When I was a boy, it taught to me that every letter, every word, every "jot and tittle" (I kid you not!) in the Bible was perfectly correct and true. The concept of theopneustos meant that god breathed through the writers and translators and quoters of biblical writing and ensured that they never deviated from His original intentions.
My question then is, why can I type the following: "As the Gospel says Jesus leapt."
As I recall, the verse goes, "Jesus wept." but somehow I managed to type it wrong and the Holy Spellchecker didn't fix it.
Hmmm.
1 comments:
I just finished a book you might read if you want a true, and sane discussion on what is admittedly a subject beyond our comprehension ( God, that is)
"Velvet Elvis" by Rob Bell. Reading it, I relived moments in Dr Ream's Bible class, and other times with meetings with "Authorities", when I was pegged a communist and heretic as I quoted Jesus. I spent a lot of years stuck because I wanted a relationship with God if He was there, yet not the kind of God presented in those years. But they had the "Biblical" slant, so argument was heresy. Rob brings a theologian's rebuttal to these(as you so clearly point out) misguided
positions.
Rob points out that much of the Bible was actually quotes from other texts and authorities, and obviously a product of the church counsel that decided which books were "canon". So, when people say to him their position is "Biblical", he asks by what authority they are referring to.
Rob combines the whimsical and winsome post modernist truth that we cannot claim we really know the truth ( so to speak) with a real handle on the milieu in which Jesus lived ( Rabbinical Judaism in an outpost of the Roman Empire) That:
1) agrees with a lot of your rants
2) Would be grounds for excommunication by the OPC.
3) I finally found a church I might ( but probably won't just cuz as soon as you organize any good idea, it becomes a bad idea) join.
Jeff, God is so much bigger than us, and His concept of Good is so much greater than ours...people have used that "impossible to comprehend-ness" to put ridiculous words in His mouth, like the inquisition and crusades in older days, and like the death penalty and "just War" in our day. But the reality, as far as I can see, and as you are pointing out when you read the words of Jesus ( such as they have come to us) is that the depictions of a hellish existence is not reserved for those who do not make that "born again" decision, but for those who mistreat their fellow man (capital punishment included?), who allow the poor to languish at their gates (Rich man and Lazarus), and for those who call their brother a fool (there must be something there in that last one that bears investigation) But it also seems to me that that hellish existence is on both sides of the grave. Eternity is now. Jesus also pointed out that the kingdom of God is within you. He also said that God so loved the world that he gave us his precious son....not to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved. I think that allows one to "believe in Jesus" and believe that every Human Being, every plant and bush, every rock and valley, every dog and Cat will be reconciled to God in the end, through the atonement of Jesus.
And, yes, there are many who call themselves Christians, who would disagree. I would like any who read this to answer me.blssv
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