Vol. III, Iss. 10 - December 2005
The latest from Student Leadership University

Blessing Comes After Obedience
The key to God's blessing of America is the obedience of Christians to his teachings, said Richard Land, president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, to students of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in a Binkley Chapel address Feb. 23.

Land spoke from 2 Chronicles 7:14, pointing out what conditions God has placed on Christians in America so that the country may receive His blessings. "God is not going to bless a people who continually disregard His teachings," Land said. The theme is a familiar one for Land and is the blueprint for achieving God's blessing of America according to Land's newest book, "Real Homeland Security: The America God Will Bless." The book attempts to present to believers how to view and interact with the events of the world in a way that seeks to invoke the blessings of God. Christians cannot pull out from the world, Land said in his message. Instead, they are meant to be "salty salt" and "burning light" so that the world's decay may be stopped and its darkness may be penetrated. Before Christians can serve as salt and light to our world, they must first get their own lives correct by God's standards, Land said.

"Far too many Christians are trying to live as schizophrenic Christians with one foot in the world and one foot in the kingdom," he said. "When we live lives like the world, where the world can see no difference between ours and theirs, then we have nothing to say." Land said that Christians are therefore meant to view Christianity not as a religion but as a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, which should be responsible for bringing about a new worldview. From the Christian worldview, Land said that believers are to see the world's problems as "God-sized" problems. This should cause them not to pull away from the world and its issues but instead get "close enough for the world to see the light and feel the heat." Land added that the responsibility of seeking the blessings of God does not fall to the world but to born again believers who are willing to humble themselves, pray and seek after God.

Dr. Richard Land is the featured and keynote lecturer for SLU 201. He is the President of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention.

Who are God's children? Who is it exactly that God blesses? Or, along the same lines, are there people who are excluded from being God's people or from receiving God's blessings? One of the most poignant memories from children's church a long time ago centered around a moment when the pastor asked us: "What do God's children look like?" A white upper-middle class kid piped up and answered "Us!" and then he looked over at me, clearly of Chinese origin, and pensively added - "and I guess him too."

Somehow, most of us have come to the unspoken conclusion that the more other people look like us, the more probable it is that they are Christian or could become a Christian. More aptly stated, many think that it's less likely for a person to be Christian the less they look like us. By some means, an assumption has been created that has linked the majority of God's kingdom with those that look, smell, breathe, act, think, talk, worship, and function like we do (have you ever noticed how pictures of Jesus are Americanized?). The result: many have come to understand God through the lens of a mainly-white American Christianity. In that process, somehow, we have included ourselves in the "we" of Christianity and lumped everyone else into the "them" of the others. This process renders those who don't think, talk, and look like as as "Others" and consequently, "we" think of ourselves as better than "them."

However, this undermines the very meaning of Christmas! Christmas brings the good news that God has sent Christ for ALL of humanity, not just a select few people, and certainly not on the basis of human standards or judgments. Christ did not come just to redeem the 50 states of America, but rather, he came for all of humanity located everywhere on the globe. That's the good news of Christmas, and that's the gift and message of God through Christ to the entire world.

So, can we really say that God will bless a nation? God indeed blesses God's people, but when we combine God and nation, we must be careful not to think that God divides God's children by nation the same way we do. If the body of Christ is truly one, then there is no "Other" that we can compare ourselves to, since all are one and the same in Christ's body. We must not confuse the American way of worshipping God (or perhaps the way you worship God in your church) as the standard by which the people of God are measured. If Christ indeed came for ALL human beings - no matter what they smell like, think like, talk like, or look like - then, we must not confuse the nation of America as a privileged people who defines Christianity. Rather, we must humbly submit ourselves together before God, realizing that we are not blessed because we are Americans (or Canadians, or Africans, or Chinese) but we are blessed because we have the gift of God available to us through Jesus Christ, who extends the love and grace of God to all members of humanity. There is no "us and them" in Christianity, there is just "we."

During the Christmas season, may we truly remember the reason for the season, and may we seek to serve others out of humility and without self-regard. May we come to realize who God blesses - not a denomination, not a political party, not a certain race, not a country or nation - but God blesses those throughout the world who receive the gift of love offered through Christ to ALL members of humanity and follow in faithful Christian discipleship. May God bless God's people, for in God, we are all One.

Luke Lin is a Master's degree student at Duke University and the Associate Editor for The Edge. His column on culture and Christianity appears every month.

Student Leadership University has truly been a life-changing experience and I remain extremely grateful for this opportunity. This past June I participated in SLU 301 and I absolutely loved it. There was so much to see and take in yet so little time to do it. It all makes me want to go back even more. Out of all the sights and places, I believe Normandy had the greatest impact on me. I have never really been able to walk across a piece of history as we did that day. Walking throughout the bunkers and barricades and standing in the craters left behind by bombshells made me realize the extreme brutality of war - it just all came to life and smacked me in the face. Those who fought were kids my age, and the age of so many college students that I have grown up with, and they fought with everything they had, and in many cases gave everything they had.

After retuning to the ferry that night, thoughts of the war on terror crossed my mind. Things have not changed much since the 1940s. War is still very brutal and kids are still fighting, and the lives of many are still taken. When I got home, I came across pictures of a close friend who is fighting in Afghanistan. When comparing pictures of him in school with ones of him in Afghanistan, I could see how much he had changed since he had graduated by the look in his eyes. I decided to use the pictures and a globe to tell the children's story at church. I told the children about my trip to Europe and spoke a little about Normandy and what it meant to me. I then showed them where we live (Virginia) and where Afghanistan is located and told them about my friend Justin and the many other sons, daughters, and friends who are fighting in the war. The kids eagerly flipped through the photographs and most of the story probably went over their heads, but it definitely had an impact.

As a result of SLU, it has been truly awesome to see God work in my life as well as the lives of others. When I look back and see the change that has come over our youth group, I am amazed. It used to be that no one ever stepped up to the plate or out of the comfort zone - a Bible study could not be started unless the teacher started it. Now, the students who have participated in SLU, and ones following their example, are leading worship, reading scripture, conducting bible study and organizing events. They are setting an amazing example for others to follow.

Personally, I never thought I would call the football captain, someone I barely knew, and ask if he would help me start FCA at our school. We hit the ground running and the first year we had fifty four active members out of a school population of less than five hundred.

I am now a senior in high school and have a lot of big decisions to make - what college to go to, the types of classes I need to take, how I can best spend my time and give it all to God. I don't know what God has planned for me, but I am very confident that wherever I go and whatever I do, I will be a strong Christian leader. SLU has equipped me with the experience, confidence, and the tools I need to accomplish my goals, dreams, and the unthinkable. I  am constantly reminded that it is truly all about the books you read, the places you go and the people you meet.

I sincerely appreciate the time and effort you put into this program and I look forward to traveling throughout the Mediterranean with you.

Caroline Terry is a graduate of SLU 301. She is a high school senior from Sparta, Virginia, and an active member of Sparta Baptist Church. Caroline plans on attending SLU 401 this summer. Every month, we feature the story of an SLU graduate whose life has been impacted by SLU in significant ways. Have an SLU story? Send it to us at edge@studentleadership.net