Nobody lives 100% according to the Bible. Nobody. Jesus didn’t; in fact, He changed a number of laws because He understood that the Bible wasn’t perfect. If you don’t believe me, read Matthew 5. The compilation we know of as the Bible is a variety of pseudo-historical theological stories captured in letters, sermons, and messages about the Good News that God loves us. Mostly. Some of it, in both the Hebrew and Christian Scriptures, makes God look really mean, abusive, misogynistic, and vindictive – because people wrote it, inspired by God. It is complicated to base our faith lives on Scripture; that’s why it takes study, discernment, prayer, and patience.
This is why, when I read stories like the recent Million Mom boycott of the movie, “Wicked”, I just chuckle. They are upset because, they claim, the movie promotes witchcraft and an LGBT ideology. In case you are concerned, let me help you: I read the book, saw the play on Broadway, and watched the movie – no witchcraft in my house (yet) and I haven’t turned gay (yet). Hope that helps. (Please excuse the extra snark). This righteous anger against witchcraft and LGBTQ people comes from a few random Scripture passages in the Bible. Remarkably, this same group, as far as I have read, has never come out against greed, disrespect for the poor, and mistreatment of aliens living among us. Seems a little unbalanced to me.
We all cherry-pick what we believe in about the Bible. We like the parts that agree with our worldview and tend to ignore the parts that don’t. I fully admit that Leviticus and Romans condemn sodomy (which is not same-sex love – it’s rape); I also know that Jesus never said anything about it. I fully admit that witches are not okay in a couple of biblical passages, but neither are tattoos or piercings. The Million Moms don’t seem too upset about those things. If they, and the rest of us, would be honest with ourselves, we would admit that trying to live our lives based only on Scripture isn’t just difficult – it’s impossible. So, we live by grace, believing that God has called us to love one another, do good, refrain from evil, and live the best lives we can for the greater good. God knows our hearts – let’s leave it at that. I think it is better to err with grace than cause damage with legalism. God will sort it out – let’s just live well and do good.
Prayer – We thank You, God, for the chance to live in community. Help us to see You in each other. Amen.
Today’s art is a colored version of the Creation illustration from Martin Luther’s 1534 translation of the Bible. Until Copernicus and Galileo helped us see the truth, this is how Christians viewed the world, based on the Bible.