Could you pass the test?

Quincy stopped by to visit today and he was very excited. He wanted me to know he had a date for his citizenship test. We chatted and he shared a few examples of the questions he expected to find on the test.

My secretary and I laughed as we tried to answer them. I have to brag and tell you that I knew every answer. But I am sure there are a lot of people who would not do as well. I think that is why the television show, "Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader" is so fun to watch. We learn so many things when we are in school but we tend to forget most of it. Unless we are actively engaged in some area where we are using it every day, we lose it,

Quincy, though, was so proud. He wants to become an American citizen very badly. He was born in China and he and his family have been here for several years. He loves this country and is wiling to prove it. He said he has been studying for the last two years. How many of the rest of us would work that hard if we had to take a test to retain our citizenship in this great country? We take it for granted.

I think the same thing is true for our faith. Many of us can remember when we first became Christians. The Bible was exciting to us. We loved going to church and learning new things from the messages given by the priest or minister. We may have even gotten involved in a Sunday School class or Bible Study. But before long many of us began taking what we knew for granted.

I ran into a friend of mine who is Roman Catholic this morning. He showed me the book he was reading. It laid out the basic beliefs of his church. He told me that he wanted to know what Catholics believed. He said he hadn 't studied it since he went through catechism as a child. He said he wanted to know what he believed and why. This book tied the doctrines to the Scriptures and he said he loved it.

The truth is that many of us don't really know what we believe. We could never take a test on the basics of our Biblical faith. We don't even really know what the Bible says. What we think we know comes from the secular media which tells us what Christians believe and from popular television and movies which portray religious people certain ways. For example, which of these sayings comes from the Bible:

a) God helps those who help themselves...
b) God loves a cheerful giver...
c) Blessed are the weak for they shall be made strong...

Talking to Quincy this morning reminded me that if we really believe that our faith will save us and that the Bible is God's Word, then we should take the time to study it and learn what it has to say. Thankfully, for now, Jesus has already taken the test and we can claim his grade. But it would still be nice to know the answers so we can be blessed by His word.

Cal