Studying Scripture and the Issues of Christian Faith and Life
Be the Church 4
Intro
Our next ministry of the members is the study of Scripture and issues of Christian faith and life. Throughout the ages, we have been known as ‘the people of the book’ and this is very much the case for those of us in the Reformed Tradition. The Word written is literally a central part of our services of worship.
Possible Scriptures
Psalm 1
The Book of Psalms is a collection of songs and poems from across the history of Israel and Judah. During the Babylonian Exile, it became a literary Temple for those who could no longer worship at the now destroyed temple. Psalm 1 sets many of the themes, and uses ‘tree’ imagery (an allusion to the Garden of Eden) to describe the righteous person. This person’s delight is in the law of YHWH, on which they meditate constantly.
Jewish Meditation Literature: This is a great reminder of the purpose of Scripture. The Jewish Scriptures are in the form of Ancient Meditation Literature, which are meant to be pondered over and considered. You may notice that Scripture rarely gives the ‘meaning’ of a story or lesson, but leaves things intentionally open to interpretation. The word used to meditate is to mumble (and linked to the chewing of an animal, like a cow chewing over its cud). The picture is of a person carefully considering, reconsidering, and reconsidering again throughout their lifetime. Both the priestly and Rabbinic traditions are full of lively conversations and debates about what could be meant by various scriptures. The tree watered by living waters remains in the place where it has been planted, yet also is able to stretch and grow far beyond its original form. This tree bears fruit for the benefit of others. It is contrasted with the chaff (the outer shell of a wheat kernel) which is easily blown away in the wind.
Numbers 27:1-11
The story of the daughters of Zelophehad is a bit of a deep cut. TBH we don’t do a lot of reading from the book of Numbers (partially because it is the single worst named book of the Bible, especially compared to its Hebrew name ‘in the Wilderness’). However, this story gives a very interesting perspective on the purpose and role of Scripture. Moses has revealed the Law to the people at Mt. Sinai, Ten Commandments, the rest of Exodus (tabernacle, etc), and the Levitical code. The people have had the option to enter into the Promised Land, but declined, and so have now been wandering in the wilderness. They are preparing to go back to the land of Canaan, and a second census has been made (primarily for the purpose of allotting land).
However, there is a problem. The daughters of Zelophehad, part of the tribe of Manessa, have no brothers. According to the Law as stated, they would get nothing in the allotment of land, Zelophehad would effectively be cut off from his inheritance. Now, the “Literal, plain meaning of the text” crowd would have a simple answer, inheritance only passes to the son, so if God never gave Zelophehad a son, tough beans. They might gather in their national conference in New Orleans to once again ratify that the daughters of Zelophehad, and any other woman for that matter, should never inherit any land.
Moses, however, does not do this. He brings the case before YHWH, who agrees that the situation is unjust. A change is then made to the law, not only in this case, but all future cases as well. If a man dies without a son, then his daughter will inherit the land. The law then goes on to anticipate other issues, if there is no daughter, the brother will inherit; if no brother, the uncle; and so on. To be sure, the system remains patriarchal, but compared to other law codes of the time is remarkably egalitarian.
Here in the Torah itself, a story that has a view of the law (and by extension, scripture) not as the unchanging, unquestionable, words of God; but a part of the ongoing revelation of God through relationship.
Jeremiah 31:31-34
The Prophet Jeremiah makes a major tone shift pre and post Exile. Before the Exile to Babylon, he was warning the people of Judah of the coming destruction, that if they did not repent of their unrighteousness, then God would bring destruction. However, when that destruction came, and many of the people (especially the elites) were sent to Babylon, Jeremiah’s tone becomes much more hopeful. He sends a letter to the Exiles, promising that while this exile will last long enough that they need to settle in, that it will not be forever, and they will be returned to their own land. Jeremiah also makes this promise of a new covenant, a new law. Unlike the previous covenant which was ignored, this new covenant on God’s people would be written on their heart. Christians interpret this new covenant to be the revelation of Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit that is poured out on all flesh. Both Christians and Jewish people await with anticipation the time when this covenant will be fully written upon our hearts.
James 1:19-27
James (the brother of Jesus, according to church tradition), writes an epistle to the Jewish diaspora after the destruction of the Temple in 70CE. His intent is to encourage them in their faith and life (not unlike Jeremiah did with the Exiles). He wishes to give them words of hope in the trials that they face. He encourages them in this passage to be quick to listen, and slow to speak (advice many of us should take to heart, even online), and slow to anger. He then goes on to tell his readers to be DOERS of the word, not just HEARERS.
To express this idea, he uses the brilliant image of a mirror. The person who simply hears the word, without putting it into practice, is like a person who looks at themselves in the mirror, and then immediately forgets what they look like. This would not be particularly useful, now would it. The purpose of a mirror is to look at ourselves honestly, to recognize our good qualities, as well as our flaws. If we see that our heart is a mess (or our makeup, or whatever) when we look in the mirror, but do nothing to fix it, what is the point? Likewise, the purpose of scripture is to see ourselves. We see our good qualities, and are encouraged in good qualities, by hearing the stories of heroes of faith. But these heroes are also tragically flawed, and it is in seeing our own flaws and brokenness in them, that we are called to repent and grow. If we see our flaws in scripture, if we are convicted by the Holy Spirit, if we see something that we need to improve, if we recognize injustice, etc; and then do nothing, then what was the point? As Francis Chan puts it, “Christians in America have become experts at conviction—and failures at action.” (a great quote, but unfortunately from a book that holds up a Complimentarian view of marriage, so be warned).
Additional Other Texts
John 1:1-18 (The Word made Flesh)
2 Timothy 3:14-17 (All scripture is useful)
Themes
The Word of God vs. The Words of God
There is a world of difference between these two phrases. The ‘Words of God’ is often the way that our literalist siblings think about the transmission of Scripture. Scripture, they claim, is a direct gift from God, every single word and letter has been directly transmitted to humanity by God himself (because God is definitely a ‘Him’ in these circles) and is therefore supremely authoritative. This view can run into some challenges when one part of scripture contradicts another (when did Jesus cleanse the temple?), is internally inconsistent (how many pairs of animals were on Noah's Ark?), and when translation issues arise (“homosexuality” is definitely the truest and most faithful translation for ‘male on male rape,’ ‘Sodomy,’ and ‘Pederasty’). I wonder how those with this view would feel knowing that this theological statement is far more at home in Islam (which believes that the Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him) directly received the Quran from Allah, and that every word is true).
Both the Hebrew and Christian Scriptures, however, refer to itself as ‘the Word of God.’ The idea of this divine word links all the way back to the first creation narrative, where God speaks existence into being. Psalm 119, a meditation on the Law, calls the word “a Lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” This word (d’bar) took on greater significance in the Second Temple period, when it was used as a replacement for the name of God (YHWH), to save scribes from the ritual washing that was required before and after writing the true name of God. Christian authors took this word ‘Word’ (logos in Greek) to refer not only to the Hebrew Scriptures, but also to Jesus the Messiah. Notably, John’s gospel begins with a beautiful meditation on the ‘word’ which is both God and also not God, which was present in the beginning and has become flesh (incarnate), and whose glory we have seen. In this telling, the author also brings in the philosophical nature of the word logos, which had been used in the Greek/Roman world as a shorthand for the ground of all being. Thousands of years later, the 20th Century German theologian Karl Bath (pronounced Bart), articulated that the ‘Word of God’ had three distinct forms. The true ‘Word of God’ is the Word Incarnate in the person of Jesus Christ. Jesus is the ultimate in divine self-revelation, and the ultimate way that we as humans can know God. The Hebrew and Christian Scriptures are ‘the Word of God Written’ in that they bear witness to the Word of God Incarnate. These scriptures are also a part of divine self-revelation that God has given to us, but they are also human writings which can be more or less effective in revealing God to us. Barth also claims that the ‘Word of God Proclaimed’ through sermon, etc, is also rightfully called the ‘Word of God’ but only inasmuch as it faithfully reveals and bears witness to the Word of God Incarnate.
Interpretation of Scripture
We have already reflected on the intentionally sparse nature of Scripture, and the long history of interpretation, reinterpretation, argument, support, and refutation especially in the Rabbinic tradition. We have also seen the inter-textual evidence of the law being interpreted in light of new evidence in Numbers 27. In the next book of the Torah, Deuteronomy, Moses gives a ‘second telling’ of the law to this new generation at the edge of the Promised Land. It is not a simple copy and paste, but is a faithful reflection on how the wisdom of the law given to a nomadic people in the wilderness can be applied to a new situation of being settled in this new land. Part of this telling is the insistence that it should be read and proclaimed on a regular basis, at least implying the reinterpretation of the law for whatever context the people may find themselves in. The Prophets would later interpret this law (and the wisdom, righteousness, and justice that it reflects) to the Jewish people as nations, exiles, and occupied peoples. The Christian era continued to reinterpret the scriptures in light of God’s revealed Word in Jesus Christ as well as the continued inspiration of the Holy Spirit:
Peter and John are called before the Sanhedrin, and later reflect on the fulfillment of the Psalm in their actions (Acts 4:23-31)
Peter has a vision of the inclusion of Gentiles into the family of God, and the assertion that God does not differentiate (Acts 10-11)
The Council of Jerusalem prayerfully discuss and interpret the necessity of Circumcision, asking only that Gentile believers remain sexually pure, and not eat blood or food sacrificed to idols (Acts 15)
Paul will later argue that food sacrificed to idols is NBD (Romans 14)
The Letter of the Hebrews reinterprets the meaning behind the law in Exodus and Leviticus, claiming that Jesus is both the ultimate sacrifice and our new high priest, serving in the heavenly Temple.
Christian history is sometimes (often?) the stories of the Church’s shameful weaponization of the words of scripture to support our own hegemonic and nationalistic aims. It is also the constant reinterpretation and reformation of our institutions (hopefully) according to the Word of God.
Christian Faith and Life
This ministry of the members also calls us to interpret our Christian faith and life, as well as Scripture. Back to Karl Barth who put it so eloquently, “Take your Bible and take your newspaper, and read both. But interpret newspapers from your Bible.” If we only have our bible, and do not apply it to our everyday lives, then what is the point. If we only observe the ongoing history of our lives, and do not seek to understand it through our scriptures, we are missing something vital.
This ministry demands that we ask hard questions of ourselves, our culture, and our scripture:
What would the Prophets say about our economic and political systems?
What implication does Galatians 3:28 have on our view of gender and race?
How do we interpret ‘clobber passages’ in light of God’s ongoing revelation in and through the queer community?
How does the trajectory of equality seen throughout scripture (imperfect as it is) inform our own work for equality?
How have we been deeply formed by the hegemonic and capitalistic forces in our world, rather than the kindom of heaven proclaimed in the Sermon on the Mount?
We, like the ancient Hebrews are called to meditate, to mumble, to sit like a tree next to the living waters. We are called to be deeply rooted in the Word of God Incarnate, as attested in the Word of God Written. We are encouraged to question, to untangle, to pick apart, to refute, to change our minds, to grow, to repent, to reform and always be reforming according to the Word of God.
Worship Resources
Call to Worship
ONE: All scripture is inspired by God
ONE: and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.
Prayer of the Day
Word of God, you breathed over the depths and brought life into being. You spoke through the law, prophets, and writings. You walked among us incarnate. You speak to us still through the words of scripture, the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, and in the living of these days. Fill us with your Holy Spirit that we may hear and know your Word: feed us with your living waters, give us courage to grow, and to share what we have learned. Amen.
Hymn Suggestions
My Country ‘Tis of Thee (GTG 337) (we are doing this theme near American Independence Day)
Open My Eyes That I May See (GTG 451)
Be Thou My Vision (GTG 450)
Thy Word is a Lamp Unto My Feet (GTG 458)