Ever since Christianity exists, the idea of preparation has been dignified and for good reasons, for who can discredit the person who takes his calling so seriously as to make himself ready on all fronts to face come what may, and this, with nobility and promptness; and as the saying goes, “a prepared man is worth two”, and perhaps at times a hundred. Hence, to prepare oneself or others is one of the noblest pursuits a follower of Jesus Christ can take upon himself.
The nature of the preparation
One of the marks of a thriving Christian is his devotedness. He has made up his mind and knows who he will serve, obey, and represent. His preparation transcends the vainglorious ambitions of great achievements, for he is not on this earth to impress or please men. He is here on a mission, namely, to shine forth the Light of God in a perishing world—a shining that cost Jesus’ life and the lives of many of His followers.
It is this divine purpose, more than any adjacent motives, that frames the nature of his preparation. Everything else within the frame is subject to this all-driving force. Therefore, the epicenter of his preparation will never be academic or oratorical, nor will it be focused on pastoral ethics or historical scholarship, nor on apologetics or ministerial theology. For him, all these peripherals are eclipsed by the cardinal need of his life, namely, the preparation of his heart.
The preparation of the heart
The Scriptures are adamant, of all that which requires preparation, the heart stands alone in importance and need.
Then Samuel spoke to all the house of Israel, saying, “If you return to the Lord with all your hearts, then put away the foreign gods and the Ashtoreths from among you, and prepare your hearts for the Lord, and serve Him only; and He will deliver you from the hand of the Philistines.” (1 Samuel 7:3)
“Nevertheless good things are found in you, in that you have removed the wooden images from the land, and have prepared your heart to seek God.” (2 Chronicles 19:3)
“And he did evil, because he did not prepare his heart to seek the Lord.” (2 Chronicles 12:14)
“For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the Law of the Lord, and to do it, and to teach statutes and ordinances in Israel.” (Ezra 7:10)
A meaningful shift
In all evidence, when it comes to Christian preparation, the Scriptures give the preeminence to the heart. But somehow a subtle transition has taken place and the stress is now put on the preparation of the head. For instance, when we hear something like, “This minister is well prepared”, our mind goes automatically to his academic preparation, and it goes there because it is what is generally meant. I am not saying that the preparation of the head is wrong per se, I am just saying that academically speaking you can have a minister prepared to the teeth and yet be twice useless and even dangerous. That’s right, a prepared head with an unprepared heart can make havoc in a church more than an uneducated wolf can, for if the heart is not synchronized with the divine mind its outflow will most surely grind against the truth in one way or another; that is precisely where the ambush lies. Its deceitfulness resides in the fact that the educated head will know—at least thus it appears—to circumvent the truth to achieve its own goal. I am not talking here about something futuristic. These sorts of “educators” are presently on the rise, gaining popularity and recognition. The apostle Paul refers to such “skilful” teachers when he writes:
For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.” (2 Tim. 4:3,4)
Obviously, when Paul writes, “they will heap up for themselves teachers”, he doesn’t refer to just a few. The idea he conveys is that this sort of pretenders will be proliferating and accessible to whosoever wants to hire them. But how can such a proliferation occur, you may ask? It can occur when the churches value more the preparation of the head than the preparation of the heart. In addition, the prepared head, left without a prepared heart, commonly come with deceitful words in the attempt to turn aside the very elect. This, it does, to not be exposed by their light.
Now this I say lest anyone should deceive you with persuasive words.” Col. 2:4)
“Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ.” (Col.2:8)
Brethren! These warnings, and many others, are in the Bible because they correspond to an objective reality we are now facing.
One thing is certain: a groundless hope is being erected on the frail web of scholastic skills and few are they who realize the impending disaster.
Something else about the Christian preparation
There is a little verse found in the book of Proverbs that highlights both the importance and insufficiency of the Christian preparation. It reads:
The horse is prepared for the day of battle, but deliverance is of the Lord.” (Prov. 21:31)
This tiny statement reveals two basic principles: first, that our preparation is absolutely crucial; second, that it is, per se, thoroughly insufficient. It is so because God will not identify Himself with the unprepared heart. He is the rewarder of those who diligently seek Him (Heb. 11:6). That’s right! As far as spiritual warfare is concerned, God acts on behalf of the person prepared in heart. He has little to do with the frivolous mind. It could be said: God’s assistance, in spiritual warfare, is contingent on our preparation, and our preparation per se is of little help without God honoring it with might and mercy.
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