PERSPECTIVE

Perspective

These events, no matter how exhilarating or troubling, help mold how we approach life and assign meaning to it. Everything we face flows into our worldview. Limited experience or distorted information misshapes our outlook. When reading or watching the news, we can easily misinterpret a photograph, analyzing it from only one angle. Studying additional images from multiple viewpoints provides greater understanding of the story. In social media, the surface remains while the backstory can get lost. We see only a square of a photograph on Instagram, forgetting the unfiltered reality behind the scenes.

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hatever our vantage point, we choose to see the world with optimism or pessimism. As Christians, we have the advantage of finding contentment in our circumstances based on our knowledge of who God is—knowledge God provides through His Word. Without the clarity the Word of God offers, our perspective will be blurred. The children of Israel, for example, not heeding what God had communicated to them upon their deliverance from Egypt, chose to turn a blind eye to God’s promises and to murmur against Him along their journey.

The Bible provides illustrations of God’s power to change man’s view. As the prophet Elisha’s servant trembles in face of a ferocious, earthly army, Elisha prays for the Lord to open his servant’s eyes to the surrounding army of angels (2 Kings 6:17). The altered perspective brings confidence and ultimate victory.

God knows His people’s lives and provides comfort. The Angel of the Lord finds Hagar, Sarah’s handmaid who fled disdain, and calls her by name. He changes her perspective, introducing her to His omniscience. Realizing God knows her affliction and that she has “seen Him who looks after” her, Hagar names God “The God Who Sees” (Gen. 16:13). She names the well where she was “Beer-lahai-roi,” meaning “well of the Living One Who sees me” (Gen. 16:13-14). Later, when Hagar finds herself again in the desert, she cries to God as she tries to turn away from her son dying of thirst. Telling her not to fear, the Lord draws her eyes toward a well of physical, life-giving water, the one she had previously named. She and her son are thus delivered (Gen. 21:17-19).

The New Testament provides a parallel example of a woman who undergoes a change in perspective. This woman comes to a well in Samaria seeking physical water, totally oblivious of her true need. Jesus, seated at the well, explains that if she clearly perceived with whom she talked, she would be the one asking for a drink. He transforms her perspective to show her genuine need, not of physical water but of the “well of the Living One Who sees me,” a “well springing up into everlasting life” whereof she can drink to never thirst again (John 4:14).

These accounts of Hagar and the Samaritan woman highlight the change only Christ bestows on believers. Some Christians have been seduced into believing it is their responsibility to correct the world. When they realize they cannot, they lose hope. The devil twists human perspective, making people believe he is in control and problems are hopeless. However, the Bible shows God as all-knowing, all-powerful, the One in charge.

Before being introduced to Divine Truth, Elisha’s servant, Hagar and the woman of Samaria struggle because they look at their situation from their limited, finite view. Knowing the depth of their circumstances, they cannot perceive that there is a God who understands. Similarly, at the time we shift our focus from our sin-depraved selves to Christ, we can begin to truly perceive (Prov. 3:5-7; Jer. 29:13). Then, as we progress in understanding our sovereign King through the lens of His Word, our perspective on life is progressively altered and enlightened (Eph. 1:18). Once we see as God sees, we can trust—and rest—in peace.

hatever our vantage point, we choose to see the world with optimism or pessimism. As Christians, we have the advantage of finding contentment in our circumstances based on our knowledge of who God is—knowledge God provides through His Word. Without the clarity the Word of God offers, our perspective will be blurred. The children of Israel, for example, not heeding what God had communicated to them upon their deliverance from Egypt, chose to turn a blind eye to God’s promises and to murmur against Him along their journey.

The Bible provides illustrations of God’s power to change man’s view. As the prophet Elisha’s servant trembles in face of a ferocious, earthly army, Elisha prays for the Lord to open his servant’s eyes to the surrounding army of angels (2 Kings 6:17). The altered perspective brings confidence and ultimate victory.

God knows His people’s lives and provides comfort. The Angel of the Lord finds Hagar, Sarah’s handmaid who fled disdain, and calls her by name. He changes her perspective, introducing her to His omniscience. Realizing God knows her affliction and that she has “seen Him who looks after” her, Hagar names God “The God Who Sees” (Gen. 16:13). She names the well where she was “Beer-lahai-roi,” meaning “well of the Living One Who sees me” (Gen. 16:13-14). Later, when Hagar finds herself again in the desert, she cries to God as she tries to turn away from her son dying of thirst. Telling her not to fear, the Lord draws her eyes toward a well of physical, life-giving water, the one she had previously named. She and her son are thus delivered (Gen. 21:17-19).

AS CHRISTIANS, WE HAVE THE ADVANTAGE OF FINDING CONTENTMENT IN OUR CIRCUMSTANCES BASED ON OUR KNOWLEDGE OF WHO GOD IS— KNOWLEDGE GOD PROVIDES THROUGH HIS WORD.

The New Testament provides a parallel example of a woman who undergoes a change in perspective. This woman comes to a well in Samaria seeking physical water, totally oblivious of her true need. Jesus, seated at the well, explains that if she clearly perceived with whom she talked, she would be the one asking for a drink. He transforms her perspective to show her genuine need, not of physical water but of the “well of the Living One Who sees me,” a “well springing up into everlasting life” whereof she can drink to never thirst again (John 4:14).

These accounts of Hagar and the Samaritan woman highlight the change only Christ bestows on believers. Some Christians have been seduced into believing it is their responsibility to correct the world. When they realize they cannot, they lose hope. The devil twists human perspective, making people believe he is in control and problems are hopeless. However, the Bible shows God as all-knowing, all-powerful, the One in charge.

Before being introduced to Divine Truth, Elisha’s servant, Hagar and the woman of Samaria struggle because they look at their situation from their limited, finite view. Knowing the depth of their circumstances, they cannot perceive that there is a God who understands. Similarly, at the time we shift our focus from our sin-depraved selves to Christ, we can begin to truly perceive (Prov. 3:5-7; Jer. 29:13). Then, as we progress in understanding our sovereign King through the lens of His Word, our perspective on life is progressively altered and enlightened (Eph. 1:18). Once we see as God sees, we can trust—and rest—in peace.

AS CHRISTIANS, WE HAVE THE ADVANTAGE OF FINDING CONTENTMENT IN OUR CIRCUMSTANCES BASED ON OUR KNOWLEDGE OF WHO GOD IS— KNOWLEDGE GOD PROVIDES THROUGH HIS WORD.

dedication

DEDICATION

DR. LINDA HAYNER,
DR. CARL ABRAMS,
& DR. JOHN MATZKO

The 2020 dedicatees are honored for faithful, Christlike service over decades of teaching. Using their exceptional skills, they have touched numerous lives through the study of history.

These three professors bring both a vast body of knowledge to their classrooms and spiritual insights into the working of God's hand throughout the ages. Dr. Abrams teaches courses in American history and western Europe; Dr. Hayner and Dr. Matzko teach subjects such as Middle Ages, the history of England, the Middle East, historiography, and historical research and writing.

Students descibe these professors as "brilliant", "approachable," and "caring." All of them possess an acute ability to assimilate an extensive amount of information and present it to students in an understandable, relatable manner.

All of them have been listed in Who's Who in America, and together they hold a total of 135 years of teaching experience in the University's department of History.

For their unwavering commitment to Jesus Christ through the Division of History, for their ability to discern truth from error and for their loyal devotion to propagating God's truths, it is our honor to dedicate the 2020 Vintage to Dr. Carl Abrams, Dr. Linda Hayner, and Dr. John Matzko.