Set next on my slate of courses is Introductory Psychology. As soon as I prepared to begin studying for this course, I looked at its CollegePlus-issued study guide. My eyes were immediately drawn to a caution:
Discernment: The ability to differentiate and determine lies from truth.
I had a phone call with my academic coach for CollegePlus last Tuesday and, as we talked about Introductory Psychology, I brought up this caution. My coach had a smile in her voice as she gave me a word of caution about the caution. She was a psychology major. So she can't count all of the well-meaning people who sat her down to make sure she understood perfectly well that psychology can be dangerous. She went into this degree somehow expecting it to be so much worse in worldview than any other degree. She expected, from what people had said, that she needed more discernment in psychology than in any other area of her life. And then she did the degree, and she finished, and she realized this simply wasn't so.
Christians are called to be discerning in every single area of their life. (My dad emphasized this in an excellent post just a while back.) That's why CollegePlus' note of caution can be a little misleading. It presents the idea, implicitly at least, that discernment is something that's needed in one place and not in another. Like it's a switch than be can flipped on or off. If we think it's only needed in Introductory Psychology, we're liable to lack in discernment in some other subject that doesn't have the caution. And in so doing, we'll lead ourself down a dangerous road.
There is one occasion in the Bible that particularly speaks of discernment. It comes from the book of Joshua, and it's about a group of people called the Gibeonites. The Gibeonites were neighbours to the Israelites, God's chosen people. But the Gibeonites, like all the nations surrounding Israel, hated God. And that's why God's plan of judgement on them was to be worked through Israel. In His holiness, He commanded Israel to destroy the God-hating nations around them. And so they did. Except for Gibeon. Gibeon was crafty. They were no fools. They saw the Israelites' plan of attack and they knew what was coming to them. And they decided they didn't want to die. So they made up a plan. Joshua 9:3-6 says this:
Discernment was down, and Israel would suffer its consequences - disobedience to God. I hope this wakes us up to the urgency and necessity of discernment in everything, whether we turn on the TV, or are surfing the web, whether in church or school, whether it's said from the pulpit or the paper, from people we trust or people we don't. It's true that there are times when we need more or less discernment depending on the situation, but there is never, never, an excuse for lacking in discernment.
C.H. Spurgeon:
Please Note: Some offensive materials are contained in the theories which must be studied for this test, and we as CollegePlus do not endorse all these worldviews. We ask that you use discretion and take personal responsibility in studying, remembering to bring everything under the authority of the Word of God. Be wise in discerning the lies from the truth and discuss questionable content with your parents and coach.
Discernment: The ability to differentiate and determine lies from truth.
I had a phone call with my academic coach for CollegePlus last Tuesday and, as we talked about Introductory Psychology, I brought up this caution. My coach had a smile in her voice as she gave me a word of caution about the caution. She was a psychology major. So she can't count all of the well-meaning people who sat her down to make sure she understood perfectly well that psychology can be dangerous. She went into this degree somehow expecting it to be so much worse in worldview than any other degree. She expected, from what people had said, that she needed more discernment in psychology than in any other area of her life. And then she did the degree, and she finished, and she realized this simply wasn't so.
Christians are called to be discerning in every single area of their life. (My dad emphasized this in an excellent post just a while back.) That's why CollegePlus' note of caution can be a little misleading. It presents the idea, implicitly at least, that discernment is something that's needed in one place and not in another. Like it's a switch than be can flipped on or off. If we think it's only needed in Introductory Psychology, we're liable to lack in discernment in some other subject that doesn't have the caution. And in so doing, we'll lead ourself down a dangerous road.
There is one occasion in the Bible that particularly speaks of discernment. It comes from the book of Joshua, and it's about a group of people called the Gibeonites. The Gibeonites were neighbours to the Israelites, God's chosen people. But the Gibeonites, like all the nations surrounding Israel, hated God. And that's why God's plan of judgement on them was to be worked through Israel. In His holiness, He commanded Israel to destroy the God-hating nations around them. And so they did. Except for Gibeon. Gibeon was crafty. They were no fools. They saw the Israelites' plan of attack and they knew what was coming to them. And they decided they didn't want to die. So they made up a plan. Joshua 9:3-6 says this:
"But when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and to Ai, they on their part acted with cunning and went and made ready provisions and took worn-out sacks for their donkeys, and wineskins, worn-out and torn and mended, with worn-out, patched sandals on their feet, and worn-out clothes. And all their provisions were dry and crumbly. And they went to Joshua in the camp at Gilgal and said to him and to the men of Israel, "'We have come from a distant country, so now make a covenant with us.'"
I can hear the whine and weakness in their voices. If Joshua and the Israelites were thinking with discernment, they would have done the most important thing that makes discernment what it is - they would have consulted the Lord. That's what true discernment is. Knowing what the Lord deems true. And the Israelites would have fast discovered the Gibeonites' lies in they had discerned the truth. But instead,
So the men took some of their provisions, but did not ask counsel from the Lord. And Joshua made peace with them and made a covenant with them, to let them live, and the leaders of the congregation swore to them.
Discernment was down, and Israel would suffer its consequences - disobedience to God. I hope this wakes us up to the urgency and necessity of discernment in everything, whether we turn on the TV, or are surfing the web, whether in church or school, whether it's said from the pulpit or the paper, from people we trust or people we don't. It's true that there are times when we need more or less discernment depending on the situation, but there is never, never, an excuse for lacking in discernment.
C.H. Spurgeon:
It is for us, therefore, to judge carefully, and not to think that any opinion will do. Besides, opinions have influence upon the conduct, and if a man have a wrong opinion, he will, most likely, in some way or other, have wrong conduct, for the two usually go together.