Some of you know that when I was in junior high and high school, I was in Scholastic Bowl. We would compete against other schools in a battle of the minds. We would be asked questions ranging from biology to sports to art to mythology and many other topics. Some would be typically included in your school education. Other questions, not so much. But it was always a lot of fun. As a running joke, many students that weren’t in Scholastic Bowl, and even a few of us that were in Scholastic Bowl, called it, “Nerd Bowl”. We were nerds, and we embraced that moniker. I know many people over the decades have viewed nerds in a negative connotation, but we were proud of that label, and I still am. Feel free to call me a nerd on a Sunday morning. I welcome it.
Now, being a nerd isn’t something I became in junior high. I was always wanting to learn. I was one of those weirdos who loved school. The more I knew, I knew the more successful I could be, and that was only enhanced by my mom’s leadership. She was always encouraging my brother and me to learn more. One of her sayings, which isn’t unique to her, was “knowledge is power”. And that’s true. The more you know, typically, the more capable you are of doing things and helping others. And so that’s how I’ve always been, trying to learn and grow.
Now, when I became a Christian in high school, that didn’t change, but how it looked changed. I was now reading and learning more about the Bible. And that enhanced even more when I made the change to go into ministry. I take my role of teacher and leader very seriously, and so I do things to get better in those areas.
In James 3:1, he warns, “Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.” He goes on to explain how dangerous the tongue can be, if we don’t control it well. While I think it’s easy to frame this passage in the kinds of words we say, not using expletives and being kind with our words to others, I don’t think that’s the only thing James has in mind, given this opening sentence of the chapter. Teachers have the responsibility to instruct their students, whether it's 1 person or 1000, what teachers say matters because it’s going on to the next generation and the ideas are getting dispersed into culture and certainly have the power to shape people’s lives. So as a teacher here at RCC, or anywhere that I teach, be it at camp or elsewhere, it’s important for me to say the right things that are biblical and are instructive to show people an accurate picture of God.
To that end, this year I made a New Year’s Resolution. I typically don’t, but I had a feeling this one would be easy to do. I began reading a lot. I wanted to read all the books I own that I have not read before, and there were plenty. So I’m most of the way through at this point. At my current pace, I should be through them all by the end of September. That’s my hope anyway. But while this gives me some satisfaction to read all those books, and then buy more, it’s also important to me, as a spiritual leader and teacher here at RCC, to continue to learn more about the Bible and how to teach it. If I become stagnant in this, my effectiveness will diminish quickly, and the church will suffer. So I continue to learn, and I hope you do too.
I don’t say these things just to brag. I say these things in the hopes to inspire you to embrace your inner nerd. Learning is such an instrumental part of human growth. When we stop learning, we stop growing, and I don’t think that’s what God wants for anybody. So, whether it’s about the Bible or about God, or about your profession, or just about a hobby you’d like to take up, I encourage you to lean into the fun experience of learning. While I am partial to reading in order to learn, I certainly recognize that it isn't for everybody, and it isn’t effective for everything. I don’t think I’d like a surgeon to operate on me just because he read a book one time. There are things that take a more practical approach to learn, which is also great. Just don’t stop learning. As my mom, and certainly countless others, have said, “knowledge is power.”
At the beginning of this year, I received an email as part of a subscription I have to a blog called, “Church and Culture”. It’s by James Emery White, the founding pastor of Mecklenburg Community Church in Charlotte, NC. It was about New Year’s Resolutions for church leaders. There were 15 of them, and each was backed up by a Bible verse. And sure enough, number 10 was, “read more.” You may be wondering what Bible verse he used for that. 2 Timothy 4:13 says, “When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpas at Troas, and my scrolls, especially the parchments.” 2 Timothy is Paul’s last letter we have before his beheading. And here at the end of his life, he still wants his scrolls (They didn’t have bound books back then). He didn’t want to stop learning what God had for him. Let us live with that same attitude.
“Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but whoever hates correction is stupid.” -Proverbs 12:1 (NIV)
