approx. 1.5 minutes For most of us, our work falls into the category of “ordinary” things we do. Even for people who have unusual jobs, like freelance photographers or professional polo players, whatever is done on a regular basis can seem “ordinary.” I’m not saying it’s boring. I’m just saying it’s ordinary. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. In fact, w h e n “ordinary” is excellent, helpful or productive, it’s a good thing. But sometimes “ordinary” translates into “mundane,” or “meaningless.” When this happens, people start dreaming about retirement, living for the weekend, or becoming frustrated malcontents. With work occupying more than one-third of our waking hours, that’s a lot of time devoted to insignificance! This course is about the extraordinary significance of ordinary work. Whether it’s work on an assembly line, behind a desk, or on the back of a horse. But the extraordinary significance of ordinary work can only be realized when we see our ordinary work in extraordinary ways. SEEING THE ORDINARY IN EXTRAORDINARY WAYS There is an abundance of water in Seattle, where I live. When I drive by a lake, which occurs often, I don’t usually think about what’s in the water. Oh, sometimes I might think about fish, and how nice it would be to reel one into the boat, but rarely do I think about the tiny things in the water I can’t see. But if I were to take a drop of ordinary lake water and examine it through a high-powered microscope, I would see that water very differently. Suddenly, the “ordinary” would become quite “extraordinary.” When I say this book is about seeing ordinary work in extraordinary ways, I mean it’s about viewing ordinary work through the extraordinary lens of a biblical uniview. Earlier in this curriculum we learned that Richard Wright, a professor, defined worldview as: “A comprehensive framework of beliefs that helps us to interpret what we see and experience, and also gives us direction in the choices that we make as we live out our days.”

We all carry around a “comprehensive framework of beliefs” in our heads, subconsciously. It is the bigger picture of reality that helps us make sense of all the smaller pieces of life. Furthermore, this bigger picture causes us to see all the smaller pieces of life in certain predictable ways. However, because we don’t all have the same big “universal” picture in our heads, we don’t all see the “particular” small things in similar ways. MEMORY TEST Early in this course, we saw an example of how the bigger picture affects the way we interpret smaller pieces. It has been a while since you viewed the example that I am referring to. In the video below, you will see the smaller piece of the larger picture that appeared much earlier in this course. If you can remember that larger picture, identifying the small piece in the video below will be easy. If you did not see the larger picture earlier, it will not be so easy! Give it a try. Identify what the smaller piece really is: Watch Can you make sense of it? Approx. 30 seconds It is nearly impossible to know for sure what you are looking at when you view the smaller piece by itself in the video above, if you did not know what the larger picture really is. But if you remember the “big picture” from earlier, it is easy. Let’s have a quick review, taking a look at video #3 and #4 below: Watch Visual Memory Exercise Approx. 1.5 minutes Watch The Function of a Frame of Reference Approx. 2.5 minutes

THE BIGGER PICTURE The big challenge that followers of Christ face in today’s secularized world is to “desecularize” our work by viewing our work in the context of a larger frame of reference (a “big picture of reality”) that is distinctly biblical, and in sync with how things really are. Approaching our work in the context of a biblical framework takes practice, because most of us weren’t taught how to do this in school. It is a lost art. While this skill may have come naturally to followers of Christ a few hundred years ago, who saw “their shop as well as their chapel as holy ground,” it doesn’t come naturally today in our highly secularized culture.

With this in mind, we’re going to take a step-by-step approach to the art and science of making connections between the biblical uniview and our daily work. This may seem somewhat mechanical at first. But it’s like learning to drive. When you first get behind the wheel, you have to think quite a bit about turning the key in the ignition, releasing the parking brake, and putting the gears in drive. After a while, it all flows naturally. We’re going to approach the biblical worldview as a composite picture with twelve parts. Even breaking it down to twelve parts does not do it justice. The biblical worldview is so big, even the word “worldview” is inadequate. The word is too small! The biblical worldview is really a view of reality that is larger than the universe! In fact, we would do better to use the word “uniview.” Whether we call it a “worldview” or a “uniview,” for practical purposes, I will call the following twelve parts, “Big Picture Pieces.” Once I identify a particular “Big Picture Piece,” I will then consider how that piece affects the way we view all things. In the process, we will begin to see our ordinary work in extraordinary ways, like viewing an ordinary drop of lake water through a high-powered microscope. When viewing work through the lens of a biblical worldview (or “uniview”), our coworkers [fellow students], customers and clients will appear different than they did before. The service we provide, the products we sell, the plans we make, and the pains we feel in the workplace all look different when viewed through the lens of a biblical frame of reference. CHRONICLE OF THE AGES Altogether, the twelve Big Picture Pieces of a biblical uniview we are talking about here compose a narrative, or a chronicle. This “Chronicle of the Ages” has four parts: Creation, Fall, Redemption and Restoration. Big Picture Pieces #1-4 have to do with the Creation part of the Chronicle. Big Picture Pieces #5-6 have to do with the Fall part of the Chronicle. Big Picture Pieces #7-8 have to do with the Redemption part, and Big Picture Pieces #9-12 have to do with the Restoration part. In this part of the course, we will focus on Big Picture Pieces #1-#8. (Big Picture Pieces #9-#12 were already discussed.) Let’s start with the Creation part of the Chronicle, and take a look at how our understanding of the biblical view of Creation can bring extraordinary meaning to our “ordinary” work. BIG PICTURE PIECE #1 The first Big Picture Piece is: The entire universe was spoken into existence by the Designer-Creator’s willing choice. [Gen. 1] How can this Big Picture Piece cause a milk deliveryman to view his ordinary work in extraordinary ways? Here are a few thoughts: Milk is God’s idea. He made it. When I’m working with milk, I’m working with His very creation. It’s part of His King-domain. I’m engaged with His handiwork of milk, which He has a designed with a purpose.

Here are a few more thoughts: All my customers exist as a result of God’s choice to create humans. I, too, am here, participating in their lives and serving them, as a result of God’s choice to create. All this leads to: Life isn’t all about me. The work I’m doing as a milkman is ultimately about the Designer-Creator’s choice to create milk, and His purpose for it. Think and Discuss: How does Big Picture Piece #1 relate to your work? (If you are a student, remember your primary work is your school work, but also your work in the home.) BIG PICTURE PIECE #2 To set the stage for Big Picture Piece #2, please view the video below: Watch A Biblical View of the “Natural” World Approx. 3 minutes The second Big Picture Piece is this: God caused all things to first appear, and He continuously sustains all things throughout the present. [Col. 1:16-17; Heb. 1:1-3; Acts 17:2428]. Colossians 1:16-17 says: “For it was in Him [that is, in Christ], that all things were created, in heaven and on earth, things seen and things unseen, whether thrones, dominions, rulers or authorities; all things were created and exist through Him and in and for Him. And He Himself existed before all things and in Him all things consist [cohere, are held together].” Notice it says, "all things were created and exist through Him." It's one thing to know that the Creator knit you together in your mother’s womb, and it’s another thing to be aware that He is presently holding you together as you are sitting or reclining while reading this book! In fact, He's holding together the chair you’re sitting on, the room you’re in and the book itself. Although God is sustaining everything in the universe, including our human bodies, this is not to say God is controlling every human act. To sustain and to control are two very different things. If I were to punch you in the nose, I trust you wouldn’t say God made me do it. It is true that He sustained my fist as it connected with your face, but God did not cause me to swing. While God is in a position of absolute control, He doesn’t control all things absolutely. If He did, humans would not be responsible or accountable for any of their actions. Job 12:9-10 says, "In [God's] hand is the life of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind." Think about it! God is giving us our next breath. There is nothing “natural” about breathing! And Acts 17:24-28 says, "God, who made the world and everything in it...gives to all life, breath, and all things...In Him we live and move and have our being..." It is significant that Paul is not speaking here to a group of Christians, but to a group of pagans in ancient Greece, at the city marketplace of Athens, addressing them from atop a large outcrop called, “Mars Hill.” He tells them, “In Him we live and move and have our being…”

How can this be? Do non-Christians “live and move and have their being” in Christ? In a general sense, they do! This is what theologians call “common grace.” God is sustaining the breath and being of all people. This includes those who curse Him or say He doesn't exist. It also includes a n atheist boss or a Buddhist co-worker. The question is, how might Big Picture Piece #2 cause a milk deliveryman to view his ordinary work in extraordinary ways? Here are a few thoughts that Mike the milkman could have: My ability to carry milk is totally God-dependent. My breath and the very existence of all my customers are in God’s hands. Here’s one more remarkable thought for Mike: The milk that I carry around is sustained by God. It is continually “speaking” of God’s eternal power and sovereignty. Romans 1:20 says: “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead…” The eternal power and Godhead of Christ, the Creator Unlimited, can be seen in majestic mountains and gargantuan galaxies. But His power and sovereignty can also be seen in a bottle of milk—if we take time to see it through the lens of a biblical uniview. Not only can the power and provision of God be seen in milk, it can be “heard.” But we really need to listen. God is sending us clear messages every day. He is “speaking” to us through His creation. Not just through the vast expanse of sky above our heads, but through the smaller things around us—at work and everywhere. This includes milk, and the cartons that hold it. It all speaks of the power and sovereignty of God. Without the Creator of all things, the elements that make up the bottles and cartons would not “cohere.” Mike the milkman would have a real mess on his hands. Hebrews 1:1-3 says that Christ, through whom God made the world, is “upholding all things by the word of His power.” “All things” include milk and milk cartons. The phrase, “by the word of His power” is significant. It is mysterious language, for sure, but it links with the Genesis account of creation where we read that God spoke the universe into existence. There is certainly more to His speech than meets the eye! By His word, all things are held together. BIG PICTURE PIECE #3 The third Big Picture Piece is: The Creator-Sustainer is a personal being.

Think about it. The God of the Bible has personhood! He is not a human person, of course, and humans are not deities, but both God and humans share something very remarkable: both are personal beings. God has a mind, and He communicates with language. He reasons, plans, creates, laughs, cries, makes choices, and is highly relational. He talked with Moses on the mountain. He shared a meal with Abraham [see Gen. 18]. And God took on the form of a man in the Person of Christ Jesus. What are the ramifications of God’s personhood for Mike the milkman? First: Mike can communicate with God at work, and receive wisdom from God for daily workplace problems. Furthermore, God personally knows and understands Mike inside and out, and all of his customers and co-workers as well. And because Christ knows what it’s like to be human, the Lord can relate to Mike’s every trial and challenge at work in a highly personal way. Hebrews 4:15 says, “For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.” CARPENTERS, COPS AND CEOS The curriculum you are reading now is based on the belief that the First Commission that God gave to human beings (as recorded in Genesis 1:26-28), is a mandate for humans to steward the full spectrum of God’s created-and-sustained world: “Let Us make man in our likeness and image, and let him rule...over all the earth.” This responsible role of stewardship necessitates all kinds of work, from businesses, to civil service, to the arts and sciences, to homemaking. Humans are made in the image and likeness of a personal God so that we could function effectively in our role as vice-regents in God’s present Kingdom on earth. This is what work is about! God does His work through carpenters, cops and CEOs. Furthermore, it brings God pleasure to have us participating with Him in this on-going process as His co-workers. Our goal in this curriculum is to help followers of Christ to align their faith with their daily labor, so they can experience God’s pleasure in work, so workplaces can be invigorated, communities renewed, and cultures transformed through the Person of Christ at work in ordinary people doing extraordinary things, like delivering milk to grocery stores. And passing on the gift of music. Pause and enjoy Franz Liszt's Liebestraum: Watch The Mystery Player Approx. 6.5 minutes

Chapter Fourteen

Made in the Image of God What does it mean to be human? For such an important question there seem to be a lot of answers floating around. Some helpful, and some not so helpful. Are we simply forms of finite matter existing in time and space? Are we just an assortment of chemicals? Or is there something more? Is there a characteristic that qualifies “humans” to be “human?” The Bible provides a remarkable answer to the “what does it mean to be human?” question. In Genesis 1:26-28, we read: “Then God said, ‘Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them rule…over all the earth…’” Here we see God choosing to create something unique. He decides to create rational beings that actually resemble Himself! And He decides to give these beings a purposeful assignment: to rule over planet Earth. Think about it. Human beings are made in the likeness and image of God, and given a specific job description. This has remarkable significance for our daily work. As humans, we have been set apart for a singular purpose on this planet. God chose to carry out His purpose through us! He made us in His likeness and image so we could. BIG PICTURE PIECE #4 Big Picture Piece #4 is: Man and woman were specially created in the likeness and image of God, thus setting us apart from animals and giving us a basis for intrinsic value and inherent worth. [Gen. 1:26-28; 9:6] Every human is knit together in his or her mother’s womb by God, and all people continue to breathe outside the womb and are held together by “the continuing word of His power.” (Hebrews 1:3) By virtue of creation, all people bear the image and likeness of God, no matter what their state of disrepair. Some have conjectured that after Adam and Eve sinned, God gave mankind up as a botched job, and turned us over to Satan. Yet even after the Fall, the Bible affirms the fact that humans have unique value as image-bearers of God, in their fallen state. This is clear from Genesis 9, where God spoke to Noah and his family as they emerged from the ark. God said, “Whoever sheds man’s blood, by man his blood shall be shed; for in the image of God He made man.” In spite of the fact that we have all been affected by sin and its consequences, all of us bear the image and likeness of God by virtue of His creation. This includes every co-worker (classmate), customer, or client. It includes people with every kind of disability, both mental and physical.

Think about this for a moment! Even our most difficult customers and co-workers possess innate value, because each one is created as an image-bearer of God, and thus they are worthy of profound respect, regardless of their behavior. Think and Discuss: How does this last paragraph relate to your workplace, be it classroom or shop? Is there anyone you work with that you might need to view in a different light? ALIGNING FAITH WITH WORK Being made in the likeness and image of God is the determining factor of human identity. It sets us as far apart from the ape as from the ant or a plant. But the big question is, what practical difference can recognizing people as image-bearers of God make in the workplace, whether that workplace is at school, home, church or the community? (Remember the four wheels of work we discussed in Chapter Eleven.) One person who answered this question well can be seen in a specific company: The Herman Miller Company. This company is the second largest manufacturer of office furniture in the world. It has been named on Business Ethics’ “100 Best Corporate Citizens” list, and on Diversity Inc’s “Top Ten” list. It received the “Sustainable Leadership Award” at the CoreNet Global Summit, and the Chicago Museum selected the Herman Miller Celle Chair for exhibit. Max DePree served as the CEO of the Herman Miller Company for many years, following his older brother, Hugh, and his father. In the interview that appears in the video below, you will hear some important clues about DePree’s uniview. His comments reinforce the basic premise of this course, namely, that it’s our worldview [or uniview] that drives our values that influence our behavior and create culture. This is true whether that culture is the culture of a home, the culture of a company, the culture of a community, or the culture of a nation. Watch Max DePree on Belief, Values and Behavior Approx. 2.5 minutes Max DePree provides further insight into his biblically-shaped uniview in a book he wrote, titled, Leadership is an Art. In this book, DePree helps us to understand the relationship between what we believe and what we do in the workplace. Below are a few statements from DePree’s book that are pertinent to our discussion here: “Understand that what we believe precedes policy and practice.” “Our value system and world view should be as closely integrated into our work lives as they are integrated into our lives with our families, our churches, and our other activities and groups.”

“I believe each person is made in the image of God… this belief has enormous implications.” “God has given people a great diversity of gifts. Understanding the diversity of our gifts enables us to begin taking the crucial step of trusting each other.” DePree believes every Herman Miller employee (Christian or not) bears God’s image. This means God has given each employee unique gifts intended to be exercised for the benefit of all. This belief has deeply shaped company management policies at every level of the organization. One of the goals of the Herman Miller management approach is to release and encourage the gifts of each employee. DePree holds that “what we believe precedes policy and practice.” This awareness has led him to ask how he could intentionally align his biblical uniview with company policies and procedures. The key: intentional alignment. Anyone can profess to believe that God made employees in His likeness and gave each “a great diversity of gifts.” But to intentionally connect those beliefs with the daily realities of running a business puts them to the test. The joining of faith and work happens right here. Does this process require rocket science? No. But reaping the rewards of doing so requires some careful attention. It begins with identifying specific biblical truths followed by spelling out the workplace values these truths call for. Having identified these values, we can more intentionally move toward specific behaviors that flow from them. Let’s take a look at how this worked in DePree’s case. Two specific biblical truths that DePree aligned with his work at the Herman Miller Company are: 1) God creates all humans in His own likeness and image 2) God gives great diversity of gifts and abilities to people, which are to be freely exercised for the benefit of all These are DePree’s starting points. And from these starting points, certain specific workplace values were identified, namely: 1) Respect the contributions of all workers, at all levels of the company 2) Recognize and encourage the gifts that are resident in all members of the company (DePree says, for the purpose of “liberating and enabling these gifts”)

3) Hear and consider the ideas of all employees (DePree says, for the purpose of “encouraging contrary opinions and abandoning ourselves to the wild ideas of others”) 4) Tolerate risk and forgive errors But identifying values is not the end of the matter. Unless these values are “fleshed out” in the policies, procedures and practices of an organization or company, the process of alignment is merely an academic exercise with little practical effect. In DePree’s case, certain management practices of the Herman Miller Company became standard operating procedure, based on the above values, specifically: 1) Making it a regular practice to ask open and honest questions that elicit substantive input from co-workers 2) Taking the input from all employees very seriously, whether it comes from executives or custodians, and moving upon those ideas that warrant action In DePree’s book, Leadership is an Art, he lists a number of specific questions that he made a practice of asking his management team. These questions validated the worth of the individuals he was asking, and opened opportunities to freely express opinions. They are questions designed to elicit open dialogue. For example: “What are a few of the things that you expect most and need most from me?” “If you were ‘in my shoes,’ what is one key area or matter you would focus on?” “What significant areas are there in the company where you feel you can make a contribution but feel you cannot get a hearing?” “In the past year, what, from the perspective of integrity, most affected you personally, professionally, and organizationally?” Think and Discuss: What do you think of these questions? Would you feel comfortable asking such questions of those you will lead? Would you feel comfortable asking these questions of a spouse? As a student, what questions would you like to be asked? Where did Max DePree get his uniview? The answer to this question is as significant as his ability to align the biblical uniview with his work: Watch The Education of Max DePree Approx. 1 minute

While very few of us have an opportunity to be the CEO of a global company, many of us will have the opportunity to be parents. We don’t know what kind of work our children will grow up to do. We cannot control such matters. But we do have control over whether or not our children will be raised in a home where a biblical uniview is nurtured in their hearts and minds. We don’t have to be seminary professors to do this. Parenting is critically important work, and we can certainly experience God’s pleasure in it. Yet homemaking in the U.S. today is work that is grossly underrated, much to the detriment of our entire culture. It is my hope that all homemakers (present and future) going through this curriculum will understand that the principles discussed in this course are as relevant to the work of homemakers as they are to the work of CEOs, civil leaders and accountants. Think and Discuss: Why do so few families today do even a small portion of what the DePree family did with respect to biblical training? Are the reasons for not doing so valid?

The other significant thing to underscore from video #8 is the fact that knowledge of Scripture plays a critical role in aligning biblical faith with one’s work. It seems like stating the obvious to say that in order to align the biblical uniview with our work, we must know what the Bible says. The Bible is the starting point for aligning biblical faith with work, and there is no other starting point from which we can begin. How can we possibly make intentional alignments between our workplace behaviors and the biblical uniview if we do not know what the Bible has to say? We are currently living in an era when the knowledge of Scripture is not valued by many. Up until 1962, many of U.S. state schools included Bible reading as a normal part of education. In addition, many parents sent their children to Sunday School where they were exposed to the Bible, even if the parents themselves were not believers. But those days have faded, and the necessity for personal Bible study is greater than ever. The next time you read a portion of Scripture, ask yourself what it has to do with your workplace. How does it relate to your co-workers (classmates)? How does it relate to whatever occupies your time and mind most of the work day? The following video, created by The Bible Project, is a fitting conclusion for this chapter: Watch “Image of God” Approx. 6 minutes

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