Now on to other items.
I grew up in the church. Sunday School as a kid, Youth Groups as a teenager and eventually graduating into "big church." The bible was a central part of my upbringing. But to be honest I often struggled reading the bible, even as an older teen and into my early 20's. I was drawn to stories I had heard my whole life because I felt like I understood them but the rest of the bible, (which I discovered there was a lot I missing) I couldn't quite wrap my head around. Then one day, as I was struggling to read and "get something" out of a passage I hadn't really focused on before, I had what's referred to as an "ah-ha" moment. It's going to sound stupid but it was an epiphany for me.
That was my moment. I told you it would sound stupid. But it was ground-breaking for me. I always believed the Bible was true. I believed it was the written word of God. But the realization that the events contained within these pages had actually taken place was mind-blowing to me.
I suddenly found myself in the crowd as Jesus performed miracles and said some pretty radical things. I began forming mental pictures of the walls of Jericho falling...except for where Rahab's house was built. I began imagining what it would be like to watch Lazarus walk out of the grave still wrapped in his burial clothes and then look around as some people still didn't believe. These weren't fables and myths. I began to understand that the life and faith these people showed wasn't unattainable. In fact, the more I realized these stories were real, the more human the characters became. In reality, they struggled just like I struggle. They were flawed just like I'm flawed. The difference is that we are seeing their struggle and how they pushed through without always hearing the inner dialogue expressing their fear and doubt. But when you look at their actions and reactions and you put yourself in their shoes, it becomes obvious that they aren't much different than me and you.
This may not be super profound to some of you because you have already grasped this truth. If that's you, than all I'll say is thank God and never lose the wonder of that truth. But maybe there are some of you that struggle in reading the Bible. Maybe you know the Bible is true but you're just not getting the point. Let me suggest something. The next time you read, stop and ask this question:
Think about it. What if you were at a church service and it seemed like it was never going to end. (That may not be too hard for some of you to imagine.) You're hungry. You're wondering if this long-winded preacher is ever going to be quiet and dismiss before the grocery store closes. Suddenly, you see his staff members on stage talking to him and you're like; "Finally, someone is telling him to stop." Instead, they wave a kid with a lunch box over and you see them take out some bread and a couple packs of tuna. The kids lunch. The preacher prays over it, then turns and hands it to his staff who start passing it out. You're thinking, "I knew I should have sat at the front. There's no way, it's going to make it back here." But they keep passing and they keep walking and soon the food makes it to you. Not only do you get fed but it wasn't a snack size portion, you feel full. You look to the back and the staff is trying to figure out what to do with all the leftovers.
It's easy to look at this familiar story and think, well that was Jesus so it's a completely different situation. But this is where our thinking is off. Jesus had just started His ministry. He hadn't died and rose again and these people weren't "Christians" yet. Most of them weren't sure yet if this was really the Messiah, the one that had been prophesied about. But we tend to read the bible and think that everyone in that time had the same perspective that we have today. But we need to remember the Bible wasn't written yet. There were people from his hometown that were hung up on the fact that they watched Jesus grow up. The history we read today was in the process of happening. They didn't have the benefit of reading ahead to see what was coming, they had to truly walk it out in faith. I know in my life, this realization made a profound impact on how I read the Bible.
So what's my point? I want the Bible to come alive for each and every one of you. So let me finish by challenging you to begin to read the Bible in a new way. Allow yourself to become a part of the story After all, the Bible is as much about your life today as it was about the lives of God's people then. Put yourself in the crowds that watched Jesus perform miracles. Imagine what it would be like to eat the same food and wear the same clothes for 40 years. Question for a moment if you could have the faith to not bow down to a statue when faced with a fiery furnace. Close your eyes and put yourself in the jail cell with Paul as he writes those letters to the Christians of that day who were also facing imprisonment and death. Paul wrote some powerful words that become more powerful when you look through his eyes and see the jailer on the other side of the cell door. In a situation that would have made it easier to walk away from his new found faith, he instead encourages the church, both then and now, to live a life of faith. As you picture the conditions of Paul's imprisonment, read the words again from Ephesians 6:12
"Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God." (NLT)
I challenge you, dust off the Bible and begin to read it again for the first time. With new eyes, with new questions, with a new perspective and I pray God reveals new truths for you everyday.
The Bible is real.
That was my moment. I told you it would sound stupid. But it was ground-breaking for me. I always believed the Bible was true. I believed it was the written word of God. But the realization that the events contained within these pages had actually taken place was mind-blowing to me.
I suddenly found myself in the crowd as Jesus performed miracles and said some pretty radical things. I began forming mental pictures of the walls of Jericho falling...except for where Rahab's house was built. I began imagining what it would be like to watch Lazarus walk out of the grave still wrapped in his burial clothes and then look around as some people still didn't believe. These weren't fables and myths. I began to understand that the life and faith these people showed wasn't unattainable. In fact, the more I realized these stories were real, the more human the characters became. In reality, they struggled just like I struggle. They were flawed just like I'm flawed. The difference is that we are seeing their struggle and how they pushed through without always hearing the inner dialogue expressing their fear and doubt. But when you look at their actions and reactions and you put yourself in their shoes, it becomes obvious that they aren't much different than me and you.
This may not be super profound to some of you because you have already grasped this truth. If that's you, than all I'll say is thank God and never lose the wonder of that truth. But maybe there are some of you that struggle in reading the Bible. Maybe you know the Bible is true but you're just not getting the point. Let me suggest something. The next time you read, stop and ask this question:
"What if this happened to me?"
Think about it. What if you were at a church service and it seemed like it was never going to end. (That may not be too hard for some of you to imagine.) You're hungry. You're wondering if this long-winded preacher is ever going to be quiet and dismiss before the grocery store closes. Suddenly, you see his staff members on stage talking to him and you're like; "Finally, someone is telling him to stop." Instead, they wave a kid with a lunch box over and you see them take out some bread and a couple packs of tuna. The kids lunch. The preacher prays over it, then turns and hands it to his staff who start passing it out. You're thinking, "I knew I should have sat at the front. There's no way, it's going to make it back here." But they keep passing and they keep walking and soon the food makes it to you. Not only do you get fed but it wasn't a snack size portion, you feel full. You look to the back and the staff is trying to figure out what to do with all the leftovers.
It's easy to look at this familiar story and think, well that was Jesus so it's a completely different situation. But this is where our thinking is off. Jesus had just started His ministry. He hadn't died and rose again and these people weren't "Christians" yet. Most of them weren't sure yet if this was really the Messiah, the one that had been prophesied about. But we tend to read the bible and think that everyone in that time had the same perspective that we have today. But we need to remember the Bible wasn't written yet. There were people from his hometown that were hung up on the fact that they watched Jesus grow up. The history we read today was in the process of happening. They didn't have the benefit of reading ahead to see what was coming, they had to truly walk it out in faith. I know in my life, this realization made a profound impact on how I read the Bible.
So what's my point? I want the Bible to come alive for each and every one of you. So let me finish by challenging you to begin to read the Bible in a new way. Allow yourself to become a part of the story After all, the Bible is as much about your life today as it was about the lives of God's people then. Put yourself in the crowds that watched Jesus perform miracles. Imagine what it would be like to eat the same food and wear the same clothes for 40 years. Question for a moment if you could have the faith to not bow down to a statue when faced with a fiery furnace. Close your eyes and put yourself in the jail cell with Paul as he writes those letters to the Christians of that day who were also facing imprisonment and death. Paul wrote some powerful words that become more powerful when you look through his eyes and see the jailer on the other side of the cell door. In a situation that would have made it easier to walk away from his new found faith, he instead encourages the church, both then and now, to live a life of faith. As you picture the conditions of Paul's imprisonment, read the words again from Ephesians 6:12
"Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God." (NLT)
I challenge you, dust off the Bible and begin to read it again for the first time. With new eyes, with new questions, with a new perspective and I pray God reveals new truths for you everyday.
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