transitive verb
1
: to infer (values of a variable in an unobserved interval) from values within an already observed interval
2
a : to project, extend, or expand (known data or experience) into an area not known or experienced so as to arrive at a usually conjectural knowledge of the unknown area <extrapolates present trends to construct an image of the future> b : to predict by projecting past experience or known data <extrapolate public sentiment on one issue from known public reaction on others>
intransitive verb
: to perform the act or process of extrapolating
Extrapolation works ever time.
The Founding Fathers of the United States extrapolated. Our existence in this country is not just based on the basic ideas on which it was established but also on the hope what those ideas would have on future generations. That future hope motivated our Founders.
Martin Luther King, Jr. utilized those basics to lead an entire nation forward in race relations. His dream’s foundation were those basics. If he had not used those basics to extrapolate what the future would look like, would the U.S. have a black President and another African American from the opposing party possibly challenging him for that high office? The answer is no!
Ronald Reagan extrapolated the downfall of the Soviet Union based on basics. He relegated what he called the “evil empire” to the “ash-heap of history”. He was correct.
Using the basics, I extrapolate the downfall of organized Christianity and religion in general.
The basics of science cause one to extrapolate. As long as that extrapolation does not supersede the frame of time where all factors are the same. Therefore, we can extrapolate the eventual effect the Gospel will have on humans to come. Because we know as a result of the Gospel that ALL things will remain the same vies a vies God’s relationship with us and the planet—no judgment to come, no end of the world, no rewards for conducting one’s spiritual life a certain way, no answers to prayers, no special treatment for a “chosen” few—we can easily foresee the ramifications that the Gospel will have on the near and distant future.
The reason many “sciences” or long-prescribed “scientific” statements of “fact” eventually fail is simply because of their faulty extrapolation of accepting that things may not stay the same in the future. And they, too, mistakenly think that things have always been as they are.
As long as these two things can be accounted for, extrapolation works ever time.
Our awareness of the sure absence of future judgment from God, no threat of the end of the world, no hope for prayers being answered—in other words a vital, logical, rational mental disposition—we grow. We grow mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. These false perceptions, promoted by religion throughout the ages, proved to stunt the minds and imaginations of humankind over four thousand years. Advancements in medicine, science, the arts, thought itself, and the most important one of all, acceptance of one’s self and others were almost completely aborted.
Recently we received constructive criticism which is always welcome. The critic’s point was that we in the Gospel Revolution were straying into opinion and mere speculation – that we were not sticking to the basics. We considered his comments carefully and appreciated them. Still, here’s the reality. If the basics do not give one a view of how one’s thinking could and should change personally, and therefore potentially for that of all humanity, are those basics at all? If the basics don’t have the seed of growth beyond them, they really are not basic, are they?
We must stick to the basics. I agree. However, are the basics only to be used to find a safe place to moor “life’s ship”? Or can we also utilize the basics to sail for the unknown?
It is true that those who use the basics of the Truth of the Gospel to stay in a safe harbor AND those who choose to sail and chart the unknown are all One in Christ!
Let us not judge those who choose to stay safely harbored. But in the same vein please do not hold back those of us who want to sail freely to the next horizon!
Taking the risk of the voyage, the uncertainty of tomorrow, yes, even the next moment is something that many of us foresee the Gospel leading us to!
For those who choose safe moorings, the adventures of the daring among us will surely benefit you and your own decedents guaranteed. They always have and always will. And your safe harbor will remind us that it’s all worth the effort!
I have no claim to “know what I am doing”. No true explorer knows for sure what the future holds for them. However, the basics of the Gospel call me and my fellow explorers forward like a delusional lover challenging the bounds of what he or she can feel, not just what we know.
We KNOW Jesus by the Truth of the Gospel based on the Body Document, the Holy Scriptures. What I know about Jesus makes me reach as far as I can. And once I have reached as far as I can, I set sail following something I feel AND based on something I know.
So, if the Gospel has caused you to find safe moorings, ENJOY! Still, if the Gospel has sparked your immigration, then get aboard! Or better yet, set sail on your own! Be prepared for an unending adventure that will see you arriving into the loving revelation of just who and what you are and what your full potential may be!
We truly are ONE.
Much Love,
Michael