At Bethlehem we have been watching The Chosen on Wednesday evenings. Last night we finished season 3.
Everyone has questions. Some questions we can find the answer with a quick search on Google. Other questions are more intimidating. Questions that surround our faith can be scary because we worry about what the answer might be and whether or not those answer will affect our faith. What ends up happening is that we ignore the question, but that question still lingers in the back of our mind.
In Asking for a Friend we want to look at a few of these questions and see if there is a way to provide an answer to them that will not only strengthen our faith, but also help us see the world through a more Christian perspective.
We are created in the image of God. One of the implications of that reality is that our standard for right and wrong comes from God and His character. To find out about God’s character we need to turn to the Bible, which is God’s revelation to His people. The Bible is essential in forming our morality to help us become the people God created us to be.
Text: Romans 2:13-16
Big Idea: The Bible shapes the beliefs and behaviors of God’s people as we influence the world.
Challenge: Read Ephesians 5:1-21 and (1) Confess sin (2) Think of a way to show love.
Everyone has questions. Some questions we can find the answer with a quick search on Google. Other questions are more intimidating. Questions that surround our faith can be scary because we worry about what the answer might be and whether or not those answer will affect our faith. What ends up happening is that we ignore the question, but that question still lingers in the back of our mind.
In Asking for a Friend we want to look at a few of these questions and see if there is a way to provide an answer to them that will not only strengthen our faith, but also help us see the world through a more Christian perspective.
In the first sermon we answer the question, “Can I Trust the Bible?”
This is the foundational question that must be answered before looking at any of the other questions. As Christians we want our beliefs to be rooted in Scripture, and if we can’t trust what the Bible has to say then it will be impossible to have a Christian answer to the questions that we have.
Text: 2 Timothy 3:14-17
Big Idea: We can trust the Bible to give us the truth we need to live as God’s people.
Challenge: Study Philippians with me at www.paulsponderings.com
STOP — Philippians 1:21-30
Summarize
Paul mentioned that his hope (verse 20) that whether by his life or death he would have the courage to bring honor to Jesus. He saw that he had two paths before him. If he continued to live he would be able to continue the work Jesus gave to him to do. If he died he would go to be with Jesus. Paul did not know which to desire. To live meant that he could continue to teach and encourage people to follow Jesus, but to die meant he could experience the delight of being in heaven with Jesus.
As Paul waited to see what would happen he urged the Philippians to live as citizens of heaven (not just as citizens of Rome) so they could live lives that were worthy of the Gospel. To live this type of life required that they live united as they lived and proclaimed the Gospel. They would need unity and courage because they too would face suffering because of Jesus.
Truth
We need the commitment and courage to live by faith because of the hardships that will come our way.
Observations
Prayer
Lord, grant me the courage and the faith to live a life that is worthy of Jesus.
Tomorrow: Philippians 2:1-4
In fact, I believe that people who follow Jesus should be readers and students of the Bible. In the Bible we discover God, His character, and His will.
Without the Bible we would not be able to follow Jesus or be the people God created us to be.
Last year I lead Bethlehem Church through The Story to give us a good overview of what the Bible is about. One of the things I constantly talked about through that series is that the Bible is gift from God. In all the 30 sermons I preached, I said, “We need to read, study, meditate on, and pray the Bible to be good stewards of the gift God has given to us.”
Even though I have a high view of Scripture, I also understand that it has limitations.
As modern readers of the Bible, we often approach it as if it has the answer to all of life’s questions. That is a primary reason why we read and study the Bible: to have all the right answers.
Instead of viewing the Bible as an answer book, we need to see the Bible as a tool to help create a worldview. It may not provide the answers to all the questions asked in our culture, but it does provide a framework that helps us create a Christian worldview.
I have been pondering how we use the Bible the past few days for a couple of reasons.
1. BibleProject has a podcast series that looks at ancient cosmology. One of the key points in the series is looking at how the Biblical account of creation is in dialogue and debate with the other ancient creation myths.
Many Western Christians, for the past 120 years or so, have used the Bible to provide facts and answers about the beginning of the universe. The problem is that the Bible was not written to answer modern scientific questions. It was written to give God’s people a particular view of the world and to combat the pagan religious views of their neighbors.
Therefore, we shouldn’t expect the Bible to give us definitive answers about the how and when of creation, but we should expect it to give us an understanding about who God is and why He created the world.
2. Preston Sprinkle wrote:
If someone experiences and congruent between their biological sex and their gender, which one determines who they are—and why? What does the Bible say about this question?
That’s the problem. The Bible doesn’t directly ask and answer this question. There’s no verse in, say, Leviticus 28 that says, “If thy gender identity does not match thy biological sex, then thine body is who you really are.” Or whatever. (There is no Leviticus 28, in case you are flipping pages to check.) But the Bible does say quite a few relevant things about human nature and the importance of our biological sex which will position us to cultivate a theologically informed and biblically rooted answer to our question. (Embodied, p. 63)
After doing lots of research, Sprinkle admits that the Bible doesn’t contain the answers to the questions surrounding the transgender conversation. You can’t compile a list of verses that deal specifically with these issues.
Not only is this true for the transgender conversation, but it is true for many of the questions we have today. Our culture is significantly different from the cultures that the Bible was originally written for. We shouldn’t expect to to have answers to our modern questions.
Since the Bible is God’s gift to His people, we can expect that it will give us a proper perspective to see the world.
It is important to make this shift away from seeing the Bible as an answer book to one that helps us create a Christian worldview.
God did not give us the Bible so we can have all the right answers.
Rather, He gave us the Bible so we can become the right type of people.
If we primarily use the Bible to have the right answers, to win arguments, and to point out other people’s sin then we are using the Bible wrong.
The Bible should help form us into the people God created us to be. One of the ways it does that is to create a proper perspective for us to see the world.
Let the Bible form your worldview.
This week the prayer prompts designed to help you draw closer to God as you learn to rely on His love and guidance. Each day, I have provi...