Let's Study Scripture Correctly

Lately, the youth group has been going through a study of the Holy Spirit, and we have been presented with a question that I think is very important for all of us to constantly consider to a certain degree: eisegesis or exegesis?  Right now some readers want to scoop up their electronic device, drive over to my current location and throw said device right in my face for using such ridiculously large words.  Let me explain first, please!  Exegesis, when it comes to Bible study, refers to allowing scripture to dictate and formulate truth.  Eisegesis is simply using scripture as a tool to reinforce what we already believe to be true, our preconceived doctrines and opinions.  The question is incredibly important: are we allowing scripture to truly dictate truth in our study?

Do you ever talk to people who already have their opinion made about what you're saying?  That's a fun conversation, right?  No matter your argument or your facts, they aren't listening to learn or even with an open mind, but they merely listen for anything you may say that can prove their point.  That's eisegesis.  That's how many of us study the Bible.  Right now, the youth group is studying the identity and presence of the Holy Spirit.  This Holy Spirit conversation has been the breaking point of many church fellowships and even the identifying marker for certain denominations.  How can we all study the same text and disagree on the meaning?  That's an important question, for scripture only teaches one truth.  We can contort just about any written statement to cause it to say something different, and sometimes opposite, to its original intent.  We see this in studies on history, in politics and in gossip.  It is true that many points of disagreement between Christians are minor when in comparison to things like the identity of Jesus and the authority of God's Word; however, we should all strive to learn the truth of scripture!  That truth is found exegetically, allowing scripture itself to dictate our understanding.

Are we willing to do that?  That's a steep commitment!  Many of us jump in without hesitation.  It might seem heretical, but may I please give a plea for caution?  Please, count the cost!  If scripture says that Jesus is the only truth and that there is no way to the Father that is not through Him (John 14:6), we must ask if we are willing to submit to that.  If we want to hold on to being able to do all things through Christ who gives us strength (Philippians 4:13), we must also submit our will to God (James 4:7) and allow ourselves to be purchased...owned by God (1 Corinthians 6:20, 7:23).  This is really just a question of what authority does scripture have in your life?  It's a really tough question!  If scripture commands me to do something I don't want to do, I might not like that absolute authority.  The same is true for if and when scripture tells me to stop doing a thing that I really want to do.  Now, scripture is authoritative whether we want it or not.  When my mom told me to clean my room, there was no question or conversation.  My mom is from upstate New York, that room got cleaned!  We do, however, have the choice to submit or not to the authority of scripture.  We do.  However, if the Bible isn't the absolute authority, then neither is God or Jesus and there really is no point in being a Christian.

Let's be honest, many of us manipulate scripture because we don't like being wrong, don't like submitting or, probably in most cases, both at the same time.  Here's the challenge.  Using the context of scripture (not just simply asking what the passage written in first century Greek or BC Hebrew means to us in 21st century America) let's shut off our preconceived notions, our extra-Biblical doctrines, what we believe to be necessary pillars holding up our understanding of reality, and just let the Word of God be living, active and sharp enough to cut to the very core of the truth (Hebrews 4:12).  The word of God is from His very breath, the interaction of His Spirit through the writers, and is absolutely capable of guiding every one of us into all truth (2 Timothy 3:16-17).  Let's study to understand God's will, not to try to prove our own point.

In His Grip,

BJ

Selfless Words of Life

I got a chance to talk with a bunch of teens last weekend about selflessness!  I've been really stoked about this, and the study was immensely rewarding!  At the session before sending the students home, we went over Philippians 2:14-16a which says, "Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation. Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold firmly to the word of life."  This concept brings up some interesting connotations that I would love to share with you.

First of all, we need to understand that God ... HATES ... Grumbling!!!!  Before we really get into it, what does grumbling mean?  Grumbling, as translated in the Greek, is like the cooing of doves.  It's a silent murmuring of discontent and ill will.  It doesn't mean "quiet" in as much as it refers to a secretive meeting.  We would call it complaining or whining, but in such a way that is destructive in a festering way, like an infection.  The Old Testament speaks of grumbling as a lingering or fixation on whining and complaining.  In 1 Corinthians 10:10, Paul reminds the Corinthian Christians of what God did to the Hebrew people as they began to grumble in the desert (Numbers 16:41).  God was prepared to wipe the entire nation from the face of the Earth.  With a plague, often spoken of as a death angel of the Lord, God had already begun to destroy the grumbling nation of Israel.  As Moses and Aaron had done several times already, they begged for God to forgive the people.  Aaron ran to a point between the living and the dead to plead for the lives of the remaining Israelites, but by that time, 14,700 people had already died...GRUMBLING!  So, what's the big deal?  When Israel worshipped a pagan God and did all kinds of degrading acts around its altar, God took only a fraction of that number!  Why would He react so strongly to grumbling?

That's the overarching issue, really.  Grumbling is deceptive in its whispering.  Loud sins often tend to be seen as the most destructive, but we forget the power of words.  A sword ill used can commit murder but words ill spoken can commit genocide.  We forget what James says about words.  He says in James 3:5b-6, "Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell." Philippians 2:1-18 is all about being selfless, and, in order to grumble or argue, we must be as selfish as possible.  How do we have the time to fight with or talk bad about each other if we are busy loving others?  Grumbling, at best, is a self-defense mechanism that has gone horribly wrong.  Grumbling, at worst, is an attack that is both cowardly and dangerously affective.  The natural "need" to rise on the ashes of others is evil in its selfish ambition.  The feeling that we have the right to have an opinion and grumble or complain about something that God commands of us is natural for people that think God is little more than an elected official.  He's not.  He's God.

What do we do then?  We pull our heads out of our private whining, backbiting and trashing in order to actually make a difference in the kingdom.  God is God.  We do what He tells us to do.  We don't have time to ask how we feel about His commands.  He's our Lord; we agree with His decree because of who He is not because of what we want.  Our brothers and sisters are our family.  We don't argue, trash talk or fight because we need each other in this brutal world!  Did some dude lie about something?  Is some lady wrong about something?  What do they need?  Grumbling and arguing or loving support and accountability?  The world is not our enemy, it is our mission field.  We don't speak ill and attack the very people for whom Jesus died and intended for us to bring salvation.  Selflessness is admitting that it's not all about us.  Our life is an offering, an outpouring to the world out of love for them and, ultimately, out of reverence for God.  Instead of arguing, murmuring, backbiting, gossiping, trash-talking, grumbling, complaining, whining, griping, slandering and attacking with words of death, let's be blameless and pure in the warped and crooked generation.  Let's shine like stars as we use our words, our hearts, our minds and all of our effort to hold out the word of life.

In His Grip,

BJ

Let's Know the Word

For five years of my life I worked at a video store. I think I can probably write a novel about the interactions I had with people during that time, but for me the job wasn't completely about the people. I liked the interaction, but it was the free rentals that really did it for me. From 1997 to 2002, I watched hundreds, quite possibly close to a thousand movies and loved every second of it! I loved it all: action, romantic comedy, science fiction, horror, all of it! Knowing the movies helped in the job as well. Remember that this was pre-Google (how did we survive???). I would get customers in person or even over the phone who would ask about a movie by vague descriptors or citing other movies as sources. "What was that one movie with the house filled with pop-corn?" (Real Genius) "We're looking for that funny movie that has that dude from 'When Harry Met Sally' where he plays like a cowboy or something." (City Slickers) I loved that stuff! I was really good at it! Getting to know the movies wasn't educational at the core, but the fortunate or unfortunate (depending on the movie) side-effect was that I got to know the movies personally as I watched them. In case you were wondering, all this reminiscing has a point, two of them, actually.

I have been thinking about evangelism lately. It's what we've been speaking about in youth group. It's the church's theme for the year. It's the primary purpose for everyone in the Church. A question that keeps coming up to my mind is why are we so terrified of evangelism? Even the word is daunting! One thing that really seems to jump out at me is the mistaken notion that we have to be able to recite the Bible to people. This idea that we have to know enough to evangelize is not just paralyzing, it's just plain absurd! When a customer came up to me wanting to know which movie had a dude dressed in black fighting Andre the Giant, they didn't need me to enact the entire scene. They just needed me to tell them, "That's The Princess Bride and, yes, we do have it on the shelf." We don't have to completely understand Leviticus to share the story of the Word of God. It's quite simple in four easy parts. 1) Creation was perfect. 2) Adam and Eve messed up perfection by disobeying, a practice we continue to this very day, but God offered the hope of a promised Savior. 3) The Old Testament set the stage for Jesus, and His death and resurrection provided the rescue that all people of all time have needed, do need and will need until He comes again. 4) On that day, what is evil will be re-moved and what Jesus has made righteous will be restored to the way things were before Adam and Eve sinned. See? The Bible, in a nutshell, is simple yet moving. It has the depth of hope and, yet, is completely understandable!

Now, having said that, I can tell you generally about movies that I don't care for (or in some cases absolutely hate), but movies that I love I know in great depth. If somebody has a question about the Lord of the Rings trilogy, I can give them an ear-full! If someone just says the word "inconceivable," I have a difficult time not following up with, "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means." (The Princess Bride) Here in the office, Glenn and I can go back and forth in What About Bob quotes. People hardly ever quote movies accurately. "Play it again, Sam." "Beam me up, Scotty" and "Do you feel lucky, punk?" are all beloved misquotes by people. Although these are not accurate, statements like these show that the person does, at least, know the essence of the dialogue of their favorite movies. We need to know our Bible, but it's not so important to get the wording exact. If you don't believe me, listen to how the New Testament writers quote the Old ... it gets pretty inventive. There's no grade. No one is standing behind you saying "That's, 'for God SO loved the world...' you lose 2 points." What we need is to hide God's word in our hearts (Psalm 119:11) because the Holy Spirit is around to remind us what we've stored away (John 14:26). This isn't a test, it's a joy. The moment I know more movie quotes than scripture, there's a problem. How many people know music lyrics like crazy but say they just can't know scripture?

Let's not just keep a Bible with us to look Christian-y. Let's know the Word of God. Let's jump into it! Let's ponder it! Let's write it on things. People need to know what we take for granted. Let's not be more eager to quote movies than share scripture. Let's know the Word, and let's share it with the world!

In His Grip,

BJ

The "Why" Matters

If the job is getting done, why should it matter why we do it? This question has been plaguing people for years, and there is much merit to the argument. Let's say there is a person who believes that it is wrong to profit from giving to the poor and has, in fact, given nothing. Let's also say that there is a person whose sole intent is on profiting by giving to the poor (giving to lower his or her taxable income can save bundles of money). This individual's motive and ambition is primarily and fundamentally for the benefit of his or her self. How effective is the moral high ground? Only one person gave to the poor. Sure, they did it for selfish reasons, but they still gave and that's all that matters, right?

The answer to that, my brothers and sisters, is "wrong." Both of the above individuals failed. It's true that scripture places a great deal of importance on giving to the poor. It was an important part of God's plan for Judaism and, in the same way, it is an important part of Christianity. Matthew 25 quotes Jesus warning that those who don't feed the hungry, clothe the naked and so forth find their eternity in hell. In Mark 10 and Matthew 19, Jesus tells the rich, young ruler to give all he has to the poor. However, as Jesus preached to the countryside in what is believed to be part of Jesus' traveling sermon, He spoke these words recorded in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5,6 & 7), "If you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift."(5:23-24) And, "When you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full." (6:2) Why? Who cares if they have T-shirts printed, "I Gave to Charity!" The poor are still being fed, right? The homeless are still being sheltered. James, the elder of the Jerusalem Church, wrote these words in James 1:27, "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep one’s self from being polluted by the world." If it's doing the job, then it has to be right...right?

By all means no! If the purpose of being sent to this world was to end world hunger, don't you think Jesus could accomplish that? He stuffed thousands with a kid's lunchbox; he could certainly feed the world! Jesus didn't come to heal, because He had and has the power to end suffering but only healed a few. Jesus didn't come to cast out demons because they are still here. He surely didn't come to end poverty because, as He walked the earth, He too was homeless (Matthew 8:20). The reason for Jesus' coming was to die, to give up His life. The reason for our continual existence is to give up our lives as well. John says in 1 John 3:16, "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters." This doesn't mean we all go and kill ourselves for people. To lay down one's life is speaking of importance, of priorities. Paul explains it this way in Philippians 2:3-4, "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others." And THAT is love. THAT is what we are called to be and do.

It's not good enough to give to the needy. We should, at first, give to the needy because we love God and want to obey His commands (John 14:23). It is a certain sense of duty to our Lord because we have not begun to grow in the heart of the Lord. But, as we are in the light, and we do, in fact, grow in His presence like a stem from a vine, we begin to produce the fruit of God's truer, deeper love. We begin to love, not because we strive to, but because it is our heart. John also writes in 1 John 4:16-17, 19-21, "God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus ... We love because he first loved us. Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister." We give to the needy because we love the needy, not to earn points with the man upstairs. We clothe the naked because we love them, not because we fear hell. We comfort those who mourn, because our heart is broken as well. We love because God first loved us. Let's live this life of love this year! May the world see God's heart in us!

In His Grip,
BJ

The Season of Giving

We often call Christmas the Season of Giving, and that's pretty awesome!  It's great to see that the birth of Christ can serve as an inspiration to the world to be more charitable.  There is absolutely no problem with this!  I see bumper stickers demanding that we all remember to keep Christ as the center of Christmas, which works for those of us who know Him.  However, for the passing world which has no idea who Jesus is, how much sense does that make?  They don't understand the need for a Savior yet, they don't recognize the price of a life owned by sin, nor do they recognize the birth of the One who willingly paid that debt...not yet at least.  What do they see?  They see the name of Christ attached to a holiday that professes selflessness as its central theme.  And, you know what?  That's pretty accurate!

The example of giving at Christmas does not ultimately come from the gifts of the wise men, nor does it come from December 25th being adopted as Jesus' birthday.  One of the best scriptures explaining from where giving at Christmas comes is Philippians 2:3-8 which says, "(Christ Jesus), being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.  And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross!"

In the first half of that verse, we find ourselves at Christmas.  Sure, it misses the narration by Linus about the shepherds in the field being terrified and the "no room at the inn," but we as Christians must remember why the story of Mary, Joseph, the angels, the Shepherds and, four years later, the Magi is important.  This was not a Silent or Holy Night in and of itself.  The question is what "Came Upon a Midnight Clear?"  What, beyond the mere tradition of it all, happened?  It was at that moment when Jesus decided that it was time to forsake His Godly position and become a man, or as Paul writes in Philippians 2, made Himself "nothing."  He came as a servant of all people for all time.  This gift continued until around 33 years later when Jesus reached the summit of His purpose on earth, when He died on the cross for our sin.  Jesus is the gift at Christmas, not merely His presence but ultimately His selfless sacrifice.

So, this Christmas, let's focus on the words of application that came right before the above passage in Philippians 2.  These are verses 3 and 4 which say, "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others."  It's not enough to give gifts, because we can give for selfish reasons.  We aren't called to be generous, we're called to be selfless.  We aren't called to be giving because it feels good, we are called to put others above ourselves regardless of how it feels.  Jesus made Himself obedient to death on a cross, and, from what I have read, that doesn't feel nice at all.  1 John 3:16 says, "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us."  He placed the needs of everyone over His own needs.  That’s what Christmas is all about!  So what?  John continues, "And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters."

In this Season of Giving, let's have the attitude of Jesus.  Let's consider the needs of others so much greater than our own that we lay everything we have and are, our entire lives, down for their sake.  Let's not just put Christ back in Christmas...let's be Christ in Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

In His Grip,

BJ