The Rose-Colored Glass is Half Full

Before engaging in a debate with an educated or intellectual opponent, there are a few questions you should consider asking:

1. Is knowledge accessible to someone without his degree/level of education?
2. Is knowledge accessible to persons of other faith or to persons of no faith? (If the opponent is religious.)
3. What would cause him to change his mind about his beliefs or ideas?

The answers to these questions will help you to know if discussion will be productive. If the answer to the first or second question is “no,” conversation will be futile if you do not hold the same title or degree as your opponent. He will attempt to teach you, but will not be open to a meaningful exchange of ideas.

If he does not provide at least one concrete, testable answer to the third question, conversation will be futile. A reasonable person will allow his mind to be changed by facts and truth. An ideologue will maintain his belief in spite of evidence to the contrary.

The third question is equally useful when beginning a dialog with an uneducated opponent. Discussion is meaningless unless each party recognizes the possibility of error and is willing to alter his position to fit the facts.

Finally, you should answer each question above for yourself. Do your answers reveal you to be a seeker of truth or an ideologue?

I enjoy reading between the lines.

I like listening to people’s words and hearing not only what they say, but what they mean. Sometimes the words are not enough to tell the whole story and interpretation is required.

One of my favorite pastimes is listening to preachers because they are masters of interpretation. Their job is not simply to present the words of the Bible to eager Christian ears, but to interpret those words so that they are understandable to the listeners. On occasion, however, a preacher subtly changes a meaning while interpreting, causing his listeners to hear a message different than the one presented in the text.

Today my sister posted a message from her pastor, Dan Hudson of Pathway Church. The sermon’s purpose was to identify the cost of following Jesus. Pastor Dan used as his text Luke 14 and focused on the summary in verse 33:

“In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.”

Here is Pastor Dan’s interpretation:

“Jesus wants everything. [...] It doesn’t mean you need to live in poverty. Don’t misunderstand that. But how much are you willing to give up?”

So for Pastor Dan, Jesus’ words can be interpreted to mean something considerably different than what Jesus said. Jesus said give everything up, or you can’t be a disciple. Pastor Dan says you just need to be “willing.”

That interpretation is undoubtedly gentler on the modern Christian and makes it easier to gain converts. But is the interpretation valid? Pastor Dan, is that what Jesus really said? Or is it what you wanted him to say?