The Misuse of Scripture in Political Discourse

This article was jointly published by Thinking Out Loud and Christianity 201. The article is contextually rooted in one Canadian province, but similar discussions have happened all over North America. The particular focus here is on the use of certain scripture texts to support the main argument, and whether those are being used correctly.

by Ruth Wilkinson

Now that vaccine passports have been officially announced for the province of Ontario, coming into effect Sept. 22, the rhetoric is intensifying. We all have one more thing about which to feel strongly, and on which to fiercely hold opinions. Which is understandable, considering the human rights implications and the endemic emotional fatigue.

Aside from our own gut reactions, we are looking for leadership, information, and (hopefully) wisdom on which to base our decisions about vaccination and its documentation in our lives. Many will simply never be convinced that it’s in their best interests, and will hold the line on remaining un-shot. As I write this, 16% of eligible Ontarians are still holding out.

Based on some conversations I’ve had, it seems (anecdotally) that people who identify as Christians make up a larger portion of that percentage than other faith groups. They give a few different reasons that I won’t recount here, because this article isn’t actually about vaccination, or about passports.

In fact, it’s about those leaders and information sources who have so much influence on believers. It’s about pastors, bloggers, vloggers. Like the people who are responsible for this document that is making the rounds:

https://www.libertycoalitioncanada.com/religious-freedom-from-vaccination-coercion

It must be good, right? It’s “confessionally orthodox.” It’s got scripture verses. It’s signed by people who call themselves Reverend Doctor, and Pastor. Heck, it’s even got Joe Boot, a name that means something to many.

Problem is, however well-intentioned, this document is a really awful piece of Scriptural application. However you feel about the principles the Declaration espouses (some of which are, IMHO, sound), the way the authors have used isolated Scripture passages to try to support their arguments is, just (pauses for a minute to find a diplomatic word… can’t) inept. If I had turned in this piece to my hermeneutics professor at seminary, his head would have imploded. As I said above, I think some of the authors’ theses have merit. But their scriptural arguments have not.

I’ve chosen two of the whereases (is that a word?) as examples of how we need to do our own homework when reading something like this, and ask ourselves whether Scripture is being appropriately exegeted, or whether it’s being proof-texted in order to lend the writers authority that they haven’t earned.

____________________________

AND WHEREAS Christians are commanded to live in light of God’s moral commands, including expressing love for one’s neighbour by resisting oppression and injustice, whether it be as a result of individual conduct or the actions of any State, agency or bureaucracy – including any immoral or unethical development such as coercive vaccination programs (Isa. 1:17; Matt. 22:39; Jam. 5:14)

Must be true, look at all those verses! Well, let’s take them one at a time:

Learn to do what is good. Seek justice. Correct the oppressor. Defend the rights of the fatherless. Plead the widow’s cause. – Isaiah 1:17

In this passage God is speaking to Israel, who have been taken into exile as a consequence of their covenant breaking behaviour and hearts. Cut and pasted, as I’ve done here, it certainly says what the Declaration authors want it to. But the context of this one verse, in the middle of a longer passage, is a call for Israel to return to her place, to rediscover God’s will. To wash the blood from her hands, to stop being an adulteress. This has nothing to do with opposing government. It has nothing to do with standing up for one’s rights. It does have to do with taking personal and national responsibility for crimes and sins. If one agrees that vaccine passports are ethically wrong, this passage might be applicable to the government and administrators who made the rules. It simply doesn’t speak to you and me today.

Of course, there are passage in which Jesus models for us, and the writers of the epistles teach that we should be looking out for the vulnerable, providing for those in need. This isn’t one of them, and it’s not relevant to the topic.

____

The second is like it: Love your neighbour as yourself. – Matthew 22:39

Here Jesus is affirming the Jewish scripture’s teaching (Leviticus 19:18) (Look, now I’m doing it :-)). But again, the original passage discussed here is in a context of personal and corporate behaviour. How am I to treat the vulnerable around me? There is nothing here to support picket lines, civil disobedience, or making the hostess at Pizza Hut cry.

In my view, the most loving thing I can do is to make myself less of a threat to others by wearing a mask. And to make myself more useful by getting vaccinated in order to stay healthy. Loving my neighbour, in the teachings of Jesus, is a direct and personal duty.

____

Is anyone among you sick? He should call for the elders of the church, and they should pray over him after anointing him with olive oil in the name of the Lord. – James 5:14

What possible connection this verse has to “resisting oppression and injustice” I don’t have the foggiest idea. So I’m just going to move on.

____________________________

AND WHEREAS God created human beings and all the earth’s resources and called them to work and enjoy the fruit of their labour as a pre-political duty and right (prior to the existence of the state) and further clarifies this requirement by commanding people to work six days and rest on each sabbath in order to develop culture in obedience to God and provide for their families, thus freedom to work is an inalienable right that no person should be unjustly denied (Ex. 20:9; 1 Tim.5:8)

First of all, take a moment to look in the Bible for anything that looks like an “inalienable right.” Go ahead. I’ll wait.

It’s not there. God never grants anyone an inalienable right. God grants us covenant. Grace. Partnership. Hope. Not rights. The basic premise of this thesis is unscriptural.

But, still, let’s look at these passages and see what they have to say about creation and work.

____

You are to labour six days and do all your work… – Exodus 20:9

As a click-bait reference, it accomplishes what the authors want it to.

In context, not so much. This is one phrase in one sentence taken from a paragraph:

Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy: You are to labour six days and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. You must not do any work — you, your son or daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the foreigner who is within your gates. For the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and everything in them in six days; then He rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and declared it holy. – Exodus 20:8-11

What is this paragraph about? What is the core focus of this commandment?

Sabbath. Not work. The one day. Not the six.

If, as believers in the New Covenant, we opt to live according to some cherry-picked bits of the Old, our mandate here is to “remember the Sabbath.” Its importance to Israel is underscored in Exodus 35:1-2:

Moses assembled the entire Israelite community and said to them, “These are the things that the LORD has commanded you to do: For six days work is to be done, but on the seventh day you are to have a holy day, a Sabbath of complete rest to the LORD. Anyone who does work on it must be executed…”

Nobody’s being executed for not working. Whether or not I agree with an employer’s right to demand proof of vaccination, this scripture passage doesn’t apply. There is no “right” granted here.

Neither is there in our final passage:

But if anyone does not provide for his own, that is his own household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. – 1 Timothy 5:8

Again, this is completely off topic if read in context. Timothy was giving leadership to a faith community who were figuring out how to support those among them who were in need, or vulnerable (ie “widows”). The passage is about how we should live in community, how anyone who can support themselves ought to, and how we are commanded to care for those in our biological and faith families.

When held in parallel with passages like 1 Thessalonians 4:9-12, it creates a framework of responsibility within which believers do what is necessary in order to live lives of accomplishment, altruism, and decency, thereby earning the respect of the broader community and avoiding bringing disrepute on the name of Christ, and on the gospel.

These passages about work are built on a foundation of covenant—we are part of the Body of Christ. As such it falls to us to do what we must in order to live up to the ethic that is presented here. If we refuse to make a personal sacrifice for the good of others, then that is “denying the faith” and “worse than an unbeliever.”

The Timothy passage has nothing to say about “inalienable rights.”

_____________________________

As Christians, living out our faith in a world that is decreasingly friendly to who they think we are, blindly accepting such spurious teaching as this makes us look foolish. We must each think through our stand on these significant issues. Do our research. Use our discernment. Question our teachers.

I repeat that I think some (not all) of the points raised by this document are valid. But I was appalled by the low quality of the ‘scholarship’ used as an excuse to present it as a “Christian Declaration.” The exegesis of Scripture and its application to how we live our everyday lives is not brain surgery, but it ought to be done wisely and with skill. That is clearly not the case here.

Brothers and sisters, please take the time to understand what Christ has actually called us to before making decisions that increase our loss of credibility in the world and in our communities.

Popular Bible Verses in The Passion Translation (TPT)

Each year there are many new translations of the Bible released, but only a select few reach a level whereby they find acceptance and are known by the broader Christian community. We’ve seen conservative translations such as the ESV and more recently the CSB do this but there are also versions of the Bible which attempt to do something new and different, while still remaining faithful to original language documents.

Such was The Message and more recently The Voice; and it’s into that marketplace that The Passion Translation (sometimes being referred to now as TPT) by Dr. Brian Simmons steps. The New Testament is now complete, so we thought we’d share some verses with you.

 A hardcover edition is now available in two hardcover editions and several leather editions, with two more hardcovers due in March and in addition to the NT contains Psalms, Proverbs and Song of Songs.

• Ephesians 2:8 – For it was only through this wonderful grace that we believed in him. Nothing we did could ever earn this salvation, for it was the gracious gift from God that brought us to Christ!

---

• Matthew 28:18 – Now go in my authority and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

---

• 2 Timothy 3:16 – Every Scripture has been written by the Holy Spirit, the breath of God. It will empower you by its instruction and correction, giving you the strength to take the right direction and lead you deeper into the path of godliness.

---

• Romans 10:9 – And what is God’s “living message”? It is the revelation of faith for salvation, which is the message that we preach. For if you publicly declare with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will experience salvation.

---

• Romans 8:28 – So we are convinced that every detail of our lives is continually woven together to fit into God’s perfect plan of bringing good into our lives, for we are his lovers who have been called to fulfill his designed purpose.

---

• Romans 12:2 – Stop imitating the ideals and opinions of the culture around you, but be inwardly transformed by the Holy Spirit through a total reformation of how you think. This will empower you to discern God’s will as you live a beautiful life, satisfying and perfect in his eyes.

---

• Philippians 4:13 – I know what it means to lack, and I know what it means to experience overwhelming abundance. For I’m trained in the secret of overcoming all things, whether in fullness or in hunger. And I find that the strength of Christ’s explosive power infuses me to conquer every difficulty.

---

…Read more; now available on your computer at Bible Gateway or on your smartphone at You Version.

When Science and the Bible Contradict

The one where the astronauts come back from the International Space Station and tell you that they didn’t see the floodgates of heaven…

So I was flipping through the pages of an old Bible I haven’t used in at least a couple of decades and I found the above photocopied sheet sitting between two of the pages. I remember it clearly, but have no idea as to the source. From a scientific perspective, most of what’s in this image is just plain wrong. Did people once believe this? Is this someone’s concept of what they might have believed if they had owned King James Version Bibles? (Kinda like that drawing — see below — where someone takes the description of the ideal woman in Song of Solomon and shows what it would like literally?)

But what if you’re a kid in some previous era’s version of high school and based on the Bible, this is your model of what the world looks like, and modern science is trying to tell you it’s not true?  Or what if your Bible talks about “the rising of the sun” and suddenly you’re being told that the sun doesn’t arise at all but in fact the earth is revolving?

Surely that’s the end of Christianity then and there, right?
Apparently not. Christianity survived the destruction of such misplaced beliefs. And certain verses weren’t excised from the text, either.

The life and death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is bigger than science. It’s bigger than all the objections that people can raise.

---

Above: Some portions of scripture should not be taken literally. This was drawn in 1978 by artist Den Hart and appeared at The Wittenburg Door, a Christian satire magazine.

 

How Factual is The Book of Job?

Job after a particularly bad day (Wikipedia)

Growing up in a fairly conservative Christian culture, there are things I simply never questioned. The Book of Job was one of them. There was, in my opinion, a guy named Job to whom God permitted a great testing to take place, and that was that.

On the theological spectrum, I probably still rank conservative, though one’s general hermeneutics and one’s position on current social issues can often seem unaligned. Furthermore, within Evangelicalism we’ve had a number of challenges in the last decade or so to the early chapters in Genesis, some of which I believe has affected me often because of the respect I hold for the authors and speakers calling for a more allegorical reading.

So when a friend emailed on the weekend and asked if Job’s story is factual, like to proverbial politician I found myself hedging my bets. I grabbed a few print commentaries and noted that the book is rooted in a particular location — a sign of a not-made-up story — and that Job is mentioned in two other books. But I found myself re-examining the issue of whether the story should be taken literally or seen poetically. (And some commentaries would say it’s both with the intro and ending prose and the main body poetry. Is that also waffling on the subject?)

So for the second time in 24 hours, I invite your comments.

How do you read Job? Fact or Old Testament parable? And why?

 

 

• Also, yesterday’s survey on the care and feeding of your copy of the Bible is still open. Read the questions at this link: http://wp.me/pfdhA-8HS

Thus Sayeth the Blogger

At the start of each new month, I give myself permission to look back at previous material that might be worthy of recycling. It can be from any year, but has to be from the same month. As it turns out, this one ran only a year ago, but it touched on a theme that I was going to find recurring over and over and over again: The problems inherent in Bible verse numbering. So many truths meant to be read in a context are instead seen in isolation. It’s great for locating texts, and I am in no way opposed to Bible memorization, but it can create interpretive problems for the average parishioner…

¹From Paul, a blogger at Thinking Out Loud, to the church online;
²Greetings and welcome to today’s topic.

³Can you imagine if I were to write a book and give a number to every one or two sentences?
⁴It would break up the reading for sure,
⁵And people would consider it somewhat pompous.
⁶While it might be helpful in an historical account, it would surely break up the flow in a romance story or a parable
⁷And poetry would be rather awkward.

⁸Yet this is what happens when we read the Bible.
⁹Because we have such easy, pinpoint access to particular phrases, we are able to focus on those.
¹⁰And we often miss the context in which they are being said,
¹¹Or worse, we over emphasize them to the exclusion of other truths.

¹²So one reader believes he “can do all things,” but can he fly an airplane?
¹³Another believes God has “plans to prosper” him, but what if he doesn’t see material blessing?
¹⁴Yet one more thinks that the parenting she has done assures her children “will not depart from it,” but is that an automatic guarantee or just a statement of principle?

¹⁵Churches teach that “all these things shall be added unto you,” but the context is the basic necessities of life, not everything we desire.
¹⁶Or that, “all things work together for good,” which is simply a bad translation of the verb.
¹⁷Or that, “not allow you to be tempted beyond that which you are able,” means that God will never give you more than you can handle.

¹⁸God is good, and God can be trusted, but if we are to take him at his word, we need to read it properly and in full context.
¹⁹Sometimes the verse numbers mitigate against that.
²⁰So we need to be more careful, and more studious in our reading.
²¹And perhaps we need to be more aware and more embracing of those recent publications which present the Bible as a single story,
²²And those translations which relegate the verse numbers to a place of lesser prominence.

²³The grace of our Lord be with you all; Amen.

Weekend Link List

Pete Wilson is one committed pastor.  Here’s what he did this week to create a sermon illustration:

Now on to your weekend reading:

I don’t usually write an introduction to the news and opinion selections here, but I wanted to say that while it’s not represented in these pieces, it’s difficult to ignore what CNN called “Religion’s Week From Hell.” Our thoughts are with the brothers and sisters worldwide and their families who have experienced horrible atrocities committed against them simply for being Christians. It’s hard to find words.  “…We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us…” (Rom 8:26 NIV)

Must Read: Christian Moms of LGBT Kids Speak Out – “This week…took me to one of the most sacred spaces yet; a private online support group for a couple hundred Christian moms of LGBT children. Each day they gather virtually, to share a unique, incredibly difficult journey. I was there as a temporary guest, to be a resource for those present; to answer questions, and to encourage them in any way that I could. During my three days with these amazing women, I was incredibly moved by their honesty, their vulnerability, their thoughtfulness, their strength, and most of all, their deep and abiding faith. It was inspiring and humbling… Knowing they were safe to speak honestly in anonymity, I asked these moms of LGBT children one simple question: ‘What do you want Christians and church leaders to know about you, your kids, and your family?'”

Maximizing a Snow Day – I know, we should have had this at the start of the week. “My weeks are full and if I don’t go into the office on a day I had planned to be in the office, everything I had planned on that day backs up to a future day. I feel so trapped and unproductive.” Sample: “Special projects. What is a new project you’ve wanted to think about and haven’t had time?” Seven short suggestions to keep on file.

The Scriptures in Their Own Place and Time – Because of my interest in John Walton’s The Lost World of Genesis One, I was interested to see what reviewers said about his new release (co-authored with D. Brent Sandy), The Lost World of Scripture. (I guess this is a brand now!) One reviewer explains, “The primary emphasis in the book regards the distinction between literary production in a hearing-dominant world and literary production in a text-dominant world.” Another review quotes, “If we question the continued sufficiency of the term inerrancy, it is not that we now admit that the Bible has errors. It is rather that the term inerrancy may no longer be clear enough, strong enough or nuanced enough to carry the weight with which it has traditionally been encumbered…If the term inerrancy, however, has become diminished in rhetorical power and specificity, it no longer serves as adequately to define our convictions about the robust authority of Scripture.”

Leadership Library – Something completely different this weekend, a book list. “Churches can’t say they don’t have resources for effecting change. …33 books that help you do just that. All have something helpful, but I have bulleted ones that have stirred my passion for change.” How many of these do you own?

The US Has Testamints, The UK Has The Real Easter Easter Egg – “When in 2010 a team of Christians decided to launch a chocolate egg that contained the authentic message of Easter – and which also used high-quality Fair Trade chocolate and gave away a hefty portion of their profits to charity – it was met with a complete lack of interest by mainstream retailers. The Meaningful Chocolate Company might have had great chocolate and a noble ethic, but their religious meaning didn’t sit too well alongside Lindt bunnies and Chocolate Krispie chicks. So the company turned directly to churches and church schools, and received an overwhelming response.” Now some of the region’s top retailers realize they made a mistake.

Giving Up Lent for Lent – “God has called me, and you, into ministry to serve God. Not to have a paying job, not to pay back our seminary loans, not to create the programs we’ve dreamed of. No. We’ve been called into ministry because God called us and we said yes. At least, that’s my story. I was thirteen years old, and I felt God’s call to ministry. Some days I lose sight of that. I am frustrated at a board meeting or sitting at a blank screen trying to type a sermon, or looking at the decreasing funds and wondering if they can afford to pay me in the next few months, but I need to go back and remember, I am in this because I said yes to God.”

They Sure Get a Lot of Press Coverage – A UK Christian magazine is the latest to devote a cover story to Christian rap music. “I loved the music and I loved the culture, but as I became more of a fanatic I realized that most of the content stood against everything that I stood for. The glorification of drugs, money and misogyny never sat well with me, not to mention the bad language. Back then, clean versions of records were few and far between, so I found myself rapping along but taking a deep breath of silence whenever a swear word appeared. That all changed one day while I was watching a Christian TV channel…”

Bobby Schuller’s Two Churches to Merge into One – I kept thinking I’d heard this story before; it’s reminiscent of the situation where Tullian Tchividjian assumed the pastorate of Coral Ridge and the church merged with New City Presbyterian, which he had founded. “Tree of Life Community church, founded by the Rev. Bobby Schuller, will merge into Shepherd’s Grove church, home of Crystal Cathedral Ministries and the Hour of Power with Bobby Schuller television program, on March 1. Members of both congregations approved the consolidation last month. Schuller had pastored the two churches since assuming leadership of Shepherd’s Grove in January 2014. ‘This move is a natural progression of what we feel God wants to do with our ministries,’ said Schuller. ‘The transition from Crystal Cathedral to where we are now was seamless, and the Hour of Power continues to grow and reach more people with the gospel.'”

---

This was from the Twitter feed of Unvirtuous Abbey:

Honestly, we have no idea what’s going on in this picture, but they gave it the caption, “For cats who are compelled by the power of Christ, we pray. “

 

 

 

 

 

Verse Numbering Shifts Emphasis, Misses Contexts

¹From Paul, a blogger at Thinking Out Loud, to the church online;
²Greetings and welcome to today’s topic.

³Can you imagine if I were to write a book and give a number to every one or two sentences?
⁴It would break up the reading for sure,
⁵And people would consider it somewhat pompous.
⁶While it might be helpful in an historical account, it would surely break up the flow in a romance story or a parable
⁷And poetry would be rather awkward.

⁸Yet this is what happens when we read the Bible.
⁹Because we have such easy, pinpoint access to particular phrases, we are able to focus on those.
¹⁰And we often miss the context in which they are being said,
¹¹Or worse, we over emphasize them to the exclusion of other truths.

¹²So one reader believes he “can do all things,” but can he fly an airplane?
¹³Another believes God has “plans to prosper” him, but what if he doesn’t see material blessing?
¹⁴Yet one more thinks that the parenting she has done assures her children “will not depart from it,” but is that an automatic guarantee or just a statement of principle?

¹⁵Churches teach that “all these things shall be added unto you,” but the context is the basic necessities of life, not everything we desire.
¹⁶Or that, “all things work together for good,” which is simply a bad translation of the verb.
¹⁷Or that, “not allow you to be tempted beyond that which you are able,” means that God will never give you more than you can handle.

¹⁸God is good, and God can be trusted, but if we are to take him at his word, we need to read it properly and in full context.
¹⁹Sometimes the verse numbers mitigate against that.
²⁰So we need to be more careful, and more studious in our reading.
²¹And perhaps we need to be more aware and more embracing of those recent publications which present the Bible as a single story,
²²And those translations which relegate the verse numbers to a place of lesser prominence.

²³The grace of our Lord be with you all; Amen.

Wednesday Link List

Yes, it’s true; Target does have people who visit Wal-Mart and link list creators do drop in on other link lists to see what’s making the rounds. If you find yourself craving more of this sort of thing by Saturday, two of my weekend favorites are the Saturday Ramblings at Internet Monk and the Saturday Links at DashHouse. I only borrowed one from iMonk, but linked three stories from church planter Darryl Dash, so this week’s lengthy intro was mostly guilt-induced. Clicking anything below will take you to PARSE, the Link List Overlords; then click the stories you want to read there.

• Are some prominent pastors’ sermon series timed to coincide with national release dates for their latest book?
• Some students at Gordon College didn’t connect at all with the gospel-styled worship leader at chapel services…
• …which led this pastor with a broad church background to write about the value of denomination hopping.
• A long-running Canadian Christian talk show, 100 Huntley Street is entering the U.S. market with a distinct American edition and Eric Metaxas as co-host.  Teaser/sample: Metaxas on The Quirky Bible. Long form sample: Interview with Mark Burnett & Roma Downey.
• With fact-checkers like this out there, if I were Ergun Caner, I might never utter another word.
• The American Humanist Association successfully got a memorial cross removed from public property in California, but a number of others quickly replaced it in protest.
• The United Methodist pastor who officiated at his gay son’s wedding and was then defrocked now has a book deal.
• I normally have an aversion to articles that start with a number (“7 Must-Implement Church Growth Ideas”) but I do want to recommend 10 Signs You Might Be A Legalist…
• …From the same author, Jeremy Myers, check out his list of offbeat sources for church demographics. (Don’t miss the map on the Forbes link.)
• Buried in this story is a suggestion from Pope Francis that what Pope Benedict did by resigning should be normative, thus making Pope Emeritus a more frequent designation.
• A pregnancy center in Buffalo, New York is offering both birthing services and abortions in the same building, believed to be the first such facility in the U.S.
• Quote of the Week: “First-world believers are ‘right-handed’ readers interpreting a message written to the spiritually and socio-economically ‘left-handed.” Read the rest!
• Post-debate discussions on creation continue; this one on the age of the earth particularly resonated with me.
• And this story happened literally close to home: Canadian broadcaster Lorna Dueck’s story on the 20th anniversary of the Toronto Blessing. (Though she avoided the topic of the role of Rodney Howard-Browne and “holy laughter.”)
• Justin and Trisha Davis take a brief look at the value of separation after an affair for the purpose of achieving reconciliation.
• The Mormon Church has issued a statement to help clarify some elements of its doctrine considered outlandish by non-LDS members.
• Short Essay of the Week: An open apology to local congregations by Katelyn Beaty.
• Long Essay of the Week: An insider look at sexual temptation in the homeschool community.
• Essay Runner-Up: “…now, most of us live public lives on a worldwide forum.” With Facebook and Twitter, we’re all celebrities now.
• John Ortberg’s PCUSA congregation becomes the second mega-sized church to exit that denomination, but at great financial cost. (If you have 30 minutes, click the sermon audio link.)
• The pastor of a 3,000 member megachurch in Sweden and his wife have resigned and become Roman Catholics.
• Women’s Corner: Does embracing Biblical submission mean this writer might as well quit med school?
• Analogy of the Week: Rinse-and-spit devotional time.
• Want to expand your weekly podcast experience? Try the Christian Podcast Directory.
• If even half of these stories are true, British church organists are up to a lot of mischief.
• Metaphor of the Month: The long forgotten analogy of the pastor as fisherman. (Ideally, the pastor and everyone else, too.)
• Life at Christian Colleges: Sometimes transportation issues leave younger students no choice, but there are reasons to pass on the church all the other students attend. (The article was written more for graduate students, but has broader application.)
• From the wife of a well-known pastor, five (or maybe seven) things kids should know before heading to college.
• Imitation is the highest form of flattery, right? First there was Not a Fan and now there is Unfollowers, a new title from Wesleyan Books. (But that said, I just ordered a copy!)
• The east edition of the Creation Festival will include Tullian Tchvidjian, Eric Ludy, and Jeff Bethke; and there are rumors they might also have some musicians.
• This writer creates a Mark Driscoll catalog of offenses…
• …However, two voices that have not been heard, plus an ironic picture.
• Finally, here’s a classic, one-minute movie clip that you must watch full screen. (Thanks to this sleuth blogger!)

The Wednesday Link List is a production of Paul Wilkinson with proofreading assistance from Mrs. W. who is actually the better writer in the family.

Rob Bell on Jonah and the Great Big Fish

Rob Bell has started a series on his blog robbell.com titled “What Is the Bible?” (Not to be confused with Phil Vischer’s excellent DVD series for kids, “What’s In The Bible?”)  As I write this, Rob has 14 chapters posted, and I do admit to having no idea where he’s going and what he’s going to say next. Are we getting a preview of a future book manuscript? If so, I’m saving the chapters just in case.

In parts 3 and 4, he looks at the Jonah story. Here’s a brief excerpt from part four:

…What do I think? I don’t think it matters what you believe about a man being swallowed by a fish.

If you don’t believe it literally happened, that’s fine. Lots of people of faith over the years have read this story as a parable about national forgiveness. They point to many aspects of the surreal nature of the story as simply great storytelling because the author has a larger point, one about the Israelites and the Assyrians and God’s call to be a light to everyone, especially your enemies.

Right on. Well said.
Just one problem. Some deny the swallowed-by-a-fish part not from a literary perspective, but on the basis of those things just don’t happen. Which raises a number of questions: What’s the criteria for the denial? Do we only affirm things that can be proven in a lab? Do we only believe things we have empirical evidence for? Do we believe or not believe something happened based on…whether we believe that things like that happen or not? (That was an awkward sentence. Intentionally.) Can we only affirm things that make sense to us? Are we closed to everything that we can’t explain?

If we reject all miraculous elements of all stories because we have made up our mind ahead of time that such things simply aren’t possible, we run the risk of shrinking the world down to what we can comprehend. And what fun is that?

That said, there are others who say, Of course he was swallowed a fish, that’s what the story says happened!

Fine.
Just one problem. It’s possible to affirm the literal fact of a man being swallowed by a fish, making that the crux of the story in such a way that you defend that, believe that, argue about that-and in spending your energies on the defend-the-fish-part miss the point of the story, the point about allowing God’s redeeming love to flow through us with such power and grace that we are able to love and bless even our worst enemies…

…continue reading here…

Christ Before the Manger

The title of today’s article is the title of a book I always wanted to get my hands on. There have been numerous books written on the pre-incarnate Christ and I have always gravitated to this particular topic, wanting to know more about the second Person of the Trinity and His activity and role before (and after) a particular window in time that we know from the gospels.

So I wasn’t about to pass up an opportunity to read about the revelation of Jesus in Old Testament scripture, a topic which is similar but different.

Jesus on Every Page: 10 Simple Ways to Seek and Find Christ in the Old Testament by David Murray (Thomas Nelson, 2013) is in some respects an adult version of a Children’s Bible that came out a couple of years ago, The Jesus Storybook Bible. I thought it rather odd that so many Christian bloggers and book reviewers chose to review a product for kids, but many were drawn to the way each of that book’s stories ended with a paragraph or two noting how the stories prefigured the coming of Jesus.

But David Murray’s book is more than a grown up storybook. He explains that he was actually looking for something that would be displayed in the academic/reference section, until the publishers suggested something more pedestrian. You would never know that it started out more highbrow; to the contrary I would have been more than happy if the book were double its 200-odd page length. It was easy to follow and left me wanting more.

Jesus on Every Page begins with how the Old Testament is reflected in the words of Jesus, Peter, John and Paul. But then the action really kicks in, looking at the hidden, and not-so-hidden pictures of the coming Messiah that are found in the law, the covenants, the trajectory of Israel’s history, the typology and so on to the poetry and proverbs. “The book of Proverbs;” Murray says, “is the Old Testament’s Twitter.”

David Murray seems to love to import illustrations from our modern world. This is very much today’s study on this topic.

It’s as if gospel was spelled in a 12-point font in the Old Testament and in a 1200-point in the New Testament. Or we might say that it was pictured in the Old using thumbnails but blown up to poster size in the New. (p. 149)

I finished the book a few days ago, but found myself re-reading entire sections. Any one of the ten featured chapters could be its own book, and taken together, the book is an excellent primer on Old Testament interpretation.

Clearly written, well-researched, next-generation friendly, and immensely practical; Jesus on Every Page earns my highest recommendation, but with one caveat: The challenge here will be to whet people’s appetite for this topic and then get the book into their hands. Perhaps someone struggling with the Old Testament, or unconvinced of the connection between the Old and the New will already have a hunger for what this offers.

David Murray pastored in Scotland for twelve years before going to the U.S. in 2007 where he is now Professor of Old Testament and Practical Theology at Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary and Pastor of Grand Rapids Free Reformed Church. Besides the book, his primary web presence is with HeadHeartHand.org self-described as a media organization providing creative and production services for Christian ministries.

…To return to my review title, in many respects this is about the pre-incarnate Christ. If I’m reading Jesus on Every Page accurately, Christ is not only foreshadowed in the First Testament, but is very much present and active.

Sometimes when I’ve finished a review, I click around to see what others thought. After reading a dozen such, I thought you would especially enjoy this one. And this one, too.