Tag: bible reading

Hurry Up and Listen

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Exploring Church Ministry BlogLeave a comment
 
 
“My dear friends, you should be quick to listen and slow to speak or get angry.  If you are angry, you cannot do any of the good things that God wants done” (James 1:19-20).
 
            Rarely does anything go as planned in life.  Yet we all have certain desires and expectations about how things should go in our lives.  When things go sideways, tempers flare.  People do not listen well and are quick to blame and jump to conclusions.  Difficult life circumstances can lead to pointing fingers and giving heated opinions about problems.  Verbal jabs can take over in the church.
 
            Inside of all our heads we have higher brain functions, and lower brain functions.  We need both of them.  When there is danger, the lower brain immediately kicks in and puts us on a hyper-vigilant state to resist and deal with the threat.  This works great when a burglar is in your house, or you jump in to help someone in a car accident, or any number of things which threaten life.  Adrenaline is great for danger but not so great when there is simply things going on we don’t like.  The problem with the lower brain function is that it operates more on instinct and not on rational, logical, and reasonable thought.  When the lower brain is functioning the higher brain function is not so much.  If you have ever seen someone all worked-up about something and that person does not listen to any kind of reason, you are observing a person who is operating in the lower brain function.  Most of our contemporary problems are not solved through the lower brain’s activity of responding to fear and threats of danger.
 
            We need to hurry up and listen.  People caught in their lower brain function do not listen because all they can see is what upsets them.  There is a great need for listeners today.  Very little productive communication takes place because there are so many people in a hyper-vigilant state going on and on about their opinions and what’s wrong with everything and what we should be doing.  We just talk over and on top of each other because we already have our minds made-up about how things really are.  Nobody is listening.
 
            On top of all this, there are a number of things which distract us from any kind of ability to listen well:  our busy-ness; constant background noise of the TV, radio, tablet or computer.  And these often just appeal to the lower brain with no substantive thoughts.  This all has major implications when it comes to listening to God.
 
            Bible reading is the primary source for Christians to listen to God.  But reading the Bible is too difficult and dull for far too many believers.  Sitting quietly before God and slowly reading the words of Scripture, and giving focused attention to Him in prayer has been relegated to the super-spiritual among us, as if it is not normal to read the Bible and pray.
 
            I haven’t even said anything about preaching yet.  It is little wonder why so many preachers today think they need to be showmen with such little listening that actually occurs.  Then, there are always people who think they already know what needs to happen, so they check out during the sermon.  In order to hurry up and listen to God’s Word, it needs to be a priority in our lives.  We must say “no” to some things in order to make room to listen to God.  We must prepare for worship and listening through deliberate preparation.  Listening is not just going to happen.  It has to be looked at as a skill just like anything else in life, and purposefully cultivated.
 

 

            A teachable spirit which is attentive to the words and ways of Jesus is a listening spirit.  A place to begin is to allow some space for listening within the worship service.  Cramming the time with as much stuff as possible is not conducive to hearing from God.  But through slow and deliberate speech, times of silence and contemplation, and careful planning can spawn an atmosphere of listening to God and his Word.  Let the church model for parishioners how to listen well.  For straining out all others voices in order to hear God might be one of the best things we can do today.

2 Chronicles 34:20-33

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
            Today’s Old Testament lesson is both very sad and quite joyful, all at the same time.  When God’s temple was undergoing repairs, the Book of the Law was found.  What is sad is that it was lost to begin with.  Somewhere along the line a king, a priest, some people, they all just plain forgot about God’s Word to them.  But what is joyful about it is that King Josiah had God’s Word read to him and he and his officials responded by promising “to faithfully obey the LORD and to follow his laws and teachings that were written in the book.”  What is more, Josiah asked the Israelites to make that same promise.
 
            It is likely that you are reading this because you are a person committed to listening to God’s Word.  It is likely that you don’t need to go on an archaeological dig inside your own house in order to find an old dusty Bible to read.  God’s Word is important enough to you to read and obey.  So, maybe you need to take the next step, like Josiah of old, to not only listen and obey yourself, but to ask and invite others to make the same promise.
 
            You and I both know that Bible reading often does not take place within the homes and even the churches of many confessing believers in Jesus.  Take the next step.  Invite others to read with you.  Ask your fellow Christians to read Scripture, make observations about it, apply it to their lives, and base prayers upon it.  Ask them to make the same promise that you have made to God:  to listen to God’s Word and do what it says.
 

 

            Patient God, you continue to wait for people to read your Word and obey it.  May I not simply attend to your laws in isolation from others, but freely ask others to make the same promise I have:  to obey Jesus Christ, my Lord by living and loving like him in the power of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

The Bible as History

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Exploring Church Ministry BlogLeave a comment

 

 
            The essence of ministry is the ability to grasp the Bible as God’s special revelation of himself and use it to edify Christians and evangelize the lost.  Glorifying God through handling Scripture is a skill that develops over a lifetime of following Jesus.  Therefore, understanding something of the basic nature of the Bible is critical to the church.  This may seem obvious or elementary, but the Bible is a historical book.  That is, it was written in history by actual historical characters.  Yes, the Bible is a spiritual book.  Yet, that does not negate or cancel the fact that it is an actual historical document. 
 
            I am not just a pastor and a theologian; I am also an historian with a few academic degrees to show for it.  But even if a pastor or layperson is not credentialed as an historian, that person still does the work of an historian by handling God’s historical Word.
 
            I cannot emphasize enough the need to approach Scripture with some common historical sense.  If we do not, we are in danger of misinterpreting God’s Holy Word for us today.  As contemporary people who seek to apply the Bible to our present needs and situations, the historians’ craft can help us in our quest.  John Fea, professor of American History at Messiah College, has rightly explained that the historian’s task is not first to find something relevant in history, but to initially do the work of helping to explain the past.  The goals of the historian, Fea says, are:  to observe change over time; to interpret the past in context; to be constantly interested in the causes for an event; to keep the big picture in mind by seeing how events are influenced by other events; and, to realize that the past is complex by resisting simplistic explanations that can be put into sound bites.
 
            If we rip biblical characters from their historical context and roots; if we try and make them just like us; if we ignore their understandings and motivations; if we ask first what something means for us before asking what it meant for them; if we seek to selfishly use biblical persons as tools for our own propaganda in the present; then, we have done a disservice to the church, not to mention a disservice to the God whom we seek to honor.  What I am insisting upon is that we eschew cherry-picking from the past and the Bible in order to get positive accolades with the people for whom we minister to.  The biblical word for that is “Pharisee.”  The Bible is not to be used to get our point across; it is God’s revelation to us so that we can know him better – so that we might grow in the grace and the knowledge of the Lord Jesus.
 
            I am not saying that one needs to be a scholar in order to effectively learn or communicate Holy Scripture.  What I am pleading for is some intellectual hospitality, some basic human decorum in handling the Bible so that we can learn to listen to both the characters of the Bible and the people in our lives with views that differ from our own.  Someone might argue that all we need is the Holy Spirit.  And I would argue that only the narcissist thinks he/she can independently handle the Bible, as if the Holy Spirit speaks only to individuals and not the community of the redeemed as a whole.
 

 

            We need to examine the Old and New Testaments not to give ammunition to our personal and cultural agendas, but because they have the potential to change our lives and transform us in order to serve the church and the world.  May it be so.  

God’s Word

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Exploring Church Ministry BlogLeave a comment
The Bible is to the Christian what weights and barbells are to a bodybuilder.  The people of God need Holy Scripture, God’s Word, in order to spiritually grow and become mature.  Christian character formation cannot truly occur apart from the continuous repetitions of reading the text of Scripture, and letting it build strength into the muscles of the soul.
 
 
 
Scripture is a powerful unifying force within the life of God’s people.  At the end of the day, we may not explain every Bible verse in exactly the same way, but a common desire to honor, apply, and obey God’s Word will draw us closer together rather than separate us.  It is the devil’s strategy to magnify our differences, and minimize our common confession of Christ around the Word of God.  A passion to listen, talk about, and apply God’s Word will bring believers in Jesus together.  Perhaps because the average American household today has at least three or four Bibles, we take for granted the availability of God’s Word.  It is always at our fingertips, even on our smartphones and computers.  Yet, because it is always present and available we may let the busyness and business of life keep us from paying attention to it.  When we commit to reading and listening to Holy Scripture, it should not be done quickly or mechanically, and certainly not half-heartedly.  If we are to allow God’s Word to penetrate and seep into our souls, we must take the time to listen carefully and slowly.
 
            A famous first century rabbi, Akiva, once noticed a tiny stream trickling down a hillside, dripping over a ledge on its way toward the river below. Below was a massive boulder. The rock below bore a deep impression. The drip, drip, drip of water over the centuries had hollowed away the stone. Rabbi Akiva commented, “If mere water can do this to hard rock, how much more can God’s Word carve a way into my heart of flesh?” He realized that if the water had flowed over the rock all at once, the rock would have been unchanged. It was the slow but steady impact of each small droplet, year after year, that completely reformed the stone.
 
We sometimes want quick answers to our questions without taking the time to prayerfully listen and reflect on the Word of God. God likes to reveal truth over many days, months, and years, as we read and discuss Scripture together. Big splashes aren’t usually God’s way of doing things. Instead, through the slow drip of study and prayer and reflection, day after day, year after year, he shapes us into what he wants us to be.
 
When we approach the Bible it is necessary to come at it with a teachable spirit.  Sometimes God’s Word is not apparently relevant.  We oftentimes need others to help us, and we need the patience to stick with reading it and learning it, even when we aren’t sure about what it is saying.  Rightly interpreting Scripture typically happens in community, and not in isolation which is why small groups of people interacting on the Bible’s message is so very important.
 
One of the things a careful reading of Scripture does is to expose our sin.  When we look intently into God’s Word, it doesn’t take long for us to see God’s faithfulness and our disloyalty; God’s compassion and our selfishness; God’s holiness and our fickle nature.  And, for the believer, it causes us to grieve and be distressed not only over personal sin, but the fact that this sin is universal.  We are all guilty.  But sin does not have the last word, because God’s grace trumps everything!  So, do not grieve, because the joy of the Lord is your strength!  Being truly forgiven washes away the guilt and shame and brings restoration.  God’s Word both slays us, and gives us new life.
 
With this freedom, God’s Word opens our eyes to the needs of others.  An appropriate response to hearing God’s Word is to address and provide for the problems of others.  In other words, God is not just concerned about us, but about other people, as well. 
 
In ancient Israel, Scripture was so important that, by the age of twelve, every Jewish boy had the first five books of the Old Testament memorized.  They did this because they wanted God’s Word to be internalized and known so that it influenced every situation and every relationship of their lives.  What do you suppose would happen if we all committed to carefully reading and listening and meditating, even memorizing God’s Word on a daily basis?  Would it make a difference?  Would it transform our worship?  Would it make a difference in our relationships?  Would a commitment to learning God’s Word together change our life together?
 

 

There is no substitute for the heavy lifting of working through the Bible verse by verse, chapter by chapter, book by book.  Read, meditate, reflect, memorize, and prayerfully consider the Bible, and let its contents be the means of bringing intimacy between you and the divine.  In so doing, we lift up God’s Word and let it do its work within us.