It is not just a book

This post comes with an assignment. Before you go any further, you need to read Acts 5:12- 42. This post will make a lot more sense if you do. 


The word of God is powerful.

As a matter of fact, the best words I can use to describe it are the ones it uses to describe itself. Hebrews informs us that, “the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12)

This is no mere book. A well-written book can inspire people to great (or awful) things. Books have inspired conquest and war. Manifestos have started political movements that took the world by storm. They have changed public opinion and directed the course of societies. But at most, a book can enlighten or inform. It can convince or persuade. However, even the most impressive book cannot know its reader’s thoughts.

The right place at the wrong time

Have you ever noticed how much literary real estate is given to David in the Old Testament? Chapter after chapter sing the praises of this man. He is the obvious main character of both Samuels. His family details are splayed out all over the place like some kind of Semitic soap opera.

For the last couple of weeks, I have been reading through the section of the Old Testament that tells David’s story. In the beginning, it seemed like he could do no wrong. He starts off as a little kid destined to do big things. He kills a lion, and then he kills a giant. He fights battles for the king, and he cannot lose. “Saul has struck down his thousands, and David his ten thousands,” sang the people.

Saul gets jealous and chases David all over the countryside, but he cannot kill him. Saul dies, and David becomes king. He continues to fight and he continues to win. David beats armies he has no business beating, like Syria. He was unstoppable. And after all this, God tells David he will establish a dynasty that will reign for eternity. Through his lineage would come the king of all kings, whose rule would never end. Talk about a pretty sweet life.

But then I got to today’s passage.

Cow training - Part 2

If you are perhaps thinking, “Wait, didn’t he give us the Aha moment from the cow training thing like two days ago?” then you feel the same way I did.

This lesson was a double whammy. Right when I thought this little visual demonstration had provided the extent of its enlightenment, I was blindsided with one more unexpected sucker punch of awesomeness.

This is how it went down:

Cow training - Part 1

I like Aha moments.

Aha moments are those little points in time when the proverbial light bulb goes off and some previously known factoid gains new, deeper meaning. What first existed merely as meaningless trivia sprouts and grows into a three dimensional reality. Needless to say, my two years in Africa have presented me with more than a couple of Aha moments. * Life is lived in such a way here that many points of contact still exist with the biblical culture.

I had one such incident this week.

On endurance

The New Testament writers would have been college football fans. Now, I cannot be certain of this, but I believe my theory holds water. Take into account their writing. Letter after letter is filled with references to teamwork, athleticism, and putting on your armor for battle. It just makes sense. Imagine, Peter and Paul arguing about the BCS over a bowl a cheese dip.

Off Topic: Spiritual Surfing

Why is church camp always at the beach?

When I was a kid, every time I would head off to some church camp for the summer, I was stuck off in the middle of the woods. It was usually some camp with a goofy, fake Indian name like Camp Wannahockaloogi, or something to that effect. An hour or more from civilization, we were forced to sleep in little wooden cabins, barrack style, and swat mosquitos all night. The closest we would get to a “beachfront” was that roped off area of the lake that was less green than the rest of it. Instead of going home with a tan, all we had to show for the week was a series of welts from the nightly towel fights. I usually lost those fights.

But nowadays, it seems more and more church camps are at the beach. Instead of packing insect repellent and hiking boots, kids throw their sunscreen and swimming trunks in a suitcase and head off for “Christians Ablaze,” “Spiritual Explosion,” or one of those other Christian events with a pyro-maniacal name. The church charter bus fills up with excited kids ready for a week or two of sun and sand. When it reaches its destination, it is usually some beachfront hotel where the kids will hear flashy speakers and great bands.

When this shift from the wilderness to the shore occurred, I was initially puzzled. Why would we move students from isolation to the middle of vacation central? Why would we take students away from blue jeans and briar thickets and move them to bikinis and beach volleyball? We decided to take our spiritual retreats to the same place MTV holds it spring break specials. What gives?

But then it hit me. 

Would Jesus wear Chacos?

If you ask any number of youth ministers, trying to prove to their kids that you can still be cool and live a Godly life, the answer would be, “Of course he would, along with his North Face jacket and one of those cool KAVU visors.” However, Joel Olsteen would probably disagree and say that Jesus would definitely be sporting a snazzy hair cut and a million dollar smile.

Down the rabbit hole

Do you ever have those moments where, like a line of dominoes, a series of completely unrelated events cascade into a continually shaping idea? (I would call it an epiphany, but that would be just a bit pretentious I suppose.) One strange thought leads to another, and then, a lightbulb goes off and you see the world through different eyes.

Well, I had one of those moments yesterday. But let me start at the beginning:

What am I doing here? Part 3 - The Library

In an attempt to ooh and ahh my readership, I took to the Internet in search of some phrase or anecdote that would clench my introduction to this post. Something that would usher the reader into a state of query; something that is thought-provoking, with a dash of intrigue.

Instead, like so many people preparing a last minute speech for their public speaking class, my adventure spiraled down into the quagmire of looking at famous quotes on the subject of learning. I waded through pithy statements made by the great figures of learning throughout history. Statements by men such as the revered poet, W.B. Yeats, who said, “Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.” Or the ancient Greek playwright, Euripides, who stated that, “Whoso neglects learning in his youth, loses the past and is dead for the future.”

As noble as these one-liners sound, I truly doubt they do little more than provoke a thought. And when a thought is merely provoked but not acted upon, it is indeed a useless thought.

Therefore, I have settled with the eloquent words of that great bulwark of education, renowned the world over for his mastery of the written word, Dr. Seuss. “You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose,” states the man who is partially responsible for my ability to read.

Indeed, potential will always be simply that... potential. Unless it is acted upon.

-------------------------------------

The name of our little library means "house of knowledge" in the local language. It is a small building with two or three classrooms, and a couple of bookshelves about halfway full of books. While you may not think it sounds like much,  over the years, the center has been used as an adult literacy center, a tutoring center for students and a ministry center. In the past year, it has received a facelift, as our board has re-approved it as a strategy for outreach.

I mentioned earlier that this town has many students. Being a “state capital,” it is the primary educational center for the whole region. It is one of only a few towns in the region with schools that go all the way through high school. Therefore, thousands of students come live in this town from all the surrounding villages during the school year. They will stay with family that lives here so that they can get an education, yet another reason this town is such a strategic location.

In this part of West Africa, students are not able to have text books. They copy all of the information off of the board everyday and create their own book throughout the year. If they miss information, they have no way of reviewing it. That is one key reason this library is so important. It provides students with the option of actually seeing the textbook for their class. As we have worked on preparations at the library, many students have begun using the center. Day after day, the center is full of students reading materials they have no access to otherwise.

While it is important that these students can get access to learning material, a far more important goal is being accomplished. We are using this as an opportunity to develop relationships with these students, so that we can share with them about the things that really matter. In the past year, we have been able to start studies with several of these students who are interested in more than our textbooks. We also have a regular audience for films, which spawn excellent discussion with the students. In just a couple of weeks, we will be starting English classes with high school students that will use scripture stories as our text.

One of our partnering churches from the States sends college students to work with this center. The results have been promising, as they have built quick relationships with students, several of which of now studying scripture and seeking understanding as a result. This year, we have plans for several volunteer college students to spend an extended time working at the center as semester missionaries.

The exciting reality about our library is that it has a reach far outside of the city. When these students return home to their villages, we will have an impact over the entire region and countless open doors into villages everywhere.

Please pray for the work that God is doing with this tiny little center. Pray that God will continue to provide options for support of this center, and volunteers to meet the spiritual needs of the students here.

Gifts that differ: What will you be today?

A couple of months ago, I received an email from a writer who prepares missions curriculum for youth. Our organization's leadership put him in contact with me, and he wanted me to answer some interview questions. Oddly enough, none of them were about our work here or anything of that nature. Instead, they were general questions about discipleship. Today, I was reminded of one of these questions.

Nestled in the middle of his list was this request, “Please share a few sentences about spiritual gifts.”

While, I do not remember my exact response, I am certain it was some string of vague phrases that attempted to make me sound like I knew what I was talking about yet never got to the root of the request. At least, that is how I feel about my answer today. Let me tell you why. As I write this, my hands are covered in paint – black, oil based paint. I have scrubbed, but it simply will not come off.

For the last 10 hours or so, I have been painting a sign. Tomorrow is the grand opening of the little library our mission runs for the area students, and it needed a sign. Outside of being voted “Most Artistic” in the sixth grade by my classmates, I really have no artistic training. But I did have two hands, and they were available.

When I signed up for this missionary assignment, I was told I would be a rural evangelist. In my mind, I was to be a church planter, and I had been uniquely gifted by God for the people here. God had equipped me with just the right spiritual gifts to do his work here. My mind conjured up images of hacking through the jungle with a machete and finding people with bones through their nose who were waiting for some spiritual messenger. Let me be the first to tell you, the noses here have no bones through them, and the only thing I hack with a machete is the occasional rice or eggplant field.

It is funny how easily we can misconstrue God's calling and giftedness. Oh how easy it is to romanticize or over-spiritualize the work of God's kingdom. However, we do come by it honest. Some of the earliest Christians struggled with the same issues. Take the believers at Corinth for instance. Paul addresses this very issue when he corrects their understanding of the gifts of the spirit in chapter 12 of his first letter.

Paul is quick to remind them of their dependence upon one another. No single body part can exist apart from its others. That is a truth that can sting in both directions. If you are too proud of your own giftedness, you need understand that it is nothing without the support of others. And if you struggle with feeling needed because you never seem to be the one on stage with a Bible or guitar in hand, then you are probably sitting on gifts that will strengthen everyone around you.

But Paul does not stop there. He says he desires to show them a more excellent way,

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing. (I Corinthians 13:1-3) 

Today, elbow deep in oil based paint, I realized something about spiritual gifts. Here in Africa, I have discovered first hand, that these gifts are not all spiritual words, flashy worship and proper exposition. No, they are far simpler, and far more important. I have had my ability to communicate cut in half. I am handicapped in something that used to come so easily. I can not reach down and share a verse from my English Bible here. It does me no good to come up with anecdotes and illustrations.

Ironically, enough, God has seemingly taken from me the very things I counted as my spiritual gifts, and replaced them. The new ones, are just that, new and unfamiliar. Its like learning to walk again.

Yet, I can cling to Paul's words and realize there is a more excellent way. As I learn to walk again, I can do it in love. Today I am a painter. Yesterday, I was a real estate agent. Tomorrow, I will be an English teacher. While none of these crossed my mind when I first thought of rural evangelism, I thank God that his plan is better than my own. And I thank God, that he can take my two hands, and use them as he sees fit. It has been a joy.

My gifts are not for me. They have been given to me, so that I can share them with others.

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees...

In my neck of the woods, people have recently finished celebrating the biggest holiday of the year, Ramadan. The entire area is transformed by the observance of this holiday. Market hours change, work times shift, and at the end, people are all dressed up for big parties and feasts. Think of it like Christmas in the States, except with rice and sauce instead of a turkey and dressing.

For Islam, Ramadan is the holiest month. It is said Muhammad received the first words of the Qur'an during this month and it is a time of spiritual reflection. The entire month, Muslims spend their daylight hours in fast, breaking it each evening as night falls. This action is supposed to be spiritually purifying as the act of self-denial releases one from the material and allows them to focus on Allah. The aim appears to be renewed piety and zeal for the faith.

In reality, my observations of the event have left me a little jaded. During the day, people mope around with long faces, spitting periodically so that anyone in eyesight knows they are not even swallowing their saliva. Furthermore, the attitude towards those who do not participate is obviously condescending. While it is possible to see the truly devout using this time for reflection, it appears many are more concerned with making a spectacle out of their piety. Needless to say, this has had me thinking.

In one of his discourses, Jesus addresses his disciples about this exact issue. Jesus begins with the following words:

Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, “The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses' seat, so practice and observe whatever they tell you—but not what they do. For they preach, but do not practice. They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger. They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long, and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi by others. But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers. And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven. Neither be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Christ. The greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.        (Matthew 23:1-12) 

Jesus uses the actions of the Pharisees as a classic example of what not to do. He points out the sharp contrast between their actions and the true condition of their heart, and in the verses following this passage, he gives very specific examples of their hypocrisy. Read the chapter; his words are pretty heavy.

But be careful how you view this passage. It would be easy to hear these words of indictment and direct them towards anyone but yourself. Indeed, it was that initial reaction that reminded me of this passage during Ramadan. The natural tendency is to point the finger and pick out the sins of our neighbors. Yet, Jesus is really doing something different here. He is not shaming the actions of some foreign religion, but providing a warning for his own people. He is pointing the finger inward.

“Practice and observe whatever they tell you—but not what they do,” is the admonition Jesus leaves his disciples and the crowds of listeners. Remember, all of the people in the crowd were Jews, and Jesus is talking about the religious leadership of the day. He is discussing flaws in their own religion not the religion of others, a lesson we could learn from today.

In the midst of this special month, my temptation has been to criticize the actions of those around me. Instead, this passage has reminded me to check my own hypocrisy at the door. How often do I tie up heavy burdens and lay them on people's shoulders? How often do I do my deeds to be seen by others? How often am I looking for a pat on the back, instead of humbling myself to be the servant?

Jesus tells his followers to get their house in order. He tells them to clean the inside of their cup first, so that the outside may be clean also. (Matthew 23:25-26) Why do we spin our wheels and waste our time pointing out how wrong everyone else is, when the commands of scripture are directed towards those who abide by its words? We must expect those who are not believers to act like unbelievers. Why be shocked by their actions? Why spend effort criticizing the way they live, when the Bible is quite clear that it is normal for lost people to act like lost people. (Romans 1)

Instead, let us critique our own actions. Let us make sure we are living authentic lives. Let us make sure the inside of our cups are clean. Then, instead of fussing about how wrong their religion is, we might actually be able to share ours.

The art of disliking

If books series like Harry Potter or Twilight have revealed anything, I believe it is the existence of the author crush. We all have that friend who has fallen so madly in love with the writings of a particular author that, no matter how the ink spills out of said author's pen, they will lap it up and enjoy it. You know who I am talking about, it is the same friend that usually inserts the phrase, “oh, like when Voldemort...” into your conversations. Or that person who talks like they are “bff” with that shirtless, vampire guy from Twilight. They are the ones who already have their Halloween costume picked out by the end of spring, and may actually wear it around the house when no one is looking.

I pick on people with a crush on J.K. Rowling, knowing very well that I have an author crush myself. It all started the year I graduated from college, the first time. I was never a very big reader growing up, choosing instead to spend my time finding ways to get dirty or grounded. Ironically enough, very shortly after I was no longer required to read, I picked up what I would consider my very first pleasure read. It was love at first sight. The book was a children's book, called The Magician's Nephew. It was the first of the famous Narnia series by C.S. Lewis.

In the Narnia books, Lewis creates a playground for the mind. Better still, he takes hold of the imagination and uses it to teach profound lessons about humanity and the nature of God. (If you want a great example, read this recent post on the topic by a friend of mine.)

Needless to say, my love affair with his writing started there, and it has grown into much more than an infatuation. Not only was Lewis an excellent wordsmith, he possessed an acute perception of the human condition. It was standard issue for Lewis to take some simple aspect of life, one the rest of us merely take as fact, and point out a reality that is quite contrary.

I received one such smack in the face during my most recent Lewis read.

Not too long ago, I discovered one of my colleagues in country was the possessor of Lewis's rarely spoken of Space Trilogy. I immediately asked to borrow it, and upon finishing the series, my view of life was challenged.

Let me share.

The following quote is a passage from the final book in the series, That Hideous Strength:

     “Don't you like a rather foggy day in a wood in autumn? You'll find we shall be perfectly warm sitting in the car.” 

     Jane said she'd never heard of anyone liking fogs before but she didn't mind trying. All three got in. 

     “That's why Camilla and I got married,” said Denniston as they drove off. “We both like Weather. Not this or that kind of weather, but just Weather. It's a useful taste if one lives in England.” 

     “How ever did you learn to do that, Mr Denniston?” said Jane. “I don't think I should ever learn to like rain or snow.” 

     “It's the other way round,” said Denniston. “Everyone begins as a child liking Weather. You learn the art of disliking it as you grow up. Haven't you ever noticed it on a snowy day? The grown-ups are all going about with long faces, but look at the children – and the dogs? They know what snow's made for.” 

     “I'm sure I hated wet days as a child,” said Jane. 

     “That's because the grown-ups kept you in,” said Camilla. “Any child loves rain if it's allowed to go out and paddle about in it.” 

~ C.S. Lewis, in That Hideous Strength (emphasis added) 

When I was a little kid, I can remember liking school. Honestly, I liked everything about it. My friends were all there and I got to see them everyday, but what was really exciting about it was the classroom. I know that sounds crazy, but I liked learning. As a kid, the world was this new strange place and it was fascinating. Things that are now so commonplace as to not stir up any emotion were once new and exciting. My earliest memories of school are filled with the joy of new discovery.

But somewhere along the way that all changed. I distinctly remember not liking school by the fifth grade. I remember talking about summer as though it was this long-off paradise. I do not know why; I have already posted about what my summers were like. This was the phase where it became cool to make fun of my teachers and talk about how stupid our homework was.

What happened? How did my mind change so much? School had not changed in those four or five years. I had.

In reality, I had learned what Lewis called “the art of disliking.” Something had become more important to me than new discovery. It was acceptance. It was fitting in with all the people around me who had made me think I was “supposed” to not like being there. They were wrong, and I was wrong to listen. I took a gift from God, namely joy in his creation and the uniqueness of it, and threw it away for a shot at being like everyone else. I will never know the full extent of what has been robbed from me by this decision. The extra things I would have learned and the joy that would have come are lost forever.

Lewis is right, and I am willing to bet most of us are guilty of the art of disliking. Since running across this little passage, I have found myself going back through and evaluating the things I dislike. Some things I truly dislike, most of them ungodly in nature such as sin, sickness, hurt, and pain. But there are many more that I have taught myself not to like. By this, I am reminded of God's Word.

In his letter to the Philippians, Paul asserts that he is not writing out of need for anything. He tells them instead that he has learned to be content in all situations (Phil 4:10-13). By the way, he wrote those words sitting in a jail cell. 

Have you gotten good at the art of disliking? What have you learned to dislike?

Comment below...

Why I am not a monk

I have been thinking about monks a lot lately. Not the “blaze orange wearing, nun-chuck carrying” kind. Instead, I am talking about the “crawl off into a cave with their Septuagint” type.

One of our stops on the tour de force through Turkey was Kapadokya, or ancient Cappadocia. Admittedly, this area is one of the strangest landscapes I have ever visited and boasts terribly unique landforms. It has an arid climate and would probably be classified as a desert region. The region is pocked with valleys, and each valley is littered with dozens of large rock towers shooting up into the air. The resulting impression is a desert valley full of rock trees.

What is even more intriguing is the ancient use of this remarkable landscape. The cliff walls and even the rock towers themselves were carved out and fashioned into dwellings places. High rock cliffs full of little, black windows fill the eyesight. In these caves, much of Christianity's early monastic tradition was conceived. Small stone doorways lead into vast cathedral caverns, covered floor to ceiling with Byzantine-era religious frescos.

For better of worse, the monastic tradition is a large part of Christian history. Some of its earliest adherents were women living in little, celibate groups that focused on their piety. Others were men who trudged off into the Egyptian desert alone to live as hermits. Even still, some made giant towers up into the air and lived on these columns to seclude themselves from a sinful world and live closer to the heavenly ideal. And in Cappadocia, men and women would separate into fellowships under the head of an abbot (abba for “father”) and live in these cave dwellings.

Whether it was the rise of secular influence in the church as the Roman empire became increasingly friendly, or brushing elbows with other world philosophies that sought asceticism as the ideal, the idea of the monk became widely popular in the developing Christian communities of the fourth and fifth centuries.

At best, this lifestyle was a pious means of refusing the “good life” and seeking a higher end, deeper fellowship with God. At worst, it was a means of punishing oneself for their depravity or running from the “evils of the world” and sometimes even the church. Nevertheless, the result was a seclusion of sorts from the society around them for reasons of sanctification.

I think there are times when this approach sounds good. Sometimes I want to get away from the wickedness around me. Sometimes I need to remove the distractions and set my mind on God's Word and His goodness. The world can be a distracting place. Jesus himself would occasionally retreat from civilization in order to focus on oneness with the Father, or fast from the world. He would go up the mountain to pray, or would fast in the wilderness.

So, is seclusion the right approach? We are truly not of this world, and it seems the more I surround myself with it, the harder it is to separate myself from it. Much of the time it seems Western culture is sinking its tentacles further and further into the life of the church. When we look at the average church culture and compare it to secular culture, they do not seem too different anymore. At least, that is what the statistics on divorce, drug and alcohol abuse, premarital sex, and a whole list of moral failures would say.

In response, it seems we often try to “hole up” inside the walls of our church buildings. We retreat inside and make sure we have plenty of activities to occupy ourselves. We spend all of our time in book studies, Bible schools, youth activities (many of which are just Christianized versions of what our kids would be doing outside the walls of the church), and an endless supply of things that make us feel like we are working real hard on our sanctification. In the last 25 years or so, hundreds of churches across America have even pulled themselves out of downtown areas where sin and vice are the worst and built themselves new compounds, complete with athletic courts, activities centers, and a Starbucks, in the newer suburbs of major metropolitan areas.

Before I make some of you irate at my suggestion that these activities are wrong, please let me say that is not my intention. Indeed, I feel most of the activities mentioned above are essential to discipleship. (See my posts on Bible study.) However, is it possible that if we focus on these things with the wrong intentions we can lose sight of a bigger kingdom mission? My ultimate end as a follower of Christ is not to become “Super Christian.” My highest achievement on this earth will not be what I have become. Instead, I become this so that Christ's name may be known. I am to work on myself (truly, submit to God's work in me), so that God will be glorified and his kingdom advanced. Why sharpen a knife that will never cut anything?

In the fourth century, as secular culture made its way into the church, the temptation was to retreat. In an attempt to hold back the tide of nominalism, groups began to seclude themselves. In order to stay pure, cave monasteries popped up in cliffs. Communities developed around rigorous moralism. No sin, no sex, no worldliness was the rule. Disciplined Christian life at its finest was the goal. They began to sharpen themselves.

But something interesting happened. A tradition had grown up in the church that martyrdom was the ideal life of sacrifice and allowed you to identify with Christ's own suffering for us. Martyrs became saints and it was the way to ensure your name in the Christian hall of fame. To boldly refuse apostasy and publicly proclaim Christ in the face of your murderers was the mark of the true Super Christian.

However, when persecution by the state stopped, so did the killing of Christian martyrs. No longer able to sacrifice their physical life in the face of paganism, people began to sacrifice in other ways. For many, monasticism became the new martyrdom. It was the new way to be a Super Christian. What started out as a means of removing oneself from a world of sin, created a world of pride and exclusivity. They removed themselves from the world and became full of themselves.

Trying to figure out the Christian's relationship with culture was not a new development in the fourth century. This monastic tradition had not found the answer to a new social problem in the church.

Jesus would retreat. Jesus would spend time alone, focused on his relationship. He would disappear and seclude himself from the world around him, but he always came back. He would roll up his sleeves and step back off into the crowds that were surrounding him. He would heal the sick and he would cast out demons. He would confront sin and he would stand as an example.

This is why I am not a monk. We are called to be the best Christians we can. Indeed, we are commanded by God's Word to live a life above reproach. We are to be disciplined and pious. However, the reason we do this is to point to one greater. Truly, it is God's work in us. First Corinthians talks about how God chose the foolish of us to shame the wise. I think Paul was talking about me when he wrote that.

And despite being wholly unimpressive, if I am not careful, I will still become puffed up and proud of myself. If our churches are not careful, we will wall ourselves up, and become quite proud of the fact that we have nothing to do with the world.

Causing ripples

Ephesus was kind of a big deal. Think of it as the “New York” of ancient Asia Minor. With a population of 400,000 people during the first century AD, it was the second largest city in the world after Rome. It was the political and economic center, not to mention the major port, for all of Roman Asia. The city was home to the second largest library on its side of the Mediterranean (after Pergamum), the largest theater anywhere in Asia Minor (holding upwards of 44,000 spectators), and one of the seven wonders of the ancient world (the great temple to Artemis). Needless to say, when the emperor came to visit the area, Ephesus is where he parked his boat.

In Christian history, Ephesus racks up quite a scorecard as well. It boasted Paul's longest stay in any one place during his missionary journeys, 1 Corinthians was written from Ephesus, and one of Paul's other letters was written to Ephesus. Church tradition tells us that John moved to Ephesus and may have penned his gospel while living there. Certainly the letter of Revelation was written by him to Ephesus and the surrounding cities.

Today, Ephesus would remind you more of Disneyland than New York. For starters, when we arrived, we had to wait in line for our ticket. (Not a good start.) But while I was there, an interesting thing happened. As the mobs filed in through the turnstiles, the ancient city began to fill up with people. Crowds walked the old city streets and wandered through the agora where sellers would have had their shops. The Celsus Library was bustling with people and each temple seemed to have a crowd of gawkers. I saw a city animated.

Unlike the ruins of other cities we visited, I saw Ephesus more as it would have looked. Crowded streets and busy buildings. The whole town came to life, and it was a busy place. Imagine what it would have been in its golden age, 400,000 men, women and children squeezing through the streets and meandering through some of the most fantastic structures of their day.

This is the world Paul came to visit in Acts 19.

He stayed for around three years reaching out to all the cities in the area, with Ephesus as his base. Christianity took hold in Ephesus, and it grew some serious roots. Despite its claim to fame as the very throne of Artemis and its huge industry in witchcraft and pagan goods, this city began to feel the impact of Christian witness from its community of believers. On one instance believers confessed their former witchcraft and brought all of their old resources together to publicly burn them in the sight of everyone, so that all would know they no longer practiced this kind of lifestyle. This was no small group either. According to Acts, so many books were burned the result was a multi-million dollar pile of ashes.

The story gets better.

Apparently, this new Christian witness was having such an impact in its first couple years that it began making a dent in the economy of Ephesus. Imagine that, this band of believers was actually shutting down the idolatry industry in the second largest city in the known world. After what appears to have been a chamber of commerce meeting, a demonstration broke out against the Christians that can only be labeled as a riot. Scores of people poured into the massive theater and chanted for hours for their patron goddess and against the Christian movement. The city stood still, all because the Christian influence was strong enough to sucker punch their sinful livelihood.

Little wads of tourists shuffled in and out of the massive theater while I sat there pondering the events that took place there 2000 years ago. Standing on the middle of that stage, looking up at the endless rows of seats, I could not help wondering about the range of emotions experienced by the Christians who were the target of that riot. I also could not help but be a little jealous. Not of the snarling multitude who wanted them dead mind you, but of the impact they had on their city. In less than three years, they had changed everything. The rules were different in Ephesus, and they had worked paganism into a rioting frenzy because of their presence.

I think my temptation is to say that it was a different time in history. It is easy to think of this as some special exception because it happened in “bible times.” God does not work that way anymore right? Now the work is slow, gradual, and nominal.

However, there is another approach. What if we, like the believers in Ephesus, brought all of our sin, our past habits, our evil out of the closet and burned it before the world? What if we gave a real sign that we were different and were not going back? What if we released our secret grip on money, materialism, sex, alcohol, drugs, pornography, and the countless idols we hold on to?

Could we change our city?

Piles of rocks

I am on vacation. Some friends of mine and I got this ridiculous idea a year ago to galavant across Turkey (ancient Asia Minor) and see as much of the New Testament as possible. Last week, this idea became a reality.

In the last 10 days, I have walked the streets of Ephesus and climbed the acropolis of Pergamum. I have wandered through Lycian tombs and sat in giant Roman amphitheaters. I have walked as close in Paul's footsteps as is humanly possible today.

I am still not sure what my purpose in doing all of this was in the beginning. Did I feel it would somehow make me more spiritual? Perhaps I thought it would be some form of pilgrimage that would connect me with our ancient fathers of the faith, even though we evangelicals do not really do that sort of stuff. Maybe it was because I am a nerd, and these are the nerdy things I do for kicks and giggles. Whatever my original purpose may have been, it is now lost to me.

There is no way to describe this journey. I have a bunch of pictures to prove I was here, but they will no more recreate the experience than staring at an advertisement for a steak will fill you up. Nevertheless, I felt the need to share my thoughts from one particular endeavor this past week.

Laodicea was a big city in its day. It was a major center of trade in textiles during its height and was a rich city. A great hill overlooked the surrounding valleys capped with temples, baths, civic buildings, and a grand agora full of shops. This city had two separate amphitheaters, one facing east and one facing west, so that events could be held in the morning and the evening. The city centered on a grand pillared avenue that ran straight through the heart of the buildings. Two rows of columns rose on both sides of the street.

If you are not familiar with Laodicea, it is the final of seven churches addressed in the Apocalypse of John. The book of Revelation was most likely penned toward the end of the first century AD, when this particular town was at its greatest chapter in history. Indeed, Jesus himself had John write down his advice to the community of believers that lived in this city.

This is what Jesus had to say to the church at Laodicea,

I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me. The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

Today, Laodicea exists not as a great center of culture and enterprise but as a field in the middle of nowhere. All of its glory has been reduced to piles of rocks, crumbled and sticking out of the ground. The great buildings and amphitheaters that showcased their wealth and importance have long since sank into the dirt. Instead of inspiring awe for the works of its inhabitants, it exists as a skeleton of a former achievement. All that is left are the bones of a once great society.

I have no idea if the people to whom Jesus' words were addressed heeded his warning. We must keep in mind that the recipients were the believers in the city and not the city itself. Jesus was not passing some condemnation on to that city; however, he was providing those who called themselves Christians a poignant word of caution.

Like lukewarm water, neither refreshing or relaxing, they had become useless. Furthermore, they had become self-reliant. Jesus accuses them of thinking they were rich. Whether this was a reference to actual monetary wealth or some form of self aggrandizement or false piety, they had decided they were well off.

And, as anyone who buys into this lie would do, their trust turned inward. If they were rich in money or morals, why did they need Christ? Self-reliance always replaces dependence.

But Jesus knows their works. They think they are clothed in royal robes, yet they are poor and naked. They think they see clearly, but they are blinded to reality. They swallowed a lie and looked pathetic in the sight of God. And despite all of this, Christ shows mercy by providing them a way out of the despicable sin of pride. Buy my gold, which is the purest of all; and buy my clothes, which are the whitest of all; and buy my salve, so that you will see as I see. These were the words of Christ.

Sitting in the remains of the Laodicean amphitheater, reading these words, God reminded me they were not just words to a group of believers in the first century. They were written to me as well.

Whatever riches the church at Laodicea had used to replace their dependence on God, they are gone now. It was a kingdom made of stone, and no kingdom made of stone is eternal. May we not fall into the same trap.

What are we trusting in? In 2000 years, will it still be there? If not, Christ stands at the door knocking for all who will let him in, and he brings with him victory.

Delight in the Law of the Lord: Part 7 – Application

The Romans had chariots, the cowboys in the Wild West had their horses, the modern American has the mid-sized sedan (or oversized SUV for some) and West Africans have the “bush taxi.” Labeled the bush taxi more for where it goes than its appearance (they look nothing like a bush), this fine mode of transportation is the staple in this area. For inter-village travel, there are few options other than walking, and this venerable vehicle has found its niche here in the jungles of West Africa.

The bush taxi starts its life some 20 years prior to its service in Africa as a compact, European sedan. It was cheap when it was produced in 1986, so imagine it now. After a long life serving its European owner(s), and sometime just after is falls completely apart, the loosely assembled pile of car parts makes its way across the ocean in a shipping container bound for the dark continent. Here, it will serve out the remainder of its life toiling down the dirt trails these folk call roads. When I say dirt trail, I want to be sure you understand that I am referring to something that would make the moon rover cry. I simply do not know how they do it, but they do.

My most recent experience with one of these contraptions I will now relate to you. I was in the capital city, a world that would only sound like fiction if I described it. I found myself needing transport from one side of the city to the other with no car available. My option... a taxi. I headed to the nearest intersection to bargain with a driver for the fare. (I think I paid roughly 20 cents.) Upon reaching consensus on the price, he escorted me to his vehicle. It was a fine shade of rust and missing one of the windows. Covering the back windshield was a large decal of Madonna, when she was young. He then untied the rope holding the passenger door shut, as there was no handle of any kind, just a hole through the door where it used to be. I got in and he tied the door shut behind me. Upon further inspection, I realized all of the interior panels of the car were missing. It was basically ragged seats, a frame, and the sheet-metal exterior of the car. Square in the middle of the dashboard, staring back at me, was a sticker of Osama Bin-Laden with RPG launchers in the background. When the driver got in the car, he reached under the steering column and grabbed two exposed wires in order to crank it. He quickly twisted them together so the vehicle would stay running and off we went, periodically untwisting the wires when we went downhill to save on gas. By the time I arrived at my destination, another five people had climbed into the car (a total of seven in a four passenger car, not including the chickens). However, I got to my destination.

I have yet to hear a local say, after getting out of one of these death traps, “Oh, I was just going for a joy ride.” No, the gas-powered mules are solely utilitarian. As crowded as these taxis get, the ride is certainly uncomfortable and usually tiring in this equator sun with no air-conditioning. Yet, they get you to your destination.

In this series of blog posts, I have covered many different aspects of Bible study. We have discussed what the Bible is and its origins. We have talked about its purpose in the life of Christians. Furthermore, we established necessary technique for approaching the Bible in study. Yet, none of these are the destination. Stopping at simply knowing the purpose of scripture, or even finding a passage's meaning in its original context, is like going for a joy ride in a bush taxi. Unless you, as the student of God's Word apply what you have learned, the trip was in vain.

If you have placed a story in its historical context, and you have placed it in its literary context, then you can find the authors meaning for the time when it was written. This meaning is important and it is precious, but it is not enough. For the Bible to have its life-changing effect on you, you must bring that meaning back to today and apply it here and now.

Simply knowing Paul's advise to the early church about meat sacrificed to idols does us little good unless we take the truth behind it and apply it to our lives today. Honestly, most of the people reading this will never be confronted with eating meat sacrificed to idols, but the truth behind it deals with our witness as Christians. That is an issue you will face every day of your life.

Find the timeless truths that rest in scripture, and then find the parallel situations that exist today. I have said it before, but a passage only has one meaning. There may be many applications that stem from that meaning. For instance, when Paul addresses those specific situations in his letters, in many instances, he provides the application to his original audience right there. Sometimes, that will be our application as well. An example is statements like, “Flee from sexual immorality.” However, other times, there is a gap in culture (like the meat issue discussed earlier).

When you find that truth and see the parallel situations, the real test is what you do with it. God's Word is just that, the words of the one, true and living almighty God. We must, in all we do, seek to live under the authority of scripture. Without getting too philosophical about what that means, it does mean to obey it. That is the real reason for studying scripture in the first place.

Find out what it means, find out how it applies to you, and then, do what it says. That is the destination.

Delight in the Law of the Lord: Part 6 - More Technique

If ever there was a strategy that would reach the world for Christ, it must be the church sign. Crowning the curb of church properties across America, these little, often backlit, beacons of truth shine out to a lost world. If am not mistaken (and I may be), the origin of the church sign can be traced back to the Apostolic Fathers. Ignatius himself has been quoted as saying, “Seven days without prayer makes one weak.” Indeed some of the earliest extra-canonical sources we have include such pithy statements as: “Dusty Bibles lead to dirty lives,” “Forbidden fruit creates many jams,” and “Searching for a new look? Get a faith lift!” If statements such as these are not going to do the trick, than what better solution do we have?

In all honestly, there are probably few things for which we Christians are more mocked. Statements like these are shallow. How do you sum up God's grace in a sentence? I can tell you one thing, it is not by saying, “Free trip to Heaven... details inside!” In a world with hundreds of competing worldviews, we claim ours is the only true solution. We say that it answers all of life's most important questions and explains all of existence. Then we hang the truth of God on statements that barely support themselves. These church sign slogans are weak nails indeed.

However, we do live in an age of soundbites and captions. Even pastors are looking for that “twitterable” little line they can slide in just before a pregnant pause, for effect of course. How many times have you sat in a service, palm to forehead, as a pastor said something like, “Fight truth decay... read your bible!”

The catchphrase is king in communications now. What an unfortunate reality.

You do not have to look into a pulpit to find this mistake. We all make it, and today's info-on-the-go approach to life has just made it worse. We chop God's truth up into quotes and soundbites. We try to make it catchy and wind up ditching the deep meaning in the process. Or worse, we completely misapply it. However, proper Bible study does exactly the opposite.

Instead of chopping scripture up verse by verse, good Bible study takes God's Word as it was written, in context. Each book of the Bible is just that, a book. They were written as complete units of literary work. With the exception of the Psalms and Proverbs, which are truly collections more like an anthology, the books of the Bible were written to be a complete thought. They are literary works, just like the last novel or letter you read. They have a plot and a setting. They have transitions in thought and a context that fills in the meaning as you read.

Last time, I wrote about the need to ground a passage in its historical context, but that is not the only context to consider. A passage also has a literary context. Words and even sentences have little to no meaning when they are ripped out of their context. How many times have we heard someone blantantly misquoted in a news story? How often have we seen a one-sentence soundbite played out of some politician's speech on television, only to hear him say it was taken out of context?

You can completely change the meaning of a statement if you take it out of  literary context. For instance, go back and read the first sentence of this blog post. Is that statement by itself indicative of my feelings? Absolutely not, and when taken in its context, it is obviously satire. But If I were quoted with just that one line, it would completely miss my point. Are we guilty of that exact mistake with scripture? How often do we misquote God?

In order to truly understand the meaning of any portion of scripture, it is absolutely essential to understand its greater literary context. Find out what the author is saying in the entire section or book, not just what it seems like one verse means. As a matter of fact, stop reading verse by verse altogether. The verse and chapter markers in your Bible are not divinely inspired. They were put there by men many years after scripture was written to make it easier to find a passage's location. Verse markers are good when you need to find your place, but awful when you use them as units of meaning. Think of them as a bookmark, not a complete thought.

Another consideration is the genre of the specific book you are reading. Scripture comes in many literary flavors. Some books are letters, others are narrative, and still others are poetic language. It is important to notice what style of writing you are reading.

If it is one of Paul's letters, think of it as just that, a letter. It was written by him to real people that, in most instances, he knew. Just like the last time you sent someone an email, Paul had a reason for writing that letter. Try to figure out what the reason is, and it will go a long way to helping you understand the letter.

If it is a narrative like Acts, read it like a story. After all, that is how it was written. Look for plot development, and setting changes. Look at character development. Try to notice themes from passage to passage.

In all genres, attempt to find an outline of thought. Letters typically make an argument or form a case for a particular point of view. Narratives structure around movements of thought or action. The outline of poetic writing often follows symbols and imagery. Follow the authors outline, and you can find the intended meaning.






I saved the best for last, the most important aspect of Bible study is next. Continue on to Delight in the Law of the Lord: Part 7 - Application

Delight in the Law of the Lord: Part 5 - Technique

I have a confession. Pulling water is not one of my spiritual gifts. For those of you too pampered to have ever experienced this, “pulling water” is the euphemism applied to dragging buckets of water up a rope and out of a 50ft-deep well.

Pulling water, that sounds easy. At least I thought so when I first heard this would be part of my daily routine in the village. That was one of many stupid assumptions I would make adjusting to life in the bush.

Before I ever tried this activity for myself, I watched as the women and little kids would go casually over to the well, throw the bucket down into the chasm and effortlessly lift the water out of the hole and pour it into their own containers. It appeared to be a cinch, and the concept was simple. Drop in bucket, pull out water. Anybody could do that.

However, my first trip to the well to pull water turned out to be quite a different reality. I carried my little containers out to the well and set them down, grabbed the rope and bucket and chunked it off into the well. As I pulled the bucket out of the dark hole, I thought to myself that this was not as hard as it had been made out to be. The bucket rose effortlessly out of the well, and I soon realized why. It was empty.

Realizing how poorly I had performed, I quickly looked around to see if anyone was watching so I could play it off if need be. Perceiving no laughter or mockery, I pretended it never happened and tried again. Off the bucket went into the water. This time, I used a slightly different strategy... I jiggled the rope a little, feeling this would increase my odds of water entering the bucket. I began to lift, and yet again it was far too light. Apparently, the bucket was floating on top of the water.

I sat there perplexed, looking like a monkey trying to solve a math problem. Finally, one of the little girls was sent over by the people who had indeed been watching me the entire time. She took the rope from my hand and began to teach me the technique of pulling water. After I watched someone else do it from up close, I realized much of it was truly common sense. For instance, if you turn the bucket upside down before you drop it, it sinks.

I am by no means an all-star in the water pulling department, but I am getting better with continued practice.

Bible study has technique too, and just like pulling water, when you see someone do it up close, you begin to realize that much of it is common sense.

If there is one presupposition that the student of God's Word must keep in mind, it is this: God's Word was written a long time ago to people very different than us; nonetheless, it applies to us today as much as it did to the original audience.

So how do we make sense of texts that were written to a completely foreign culture? This is the basic question of biblical interpretation. Everyone who reads scripture interprets scripture, whether they realize it or not. Everyone is an interpreter. The real consideration is whether or not you are interpreting it correctly.

Most people will read a passage and assign it some meaning they have determined. From that point, most will apply this meaning in some way to their life, maybe without ever realizing that is what they are doing. How do we now we are being honest with the text though?

The first step is to realize you are reading a document that was not originally written to you, but certainly applies to you. Think of a journey into scripture as a trip through time. To see what it means now, you must do your best to understand what it meant then. It is often said that, “It can not mean now what it did not mean then.” Scripture's truths are timeless. They apply to all generations and cultures for all of time. A passage may not apply exactly today as it did to its original intended audience, but the truth will certainly be the same. Therefore, it is imperative to go back to its original setting as best as possible and find the truth. It is this truth you will bring back with you to your own time to apply today.

Practically, this means the student of the Bible must take into consideration the historical context of whatever passage they are reading. Remember back to when we spoke about the Bible's authorship. The Bible was not written in one sitting and the events in scripture took place over thousands of years. We cannot simply assume it all happened at the same time in the same way.

What time in history did this story take place? Where is the setting? Who are the main players and what is their significance in history? What are the things about their culture that are necessary to understand the point of this passage? These are questions to ask about every passage you read. By answering these, you begin to place yourself in the shoes of the original audience.

It is possible to find out added historical information like this from outside sources such as a good Bible dictionary or background commentaries, but it is not essential to search through these to understand scripture. Much of this information is available right in the text itself. Read the Bible with these questions in mind. Try reading around your passage to get a fuller understanding of it. Read the whole book of the Bible where it is located, after all, the author originally wrote it as one piece of literature. Should we not take it that way?

Historical context and background is not the only consideration when reading the Bible for interpretation, but it is a good place to start.

The problem with understanding the Bible is not insufficient knowledge, or its own incompleteness. In all honesty, it is simply the fact that people do not take enough time to answer these kinds of questions about the passage they are reading. We want immediate understanding without the work of pulling out the truth. We want the “TV dinner” version of scripture, and so often, we turn to little devotionals and quick fix books (read gimmicks) to get the meaning without looking for ourselves. And like a TV dinner, we wind up with something that is far less fulfilling than the original.

Just like pulling water out of a well takes work, so does appropriate study of God's Word. At first, you may not get much in your bucket, but with practice, you pull out more and more. When the bucket is full, it is really heavy. Often times, it is hard to bear. When you get it to the surface though, you realize it is worth the work.

Next we will look at literary context and genre. Continue on to Delight in the Law or the Lord: Part 6 - More Technique

Delight in the Law of the Lord: Part 4 - Overcomplicated?

Why do we overcomplicate things? Is it part of human nature, possibly a result of the fall? Take for instance that master of ingenuity, Wile E. Coyote. There are few things in life that bring me as much happiness as laughing at his misery. In his eternal effort to snare the Roadrunner, or more precisely to satisfy his hunger, he stops at no lengths. I know I personally have watched him strap himself to a rocket, shoot out of a catapult, construct the most absurd Rube Goldbergs and single-handedly keep the ACME company in business with endless purchases of iron birdseed, fake holes, and industrial-size magnets. Indeed, would it not be far more cost effective for him to save the money he spends at ACME and go buy a burger?

Yet, there is some mystical force behind the gimmick. We have all been guilty of using gimmicks. Each of us have a secret love affair with that particular “as seen on TV” item. At current, mine is the Snuggie®. What a great gimmick. You can have your blanket on and still use the remote! (If you order now, you will receive a free book light.)

For many years my approach to Bible study was no different, grossly overcomplicated and littered with one gimmick after the other. How many years I wasted assuming there was some trick to understanding the Bible that I did not know. How many of us have sat back and assumed that really understanding the Bible's teaching was the responsibility of our pastor who would just explain it to us on Sunday? People have written books, produced videos, and created an endless rack of “tools” (read gimmicks) for the purpose of making money off of this incorrect assumption that you need some key to interpreting God's word.

Please understand, I am not criticizing useful academic works such as commentaries, lexicons and other tools that aid in the study of God's Word. However, I certainly do not think even these appropriate tools are essential to an accurate understanding of the Bible. Truly, a man stranded on an island with nothing but his Bible can receive deep, spirit-filled truth from it. The Bible is enough. It is sufficient.

Indeed, there are keys to interpreting the Bible correctly. There are essential tools we must use in understanding God's truth, but they are not available in stores. You cannot purchase them on any late-night infomercial. Here is the best news; they are free and readily available to any Christian that desires to understand the Bible. As a matter of fact, if you are a Christian you already possess them.

When I became a Christian, God's Holy Spirit began to indwell my life. Do not ask me to explain exactly how that works. I do know my relationship with God has been restored. He speaks to me and I speak to him. The Spirit of God lives inside of me, the very spirit that inspired each of the authors of the Bible. Let me rephrase that. The author behind the authors indwells me and speaks to me.

Imagine sitting down with Tolkien himself and having a conversation about The Lord of the Rings. What better interpretive key exists than a relationship with the book's author? Through prayerful study of scripture, the Holy Spirt speaks to the reader. If you want to understand scripture as you read it, try genuinely asking its author for some help. God wants us to understand the Bible, or he would not have given it to us. Ask the Spirit to speak to you as you read.

There is another important interpretive key that must be considered. It may not seem nearly as exciting, but is honestly as important to our understanding of the text. At birth, God blessed each of us with a brain. While some work better than others, we all still have one. This brain is indeed capable of miraculous things, if only it is engaged. Unfortunately, most of the time I think people try to approach the Bible with said brain in neutral.

Much of reading the Bible with understanding is truly common sense. Yes, it is the words of God himself. It is powerful beyond comprehension, and second to none in its importance. Nevertheless, God chose to give us this word in literary form. He used the styles of our own works of poetry and story, of history and law, and spoke to us in a verbal and now written form we already understand. He was trying to communicate in a way we would be able to comprehend.

For some reason, we tend to overlook this reality and expect something different. We look for other keys to reading it, as though it is not a book. Understanding scripture requires many of the same techniques used for understanding any written work. That being said, a consideration of things such as context, genre, and style round out our understanding of what the Bible is trying to say. It helps to know some background on the section you are reading. Just like understanding The War of the Worlds is in fact science fiction will keep one from locking themselves in their basement with a box full of non-perishable food items.

In the next couple of posts, I plan on outlining a few simple considerations when reading the Bible. If only we will keep our brain engaged while we read and remember some common sense characteristics of literature, God can, and will, speak loudly through his word.

However, if you think this is too simple, if instead you prefer to overcomplicate things, then maybe you should look into one of these.

Nuts and bolts of interpretation next time. Continue on to Delight in the Law of the Lord: Part 5 - Technique

Delight in the Law of the Lord: Part 3 - Using the Bible

There are a lot of things in life that we want to make sure we do not misuse. For instance, those little signs that have replaced the words “Men” and “Women” on most public bathrooms are important. Another example is the inappropriate way the referee used his whistle in the USA-Slovenia game last week. Or perhaps the way “Ke$ha” completely misuses that dollar sign in the middle of her name. It is important to get those things right.

It is important to get scripture right too. If indeed the Bible is the second greatest form of revelation given to mankind, if indeed these 66 books are the best and most complete understanding we will receive of God almighty this side of heaven; then it is of the utmost importance that we use this tool in the proper manner. However, I have a hunch that many (if not most) people sitting in the pews of our churches today have at best a misunderstanding of scripture, its purpose and its use. (See my earlier post on this here.) The last couple of posts have discussed scripture's purpose. Now, I am going to look at its use.

Let us get introspective for a moment. How do you use the Bible? We have probably all been tempted to use a method of Bible study that is not exactly what God intended for his holy words. Perhaps you have followed the “Pray and Point” method where you expect God to direct your finger to his specific word for your life in that moment. Or maybe you preferred to use it like a telephone book, where you look at that index in the back of your Bible based on your mood. “For sadness, look at these verses... for forgiveness, go here.” Then there is the prescription approach where a couple of verses are ingested daily for the sole purpose of saying you have read your Bible that day. I have actually heard the phrase, “A verse a day keeps the devil away!” from the pulpit.

However, I feel the approach most Christians may be guilty of in the States is osmosis. It seems that people feel if they carry their Bible around in their book bag at school (you know those kids... I was one of them) or their hand at church, it will soak in somehow. They probably never open the thing, but they have it prominently displayed so others can see. Or maybe it sits on the coffee table or desk in the office next to the other decorations, raked to just the right angle so it appears it has been read instead of sitting there for weeks. People lay Bibles around like they are emitting some magic, spiritual wi-fi that will bless their house, family or life. Yet, an unread Bible blesses no one.

Growing up, I was guilty of most of these at some point. It seemed whenever I would do the finger point though, I would wind up in some obscure passage and discover that I should not boil a goat in its mother's milk. I became a veteran at the osmosis technique. I usually had a Bible with me, whether I was at school, church, or in my car; however, it was rarely opened. Truth be told, I was kind of intimidated by the thing. I heard at least once a week in youth group or a sermon that I should read the thing everyday and study it often, but every time I picked it up, I had no clue where to start. I would go to conferences and see these dynamic guys up on stage talking about how this book had the power to change lives if you would just live in it (whatever that meant), but I felt there was some kind of secret to understanding it. What did these people know that I did not?

The answer to that question was nothing. Nothing. There was no extra tool I needed, no special training or degree necessary to unlock the “secrets” of God's Word. All I needed was a little common sense and an ear to listen.

I will be honest with you, it was not until I had already graduated from college the first time that I came to that realization. When I did though, it changed my life. That power all those conference speakers were yelling about, come to find out, really is between those leather covers. The best news is it is available to all who call upon the name of the Lord.

Think with me for a minute. Why would God inspire all of these authors over all of these years to write and compile this masterpiece of revelation, his way of disclosing himself to mankind, and then require some secret trick to unlock its knowledge? That makes about a much sense as North Korea paying Chinese actors to play the role of fans in the World Cup (check it out) or canned unicorn meat. Why would God give mankind a gift they could not unwrap? That would be a sick joke.

Instead, he has made it available to everyone. It is plain, if you use your common sense. It is powerful, if you listen to its words. It will change your life, if you just let it.

Next, we will talk about common sense and understanding the Bible. Continue on to Delight in the Law of the Lord: Part 4 - Overcomplicated?