At left, from earlier this month. A picture of our seven-year-old grandson, Archer, in a soapbox derby.
Of course, we were happy with seeing our grandson’s picture on the front page of a local newspaper. But our family also took note of the unintended humor in the headline above it: “Stolen vehicle leads Harrah police on pursuit.”
I teased Archer: “You were running from the police!” to which he smiled.
Though funny and innocent here, it made me think of the broader issue of mistaken impressions.
Sometimes a false impression is created unintentionally. Once, while in the Marines, we had a shop supervisor whose day-to-day language was, shall we say, colorful. But one day he found it expedient to quote the Bible to us: “All things in moderation;” he said, “that’s what the good book says.” Well, the Bible doesn’t exactly say “All things in moderation” (I checked), though there are some things that tend that way in the book of Proverbs. But he meant well.
Sometimes a false impression is not so innocent. We’ve all seen provocative headlines, claiming that a celebrity or political figure did or said something outrageous. You click on the article and find that the thing wasn’t nearly as outrageous as you were led to believe. A false impression was created to try to get more clicks from readers.
In a similar way, people will throw around the phrase: “Studies show…” to prove their point. I want to know, ‘What studies?’ ‘Who did these studies?’ ‘Who funded the studies?’… I also wonder about the studies they deliberately left out.
And then there’s people’s use of the Bible. People might quote a phrase, taking it out of context, and hope you don’t know enough to question it. For example, there is Jesus’ statement from the Sermon on the Mount: “Do not judge…” (Matthew 7:1). These three words, out of context, could be used to justify sinning–as in “Leave me alone [in my doing whatever I want to do] because Jesus said not to judge.” But they don’t tell you that in that very same chapter where Jesus said, “Do not judge…” he also warned that we should guard what is holy (vs. 6), and to “Watch out for false prophets,” (vs. 15), and said, “Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire,” (vs. 19).
So whatever Jesus meant by “Do not judge…” he could not have meant that he was indulging sin. If we looked at the context we would know what he really meant–he was condemning spiritual pride and self-superiority.
Jesus is often presented, in popular culture, as the softer side of God–the nice guy who smiles at anything you want to do, who indulges sinful behavior in the name of ‘love’.
But reading the gospels will reveal a different Jesus. The one seen there is radical. He’s tough, tougher than any Old Testament prophet. He speaks of coming judgment on those who are not ready. His exclusive call for devotion reaches a level that is almost offensive. He offers the great benefits of salvation, which he purchased for us himself by dying on the cross (a greater salvation than we could imagine), but also makes demands on his followers.
A softie he is not! Everything is raised up, on both the receiving side and the demand side.
But the only way to know this is to…know it. And for that we have to go deep. We have to read the scriptures for ourselves and not just depend on what other people say.
In the academic world, they talk about the difference between ‘primary sources’ and ‘secondary sources’. For example, you can read what a certain historical figure actually said (the primary source), or you could read what someone said about what they said (the secondary source).
The scriptures are the primary source in our knowledge of God. We should read the scriptures directly and often. This means that devotional books, podcasts, TV preachers, etc. (the secondary sources), helpful as they might be, must take a back seat to our reading the Bible directly.
How do we handle this big book? The Bible has 66 books and about 1,100 chapters. It has all different kinds of literary styles. You might find it helpful to have a Bible reading plan. Personally, for years now I’ve had the simplest plan of all–reading it from Genesis to Revelation. When I’m done, I start again. Doing it this way gives more of the context. I pause to think about the text, with coffee at my side. I’m in no rush, probably averaging less than two chapters a day.
My personal Bible reading has benefitted me far more than all the Bible and theology classes I took in college and seminary.
Reading and internalizing the Bible will give you the internal compass to navigate the thousands of headlines, opinions, and voices calling for our attention every day. It will take some work and time to go deep. But doesn’t everything worthwhile require some effort? And what is more worthwhile?
Great article.
We spend countless hours playing with our phones, watching television, & participating in activities of our choosing, yet it is common to hear how people don’t have time to pray, attend church, or feel that the service is too long, or read the Bible. In order for us to know Jesus, we need to dedicate the time in order to have a personal relationship with Him.