What would life be like if we always knew God's will for our lives? Would things be radically different if we had a clear understanding of what it was that God wanted us to do? Would I work differently? Would I be busy about different things? Would I sell some of my possessions or take risks I don't presently take? Would my relationships be more genuine and less judgmental? Would I be more forgiving, more focused, more on fire, more prayerful, more active, more faithful, more generous? It seems like life would have more clarity and be simpler if I just knew what God's will for me was.
I work on the assumption that God always gives us everything we need in order for us to do as He pleases. It's just a basic assumption about the nature of God - that He always equips us to do, say, and think what He wants from us. He may equip us with natural talent, with supernatural gifting, with divine help, with His Word, with wise counsel and good friends, and with knowledge. This doesn't mean that He gives us now everything we will ever need for the rest of our lives, but for the day and for the moment, He supplies all that we need one way or another. Psalm 16:11 has this same confidence, "You will make known to me the path of life."
If this assumption is true - and the bulk of Scripture seems to bear it out - then that means that God is in fact also giving us all the knowledge we need of His will for the moment. At any given moment, God has already revealed enough of His will for you to act, do, think, and speak according to His pleasure - for that moment. Perhaps not enough for the moment that follows, but for this one. When that next moment comes, He will have revealed enough for that one, too. Every Biblical hero lived a life of having enough revelation for the moment, even if not for the next. If He always gives us all that we need, then that means He always gives us enough revelation, too.
That may not be all the revelation that we want to have. We may want to know what we're supposed to do for a big life decision, but not sense Him revealing an answer. But if He never fails to provide for the moment, that means we have access to enough to live that moment well, even if we don't see the answer to the big question written on the wall. We may want to know which college to attend, but instead of revealing the answer to that question, God has revealed what to do right now - seek counsel, pray, listen, and wait. We may want to know about a career choice, but He's already revealed to us to work today with integrity, to work diligently to help the company succeed, and to see our coworkers as people who need Christ's love and forgiveness.
There are many things about us that may affect our ability to access His revelation: unwillingness to do what He wants, lack of interest in knowing His will, the distraction of sin that blinds our eyes and clogs our ears, or even just not being well-practiced in paying attention and heeding His will by faith. But He always gives enough.
This means a shift in thinking. To live with the assumption that God has in fact at every moment revealed enough to me to live that moment well, then I don't need to think, "I would do God's will if I just knew what it was." Rather, I need to think, "God has already revealed to me enough of His will for now. What has He revealed? What can I do to be a better listener and follower? I'm asking Him to reveal X, but He's not done that, so what has He revealed? What do I already know about His will to just get busy?"
I find that most often, we already know most of what we're supposed to do. We already know the character and manner in which we're supposed to relate to people and work. We already know that each of us has some responsibility for the Great Commission to make followers of Jesus throughout the world. Sometimes, we even know which decision He wants us to make - we just don't want to or are afraid to.
If we busy ourselves with what we already know to do and practice better and better listening skills through experience, then so many times I've found He uses that kind of faithful action to reveal more of what He wants us to do with our lives. In other words, as you search out His will, be busy doing what He's already revealed for you to do, and I believe He will use that to reveal even more of His will to you. I've seen it way too many times to even doubt this idea any longer.
What would life be like if we always knew God's will for our lives? Would things be radically different if we had a clear understanding of what it was that God wanted us to do? Would I work, think, act, speak, relate, risk, witness, live, pray differently? Yes! And if this assumption is correct, then we already know enough to work, think, act, speak, relate, risk, witness, live, and pray differently. We already have enough to have Kingdom priorities that are radically different than the world's priorities. It begins with the assumption that God will always reveal enough for every moment.
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
The Tech of Worship
Over the last several weeks, the Worship Teams has been investigating the use of a couple of different software packages for displaying the lyrics, announcements, and sermon notes. No software package is the best at everything, but one that suits many of our team's needs well is Proclaim, published by the people at Logos (http://proclaimonline.com and http://logos.com). In a lot of ways, this won't make much difference to the congregation - all proclaims display nicely. Most of the difference is in the ease of putting the presentations together in a team environment. However, there are a few features for the congregation that some may want to take advantage of.
First, you'll need a mobile device, such as an iPhone, iPad, or Android tablet. If you don't, then you should be able to worship and takes notes as before. If you do, then go to the Logos website or the app store and download the Logos app for your device. This is a great app for Bible reading and a whole host of Bible study tools and Christian books. Many Bibles and books are free, but you can also purchase an amazing array of others. You will need to create a user ID and password for your Logos account. (Note, the support for Android phones is coming - the Logos app is there, but the Proclaim support is not yet functional.)
Then, when the worship service begins and the presentation software goes "on air," your app can detect that there is a presentation being shown. You can use the menu to hunt for a presentation, or you will soon get a pop up asking if you want to follow our presentation.
Then, whenever there is a slide on the screen with the following symbol in the lower righthand corner,
that means that there is a "signal" available. A signal can be a scripture reference, for example. Your app will ask you if you want to jump to that passage of the Bible. If you choose to, then your app will jump straight to the passage in the translation of your choice.
A signal can be a calendar event. For example, when the slide is being displayed for the ladies' tea, your app will pop up a notice that allows you to automatically add that event to your device's calendar. Just click, and it's on your calendar, with the right date and location.
A signal could be a website - click and your device will navigate to that website. There are a few other signals possible, but we likely won't be using them.
Logos is more than a mobile device app. There is a full program for both Windows and Mac with an extremely rich set of Bible study features. This program can also be downloaded from http://logos.com. This is the Bible software I use far more than any other, and I continue to build my digital library with commentaries, theology books, pastoral books, and so on.
You can also access your Logos library through a web browser at http://biblia.com. It's not as feature-rich as the full program, but it's great to be able to get to your books even if you're away from your computer.
The program, the app, and the website all stay in sync - leave off reading in John 3 in the program, and then later go to the website, and after you log in, you'll go straight to John 3. Plus, your entire library is available on all three platforms (for the most part - some book licenses are only valid in the program version).
Many of you use YouVersion (http://youversion.com) on your mobile device. That's good software, too. But we can't sync it with the presentation on the screen. Currently, we are using YouVersion to allow you to follow the sermon and take notes. We are still testing that - some of you like it, some of you don't. We're trying to find a more usable system for notetaking on your devices in a way that connects directly to our sermons somehow.
If you have any questions on getting set up with this, please just let us know!
First, you'll need a mobile device, such as an iPhone, iPad, or Android tablet. If you don't, then you should be able to worship and takes notes as before. If you do, then go to the Logos website or the app store and download the Logos app for your device. This is a great app for Bible reading and a whole host of Bible study tools and Christian books. Many Bibles and books are free, but you can also purchase an amazing array of others. You will need to create a user ID and password for your Logos account. (Note, the support for Android phones is coming - the Logos app is there, but the Proclaim support is not yet functional.)
Then, when the worship service begins and the presentation software goes "on air," your app can detect that there is a presentation being shown. You can use the menu to hunt for a presentation, or you will soon get a pop up asking if you want to follow our presentation.
Then, whenever there is a slide on the screen with the following symbol in the lower righthand corner,
that means that there is a "signal" available. A signal can be a scripture reference, for example. Your app will ask you if you want to jump to that passage of the Bible. If you choose to, then your app will jump straight to the passage in the translation of your choice.
A signal can be a calendar event. For example, when the slide is being displayed for the ladies' tea, your app will pop up a notice that allows you to automatically add that event to your device's calendar. Just click, and it's on your calendar, with the right date and location.
A signal could be a website - click and your device will navigate to that website. There are a few other signals possible, but we likely won't be using them.
Logos is more than a mobile device app. There is a full program for both Windows and Mac with an extremely rich set of Bible study features. This program can also be downloaded from http://logos.com. This is the Bible software I use far more than any other, and I continue to build my digital library with commentaries, theology books, pastoral books, and so on.
You can also access your Logos library through a web browser at http://biblia.com. It's not as feature-rich as the full program, but it's great to be able to get to your books even if you're away from your computer.
The program, the app, and the website all stay in sync - leave off reading in John 3 in the program, and then later go to the website, and after you log in, you'll go straight to John 3. Plus, your entire library is available on all three platforms (for the most part - some book licenses are only valid in the program version).
Many of you use YouVersion (http://youversion.com) on your mobile device. That's good software, too. But we can't sync it with the presentation on the screen. Currently, we are using YouVersion to allow you to follow the sermon and take notes. We are still testing that - some of you like it, some of you don't. We're trying to find a more usable system for notetaking on your devices in a way that connects directly to our sermons somehow.
If you have any questions on getting set up with this, please just let us know!
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Innercity and Innercity
Yesterday, I had lunch with Pastor Luther Eatman of Bridge of Hope Church in downtown KCK. Next week, I'm having lunch with Pastor Bill Gorman of Christ Community Downtown Church in KCMO. Both men are good friends to have; both are serving in downtown churches; both are building churches from the ground up. But their experiences are quite different. (And the difference is not related to which side of the state line they are on, but "Go Tigers!" nonetheless.)
Bridge of Hope is in a rough, older neighborhood. This congregation is comprised primarily of lower-income folks, many of whom will freely tell you of their pasts in drug addiction, crime, incarceration, prostitution, and violence. In fact, Pastor Luther will tell you about many of those same things in his own past. The congregation cannot afford to support a pastor, and many cannot afford rent, utilities, and three meals a day. Many are brand new believers, and are pouring their lives into getting their lives on a good, strong path.
Christ Community Downtown is in the revitalized North end, where new lofts have been going in. This congregation is mostly comprised of middle- to upper-income professionals. There may still be histories of drug abuse, crime, or promiscuity, but from a worldly perspective, their external lives are well put together. The congregation can afford their pastor (they are small in numbers now, but as they grow, a pastor's salary will not be their problem). They pay high rents and have disposable income for travel and entertainment. Although there are brand new believers, Pastor Bill has a core group of believers to help him get this congregation launched.
They have different situations, and the types of problems they face will have a lot of differences on the surface. But most of what they will be facing is exactly the same: getting a congregation started and achieving momentum, broken lives that have been empty without Christ, anxiety, insecurity, false pursuits, priorities out of alignment, doubts, pressure to go along with the world's way of thinking, marital stress, and so on.
They have the same basic solutions, too: pursuing the Kingdom of God first, trusting while in the midst of adversity, drawing strength from the community of believers, and drawing strength from God's Spirit and from His Word.
Both ministries are hard. They have different situations, but both are hard. Ministry here in the 'burbs is hard, too. The money is tighter in the urban core, but people are also much more willing to acknowledge their brokenness. Which is harder to minister to - people without many resources or people who are less likely to admit they don't have it all put together? Ministry is just hard, no matter the circumstances.
Both churches are part of our denomination, the Evangelical Free Church of America. Both have the same core doctrine. Both need your prayer and support. Both would welcome any assistance you'd like to provide. Both pastors have my utmost respect. Please add both churches to your prayer list.
Bridge of Hope is in a rough, older neighborhood. This congregation is comprised primarily of lower-income folks, many of whom will freely tell you of their pasts in drug addiction, crime, incarceration, prostitution, and violence. In fact, Pastor Luther will tell you about many of those same things in his own past. The congregation cannot afford to support a pastor, and many cannot afford rent, utilities, and three meals a day. Many are brand new believers, and are pouring their lives into getting their lives on a good, strong path.
Christ Community Downtown is in the revitalized North end, where new lofts have been going in. This congregation is mostly comprised of middle- to upper-income professionals. There may still be histories of drug abuse, crime, or promiscuity, but from a worldly perspective, their external lives are well put together. The congregation can afford their pastor (they are small in numbers now, but as they grow, a pastor's salary will not be their problem). They pay high rents and have disposable income for travel and entertainment. Although there are brand new believers, Pastor Bill has a core group of believers to help him get this congregation launched.
They have different situations, and the types of problems they face will have a lot of differences on the surface. But most of what they will be facing is exactly the same: getting a congregation started and achieving momentum, broken lives that have been empty without Christ, anxiety, insecurity, false pursuits, priorities out of alignment, doubts, pressure to go along with the world's way of thinking, marital stress, and so on.
They have the same basic solutions, too: pursuing the Kingdom of God first, trusting while in the midst of adversity, drawing strength from the community of believers, and drawing strength from God's Spirit and from His Word.
Both ministries are hard. They have different situations, but both are hard. Ministry here in the 'burbs is hard, too. The money is tighter in the urban core, but people are also much more willing to acknowledge their brokenness. Which is harder to minister to - people without many resources or people who are less likely to admit they don't have it all put together? Ministry is just hard, no matter the circumstances.
Both churches are part of our denomination, the Evangelical Free Church of America. Both have the same core doctrine. Both need your prayer and support. Both would welcome any assistance you'd like to provide. Both pastors have my utmost respect. Please add both churches to your prayer list.
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
What's a Yoot?
Sunday night is our annual Chili Cookoff and Dessert Auction to raise money for the youth program. Much of the proceeds will go toward the big Challenge trip that comes every two years, but a portion of the funds are also used for outreach activities throughout the year. There was a time when the youth were continually in fundraising mode, which just wore everyone out. This one big annual event is much more fun and usually raises enough to fund all that the youth need. (The funds also cover the costs for the adults who will be overseeing the trip to Challenge, including yours truly this year.)
The Chili Cookoff is simple enough - everyone is encouraged to make a pot of chili. Bowls are set in front of each entry, and you "vote" for your favorites by putting money in the bowls by the chilis you like. Ryan (and Kathy) Rasmussen are the reigning champs two years running. Perhaps you saw Ryan toting around the trophy on Sunday on his wheelchair taking on all challengers! Last year, I had more fun just eating different kinds of chili than worrying about which ones I liked best. (You'll note that I've used the plural throughout this paragraph - I want you to have several favorites so that you'll "vote" for several different entries. Here's one case where you are encouraged to vote more than once!)
The Dessert Auction comes after dinner. Again, everyone is encourage to enter a dessert. The youth help out by presenting each entry, and the auctioning begins. I've got my sights on the rhubarb pie. I also learned that if some people don't win the dessert they want, they have no shame in coming over to the winner and trying to bum a taste. I won't mention Christy by name, because that might be inappropriate. :-)
Please plan on joining us. We have a professional auctioneer in our midst (thanks again, Gregg!) which adds to the fun. We joke about some of the desserts going for a walloping price, but please don't let that intimidate you. There are a few desserts that skyrocket just for the fun of the event, but most end up on this side of reasonable. Plus, the chili contest is always a way to help out without having to get into a bidding war. The main thing is for us to come together as a church family, have some fun, and find a way to ship our youth away for a whole week!
Thanks to the entire crew who will be pulling this together. It's a lot of work, but seeing our youth impacted by Challenge and by getting out of their comfort zones to help others in our community are both certainly worth the sacrifice of eating all that chili and dessert. Ministry is hard.
The Chili Cookoff is simple enough - everyone is encouraged to make a pot of chili. Bowls are set in front of each entry, and you "vote" for your favorites by putting money in the bowls by the chilis you like. Ryan (and Kathy) Rasmussen are the reigning champs two years running. Perhaps you saw Ryan toting around the trophy on Sunday on his wheelchair taking on all challengers! Last year, I had more fun just eating different kinds of chili than worrying about which ones I liked best. (You'll note that I've used the plural throughout this paragraph - I want you to have several favorites so that you'll "vote" for several different entries. Here's one case where you are encouraged to vote more than once!)
The Dessert Auction comes after dinner. Again, everyone is encourage to enter a dessert. The youth help out by presenting each entry, and the auctioning begins. I've got my sights on the rhubarb pie. I also learned that if some people don't win the dessert they want, they have no shame in coming over to the winner and trying to bum a taste. I won't mention Christy by name, because that might be inappropriate. :-)
Please plan on joining us. We have a professional auctioneer in our midst (thanks again, Gregg!) which adds to the fun. We joke about some of the desserts going for a walloping price, but please don't let that intimidate you. There are a few desserts that skyrocket just for the fun of the event, but most end up on this side of reasonable. Plus, the chili contest is always a way to help out without having to get into a bidding war. The main thing is for us to come together as a church family, have some fun, and find a way to ship our youth away for a whole week!
Thanks to the entire crew who will be pulling this together. It's a lot of work, but seeing our youth impacted by Challenge and by getting out of their comfort zones to help others in our community are both certainly worth the sacrifice of eating all that chili and dessert. Ministry is hard.
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
A Journey
I'm on a journey that leads to destinations unknown. The ride has been good - a bit rough at times, but interesting. Sometimes I feel like I can see over the horizon and get a glimpse of the destination, but then it slips away, and I'm not sure I saw anything at all. But I know I will get to a good destination - I just can't tell you what that place looks like. I'm taking this journey at the pace of one step each morning.
For my daily Quiet Time, I'm spending time in the Word on the topic of God's Spirit. I made a list of every occurrence of the word "spirit" in Scripture, and am identifying which ones refer to the Holy Spirit in some fashion. Plus, there are some references that don't use the word "spirit" at all, such as "Comforter," "Helper," and "Counselor." I take one reference in context each day, study it, journal about it, and then pray through the passage for my own life. And then I pray that passage for those who are on my prayer list for that day - whoever is on the list, I'm praying from that passage for them.
There are 628 occurrences of the word "spirit" in the New American Standard translation, and a large portion of those refer to the Holy Spirit in particular. So - this journey will take a while. I'm in no hurry. I've already made it as far as Matthew. Most of my journaling is asking questions rather than answering them - and that's OK.
After I finish going through all the passages, I plan to then retrace my steps and collect my observations and questions into categories. I want to be able to see the variety of lessons there are for us about the Holy Spirit. I'm learning new things about the Spirit already, and I expect to find out more new things when I make this second pass.
I'm not sure where the journey is going, but I know it's good, and I'm excited to find out where it will lead me. Maybe it will become the stuff of a future sermon series on the Spirit, but even if it does not, I pray that I will know the Spirit more deeply as a result. Not just know more about Him, but to know Him better.
For your own Quiet Time, consider taking a topic and discovering all that you can from the Bible about it. There are plenty of tools and helps available to make this easier - I'm happy to help you with that part. Remember always to study a passage in context - most passages are understood rightly only by knowing the context (historical, cultural, and literary). At minimum, study a paragraph at a time.
For my daily Quiet Time, I'm spending time in the Word on the topic of God's Spirit. I made a list of every occurrence of the word "spirit" in Scripture, and am identifying which ones refer to the Holy Spirit in some fashion. Plus, there are some references that don't use the word "spirit" at all, such as "Comforter," "Helper," and "Counselor." I take one reference in context each day, study it, journal about it, and then pray through the passage for my own life. And then I pray that passage for those who are on my prayer list for that day - whoever is on the list, I'm praying from that passage for them.
There are 628 occurrences of the word "spirit" in the New American Standard translation, and a large portion of those refer to the Holy Spirit in particular. So - this journey will take a while. I'm in no hurry. I've already made it as far as Matthew. Most of my journaling is asking questions rather than answering them - and that's OK.
After I finish going through all the passages, I plan to then retrace my steps and collect my observations and questions into categories. I want to be able to see the variety of lessons there are for us about the Holy Spirit. I'm learning new things about the Spirit already, and I expect to find out more new things when I make this second pass.
I'm not sure where the journey is going, but I know it's good, and I'm excited to find out where it will lead me. Maybe it will become the stuff of a future sermon series on the Spirit, but even if it does not, I pray that I will know the Spirit more deeply as a result. Not just know more about Him, but to know Him better.
For your own Quiet Time, consider taking a topic and discovering all that you can from the Bible about it. There are plenty of tools and helps available to make this easier - I'm happy to help you with that part. Remember always to study a passage in context - most passages are understood rightly only by knowing the context (historical, cultural, and literary). At minimum, study a paragraph at a time.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
One Tithe Fits All?
Last week, we talked about being "crazy good givers" - being the kind of giver God wants us to be as a heart issue. There were also a number of things we didn't say - we didn't recommend a percentage, we didn't suggest that you are giving too much or too little, we didn't talk about all the good things we can't do until you cough up more. We didn't talk about these things, because we have no interest in teaching giving in this way. Considering that God doesn't need anything from us, we focused on the idea that God's plan for giving is more about developing us into a more Christlike character than getting more cash in the till.
A few days later, I received a very thoughtful, respectful question about this teaching, especially the idea that I was not teaching that we should endeavor to give a minimum percentage as a tithe. Many of us were taught to tithe, and it's a discipline that helps us to give with good motives. The person sending the email clearly cares about the health of the church, the need for us to be good givers, and the negative consequences if the members of a church didn't endeavor to give a certain percentage as a minimum. I appreciate the question, the attitude, the concern, and the commitment to support the ministry financially.
I received permission to discuss this question with you.
The idea of tithe is something that was specific to the Old Covenant. The English word shows up 30 times in the NASB, and only five of those occurrences are in the New Testament. In every case, the New Testament is referring to the Old Covenant practice. The tithe was tied to the temple and to the theocratic government of Israel.
In 2 Corinthians 8-9, Paul teaches voluntary giving that flows from first giving oneself to the Lord for the privilege of participating in God's mission for the Church. No law, just liberty. (The email I received was rightly concerned about the third "L" - license, turning liberty into an excuse for sinful attitudes.)
But that's the technical, theological view, and doesn't do justice to the strong concerns behind the question I got. The questioner respectfully holds a different view, and I completely support the motives and conclusions that they been drawn as a family.
When we talk about a tithe, the most common number discussed is 10% (of total gross income). Although I'm not a proponent of a New Testament tithe in the technical sense, I think this is a great target. Not everyone can do 10%. God will lead some to give more. But as a general rule of thumb, unless you have a strong sense of God's leading, otherwise it's a pretty good, challenging goal to set for one's financial stewardship.
If members of the churches across the US would give 10%, we could easily more than double ministry here and abroad. Plus, we would go a long way in developing hearts that were sacrificial and more Kingdom-focused.
As a practical goal, something like 10% minimum is a fine practice. However, I still choose to avoid the term tithe, and encourage every family to prayerfully, submissively consider what God would have you do. Read 2 Cor 8-9 carefully and determine to the best of your ability what kind of giver God wants you to be. And remember that generosity is not measured by quantity or by percentage, but in Christlikeness of one's attitude and actions (2 Cor 8:9).
There are several good articles on the topic at http://bible.org/topics/367/Tithing and http://bible.org/article/financial-faithfulness.
A few days later, I received a very thoughtful, respectful question about this teaching, especially the idea that I was not teaching that we should endeavor to give a minimum percentage as a tithe. Many of us were taught to tithe, and it's a discipline that helps us to give with good motives. The person sending the email clearly cares about the health of the church, the need for us to be good givers, and the negative consequences if the members of a church didn't endeavor to give a certain percentage as a minimum. I appreciate the question, the attitude, the concern, and the commitment to support the ministry financially.
I received permission to discuss this question with you.
The idea of tithe is something that was specific to the Old Covenant. The English word shows up 30 times in the NASB, and only five of those occurrences are in the New Testament. In every case, the New Testament is referring to the Old Covenant practice. The tithe was tied to the temple and to the theocratic government of Israel.
In 2 Corinthians 8-9, Paul teaches voluntary giving that flows from first giving oneself to the Lord for the privilege of participating in God's mission for the Church. No law, just liberty. (The email I received was rightly concerned about the third "L" - license, turning liberty into an excuse for sinful attitudes.)
But that's the technical, theological view, and doesn't do justice to the strong concerns behind the question I got. The questioner respectfully holds a different view, and I completely support the motives and conclusions that they been drawn as a family.
When we talk about a tithe, the most common number discussed is 10% (of total gross income). Although I'm not a proponent of a New Testament tithe in the technical sense, I think this is a great target. Not everyone can do 10%. God will lead some to give more. But as a general rule of thumb, unless you have a strong sense of God's leading, otherwise it's a pretty good, challenging goal to set for one's financial stewardship.
If members of the churches across the US would give 10%, we could easily more than double ministry here and abroad. Plus, we would go a long way in developing hearts that were sacrificial and more Kingdom-focused.
As a practical goal, something like 10% minimum is a fine practice. However, I still choose to avoid the term tithe, and encourage every family to prayerfully, submissively consider what God would have you do. Read 2 Cor 8-9 carefully and determine to the best of your ability what kind of giver God wants you to be. And remember that generosity is not measured by quantity or by percentage, but in Christlikeness of one's attitude and actions (2 Cor 8:9).
There are several good articles on the topic at http://bible.org/topics/367/Tithing and http://bible.org/article/financial-faithfulness.
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
What's the deal with the structure?
Last Sunday, we covered Psalm 106, and we saw how the psalm was laid out:
This kind of literary structure is called a chiasm (KEE-asm, or a "chiastic" structure), and they are actually pretty common in both the Old and New Testaments. I try not to "nerd it up" too much during a sermon with terms like this (only when I feel it will really be helpful), so I didn't mention what this structure was called or why they are important. The name "chiasm" comes from the Greek word for the letter "x," which is "chi," because the structure resembles the left half of the letter "x."
Why does Scripture have them, and why so frequently? First, it's a nice literary device - it's parallel and balanced, it reinforces ideas, and it organizes the point being made. Second, it helps set off one section of Scripture from another. The chiasm should be treated as a unit, somewhat distinct from what precedes and what follows. It helps us to know which ideas belong together, and we should study chiasms as a group, rather than separated into parts. You fully understand the point when you take it all together.
Third, a majority of the original audience of Scripture were listeners and not readers. They didn't have chapter numbers, verse numbers, or helpful paragraph headings. You can't always hear where a paragraph ends, for example. Literary structures like parallelism, transitional phrases, and chiasms help a listening audience know how the book is organized and how the thoughts go together.
Chiasms are important because, as noted earlier, they help us to know how best to study Scripture well. Literary units should most often be studied as units. Chiasms are also important because they help draw our attention to the center of the chiasm. In this case, the author draws our attention to the "résumé of rebellion," the large center section of the psalm. That's the author's teaching tool - Israel's repeatedly errant history. The other parts of the psalm help us to put that history in perspective and what to do about it.
That's why we started the sermon from the inside and worked our way out.
There's always a wise caution with chiasms, though. Some people go crazy with them - finding them where they don't really exist in Scripture, trying to make too big of a deal of how the structure affects the meaning of the passage, and so on. Structures like chiasms are helpful literary devices, not magic keys to unlock the "true" meaning of Scripture.
It's OK to "nerd it up" in the newsletter, right?
Praise (1-3)
Request (4-5)
Israel forgot, but God saved (6-12)
Israel’s résumé of rebellion (13-39)
Israel angered, but God remembered (40-46)
Request (47)
Praise (48)
This kind of literary structure is called a chiasm (KEE-asm, or a "chiastic" structure), and they are actually pretty common in both the Old and New Testaments. I try not to "nerd it up" too much during a sermon with terms like this (only when I feel it will really be helpful), so I didn't mention what this structure was called or why they are important. The name "chiasm" comes from the Greek word for the letter "x," which is "chi," because the structure resembles the left half of the letter "x."
Why does Scripture have them, and why so frequently? First, it's a nice literary device - it's parallel and balanced, it reinforces ideas, and it organizes the point being made. Second, it helps set off one section of Scripture from another. The chiasm should be treated as a unit, somewhat distinct from what precedes and what follows. It helps us to know which ideas belong together, and we should study chiasms as a group, rather than separated into parts. You fully understand the point when you take it all together.
Third, a majority of the original audience of Scripture were listeners and not readers. They didn't have chapter numbers, verse numbers, or helpful paragraph headings. You can't always hear where a paragraph ends, for example. Literary structures like parallelism, transitional phrases, and chiasms help a listening audience know how the book is organized and how the thoughts go together.
Chiasms are important because, as noted earlier, they help us to know how best to study Scripture well. Literary units should most often be studied as units. Chiasms are also important because they help draw our attention to the center of the chiasm. In this case, the author draws our attention to the "résumé of rebellion," the large center section of the psalm. That's the author's teaching tool - Israel's repeatedly errant history. The other parts of the psalm help us to put that history in perspective and what to do about it.
That's why we started the sermon from the inside and worked our way out.
There's always a wise caution with chiasms, though. Some people go crazy with them - finding them where they don't really exist in Scripture, trying to make too big of a deal of how the structure affects the meaning of the passage, and so on. Structures like chiasms are helpful literary devices, not magic keys to unlock the "true" meaning of Scripture.
It's OK to "nerd it up" in the newsletter, right?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)