Context 1: The Whole Story

A man told the story of how he once walked into his family room and found his wife crying. In front of them, credits rolled on the television screen.

"What's the matter, honey?" the man inquired.

"The story." she blubbered, "I can't explain it. You would have to watch the whole film to understand."

Our Christian experience can be much the same way. As a new believer, we have not yet come to know the depth and the richness of the story of God's covenant; of His calling on Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; of Moses, the Passover, the Tabernacle, and the wilderness wanderings; of Joshua and the Judges; of David, the shepherd king; of Zion, the city of God; of the prophets, the captivity, and the return. And yet each of these components, and many more, add layer upon layer of understanding to the advent of the Christ, His sacrificial death, His resurrection, commission, and ascension.

Relating to current events, too, can be like this. If we come onto the scene without knowing the whole story, it is impossible to have a true grasp of the meaning of the events unfolding before us.

Context. The more we have of it, the more clearly we understand.

I am both amazed and saddened by the dearth of understanding among so many in my country. I am discouraged by how many can be so easily swayed with just a few, partial facts or half truths—information tendered with no context, no background. Call it propaganda—stories told to sway and influence hearers to think and act a certain way. I see much of it in the world around me, right here in America, the land of the free.

What has become of critical thinking?

I have titled this post Context 1. It will be, I hope, the first of many short posts where I will attempt to place things in context, to try and lend a bit of background and understanding to some of the things that are going on in our world.

I will write more soon.