Breathed by God

We live in what is often called "the Information Age." An torrent of words flow our way everyday from multiple sources. That you are reading this TFTD indicates you are 'wired,' a part of the most amazing information development in human history - the Internet. As a pastor I am able, by this medium, to influence the thoughts of people far beyond the physical location of the pulpit from which I speak on Sunday. TFTD is read by people in Italy, the Far East, Australia, and many of the 50 states of the USA. I don't write that to boast, but to illustrate a point. Many of those readers have no way to know what kind of person I am. They are unable to see the life context that shapes the messages that arrive in their computers each morning. The anonymous nature of the Internet demands a high level of discernment from us and requires that we have a safe standard to use in evaluating the content of the information we find there.

For the Believer the ultimate standard of Truth is the Holy Scripture. That said, I want to encourage you to be students of the Bible, to learn to love the Word of God and to read it for all it's worth. Paul encouraged Timothy to remember the value of the Scriptures - which at that time consisted of the Books of the Law and the writing of the Prophets. He wrote: "why, you took in the sacred Scriptures with your mother’s milk! There’s nothing like the written Word of God for showing you the way to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. Every part of Scripture is God-breathed and useful one way or another—showing us truth, exposing our rebellion, correcting our mistakes, training us to live God’s way. Through the Word we are put together and shaped up for the tasks God has for us." (2 Timothy 3:15-17, The Message)

"God-breathed" is a curious construction, isn't it? In many translations the word is "inspired." But didn't men write the words of the Bible? Yes, of course they did. It didn't fall down from the sky written by angelic scribes! Peter tells us that these writers were "moved by the Spirit." They breathed the Breath of God and in their stories and words recorded His wisdom for us. To recognize the human means of receiving the Word does not, in any way, diminish its power in my life, but it does make it study a bit more complex.

For example, to fully understand Paul's teaching letters we need to know to whom he first wrote and why. Galatians, that wonderful letter about Christian freedom from religious regulations, was written to a church he had founded and that had fallen under the spell of false teachers who were stealing the richness of Christ's grace from them. We can feel Paul's passion still after 2000 years as he asks, "You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified." (Galatians 3:1, NIV)

Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John were inspired to write the Jesus story, but each gives us a distinct perspective. As we understand that Matthew wants us to see Jesus as the Jew's Messiah, that Mark wants us to know that He is the powerful Son of God, that Luke wants us to understand that He is the Son of Man, the Savior; and that John is intent on helping us to see that He is the unique God-Man, who brought Light and Life to a dark world; the Gospel becomes a multi-faceted diamond that reflects God's truth into our lives.

When we read the stories of the the patriarchs and of the Jewish people who were alternately faithful and faithless, we are able to trust God to meet us where we are and to lead us to Himself- generation after generation! Thousands of years of great stories from the Old Testament era help us to learn that while God uses individual people, His purposes survive fools and frauds.

The way that we commonly hear the Bible used may actually diminish our ability to understand it. We hear a snippet here and a proof text there, little lines taken from their rich context and turned into a kind of pithy proverb to make a point. Yes, it is the common way the Bible is read and preached and used - even here in TFTD. It is true that we can excerpt passages and study them, we may even quote a phrase to underscore a point, but the best way to let the Scripture become the Gift of Truth to us which God intends - is to read it with understanding of context, with grasp of the story line, and with deep love for the One whose Breath makes the Words alive! Hebrews reminds us that "the Word of God is living and active." As the Spirit lives in us and in the Word, a miracle of living Truth occurs. The letters of Paul, the Gospel stories, the prophets' raging sermons, the Psalms rich images- are not just some legal text which we dissect and systematize with footnotes and bullet points. Instead, we find God's voice speaking to us, "—showing us truth, exposing our rebellion, correcting our mistakes, training us to live."

Let me encourage you to read the Bible! Don't read it to 'get something' out of it. Don't go looking for a verse to prove your point, or a passage to support your latest twist of doctrine. Instead, read it with an open heart and discerning mind, as the story of God! Read it with a kind of wonder and a deep humility. You will find that God will use those ancient texts to create wisdom in you, to shape your life in a way that pleases Him, and that causes you to learn to love Him with your whole life.

Read it again- for the first time!