nothing Scary

In reading Matthew 3 this morning, I was struck by how we read the Bible. For many of us the Bible holds literal words, most of which are directives from God, with little to no space for the humanness of the writers. When we read John the Baptist talking about Jesus and the chaff being thrown into unquenchable fire - we read it as though God himself is telling us that those who are chaff will be thrown into that fire.

But what if we don't read Scripture that way? What if we interacted with this sacred text, as a dangerous book that reveals not only the heart of God but our own nature. That as we read the words, hear the stories, interact with the themes we aren't being given a textbook or manual but an invitation to be revealed and to see?

The more time that passes here in South Dakota, I find myself more and more grateful for my childhood, my adolescence, and the spiritual spaces of college/grad school. When I sit down and read Scripture I'm not afraid of the questions that are certain to arise. Give me enough time and I'll wrestle through any text to try to find what God's heart is on the matter. Through that wrestling I know I will be changed, my motives will be unveiled, my own lack apparent and I will either see or long for another way. But I didn't get here alone.

My dad gave space for questions, in fact he often demanded critical reflection on anything we engaged with and Scripture was no exception. While I may have grown up in a conservative family, attending Awana, being home schooled, and living in the middle of nowhere - the eccentricities of my family gave space for many interpretations.

Moving helped as well. Encountering diverse people throughout my childhood, demanded a common ground mentality and the space for ecumenical work that my 10 year old started to operate in. 

In college, I had professors who believed different things. Very conservative, committed liberal, strong Feminist, passionate reformer, missionaries, pastors, - these people shared with me their life and their ways of engaging with God.

In grad school I finally found my language. Theology gave me grounding for the ways I saw the world. Challenged to engage with doctrine in robust and holistic ways, learning the ways other branches of the Christian faith interacted with Scripture and the Triune God - I was stretched but I was also at home.

When Cheryl Bridges Johns, touched my arm the night of the Pentecostal Theological Seminary Christmas dinner, she looked me in the eye and said, "you are a part of us" - I began the journey of interpretation within community. All of a sudden I was known and beheld, invited into a system I had often felt only halfway a part of. Reading the Word within a community, especially a diverse community of various ethnic, education, tradition, and socioeconomic backgrounds meant being challenged to read in more faithful ways. My patterns and habits may not fit, they may even silence others voices and so it was many years of learning how to live out the new ways I was interacting with Scripture and God.

But our pastors made that space, they worked hard to cultivate a place to wrestle and rest, to know and doubt. When Cheryl spoke of Scripture it a wild and dangerous book, one we should engage with curiosity and even a little trepidation. Jackie would invite us to hear the constancy of the faith, the long roads others had walked here with us, and to remind us to go back go where God had been before if we ever felt like we lost him

Like all people they are imperfect and so was our church. But it was beautiful. I may not have recognized it then, but New Covenant would hold me steady through tumultuous seasons. 

I don't read Matthew 3 as God saying through John that those who do not produce fruit will be thrown into a fire. I read it and hear a man who was an outsider, likely rejected for his eccentric ways, but then when he got popular those who are the haves wanted what he - as a had not - had. He spoke with righteous anger. Wary be those who repent simply because it's popular. Don't you dare just come so you can say you did and then continue on in your selfish, holier than thou ways. It is a judgment you take upon yourself when you come only for show. John was personal and prophetic when he spoke, but I don't believe he was prescriptive. Does that change the weightiness of John's words? No. Does it shift the focus? Perhaps. If you are operating out of a fear of judgment then the interpretation lies heavily on John's ending words. But if the weight doesn't land there, perhaps we can focus more on John's caution to the Pharisees that "they must bear fruit of repentance"?

I want to be an invitation to engage and wrestle. I want to be a safe space to work through hard things. Thanks for joining me here.

Grace and peace.