Introduction
The knowledge of history is an important knowledge to possess. Not only does it aid our understanding, but it also helps us to connect. To the Christian, however, history means so much more than that. This is why we, as Christians, have a greater duty to study the past. The Bible is full of history, reasons we ought to study history, and what we gain by doing so. Below I list 7 reasons history is so important to the Christian.
1. God Commands It
“Remember the days of old, think upon every generation: ask thy father, and he will declare to thee: thy elders and they will tell thee.” (Deuteronomy 32:7)
God clearly commands us to know our history – not only to know it, but to “remember” it and “think upon” it. “Every generation” tells us how much of history we ought to remember – all of it, every generation, all the way back to the beginning. The last half of the verse instructs us to go to the original sources – our fathers and elders. Professors and historians may be very smart and well-educated people, but history is easily warped. Unbelieving authors will often twist the truth to fit their own ideas and beliefs. While original documents are by no means free of error, they often give a more accurate look at what the past was truly like.
2. It Draws Us Closer to God
“Seek ye the Lord, and his power: seek ye his face evermore. Remember his wonderful works, which he hath done: his signs, and the judgments of his mouth… Remember for ever his covenant: the word, which he commanded to a thousand generations.” (1 Chronicles 16:11-12,15)
In these verses we see the command to “seek ye the Lord” alongside the command to “remember His wonderful works” and “remember for ever His covenant.” The study of history is the remembering of His works – it is the seeking of the Lord. And as we seek Him, we draw closer to Him.
I have learned from personal experience that the more I study history and the deeper I try to understand the events of the past, the closer I grow to God. History is truly His story, so the more I learn about what He has done for His creation, the closer I grow to Him.
3. It Glorifies God
“The poor shall eat and shall be filled: and they shall praise the Lord that seek him: their hearts shall live for ever and ever. All the ends of the earth shall remember, and shall be converted to the Lord: And all the kindreds of the Gentiles shall adore in his sight.” (Psalm 21:27-28)
If studying history is seeking the Lord, then we know by Psalm 21:27 that those who study their history “shall praise the Lord.” The second verse says that “all the ends of the earth shall remember [what has happened, i.e. history] and shall be converted to the Lord.” Through the memory of what God has done in the past all the ends of the earth… shall be converted to the Lord. But it doesn’t stop there. Not only will the earth be converted, but all the kindreds of the Gentiles shall adore in His sight. If that’s not awesome, I don’t know what is!
On the flip side, while history glorifies God, another reason to study history is because:
4. History Humbles Us
“Where wast thou when I laid up the foundations of the earth? tell me if thou hast understanding.” (Job 38:4)
This was one of the first questions God asked Job, and it obviously was not to get Job thinking how great he was. No sirree! That question was to put Job in his place. Sure, we’ve all had times when we think that we are bigger and better than we really are, but one look at history will shatter that false reflection in the mirror. Where were we when God created the earth? Obviously we weren’t even around yet. When we look at history, we see how great a God we serve, but we also see how small and frail and helpless we are. History glorifies God, but it also serves to humble us and put us in our place.
5. History Gives Us Hope
“How great things he commanded our fathers, that they should make the same known to their children: That another generation might know them. The children that should be born and should rise up, and declare them to their children. That they may put their hope in God and may not forget the works of God: and may seek his commandments.” (Psalm 77:5b-7)
Here we see the command to teach our children history, that our children will then teach their children, that by knowing history, each generation “may put their hope in God.” When we try to do things our own way, we fail. But we have a God who is all-powerful. A study of the past will prove that when men placed their hope in the Lord great things happened. We serve an awesome God, and history can’t help but prove that. As Robert E. Lee once said: “It is history that teaches us to hope.”
6. History Increases Our Faith
“By faith we understand that the world was framed by the word of God; that from invisible things visible things might be made.” (Hebrews 11:3)
We haven’t been around forever. There are some things about history we will never really know for certain. But God has all the answers. As the creation/evolution debate rages on in the world, we all must take a stand on whether we believe that an intelligent Creator – an omnipotent God – brought the universe into being or that unexplainable random chance made the universe that we know. Both sides bring forth their arguments; both sides stand staunchly beside their beliefs. While I believe there is a vast amount of evidence clearly pointing to our Creator God, I was not there when creation sprung into existence at His word. By faith, I understand that God created the world and that He made everything out of nothing. My view of history requires faith – faith in God who is Truth itself.
7. History Confirms Christ’s Love For Us
“In this we have known the charity [love] of God, because he hath laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.” (1 John 3:16)
History is His story – the story of love, of redemption – the sweetest story ever told. We know of Christ’s love for us because we know that He came into this world as a babe in the manger in Bethlehem and died in agony on the cross thirty-three years later to pay the price for our sins. He is the center of history. He is the center of our faith. The years of AD point us back to Christ, and the years BC count down to His coming. All of history is centered on Him.
Conclusion
If you do not know your history, I encourage you to learn some today. Pick up your Bible and read the first three chapters of Genesis. You don’t have to become a certified historian or complete college courses on history or be “the local expert.” In fact, I believe a lot of historians and history courses get it wrong. If God isn’t in the spotlight, history isn’t being told right.
I believe what Georges Floravsky stated: “Christians are, by vocation, historians.” Because our faith is centered on Christ, just as history is centered on His coming, our faith falls to pieces without His story.
So what are your thoughts?
How important do you think it is for Christians to know their history?
In Christ,
P.S. You can also follow me at my other blog, Kenmore Pines 1, here.
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