Applied mathematics

One of the courses that I took at the University of Sydney many years ago was applied mathematics. Applied mathematics is used extensively in science, engineering, technology, business and artificial intelligence (AI). And phone apps frequently utilize applied mathematics to solve real-world problems and deliver practical solutions.

The book of James in the Bible has been summarized as “Applied Christianity”. It was written to believers and says that biblical doctrine needs to be put into practice in their daily lives. The problem being addressed in James is that many believers were living like unbelievers.

The book begins with teaching on external trials and internal temptations (1:12-18).

Using God’s word

And then it looks at using God’s word (1:19-27). Under this topic it gives three commands:
– Avoid anger (v.19-20).
– Avoid evil (v.21).
– Obey God’s word – keep doing what it says to do (v.22-25). Then James gives some practical examples of obeying God’s word as an application of this instruction.

“If you claim to be religious but don’t control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is worthless. Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you” (Jas. 1:26-27NLT).

There are three main instructions in these two verses.

“Control your tongue” (what you say). Don’t criticize others to make ourselves seem superior. Our Christianity is useless when we do not translate what we believe into our everyday life.

“Care for orphans and widows”. How do we treat others in need or in trouble? Like those sick, or isolated or needing food or drink or clothes or housing (Mt. 25:35-36). Caring for people like these is a practical application of our Christian faith.

This is consistent with the teaching of the Old Testament (Dt. 14:29; Job 31:16-17; Ps. 146:9; Isa. 1:17, 23). The Israelites were blessed when they obeyed God’s commands and practiced social justice, but their prayers were not answered when they disobeyed God’s commands and practiced hypocrisy (Isa. 58:1-14).

And “don’t let the sinful world corrupt you”. Living like unbelievers is prohibited because it will impact our speech and our service to others.

Conclusion

As applied mathematics is useful for many purposes, so applied Christianity is useful in many circumstances.

For example, the true Christian will control their spoken language and will reach out to those in need. These are tangible ways in which our Christian faith can be evident to others. If you are a Christian, is applied Christianity like this evident in your life?

Written, July 2023