Stephen
Terry, Director
Light
Shines in the Darkness
Commentary
for the April 20, 2024, Sabbath School Lesson
"You
study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal
life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to
come to me to have life." John 5:39-40
I do not remember my first Bible.
I am sure it was a King James Version (KJV) because when I became old enough to
read and study it, that version was ubiquitous. My memorization of Bible texts
was with that version so that even today, over half a century later, I search
for the text in that translation and then switch to a more current translation
once I have found the passage I am seeking. This is not because the KJV is the
best translation, but rather it is because it is like an old friend, who,
despite his flaws, remains a friend. I have underlined thousands of texts and
created custom chain references in my Bibles. I used them until they fell
apart. I have had them rebound until they could be rebound no more. When that
happens, it is like losing someone close, and it is hard to accept the new
upstart in its place. The new Bible fails to automatically open to my favorite
places. It has a different weight and feel in my hands. The cover leather is
stiff with newness. Howevere, I know that with time and usage, my hands and the
new Bible will find their way to a comfortable relationship..
More recently, these old friends
have spent more time on the shelf than in my hands as technology has made it
far easier to access the Bible, not only in English, but also in almost any
other language I choose, including Greek and Hebrew instantaneously through the
connection my laptop computer has to the internet. Even though I have a Hebrew
Old Testament, a Septuagint, and a Greek New Testament within arm's reach of where
I am now typing this, it is often quicker and easier to access those documents
online than to pull them from the shelf. In addition, those online sources are
more up to date than the texts that have been on my shelves for years. For
instance, the list of principal manuscripts in my Greek Bible only has seventy-six
papyri, but many more have been discovered and
published since then, adding more sources for textual study and evaluation.
This means when I evaluate a text based on what is on my bookshelf, I need to
verify what I am saying against what is online based on further discoveries.
Some find these vagaries
troubling for they believe that the Bible is the inerrant dictation by God
written down by faithful scribes through the centuries. Unfortunately, this has
been the reason many have turned from the Bible for there are contradictions
and errors in the text.[i]
However, none of those issues prevent the Bible narrative from achieving its
purpose except for those whose faith is shipwrecked if they admit to errancy.
In that case they have made an idol of the very book that tells them to eschew
idols.
The Bible is often referred to
as the Word of God, but it is not. As John tells us, it is about the Word of
God, who pre-existed the Bible.[ii] That
Word is Jesus. The Bible is not Jesus. It is about Jesus. This is where the
power of the Bible is. It is more than the sum of its parts, contradictions and
all. It carries within its pages the mystery of God and encourages us to
explore that mystery. While it may be tempting to think that the Bible contains
all we will ever need to understand, it is only a signpost pointing to a gateway,
and that gateway is Jesus. Part of the enigma of the Bible is that while it can
take us to profound depths of understanding, it is also capable of bringing
those of simpler thoughts to the feet of Jesus. This can be an obstacle for
those who think their rationality exceeds that of the simpleton and therefore
shy away from pursuing something the simpler mind might pursue. While the Bible
is not an inerrant book of spells and incantations that will magically produce
rewards for those who adhere minutely to every jot and tittle they find there,
through its guidance to Jesus, it has changed lives that seemed irretrievably
broken. The presence of God, through Jesus and the Holy Spirit, who are found in its pages, has the power to reach into the life
of a battered woman, a drug-addled addict, an abused child in an alcoholic home
and turn those lives around. God has repeatedly taken the offscourings of
humanity and recast them into beautiful reflections of his loving character.
Despite this evidence of something
greater, so many want the Bible set aside as nothing more than ordinary ink on
paper, no more deserving of attention than yesterday's newspaper. The Bible as
we know it today, did not become what it is until centuries after the death and
resurrection of Jesus and the deaths of his disciples. During the period of the
early Christian Church, several documents were circulated and deemed
authoritative that are not in our current Bibles. Decisions as to what should
be included and what was not were long and drawn out over centuries. Although
initially cited by church fathers, books like "The Shepherd of Hermas" were
excluded. Others that were included, like "Revelation"
were debated even until the 16th century when Martin Luther sought
to exclude both that and the "Epistle of James" from his German Bible, but in the
end relented.
While Jesus said scripture
testifies about him as I cited at the beginning of this commentary, he was not
speaking of the New Testament. That had not coalesced during his lifetime. He
was referring to what we call the Old Testament. His frequent citing of Old Testament
prophets supports that understanding. However, we should not read into that the
idea that he quoted them because they were such avid students of scripture. He
quoted them because they wrote of their experience with God. Like Enoch of old,
they sought to walk and talk directly with the living Word. There was power in that
relationship that infused their words with a depth of meaning that exceeded the
natural, bringing the reader to seek the same paths they trod and the greater
understanding to be found there.
For millennia, humanity went to
bed with the chickens and woke with them. But in our modern times, we have learned
to turn night into day with the fire of electricity, first brought from the sky
as lightning flashed from heaven to earth and eventually tamed to travel from
house to house, not only bringing light but the magic of the computer where I
am typing this commentary. It has made possible carrying a small device in my
pocket that accesses people and information all over the globe. With such
marvels, it is tempting to think there is no end to what we can accomplish,
even ascending to the heavens as we not only orbit the Earth but travel to the
moon and eventually the planets. We might ask where is God in all this? Can we
see him sitting somewhere out there in space? Considering all we have
accomplished, do we even need this dodgy old Bible anymore? It does not help
that biblical fundamentalists and their insistence on inerrancy make the whole
idea sound ridiculous. But when I read the gospels about the life of Jesus, his
words, and what he stood for, I look around at our world and see how far we are
from being loving and compassionate toward one another. I see human hearts
given to greed and selfishness. I see those willing to use horrendous violence
to force others to submit to them. And I see humanity unable to stop it as
though paralyzed into inaction. I am shocked by those same individuals railing
against God and blaming him for the evil, even using this as an argument to
assert that God does not even exist. Then it becomes clear to me why the Bible
is important.
Books do not force their way
into our hands. Typically, they wait until we come to them wanting to read
them. There are those books that once we read them, we soon forget them, and
they are lost over time as better forgotten by all. Then there are other books that
are so well written we recommend them to others and may keep copies in our personal
library. The Bible is like that. It sits and waits until someone decides to
read it. When they do, change begins in the heart. That is because the Bible
contains an invitation to a relationship with God. Therefore, the best way to
keep God out of people's lives is to convince them that the book is not worth
reading. Pointing out the contradictions and errors is often a part of that,
but despite those flaws, its power to reveal Christ's compassion and love is
not diminished.
If the king invited you to a
royal ball, would it make a difference if he sent you a formal invitation gilded
with gold foil and calligraphy or if he scrawled it on a piece of scrap paper
and signed it? It is not about how the message was written. It is about who you
get to meet as a result.