The Bible - Magic Book or Holy Book?

In a previous post I wrote about how religious fundamentalism is terribly disappointing in the end. I would like to take up that theme in this post. I am a Christian, and I am writing as a Christian, but I think there is a difference between Christianity and Christian fundamentalism that is not appreciated as much as it should be. In my thinking Christian fundamentalism treats the Bible, the Christian scriptures, as if it were a magic rather than a holy book. And there is a difference between the two. The Bible is treated as a magic book when it is made to speak authoritatively on every topic. The Bible is a holy book in that it is primarily about God's plan of salvation and how human beings can be reconciled and restored to him through Jesus Christ. In disclosing this salvation God has revealed many things that touch in one way or another on many areas of life. One of the tasks of Christian theology is to organize all of this material and to know how it applies to life in this present age. But this is a far cry from turning the Bible into a textbook on law, or politics, or economics, or education, or science, or counseling or marriage and family life... just to name a few. It is not enough to find a verse that more or less sounds like our idea, we must read the Bible as a whole and let it speak to us as God intended and not turn it into something that merely authorizes our personal ideas and prejudices.

In the end I find religious fundamentalism disappointing because it proposes simplistic solutions to complex problems. Now I realize that we can make things unnecessarily complicated when they are simple, but the world is a big place and our own perspective is often very parochial. This is not to say that there are not clearly delineated boundary lines established in scripture. The lines are there and not difficult to identify. But there is often freedom given within those boundaries that is not always understood. When this fails to happen there is a rigidity that manifests itself along with a self-righteousness that looks down on others and enshrines its version of 'truth' as the only possible way to go. Worst of all is the assumption that God sees it the same way! The whole concept of divine revelation presupposes a divine point of view, but we only know what that is as we interpret the scriptures in context and then apply them as God intended. Where his intentions are not clear, we should be very careful and tentative. When they are clear, we should proceed carefully as well, with humility and thankfulness, accompanied by a readiness to make corrections if we or those around us come to see things even more clearly. Christianity is one thing, Christian fundamentalism is another. The Bible is a holy book not a magic book!

A Life Is A Terrible Thing to Waste

There are many ways to waste a life and lots of people could explain how that is possible. But in this post I have in mind a particular way of squandering the wonderful gift of life. I am thinking about the mistake of paying too much attention to the advice and counsel of others no matter who they are, how sincere they are, or how much they think they know what they are talking about. I am not saying that advice and counsel are unimportant, but merely that such things are not ultimate when it comes to making decisions about how we live our lives. I am saying that in the final analysis we have to make up our own minds as individuals before God and then do what we think is best.

This is frequently difficult because it is scary. We are making decisions that will shape the rest of our lives. Oftentimes it is easier to turn such decision-making responsibilities over to someone else. And frequently there are no shortage of helpful busybodies who are ready to step in and do our thinking for us. But if we allow this to happen we have to live with the regret of not deciding for ourselves what to do. As I get older I appreciate more and more the value of freedom to think and act as I see right before God without having to explain myself to those who second nature it is to run everyone else's life. There is something truly exhilarating about thinking and acting for oneself, living by faith not sure what will happen next. Whatever is lost in security is more than repaid as we walk one step at a time into the future knowing that come what may each step we take is our own.

Unrealized Dreams

The summer is over and another academic year is underway at Toronto Baptist Seminary. When school wraps up for the summer it seems as though there is lots of time before everything starts up again in September, but the summer manages to slip by all too quickly. Still it is good to take a break from the routine and good to return to it in the fall. And this fall we are thankful to have a new group of students eager to study and learn.

Back in one of my summer posts I wrote about some "northern reflections" that I wanted to take up when I had the time to do so. I have already written about one of those reflections -- the fact that nothing stays the same forever. In this post I want to reflect on unfulfilled dreams. Everyone dreams about life and what it will be like. Sometimes those dreams actually become reality but many dreams never materialize. We think we know how things will work out but reality does not always conform to our expectations or desires.

Unrealized dreams can be a source of frustration and discouragement. They can leave us very disappointed and if left unchecked they can become a source of bitterness and cynicism. However, it need not be that way. Unrealized dreams can motivate us to make changes in our lives and move in a different direction. We do not have to sit and feel sorry for ourselves, we can take action to change our situation. When looked at in this light unrealized dreams can force us take stock of our lives and push us to change. And so it is that what initially seems like an obstacle can actually become strong motivation to move us forward in another direction.

Students who have come to seminary this fall have many dreams, goals and ambitions. Some will move ahead just as they have planned, others will not. Many think that they know how life will unfold for them in the future but only time will tell. Whatever happens they need to work hard, to pray, and to seek the counsel of others. And where they encounter twists and turns in the road of life they need to stop and re-evaluate their lives and then have the wisdom and strength to respond accordingly. Truth is, that life is rarely straight-forward and some of life's most interesting moments come when we are not quite sure what will happen next.