I believe that the Bible is the inerrant Word of God,
which means I believe it is perfectly accurate in its present form. Many of my colleagues, when they hear me say
that, accuse me of being a fundamentalist.
I am not. Fundamentalists believe
that the Bible is to be taken literally at all times. But that is another BluBlocker (remember
those?). The Bible is a divine library
filled with history, law, poetry, songs, stories, letters, parables, drama,
philosophy, sermons – and more. We don’t
want to take every word literally.
The truth is, the fundamentalist who claims he or she
does so is lying. Just ask her if she
takes Psalm 18:2 literally, “The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my
deliverer.” Does he really think God is
a “rock,” or does he think the word “rock” is metaphorical? She will answer metaphorical, which proves
she is not a true literalist.
Like all of us, fundamentalists make their decisions
about what is literal and what is not based on their own biases.
Classic example: the Bible commands people to
“Greet one another with a holy kiss” (Romans 16:16). Simple enough,
right? Doesn’t seem to be metaphorical. If fundamentalists take the
Bible literally,
why not just obey it? Sure, it would
seem weird at first, but eventually we would get used to men kissing
other men,
women kissing other women. We could
replace the handshake and hug with kissing after church! Maybe that
could be a witnessing tool! “Oh yeah.
That St. John’s Church … they really believe the Bible. It’s so cool!
They kiss each other all the time, praise the Lord!” Hey, it’s God’s
command from His inerrant
Word, right? But I can almost guarantee
that many will argue that texts like these need to be filtered through
the
context of the culture in which they were written.
But wait a minute!
How can one justify ignoring the commands of certain texts, appealing to
the cultural context, while demanding others be obeyed without using the same
analysis? BluBlockers.
This is a huge problem in our churches, both so-called
conservative and liberal. Too many on
both sides of the aisle refuse to acknowledge that human pretensions, biases,
cultures, and prejudices impact our ability to interpret and understand
Scripture. This is why one needs to
humbly and suspiciously approach the Bible.
Readers must cultivate humility in their hearts and be suspicious of
their own penchant to wear BluBlockers. They
need to acknowledge that a literal reading of the Bible can be a dangerous
oversimplification. The same is true
with those who hold a purely metaphorical reading. The true meaning of a biblical text is often
more complicated to unearth.
Christ followers want to be more like a guy I once knew
by the name of Jerry. Jerry was color
blind. He told me that anytime he picked
out his own clothes, people stared. When
he drove, he had to be extra careful because he couldn’t tell the difference
between a red light and a green light, other than its position on the
pole. I was surprised to learn
that. When I remarked how well he
concealed his challenge, he said, “That’s because I don’t trust myself. If I did, you would have known it the day you
met me – I would have been the one dressed like a clown. But I learned early on that if I don’t ask
for help, I’m in trouble.”
More people in our churches should admit they need help
when it comes to negotiating scripture.
J.I. Packer writes: “[In] approach[ing] scripture with
minds already formed by the mass of accepted opinions and viewpoints with which
we have come into contact, in both the Church and the world . . . It is easy to
be unaware that it has happened; it is hard even to begin to realize how
profoundly tradition in this sense has molded us. . . . We may never assume the
complete rightness of our own established ways of thought and practice and
excuse ourselves the duty of testing and reforming them.”
Christians should be very suspicious of their
understanding of the Scriptures. This is
especially true when reading prophetic segments. For example, if you think God directed Bible
prophecy toward Americans more than Libyans, Afghans, or Sudanese, the
end-times verses will read differently to you.
But if you are a Christian from the Sudan (many of whom are currently
having their property seized and their children taken from them), you may think
the great tribulation is taking place now
and that you have already met the armies of the antichrist.
Among the most popular topics among evangelicals is the
subject of the end-times or last days.
Talk about the return of Jesus Christ often gets people motivated to
serve. But that kind of motivation isn’t
healthy when people get excited about the return of Christ based on current
events that are interpreted inappropriately.
In 1988 a booklet came out titled 88 Reasons Why the Rapture Will Be in 1988. Tens of thousands of sincere believers bought
that little book and made it central to their lives. People I knew where passing the book out to
relatives, friends, coworkers and neighbors.
They slapped bumper stickers on their cars reading: Warning: In case of Rapture, this car will be unoccupied. The booklet created quite a stir. I had been around the block quite a few times
by 1988, so I wasn’t nearly as taken with the idea. I remember telling those I pastored at the time,
“Don’t get too excited. Jesus said no
one would know the exact time or hour of his return! I hate to pop your end-times bubble, but I
have some plans for 1989.”
When Jesus didn’t come back, the author came out with
another work with a title of 89 Reasons
Why the Rapture Will Be in 1989. It
didn’t sell nearly as well. People who
got all jacked up from the first book were disappointed and embarrassed after
Jesus didn’t return in 1988. Some even
slipped away from the Lord. Why? Talking about Jesus’ return the way Chicken
Little talked about the falling sky always yields less-than-favorable results.
Instead of forcing obscure texts onto modern news
stories, wouldn’t it be better to spend energy trying to inspire people to long
for Christ’s return?
When we read the New Testament, we get the idea that the
early church expected Jesus to return at any moment – and that was 2,000 years
ago! Why would those Christians talk
about the return of Jesus in a way that suggested it could happen at any
moment? The answer may be found in
Paul’s comment that God rewards those “who have longed for his appearing” (2
Timothy 4:8). God wants His children to
think about, dream about, and long for the return of Jesus Christ.
Honestly, until recently, I hardly ever did that. There were too many things to get done …
ministry, family, fun. But as I’ve
gotten older, and have learned many hard lessons, and have mourned with those
who have mourned, and rejoiced with those who have rejoiced, and have read and
studied scripture and many books … now I long for Christ’s return … because I
want to see His face … I want to go home.
Before He left, Jesus said, “Do not let your hearts be
troubled. I am going … to prepare a
place for you. … I will come back and take you to be with Me that you also may
be where I am” (John 14:1). Listen. This planet, in its fallen state, is not our
home. At best, it’s just a motel
room. Longing for the return of Jesus
needs to be based on the truth that He has made a home for believers and is
coming to get them – not based on some prophecy expert’s dubious
revelation. It is said of the saints of
old, “they were longing for a better country – a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called
their God, for He has prepared a city for them” (Hebrews 11:16).
Go
ahead and peek through that set of BluBlockers!
Personally, I hope it’s an improved version of San Diego!
Now,
let’s talk about good BluBlockers. Jesus
wore several pairs. And we’d have a much
more positive impact on the world if we wore the same lenses Jesus did. One of Jesus’ pair of BluBlockers saw the
goodness of God everywhere. When He
looked at things like the sunshine or rain, He saw God’s goodness. When speaking about God’s incautious goodness
to humanity He said, “Your Father in heaven … causes His sun to rise on the
evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous”
(Matthew 5:45).
Another
good pair of BluBlockers we should wear is knowing that God’s love is
everywhere. God is lovingly chasing us
even when there is no good reason to do so.
When the Psalmist caught a glimpse of the love and favor God had for
him, he cried, “This is too much, too wonderful – I can’t take it all in!” (Psalm 139:17). And neither can we.
God’s
love may resemble the natural kindness and love that families and couples
share; but it plunges far deeper, and it is way more unconditional and
deathless. This kind of love is so “out
of the box” for human understanding that Paul prayed his friends would have the
“power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high,
and how deep his love is (Ephesians 3:18).
It takes “power to understand” God’s love and grace toward us; God has
to help us see it.
I
totally get how some think all this is too good to be true. How can God be so reckless about giving to us
when we are so good at being so bad? But
that is exactly what God is like. We
matter to Him, and there’s nothing we can do to alter that. Now that’s a sweet pair of BluBlockers!
One
of my favorite BluBlockers is knowing that God made each of us on purpose. The Bible says that before time – in eternity
– God imagined every individual. This
means He manipulated the odds through history to make sure we got here. Scripture asserts that God started from the
first humans and chose the “times set” for each of us to appear in history and
the “exact places” where we would be born (Acts 17:26). The psalmist declared, “All the days ordained
for me were written in your book before one of them came to be” (Psalm
139:16). To God, this isn’t a world of
the “survival of the fittest” – it is a world for the predestined. He picked us.
And He has a plan for us. This
means we were a forethought in God’s mind, we are not here by chance, and, in a
very real way, we are a dream come true for God. This also means that the other people in our
world – whether they agree with us about God or not – are likewise here by
design.
Scripture
goes so far to say God managed our growth while we were in our mother’s womb
(Psalm 139:13) – our physicality and unique blend of personality were created
on purpose. We were chosen to show up on
this planet. The Christian story claims
you and I are not accidents; we are on-purpose beings that God placed in the
world as unique characters in His unfolding story. Walking through life looking out this pair of
BluBlockers will change the tone of our lives and impact how we live and how we
feel about ourselves … and others.
If
we approached the world with these good BluBlockers on, not only would our own
views be better, but those who encounter us would have a much clearer picture
of who God really is.
To
wrap this up …
I
learned over 40 years of riding a motorcycle to drive suspiciously. I
watch the road. I am suspicious that other drivers may run
over me, so I drive defensively.
Likewise, when I read the Bible, I am suspicious that I have biases
(some I’m not even aware of), so I try to be humble and watchful.
Christians
need to challenge one another’s BluBlockers – to question things more; to use
common sense; to point out how opinions predispose us to judgments and how
prejudice, closed-mindedness, and bigotry invariably produce destructive
BluBlockers. I always go to DEFCON
whenever I hear a friend say, “The Lord showed me that this verse means …” or,
“It says in the Bible …” and then precedes to tell me something that doesn’t
stand up against common sense or historical and informed interpretation of
Scripture. More often than not, it isn’t
the Lord at all – it’s the person’s own destructive pair of “I have unique
insights” BluBlockers.
History
is full of examples of people using biblical texts to justify the denigration
or persecution or disenfranchising of others – all while considering themselves
to be true bearers of the uncompromised “Word of God.” Watch out!
Always approach Scripture with the awareness that you are wearing
BluBlockers. If you do so, you will have
a great shot at keeping out of the land of weirdness and finding the “endurance
and the encouragement of the Scriptures” (Romans 15:4) that bring us hope.
Let’s
pray.
Heavenly
Father, thank You for Your Word which reveals all truth. We ask that You humble our hearts that we may
admit to wearing our own pair of BluBlockers.
Enable our minds to clearly see.
Convict us of our sin whenever we fall into prejudices, arrogance, and
demeaning behavior toward others. Help
us to live knowing and loving You, and loving our neighbors as we love
ourselves. Let our light shine so as not
to blind others, but to reveal Your glory to them.
And
the people said, “Amen.”
