Wittenberg Door

seeing scripture

I have been reading a book - It takes a Church to Raise a Christian
discussing the aspects of spiritual formation in community. The chapter I just read on Scripture was illuminating.

Here is synopsis of it:

Scripture is performative. In modernity too much emphasis was put on the facts of Scripture - by either liberals or conservatives. Scripture has to move beyond just being "knowledge" only.

Scripture can be likened to :

Recipe - when we have a recipe the end is not the recipe. We do not just read them and drool - collect them only, or just memorize recipe. Hopefully we move into the realm of tasting them. They were meant to be performed - something is to be cooked.

Score - Music written that is not played is not fulfilling its intent. We may have a beautifully designed score with calligraphy and on beautiful paper - but if it is not played then its true use and beauty cannot be partaken of.

Constitution - Our grand document (that is often today under attack and re-interpretation) may be beautiful in Washington under glass - but it was written to order our individual lives and our society. Without application - or the living of it out - it is just a pretty piece of paper.

Looking at Scripture in these ways push us to its ultimate value and purpose - to involve us in the story of the Lord of history by the alignment of our lives to the story.

It is amazing to me the people who will contend for the inerrancy of scripture (in which I believe) or a certain "version" ( KJV Onlyists and the like) but fail to understand the very purpose and intent of the scripture - a changed and reoriented life.