Words With Friend: Understand the
Language of Our Faith
“Inspiration, Infallibility,
Inspiration – What We Believe About Our Sacred Book ”
based on a sermon preached at
Journey United Church of Christ on Sunday, September 16, 2016
This sermon series a popular word
game as a play on words to help us begin thinking about the language we use in
our faith – the language we use with our friends, the people with whom we share
faith and share community. From time to
time, three uses are used as reference. “Speaking Christian: Why Christian
Words Have Lost Their Meaning” (Marcus Borg), “Amazing Grace: A
Vocabulary of Faith” (Kathleen Norris), and “Balaam’s Unofficial Handbook of
the United Church of Christ”. All
definitions are from www.merriam-webster.com/
Reading of the Day:
Psalms
119:97-105 (CEV)
I deeply love
your Law! I think about it all day.
Your laws
never leave my mind, and they make me much wiser than my enemies.
Thinking
about your teachings gives me better understanding than my teachers, and obeying
your laws makes me wiser than those who have lived a long time.
I obey your
word instead of following a way that leads to trouble.
You have been
my teacher, and I won't reject your instructions.
Your
teachings are sweeter than honey.
They give me understanding
and make me hate all lies.
Your word is
a lamp that gives light wherever I walk.
2
Timothy 3:14-17 (CEV)
Keep on being
faithful to what you were taught and to what you believed. After all, you know
who taught you these things.
Since childhood,
you have known the Holy Scriptures that are able to make you wise enough to
have faith in Christ Jesus and be saved.
Everything in
the Scriptures is God's Word. All of it is useful for teaching and helping
people and for correcting them and showing them how to live.
The
Scriptures train God's servants to do all kinds of good deeds.
The Message:
Back when
I was in Sunday School we sang these words
The
B-I-B-L-E,
yes that’s
the book for me
I stand
alone on the word of God
The
B-I-B-L-E
It was a
great simple song that matched my simple childlike faith. I remember the day I
actually got to pick out my very own Bible.
It was a big deal and I finally settled on one that had a great white
leather case with a dangling cross on a zipper that would allow me to keep the
pages safe. I chose it totally based on
two important features 1) I loved that white leather case (which is now a
lovely shade of yellow), and 2) because I thought the pictures in it were great
(I look now and wonder how every single one of those Bible people looked like
me – incredible white). And the best
part (wait for it) … was that my name was engraved in gold on the cover. (Show
the Bible)…Now if you promise to be really, really nice to me, I’ll let you
touch it later
Now, since
those days, I’ve accumulated more Bible than I can even count – big bibles and
little bibles, bibles in every color, literally dozens of versions, some with
pictures, with charts, with study notes, with devotional readings and maps and
so much more. And yes, I now have the
Bible on my computer, my ipad and even my phone.
Since I
sang that “Bible song”, things have changed … a lot. In Sunday School I learned the familiar
stories about Adam and Eve, Noah, Ruth, Jesus, the Disciples and Paul. Who doesn’t love a story with a happy ending,
especially when it was accompanied by those really cool flannel graphs and even
cooler sticker books?
But as I
got older, things got a little more complicated. We started to read some stories that didn’t
have happy endings – stories of death and destruction; teachings that seemed a
bit cold and harsh; rules that seemed never-ending and pictures of a God that
were not included in my white leather-covered Bible. Questions about the bible started to surface.
And then I
went to seminary. There’s a joke among
pastors that in seminary they systematically begin to destroy your faith during
your first two years and then give it back to you on graduation day. I came face-to-face with historical criticism
and the idea that the behind the Bible stories that I knew and loved, there
were some pretty weird things taking place historically and the culture and
context of the time.
What do
you mean that Adam and Eve probably didn’t really exist? Why are there so many
conflicting stories in the four Gospels?
Why would Paul’s name be listed as the author of letters when he didn’t
write them?
Is the
Bible the inspired word of God? Is it
inerrant? Is it infallible? What does all of it mean? Is it relevant
anymore?
Apparently,
I’m not alone. Barna, the Research
Agency that is responsible for taking the pulse of faith in America reports
“only 54% of Protestant adults read the Bible each week.” And although most Americans consider
themselves Christian, many do not know the basic facts fundamental to the
faith: for example “fewer than half of
American adults can name all four Gospels.”
So, I
figured that as we start this series, “Words with Friends” it might be a good
idea to start with words related to the Bible – our holy book. Perhaps if we understand a little ABOUT the
Bible, we can better appreciate what’s IN the Bible and how it can be used in
our very lives.
So let’s
start with a little “Bible Words 101”
bi·ble noun \ˈbī-bəl\
capitalized
1a :
the sacred scriptures of Christians comprising the Old Testament and the New
Testament
1b :
the sacred scriptures of some other religion (as Judaism)
3 capitalized : a copy or an edition of the Bible
4: a
publication that is preeminent especially in authoritativeness or wide
readership bible
>
scrip·ture noun \ˈskrip(t)-shər\
1a (1)
capitalized : the books of the Bible —often used in plural (2) often
capitalized : a passage from the Bible
1b :
a body of writings considered sacred or authoritative
2:
something written scripture
— George
Santayana>
in·spi·ra·tion noun \ˌin(t)-spə-ˈrā-shən, -(ˌ)spi-\
a : a divine influence or action on a person believed to
qualify him or her to receive and communicate sacred revelation
b : the action or power of moving the intellect or
emotions
c : the act of influencing or
suggesting opinions
The Bible itself says
that "All scripture [is] given by
inspiration of God". (2 Timothy 3:16-17). Christians
believe that our Bible is the inspired word of God. God intervened and influenced the words of
the Bible. To some people that means
that God literally dictated the words; to most it means that God inspired the
content, but each author used their own voice and unique writing style to
convey the story.
in·er·rant adjective \-ənt\
Definition of
INERRANT
: free from error
Note:
doctrine/belief that the Bible is accurate and totally free of error
(except the errors made it translation or transcription); related to the actual
written words; fundamentalists who take the bible literally would hold this
view – “it is not false, mistaken or defective in any way”; the fact that
you’re here today listening to a female pastor and sitting in a room where
there is a rainbow flag probably means that you DON’T fall into this category.
in·fal·li·ble adjective \(ˌ)in-ˈfa-lə-bəl\
Definition of
INFALLIBLE
memory>
3: incapable of
error in defining doctrines touching faith or morals
Note: “belief that what the Bible
says regarding matters of faith and Christian practice is wholly useful and
true”; the historical or scientific details, may contain errors; puts more
responsibility on us to understand and interpret the Bible
Understanding the
Difference:
Video Clip: West
Wing – The Bible
We recognize it’s not a science textbook, it’s not a history textbook …
it’s a book that holds God’s story – a story of how God has interacted with
people from the beginning of time and how God seeks to interact with us today;
a story of God’s grace, God’s love, God’s work to widen the circle; a story of
how God wants us to embrace that story, share the story and live the
story.
“…The Bible is an
invaluable resource book for us today because it is our family album… it gives
us snapshots of our spiritual ancestors and tells us about their struggles to
hear and respond to a God speaking to them in their particular time and context”
… “ Balaam’s Unofficial Handbooks of the United Church of Christ, p. 40
If we understand the Bible in that context, I think we can move from
having the Bible be the “most sold” book to having it become the “most read”
book as well.
Some quick suggestions:
1) Get a version you can understand
2) Ask, Ask and Ask some more (p. 39 Balaam’s)… who wrote this?
Why? Whom was it written for? Is it
descriptive or prescriptive? Are there
other passages that dialogue with this one?
What form is it written in? How has it been interpreted by scholars
throughout the ages? Is there anything
missing?
3) Don’t Go It Alone … A study group is a great idea, but there
are other ways to invite others into the conversation: devotional guides, study guides, commentators
PRAYER OF RESPONSE: A Bible
Reading Practice You Can Use: Lectio Divina
Lectio Divina has been likened to "Feasting on the Word."
The four parts are first taking a bite (Lectio), then chewing on it
(Meditatio). Next is the opportunity to savor the essence of it (Oratio).
Finally, the Word is digested and made a part of the body
(Contemplatio).
Use
Matthew 11:28
Jesus said “come to me all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens,
and I will give you rest. Take my yoke
upon you and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will
find rest for your souls”
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