July 19

Roy’s Ramblings

This past week I was cleaning some stuff out and found several Bible that were worn out. The covers were torn or missing; the pages soiled, torn, or missing; and they smelled funny. So instead of throwing them in the trash … I took them to recycle. They are paper after all.

A gentleman stood beside me as I threw them into the paper recycling and he proceeded to yell at me for “Throwing Away God!” and “You are the most horrible person ever!”. I tried to explain to him that these were just books … ink on paper … but he wasn’t having it. He proceeded to fish every one of them out of the recycle bin and put them in his car.

I tell you that … to tell you this … But, be forewarned … some of you are going to be mad.

The Bible is Not the Word of God.

The Bible is a collection of the Holy texts of a religion, our religion, but it was not written or dictated by God. It could be inspired by encounters with divinity, but it is not the words of divinity itself.

If you believe in Jesus and that he revealed divinity, this becomes clear as day, as many parts of the Bible are irreconcilable (genocide, rape, incest, murder, etc.) showing us that much of the ancient text is words of men, experiences of people and how they understood divinity at that time.

Many Christians paint themselves as devoted to the book and “biblical authority” while missing the whole point that “the word” was made flesh, and that flesh even said: “You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me.” (John 5:39)

Anything that isn’t filtered through the lens of (omg – I can’t believe I’m saying this) “What Would Jesus Do?” is just religious interpretation and nothing more. Paul’s opinions aren’t the word of God, Proverbs aren’t the words of God, Genesis, Exodus, Gospels – none of the Bible is the word of God because those are parts of a book, they are not the word made flesh. They are not the embodiment of divinity- they never were.

According to the Bible itself, (see graphic included in this e-mail) Christ is the word of God, not Scripture.

Take all the time you need to process this … then please read on.

The Bible is important … and this collection of writings, I fully believe, is inspired by God. Reading the Bible is wonderful for getting to know who God is and to learn throughout history how humans have related to God. I think it’s important to know God from Scripture, rather than relying on “the world” and “other’s interpretation” to tell you who God is. That’s when there’s opportunity for “the world” to skew God’s image and use it to manipulate people.

So, there is absolutely great value in Scripture. God has revealed himself in bits and pieces throughout history, meeting us where we (humans) were/are and the Bible is a very valuable source of what it’s like to be in (or out of) relationship with God. The lessons it contains are wise and telling, if only we could see it for what it is and not replace God/Jesus/Holy Spirit with a book.

I write this to encourage you to read Scripture, Devotionals, Christian Writings, Hymn Lyrics, all forms of literature with an open mind and an open heart. Let the Spirit of God fill you with God’s message for you today and everyday from the Sacred to the Ordinary and everything in-between. Focus on the “Word” as our example and as our truth and not on other things or ideas.

I Pray we are all Blessed and A Blessing – Pastor Roy