All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16-17, ESV)
For the last twenty-five years, I have taught thousands of golfers, from beginners to elite players. As I grew in my understanding of the golf swing, I realized that most, if not all, issues of the golf swing stem from a golf fundamental.
Instead of getting sidetracked in a variety of teaching philosophies, I learned to connect any issue in the golf swing back to the appropriate golf fundamental to which the swing issue is connected.
This approach helped me to push aside any erroneous or sensationalized golf swing teachings and helped me to focus as a teacher on the core issues.
In a golf lesson, I always start with a fundamental checklist. This starts with observing the student swing for a few minutes. I observe how they set up to the target. I watch their hand positioning and placement on the grip, especially observing their grip pressure. I look at the aim of the clubface and the alignment of the body to the intended target.
I move through the fundamentals of what the student’s pre-motion components look like. Then, I watch the important first move of the swing, the takeaway, that is an in-motion fundamental that is so crucial to the plane of the swing.
Sometimes the issues in the golf swing are so subtle you can only catch them on video or with the help of trackman technology. But, when you catch the issue, it invariably relates to a fundamental in the golf swing.
Our Christian walks are very similar. We live in a culture that is rapidly changing. Many churches are being corrupted with teachings not rooted in biblical truths. Just like some teachings on the golf swing, there are modern-day philosophies that often cause the golf swing to get worse!
So, what are the ‘Fundamentals of the Christian Faith’? When we hear and read of ‘Christian’ teachings, do we have a fundamental checklist we can use as a guide to make sure what we are hearing is correct?
During the Reformation, the Reformers were convicted that the church of their day had left the fundamentals of Christianity. In their efforts to build the church on proper foundations, they created five Latin slogans that gave the Christian Church a fundamental checklist of what true Christianity encompasses. They are:
- sola scriptura (Scripture alone)
- solus Christus (Christ alone)
- sola fide (faith alone)
- sola gratia (grace alone)
- soli Deo gloria (glory to God alone)
Each slogan of biblical truth is vitally significant, and these truths are connected to one another, just like the golf fundamentals. You must have them all working together to produce a solid shot in golf, and you must have these Christian truths working together to produce accuracy in your Christian faith.
We can use these slogans as a fundamental checklist any time we may struggle in our Christian walk or if we need to discern a teaching we hear.
When we stay rooted in the fundamentals of golf, we know we have a high probability that we will produce a good shot. When we stay rooted in the Biblical fundamentals of the Word of God, we know we can trust our swing in the fairways of life.
Prayer – Holy Spirit! Spirit of Truth, guide us into all truth (John 16:3).