Jan 23, 2020
by Kevin Butler
Ravi Zacharias is one of the foremost evangelical Christian apologists out there today.
Ravi was actually invited to speak to several thousand Mormon leaders at their tabernacle in Salt Lake City.
When he got the invitation (and after recovering from the shock), Ravi asked if any other evangelical had ever spoken to them. They said, “Well, over a hundred years ago, D.L. Moody came and spoke.”
Ravi felt pretty good about being included in that kind of company.
He made two conditions for his time at the Tabernacle: 1) that he would pick the subject, and, 2) that he would get to bring the music.
For his topic, Ravi said that he would teach on the exclusivity and sufficiency of Jesus Christ. They said they would have to ask the head apostle on that one.
And the music? “I’d like to bring Michael Card with me.”
Lord willing, Michael Card is coming to our Conference in July.
Over his long career, Michael has sold 4 million albums, has written nineteen #1 contemporary Christian songs, and authored more than two dozen books.
One of his most famous songs was sung by Amy Grant: “El Shaddai.” That was named by the Recording Industry Assocation of America as one of the top 365 Songs of the Century. He wrote “Immanuel” and “Joy in the Journey,” and his song “Heal Our Land” was commissioned to be the National Day of Prayer theme song.
Popular music is not why Ravi Zacharias chose Michael to accompany him. And that’s not why I invited him to Conference. His music is carefully written and Biblically based. With a Master’s in Biblical Studies, Michael is both a student and teacher of God’s Word. He has written books on each of the Gospels (the Biblical Imagination series), and that research comes out in his music.
I started going to his Biblical Imagination study workshops long before becoming Conference President, and long before I ever imagined (sorry) having Michael come to one of our gatherings.
So, instead of just hosting him for a thoughtful and meaningful concert, I’ve asked “Mike” to also lead an afternoon seminar on “Fixing our Eyes” on Jesus.
Something special to look forward to on July 28, the Tuesday of Conference week!
More about Biblical Imagination
The idea for the Biblical Imagination series came from William Lane, Michael Card’s spiritual mentor for nearly three decades. Dr. Lane would say, “You must engage with Scripture at the level of the informed imagination.” Michael saw his mentor model it, but it was never written down. Card set out to do that.
Michael says, “The imagination is the bridge between your heart and your mind. Because of the Fall, our hearts and our minds are fragmented. Some people engage the Bible with their minds, and that’s fine, because God gave us our minds. But they tend to just be theological and argumentative and they like to be right.
“Some people like to engage with their hearts, and that’s good because God gave you your heart; but they don’t tend to do their homework.
“If you look at the Bible you see that it’s really targeted to your imagination—not specifically your heart or your mind. The narratives, the poetry, the apocalyptic, and the parables of Jesus, they’re all designed to capture or re-capture your imagination.”
Through his studies and his books, Michael sees the Gospel accounts as four “Portraits” of Jesus. “I want to help others learn to know the four portraits in the Gospels, and then to really understand who He is now, through those portraits.”
Let’s use our Spirit-inspired imaginations to Fix Our Eyes on Jesus.
