The Bible
Rob Smith asked in a comment below:
So, here is a question I have thought about for a long time, and even had a conversation about it with a Pastor friend. He almost freaked that I would even bring it up. Here goes: Why do many Christians almost worship the Bible? When John talks about the Word of God is he talking about what we call the Word of God? I've always thought it was circular reasoning to view scripture as God-breathed just because it proclaims itself God-breathed and inerrant. Are we sure that we have it right when it comes to the Bible?
Several questions, but all the same conceptual question. And, the relevance here is how do we proclaim what God wants us to proclaim to a world that may view that very proclamation synically, especially in a post-modern world.
I am not questioning the reality or certainty of Truth. What I am questioning is its mode of revelation.
This is why the last two books I've read are about the coming together of the Scriptural canon. The current and coming generations do not just accept "the authority of Scripture." It is interesting that the early church (pre 300AD) did not speak of a canon, but put stock in books that spoke to their journey.
I'm not at all suggesting we chuck the canon. The Word of God spoken of by John is Jesus. And likewise it is funny when people look at the last verses of Revelation that say "Don't add to this book" and think John wrote them as an endcap to the New Testament. There wasn't a New Testament when he wrote it. Revelation didn't make the canon cut initially.
The authority of Scripture came for me when I read them (the New Testament in particular) as a college student and said, "Yeah, wow, that's really rings true!"
What I try to proclaim today isn't Scripture. I try to proclaim Jesus. If you want to know more about Jesus, you might want to read some Scripture.
posted by Brian at 4:29 PM
3 Comments:
Wow. Great comment Rob. And howdy.
I would agree that many people worship the Bible rather than the God of the Bible. (and that's why so many are placed high on a shelf - never to be taken down, right?). :)
I wonder if the circular reasoning isn't similar to how I was attracted to my wife. I didn't initially fall in love with her soul; I was attracted to her looks. The "visible" her was what caught my eye and moved me to want to get to know her, and that is when I discovered the real depth of who she was; which is when I really fell in love with her.
Don't you think many people are afraid of love, or they don't want to take the time to pursue it... so they just remain superficial and content with the "package"? They may memorize Scripture and they talk about the Bible, but often they miss the meaning of it.
My initial response was, "We should just tell people about Jesus then, and forget the Bible at first." But... I can remember reading the Bible long before I was a follower of Jesus. It made very little sense. But then when I made a "connection" with Him, that's when it really came alive.
Different people make that connection differently. Some are more analytical, some more relational. even though it may not be completely understandable - it has some kind of mysterious pull to it for many. Like, the thing that first caught my eye about my wife was her FINGERNAILS. One of the first verses of the Bible that intrigued me was Habakkuk 3:17-18. I have no idea why.
But I agree, we make a mistake when we place the importance on just knowing the words of the Bible, rather than the Word of the Bible. It is meant to reveal Christ, is it not?
Feels like a merry-go-round...
Has anyone read "velvet elvis" by Rob Bell? I'm about a third of the way through. I think it has a lot to say about this post. (Rob, from what little I know about you, I think you would like it).
Bell says on p.32: "The Christian faith is mysterious to the core. It is about things and beings that ultimately can't be put into words. Language fails. And if we do definitively put God into words, we have at that very moment made God something God is not."
So - to me - reading the Bible as words doesn't work.
Bell goes on aroound p.59 talking about it being ALIVE today though. On p.60: "The story is true for us because it happened and because it HAPPENS. It is an accurate description of how life is. The reason the stories in the Bible have resonated with so many people over the years is that they have seen themselves in the stories."
This almost seems to contradict the first thought, but the emphasis is on "stories", rather than mere words, right?
He goes on to say, "Taht is why the Bible is still so powerful: These ancient stories are 'our' stories. These stories are reflective of how things are... And this is why the Bible loses its power for so many communities. They fall into the trap of thinking that the Bible is just about things that happened a long time ago."
P.63 "We ahve to embrace the Bible as the wild, uncensored, passionate account it is of people experiencing the loving God... Real people, in real places, at real times, writing and telling stories about ttheir experiences and their growing understanding of who God is and who they are."
Finally, on p.65: "The Bible is a collection of stories that teach us about what it looks like when God is at work through actual people. The Bible has the authority it does only because it contains stories about people interacting with the God who has all authority."
So far I think the book is great. I would recommend it.
I like the formulation Bell uses at Mars Hill, borrowing from Billy Graham: "We affirm what the Bible affirms."
That means not going beyond what the Bible says about itself.
Brant
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