A Bible College training is sometimes dismissed as preparing students to face every challenge of previous generations.
It can seem otherworldly and out of touch. And are Bible Colleges in danger of removing capable people from the secular world and isolating them in the bubbles of Christian ministry?
We busy ourselves in the world, of course, but we often do so simply because we must. Are we cultural beings who belong to the culture around us or merely passing pilgrims with little to no obligation to a world fated to fade? How, as Michael Horton once quipped, could we sing both This World Is Not My Home and This Is My Father’s World?
An old tension
This tension is not novel, neither is it unique to us. It’s a question that Israel faced, albeit in quite a different form. Whilst in Babylonian exile, surviving Israelites were reminded of God’s counsel regarding life in their new city (Jer.29). Israel, as a people, was not merely a cluster of detached individuals. Its people had, and would’ve felt, a sense of corporate belonging. They were God’s people in a foreign land. Yet I’m sure the allure would’ve been to view themselves as a people with no obligations to such a hostile culture. Or worse, to work toward Babylon’s undoing. Like us, they may have been tempted to view their work in the world as of little significance. Theirs was simply to await God’s deliverance. God cared little for what they did in the interim.
What’s striking is that these instructions reveal quite the opposite. Israel was not to view itself as merely an enemy of Babylon with no desire to work for its good. They were to build homes (v.6), start families (v.7), multiply (v.7). They were to seek the welfare of Babylon and pray for its good (v.7). Although the city they would temporarily inhabit was hostile, God instructed Israel to care for and work toward the flourishing of this foreign land. Their efforts in the ‘culture’ mattered.
Bible Colleges and the work of training
Does a Bible College train us to fulfil Jeremiah’s call? Or does it merely prepare its students to be of use within the demands of local church life? Perhaps there is some suspicion that such training may leave students struggling to engage with the world around them. But I’ve found the opposite to be true.
Far from isolating its students within the walls of the academy, my college training equipped me to serve the church and to labour faithfully in the world. What college training should do so well is enable students to know how to live faithfully as witnesses for Christ in the world. It does not remove its students from the world, but places them there with Good News to share. This has been a profound encouragement for my ministry.
Living faithfully in the world
What this means is that we rethink the importance of our place in our culture. God redeems us and places us in our cultural context primarily to make Christ known, but also, through our cultural life, to shape it for its good.
In my own context, this has been primarily by loving and caring for my people in gospel ministry, preaching and teaching God’s word, calling God’s people to repentance and faith, seeking out the good of my community. Yours may look different, but it’s not less significant. You may labour in the world as a cleaner, a lawyer or a pastor.
Wherever Christ places us and in whatever context, He calls us to live our lives as salt and light whilst we eagerly anticipate His coming. To proclaim the lordship of Christ whilst working for the good of our culture. To remember that these labours are not in vain.
