The Lectionary for this week (where does that come from anyway?) offers Joel 1:1-14, Revelation 18:15-24, and Luke 14:12-24 as reading for today. I don't know how they decide what goes together in the Lectionary. Maybe it's totally random. But I've begun to look for patterns in the groupings. And I have a theory.
On an episode of Bones, they were talking about how a piece of writing really reveals more about the author than about the plot. How we approach a subject as writers is determined by our own personalities, perceptions, and experiences. We cannot write about something without changing it. And I am beginning to believe that the writer has to be considered when attempting to understand Scripture.
I don't believe this detracts at all from the Divine Inspiration of Scripture. The essence of Truth cannot be altered by our human fallibility. But we do have to think about context and intent of the author.
Joel is a man who feels lost. The Chosen People haven't been acting very set apart, and they're feeling a little neglected and forgotten. Joel's offering is a beautiful lament - he is begging God to notice. So this tells us quite a bit about Joel. But look at what it tells us about God. What kind of God must Jehovah be that his prophet feels comfortable in crying out to Him in agony. It's not really about the answer God gives, or the future of the Jewish people... it's about Joel being able to go to God in relationship and tell Him about his pain. And be confident that God will listen. It's been a long time since the Jews felt like God was with them, but that doesn't mean that God has forgotten them, or that Joel has forgotten the stories of God's faithfulness.
Meanwhile, in Revelation, John the Disciple is an old man experiencing a vision of the future as he meditates. He is very near the end of his life. He has watched his contemporaries, one after the other, be martyred by a hostile government. He was the one whom Jesus loved. He was of the inner circle. He has committed his whole life to message and love of Christ. The images he paints, both literally and metaphorically, are of a finally victorious movement. Babylon (read Rome?) will finally be defeated, and the blood of the martyrs will be avenged. He needs a message of hope. And he is not the type to lament, as Joel did. He is a man of action. And so he envisions a final victorious action.
The amazing thing is, that God meets us where we are. Whether we need to scream in indignation or claim promises of victory, God is there to listen. Whether our friends have given up hope that God will answer, or have given the last full measure of devotion to the belief that He is answering, God reminds us in these passages that it is really not about what is going on around us, but about the relationship between us, and the reality of the Spirit living within us. Circumstances don't matter. God knows us. Knows our personalities, perceptions, and experiences. And will speak through them to our need.
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In Reference to Relationship
ReplyDeleteIf you strip away everything we have today and go back to the garden, what is left? There was a home (the garden) and a family (Adam and Eve). God was present in the garden and communed with His family. They were all "at one" with each other in relationship.
When all is stripped away, nothing remains but relationship. It is the foundation of all things and, therefore, the most important of all things. It is through relationship, and people's desire to know God in relationship, that they are saved. Relationship is clearly what is most important to God.
God created us to be loved by Him and to share that love with others. Love meets all of our needs in one way or another, which means we were completely fulfilled in the garden.
After the fall, shame immediately ensued, and Adam and Eve hid, or ran, from God. Sin, and the shame thereof, caused humans to be a bit scared of approaching God for fear that He would judge and be disappointed with them. No one likes to be looked down on. But what did God do in response? He clothed their shame in love in order to refute the idea that they needed to flee from relationship with Him.
Now, instead of mankind seeking God to fulfill that love he or she so desires and needs, man seeks fulfillment in the world through other means. This leaves him or her feeling empty inside when they cannot fit a sin shaped peg into a God shaped hole.
If we would just trust the Lord fully and take Him at His word, we would lack nothing. This is why the enemy tries to cause mistrust at all levels, because mistrust destroys relationship. If one has mistrust due to a hardened heart, one is less likely to trust God and be saved. The enemy is wickely clever in his deceptions. This is why God says, "The heart is deceitful above all - who can trust it?" That is why we trust Him instead of our heart. As we get to know Him more in relationship, He changes our hearts to be more like His.
In Reference to the Biblical Writer's Emotions
The Bible states that all scripture is God breathed and Holy Spirit inspired. While the writer's heart comes through, one must also remember that God's heart comes through the writing, as well. Defining which heart one is reading holds great importance.
Joel is a good example of a man's heart. The Book of Revelation, though, is John directly writing God's words and visual representations. Inevitably, one will see more of God's heart or purpose in this book rather than John's heart.
Because the Roman empire lasted till 1806, we know John wasn't writing something metaphorical as many imply. Also, it would mean the Bible is in error when Revelation 1:1 says this was a revelation from God, given to Jesus, to give to His servants.
In the Old Testament, the test of a prophet was determined by his prophecies coming true one-hundred percent. If not, the Mosaic Law instructed the people to stone the self-proclaimed prophet, because his prophecies were not coming from God. God does not want to be misrepresented or people could confuse who He is, much like religion's confusion with who He is. Therefore, if John were claiming a prophecy from God and it did not come true, it clearly was not a prophecy from God, and Revelation is rendered false.
Interpreting God's heart through the Book of Revelation is more difficult than in other parts of the Bible. But if one understands defending their wife and family against an armed thug, one understands the heart of God in Revelation.
**waits for Leslie to slap him and say "Who's writing this blog? Me or you?!** Sorry, didn't mean to post such long comments. lol
ReplyDeleteDon't wory, Brian. I love your thoughts. If I didn't want to hear from everyone, even you ;-), I wouldn't be journaling in the webverse.
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