I love the Bible – in fact, I love reading all kinds of holy writ. I find the Hebrew and Christian Scriptures to be authoritative for my life and the church, but other traditions have lots of amazing ideas and stories as well. Over the last 40+ years, though, I have pushed backed against Christian fundamentalism and the idea that the Bible is without error, and that all you need in life is in those two Covenants. For example, while wrestling is the only sport that God (or an angel) does, other sports are good too. I won’t deny the value of all kinds of ways to compete; just because golf or football or badminton aren’t in the Bible doesn’t mean they aren’t worthy of our time and attention. The Hebrew Bible spends a lot of time telling us what we can and cannot eat, but most of us ignore those rules. Bacon, for example. In fact, there are many rules and laws that are written in there that most of us choose to ignore.
This doesn’t mean that there aren’t plenty of them that we need to pay attention to. We should abstain from greed and feed the hungry. We shouldn’t kill our children if they are disrespectful to us. We should forgive the debts of others, especially when they have forgiven ours. We shouldn’t silence women. There are a lot of other rules we should and should not pay attention to, but I think you get my meaning. There’s more to life than the Bible, and we should be mature enough to figure out what is good for us and what is not and live accordingly. We shouldn’t limit our lives go what isn’t in the Bible; if we do, we will have to go the way of the Amish – and even they have loopholes and disagreements that cause division into different sects. If given the choice, I would join the Velcro sect instead of the button sect – just a personal preference.
Legalism doesn’t work; at least, that’s what Jesus and Paul taught. Some rules are worth following while some are not. Jesus was asked to choose the best rules, and He chose loving God, neighbor, and self. He completed the idea by saying that all of the prophets and laws hang on those three ways to love. The Apostle Paul wrote that we are saved by the grace of God, but that didn’t mean we can do anything we want without consequences. Living faithfully isn’t a free for all – neither is it a prison cell. Scripture is one of the pillars of a good life, but God gave each of us a brain, a conscience, and a spark of God’s own self. Together, they guide us down a path that can be filled with joy. That path will also have its struggles. The Bible helps with that too, because God is with us through all of it. Live well and do good. God is in all of it.
Prayer – Dear God, thank You for Your words and the examples of the saints in our lives to help us keep going. Amen.
Today’s art is “Isaiah 43: You Are Mine” by Mark Lawrence.