Tag: historicity

Where Do I begin?

Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path- Psalm 119:105

Well, it’s the start of a new year again, although we are all ready half way through January. Wow! Can you believe it? I was recently watching a video posted on YouTube and this was one of the questions that came to mind from watching.

The topic was the story of Jesus and how many of us really know the true story of Jesus, or of the entirety of the Bible. The video involved three people; two interviewers and one interviewee who had just written a book about Jesus. An overarching theme began to surface that demonstrated that most people, including the interviewers, found the Bible difficult to understand and had never read it, and only knew a few “stories” from the Bible, you know them too, the Good Samaritan, Noah’s Ark, the Flood, that is I’m making an assumption here that many are familiar with some of these.

For many people the new year brings about the desire to change and develop new, often healthier habits. Some start a new exercise or eating plan, and others want to grow deeper in their faith, or take care of their mental health or focus on self- care.

Some who are looking for the answers to meaning and purpose often look to religious texts to inspire them and give meaning. For those seeking Christian answers and wondering is God real? Can He be trusted? What is the Bible about? Is it true and can it be trusted? Well, the well intentioned seeker will pick up the Bible and begin from the beginning (literally) in Genesis, and everything goes well until they find themselves at Leviticus , or Numbers or Deuteronomy and get bogged down with pronouncing names or the long list of don’ts and do’s.

While, I do believe this is the place to start to understand the basic premise of Christianity: God created everything, even mankind, giving them- the first people- instructions for their good, while along comes the Devil, and plays mind games with the woman and man until they willfully disobey one of the boundaries set by God and this act sets into motion the whole rest of the story, the meta narrative of the Bible- God’s plan to restore His broken relationship with mankind. From Genesis, it is a good idea to jump ahead and read the New Testament Gospels. And jump back to the Old Testament. It might also be helpful to consider a Bible in a year reading plan, one that selects passages from both the Old and New Testaments. When you find a passage that is confusing I find searching online can yield some good results or consider investing in a good Bible commentary, in which scholars have broken down passages and chapter within contexts (what it meant to the audience it was written for and how we can apply it to our time). Additionally, a Bible dictionary is helpful as well. It can take the mystery out of places, traditions, rituals and the history of the world at the time the book of the Bible was written.

Taken all together, the entirety of the Bible is the most amazing story of love and faithfulness. The love and faithfulness of God toward an obstinate group of humans- that means us too, not just those from ancient times. Most scholars of the Bible acknowledge that we are currently living in the time of the Bible. The already, not yet, the future is laid out in the ending pages of the Bible and we are right in an era before the end of the ages. We are living the Bible now, the story is not finished yet and it is a real page turner.

If you’re still unsure about reading and understanding start in the Psalms, or Proverbs, or the Gospel of John. They provide wisdom, comfort, and an insight into God’s plan of redemption through Jesus. Really, anywhere is a place to start and you will grow as you read. Don’t sweat the difficult passages, we Bible scholars don’t sometimes know what they mean either! We can only research and discuss with others, that makes the whole endeavor of reading the Bible interesting and gives you a place to reflect and try to understand your place in this world. Hope you will try it! It is a life giving place to start and it might change your new year. God bless you – Nancy

Certain.

There’s a popular phrase circulating around the media these days; “In these uncertain times”. I’m not sure who started this phrase, but advertisers have been quick to join others in using it over and over again to promote whatever they are selling. But, are you buying it? Is it really an unprecedented, uncertain times we live in? From the perspective of a pandemic, then no, this world has seen them before. Haven’t we already been living in uncertain times? I mean, does anyone know the future? Life is short and often we are caught unaware when someone close to us passes away unexpectedly. Tornadoes, floods, and earthquakes often hit unexpectedly as well. We could add fires and accidents to the list too. Any one of these tragic events can alter our lives forever or just temporarily. Jobs can be lost, and businesses close overnight. Disease can be lurking within us without our knowing until one day we receive a difficult diagnosis. Life is uncertain at best. Without a major pandemic hitting the world. But is there anything that is certain? Please don’t say the obvious two; death and taxes, but think beyond those.

We can be sure that any event we are going through right now is temporary. We can be sure that there is more to our existence than this life. There is an eternal life past what we can see now. We can be certain that God is still in control. He always has been and always will be. We can be certain that God can work out all things for good. Why? Because we read it in the Bible and we can be certain it is true for the Bible is God’s word for us. We can be certain because what God says in His word is true and His promises are true. We can be certain of the Bible as historically accurate since there is less than five percent inaccuracy between the earliest copies and today’s versions, and of those mistakes, they were misspelled words. So, we can be certain that what God intended to say to us has passed through the generations to us who are living now. We can be certain that God does love the world and that He sent Jesus for us. We can be certain He has plans for us and a future. We can trust Him. We can be certain our peace is found in Him. We can be certain that He prepares a place for us in Heaven. We can be certain that He knows the pain and stress we are going through because He felt it too when He came as a man and dwelt among us. We can be as certain as David when he wrote;  “Truly my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from Him. Truly He is my rock and my salvation; He is my fortress, I will never be shaken.” (Psalm 62:1-2, New International Version Bible).

For those familiar with David’s story, you can recall he didn’t have a perfect life or even act perfect all the time, but he knew what he was certain of: God. So, I challenge you to think about what is certain in these times and avoid getting caught up in believing that somehow God isn’t aware of what you are going through or that everything is out of control or beyond His control. God is still in control and He can use something of our pain and difficulty to help us grow closer to Him. God is certain and we can trust Him. God Bless -Nancy