It's been a long time since I've written about anything other than our comings and goings on this blog. I used to always think about different blog posts I could write, but even that has faded since my days have become more consumed with three kids. Homeschooling is a full time job and by the end of the day my brain has taught all subjects in 2nd and 5th/6th grade plus preschool and so I'm done thinking and usually turn on the TV once the boys are in bed. But the silver lining of not having babies in the house anymore means that I can occasionally leave the house a little more frequently and easily. Bible Study Fellowship opened up a class just 10 minutes from our house so each Tuesday night I've been lucky enough to be studying The History of Israel.
Studying the Old Testament is my favorite. From the very beginning of time we see God begin to weave together a story with events linked together over hundreds of years and, inspite of human interactions and short comings, the story paints a picture of God's perfect plan, the need for a Savior, God's care of his people, his judgment and his mercy. It amazes me always how scripture references itself with hundreds of year in between and the sometimes minor details end up to be an important way to show prophecies fulfilled. But, as you read of Joshua entering the promised land you see parts of scripture that are disturbing and seem more like a violent R rated movie. And when I read of the complete annihilation of Canaanite nations it reads more like Radical Islam than an act commanded by a supposedly loving God. Needless to say, studying the history of Israel has left me with more questions than answers. While our study has progressed through Joshua, Ruth and now Samuel my heart is still back in the first chapters of Joshua trying to make sense of the killings of mass amounts of people. In short, we discussed the killings in our discussion group. Many people were satisfied knowing the people groups who were killed were horribly evil and participated in child sacrifice, burning children alive and taking part in disgusting sexual practices. But isn't the theme of the bible that Jesus came for sinners? It was this discussion and so many others that led me to pick up a book. It's book that has been on my radar screen for a few months and I would say it's even a book I think the Holy Spirit prompted me to read several times before I complied. The entire book was well researched and insightful. So much information was packed on each page. And at the same time it was insightful and well researched, it was absolutely exhausting to read. It was an experience that left me weary. It left me thinking about what the Bible is and what it isn't. It's left me questioning my approach with scripture and God's way of stringing his story together. Parts of the book were so affirming and other parts ruffled my feathers while some parts were convicting and made me uncomfortable. But all those feelings are good because they are motivating to lay yourself before God in the wilderness and wrestle with Him until He reaveals the answers. I'll briefly summarize a couple main points of the book that have been on my heart.
The bible, God's inspired word, has human fingerprints. The bible is the story of God's people written BY God's people and it's their stories of origin, war, resistance, deliverance, wisdom and the gospel.
The Bible is not an end all be all concrete answer book to all of life's questions. It is ok to discuss and question and wrestle with the words found in the Bible.
Wisdom is not just in knowing how to apply to truth of the Bible, but also in when.
Some of the things I've been taught about the Bible probably aren't true. Futhermore, my worldview is short sided and based on my cultural experience. The gospel...meaning the LIFE of Jesus and not just the death of Jesus came to transform lives and to teach people how to live and treat others above all else...especially those people groups who are marginalized.
As I mentioned previously, it was wearying to read this book. It turned my heart inside out. But it was freeing in the permission it gave to question scripture and in the freedom found in wrestling with God until your heart finds peace in an answer. Knowing the context of the bible, who was writing and why and the original language is also so helpful in discerning what the Bible is exactly saying. So while some portions of scripture are still perplexing or troubling, I'm ok with that. I don't have all the answers but I know the more I read and learn the more clear the bible will become. Going back to understanding God's purpose in wiping out the Canaanites who were in the promised land, I found peace in this...
"If the God of the bible is true, and if God became flesh and blood in the person of Jesus Christ, and if Jesus Christ is the revelation that culminates and supersedes all others, then God would rather die by violence than commit it. The cross makes this plain. On the Cross, Christ not only bore the brunt of human cruelty and bloodlust and fear, he remained faithful to the nonviolence he taught and modeled throughout his ministry. On the cross, Jesus chose to align himself with victims of suffering rather than the inflictors of it."
To whatever extent God owes you an explanation for the violence of the Old Testament, Jesus is that explanation. To expound on this more and to put it profoundly, I found this excerpt helpful...
"The historic Christian doctrine of the divinity of Christ does not simply mean that Jesus is like God. It is far more radical than that. It means that God is like Jesus."
It seems contrary that a book that raises questions about scripture would bring peace, especially because going through this book was tiring. But, at the end, I feel more peaceful knowing that I'm not the only one who has questions and despite my questions, the gospel of Jesus remains the same. It seemed perfect that as I finished the book the song "How Can I Keep from Singing" was playing on Alexa. The gospel is the answer to everything. Jesus came for the Jew and the Gentile and that fact goes father than most people are willing to admit. If you want to read the book for yourself send me an email and I'll let you know the title.
No storm can shake my inmost calm
while to that Rock I’m clinging.
Since Christ is Lord of heaven and earth,
how can I keep from singing?
Studying the Old Testament is my favorite. From the very beginning of time we see God begin to weave together a story with events linked together over hundreds of years and, inspite of human interactions and short comings, the story paints a picture of God's perfect plan, the need for a Savior, God's care of his people, his judgment and his mercy. It amazes me always how scripture references itself with hundreds of year in between and the sometimes minor details end up to be an important way to show prophecies fulfilled. But, as you read of Joshua entering the promised land you see parts of scripture that are disturbing and seem more like a violent R rated movie. And when I read of the complete annihilation of Canaanite nations it reads more like Radical Islam than an act commanded by a supposedly loving God. Needless to say, studying the history of Israel has left me with more questions than answers. While our study has progressed through Joshua, Ruth and now Samuel my heart is still back in the first chapters of Joshua trying to make sense of the killings of mass amounts of people. In short, we discussed the killings in our discussion group. Many people were satisfied knowing the people groups who were killed were horribly evil and participated in child sacrifice, burning children alive and taking part in disgusting sexual practices. But isn't the theme of the bible that Jesus came for sinners? It was this discussion and so many others that led me to pick up a book. It's book that has been on my radar screen for a few months and I would say it's even a book I think the Holy Spirit prompted me to read several times before I complied. The entire book was well researched and insightful. So much information was packed on each page. And at the same time it was insightful and well researched, it was absolutely exhausting to read. It was an experience that left me weary. It left me thinking about what the Bible is and what it isn't. It's left me questioning my approach with scripture and God's way of stringing his story together. Parts of the book were so affirming and other parts ruffled my feathers while some parts were convicting and made me uncomfortable. But all those feelings are good because they are motivating to lay yourself before God in the wilderness and wrestle with Him until He reaveals the answers. I'll briefly summarize a couple main points of the book that have been on my heart.
The bible, God's inspired word, has human fingerprints. The bible is the story of God's people written BY God's people and it's their stories of origin, war, resistance, deliverance, wisdom and the gospel.
The Bible is not an end all be all concrete answer book to all of life's questions. It is ok to discuss and question and wrestle with the words found in the Bible.
Wisdom is not just in knowing how to apply to truth of the Bible, but also in when.
Some of the things I've been taught about the Bible probably aren't true. Futhermore, my worldview is short sided and based on my cultural experience. The gospel...meaning the LIFE of Jesus and not just the death of Jesus came to transform lives and to teach people how to live and treat others above all else...especially those people groups who are marginalized.
As I mentioned previously, it was wearying to read this book. It turned my heart inside out. But it was freeing in the permission it gave to question scripture and in the freedom found in wrestling with God until your heart finds peace in an answer. Knowing the context of the bible, who was writing and why and the original language is also so helpful in discerning what the Bible is exactly saying. So while some portions of scripture are still perplexing or troubling, I'm ok with that. I don't have all the answers but I know the more I read and learn the more clear the bible will become. Going back to understanding God's purpose in wiping out the Canaanites who were in the promised land, I found peace in this...
"If the God of the bible is true, and if God became flesh and blood in the person of Jesus Christ, and if Jesus Christ is the revelation that culminates and supersedes all others, then God would rather die by violence than commit it. The cross makes this plain. On the Cross, Christ not only bore the brunt of human cruelty and bloodlust and fear, he remained faithful to the nonviolence he taught and modeled throughout his ministry. On the cross, Jesus chose to align himself with victims of suffering rather than the inflictors of it."
To whatever extent God owes you an explanation for the violence of the Old Testament, Jesus is that explanation. To expound on this more and to put it profoundly, I found this excerpt helpful...
"The historic Christian doctrine of the divinity of Christ does not simply mean that Jesus is like God. It is far more radical than that. It means that God is like Jesus."
It seems contrary that a book that raises questions about scripture would bring peace, especially because going through this book was tiring. But, at the end, I feel more peaceful knowing that I'm not the only one who has questions and despite my questions, the gospel of Jesus remains the same. It seemed perfect that as I finished the book the song "How Can I Keep from Singing" was playing on Alexa. The gospel is the answer to everything. Jesus came for the Jew and the Gentile and that fact goes father than most people are willing to admit. If you want to read the book for yourself send me an email and I'll let you know the title.
No storm can shake my inmost calm
while to that Rock I’m clinging.
Since Christ is Lord of heaven and earth,
how can I keep from singing?
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