Ruminations

So, as I entered into the world of pastorship (is that a word?), I had completed my indoctrination in one of the most pharisaical seminaries in the U.S.

I could quote every proof text necessary to bolster my position (in Greek, Hebrew and English), I could definitively tell you why your position was wrong, I could even use extra-biblical sources to prove my point.

And I knew it was a lie.

A distinguished, learned and respected “man of God” had shown me in my first semester of college that the Bible was not to be trusted. His words and his actions were at odds; his message was that you believe what you’re told, not what you discover.

The end result was that when the storm of adversity stuck, my spiritual house was the equivalent of straw. When the storm passed, my house was gone.

Why bother to blog about ancient history?

It illustrates a point that is important.

So many of us claim to be following the Bible when what we’re really doing is following what someone told us the Bible means. We do not believe that we are capable of reading it, understanding it and actually applying it in some meaningful, powerful manner in our lives. We believe that you must go to seminary, be a pastor or have some sort of supernatural faith in order to be an influential Christian.

Unless you’re reading the Bible in old English or in a different language, it can be understood; it was meant to be understood. It is a lie to think that only the elite and trained can understand it.

It is a dangerous book. It puts you in contact with the supernatural.

And that can radically change your worldview, regardless of your age or circumstance.