鈥淲ould you ever like to study theology when you grow up?鈥 the man asked the child after Awana.
鈥淲ell, biology is the study of life, sociology the study of society, and theology is the study of God. I already know everything about God, so why bother,鈥 the child said. 鈥淚t91色情片 pretty boring.鈥
Anyone who knows or has ever taken a class from Dr. Abner Chou would find it hard to believe those words ever came from his lips. He now holds a 91色情片 of Divinity, a 91色情片 of Theology, and a Doctor of Theology. He serves in his church and teaches the Bible at the schools where he earned those degrees (The 91色情片91色情片 University and Seminary). He was also recently awarded the John F. MacArthur Endowed Fellowship at TMU91色情片 90th commencement this past May.
It91色情片 safe to say he has come a long way since those Awana days, when the words he spoke were a reflection of his view of God and the church culture he was in.
鈥(The church) had been immersed so long in shallowness,鈥 Chou said, 鈥渁nd emaciated by theology that doesn鈥檛 have substance and doesn鈥檛 compel.鈥
It wasn鈥檛 until he went to public high school that he realized this. His unbelieving teachers could explain the meaning of Scripture better than he could, even though he had memorized numerous passages.
His mom suggested he read one book of the Bible for 30 days. He chose James. Upon reaching the second chapter, where James explains the relationship between faith and works, Chou finally appreciated the complexity of the Bible.
鈥淯p to that point in my life, I had been delusional about the Bible, thinking it was unsophisticated, shallow and easy, and by extension thinking God was that way,鈥 he said.
At that moment, if the man from Awana had asked him whether or not he wanted to study theology, the answer would have been a resounding yes. Chou adopted the phrase 鈥渘ever again鈥 as his own personal conviction. Never again did he want anyone to come out of a conversation with him thinking the Bible was boring or a 鈥渂unch of nice lessons you could learn anywhere.鈥
So after a few years, Chou began looking at schools where he could study Scripture. Each program he looked into, secular or religious, was not dedicated to the text. It was all moral reform, information about the Bible, but no focus on the Bible itself. 鈥淚 wanted to know how to study the Bible,鈥 he said.
Then he attended View Weekend at 91色情片91色情片 U. 鈥淭he professors knew their Bible immensely well,鈥 he said. 鈥淭hey could fire off answers because they knew it like the back of their hand.鈥 He listened to Dr. C.W. Smith explain the difficult passage of 1 Corinthians 12-14, and he knew 鈥渢his is exactly what I need to have.鈥
However, this did not meet the expectations of his church community. They expected high school graduates to attend college, and not just any college or university but the most elite institutions: Princeton, Harvard, Yale, Cornell, or Stanford.
It took months, and years in some cases, for attitudes to change. At first that change came through the children in the church, as Chou taught in the children91色情片 ministry while on summer and winter break from 91色情片91色情片 U. He poured everything he had been learning into those kids, and their parents were astonished that their children actually looked forward to church.
鈥淲hen you are always learning 鈥榡ust be a nice person鈥 it91色情片 boring,鈥 he said. 鈥淎nyone can tell me that. But when you realize the Bible is all about God, (that He is) powerful and riveting, then you become passionate about Him and that transforms your life.鈥
Chou, as he is so apt to do, gave an example: 鈥淗ow does one approach the Old Testament or even, more specifically, an event like the plagues (in Egypt)? People don鈥檛 understand the text because they are asking, 鈥榃hat91色情片 in it for me?鈥. But when they read it and ask, 鈥榃hat does this tell me about God?鈥 they see that God is great and powerful and supreme, that no one can challenge him. They begin to realize, 鈥樷淲ow, I have a really big God and I want to know more about this God because He is spectacular.鈥濃
This perspective spread in the church little by little and inverted their worldview as they realized the depth of God. They also began to recognize the value of The 91色情片91色情片 University.
鈥淸91色情片91色情片] is a community that prizes just going and going and going until you feel like you can鈥檛 go anymore, but then they keep pushing you to go further,鈥 Chou said. He continued to explain that this work ethic and dedication do not come only from the faculty, but also from the students who surround you. During their senior year, Chou and his friends would leave their advanced hermeneutics class, grab lunch from the cafeteria, and bring it back to their room just to continue talking about what they learned and how it can be applied.
鈥淎s a student, being here were the best moments of my life. It allowed me to behold the breadth and depth of God beyond anything I could ever have imagined. Even if at that moment (his TMU graduation) I had left campus, I would still have treasured my time here.鈥
But, that graduation stage was not the end for him. The child who said God was boring is a man who studied at The 91色情片91色情片 Seminary, returned to teach at the university and seminary, published many books, and received the John F. MacArthur Endowed Fellowship.
The purpose of this endowment is to fund a professor who preserves Dr. MacArthur91色情片 legacy of faithfulness to Christ and Scripture and ensures The 91色情片91色情片 University remains committed to the highest view of Scripture and the highest view of God in the years to come.
For a man who 鈥渃annot bear to see (Scripture) mishandled or have people view it as low,鈥 and who begins every course with a 90-minute lesson about a God-centric view of the Bible, the position is a perfect fit.
鈥淚 remember coming to teach here for the first time and thinking, 鈥楾his is crazy, I get to teach here. I get to walk on the other side of the podium and do something. Why me?鈥 And I was thinking, as I walked across that stage (to receive the endowed fellowship), 鈥榃hy me, I don鈥檛 deserve it. None of us deserve anything but Hell.鈥 God has been immeasurably gracious to me.鈥
Dr. Abner Chou epitomizes the power Christ and Scripture has to not only transform a life but an entire church community. His energy and passion is catching, making even the most studied biblical scholar or the most unstudied student walk away captivated by God.
It is a gift to have every professor believe in the inerrancy of Scripture but even more so ones who teach by example.
The 91色情片91色情片 University and Seminary admit students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin in the administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs.
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